Long-Term Settlement of Dynamically Loaded Shallow Foundations

Abstract

Analytical approaches to determine the long-term settlement of shallow foundations subjected to dynamic cyclic loading with a large number of cycles (millions) are presented. The approaches use the high-cycle accumulation (HCA) model to calculate the permanent strain caused by the cyclic loading and are conceptionally similar to conventional settlement analyses. The incorporation of a threshold strain amplitude, below which no accumulation of deformations occurs, in the HCA model is discussed. It is demonstrated that the simple analytical approach, which does not require numerical calculations, gives results very similar to more complex finite-element simulations.