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Encyclopedia of Engineering Geology pp 1–3Cite as

Bearing Capacity

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Part of the book series: Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series ((EESS))

Definition

Bearing capacity is the maximum stress or pressure that a footing can sustain without failure of the soil or rock that is supporting the footing. Bearing capacity is a function of the shear strength of the soil material or rock mass, but it also depends on the size and shape of the footing and the thickness of soil or rock adjacent to and above the base of the footing.

Context

Bearing capacity is a soil–structure interaction phenomenon. Typically, it is associated with foundations of buildings, which is the domain of structural and geotechnical engineers. Engineering geologists provide valuable site characterization details pertaining to the nature and uniformity or variability of subsurface earth materials, as well as the geohazards that might affect site suitability or represent constraints that require design provisions or mitigation by ground improvement prior to construction.

For buildings supported on shallow foundations (spread footings), the weight of the building is...

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References

  • Coduto DP, Kitch WA, Yeung MR (2016) Foundation design: principles and practices, 3rd edn. Pearson, New York

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  • Darling P (ed) (2011) SME mining engineering handbook, 3rd edn. Society for Mining, Metallurgy, and Exploration, Englewood. Available from http://www.smenet.org/. Accessed May 2016

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Amec Foster Wheeler, Los Angeles, CA, 90040, USA

    Jeffrey R. Keaton

Authors
  1. Jeffrey R. Keaton
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Jeffrey R. Keaton .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Earth Sciences, Simon Fraser University, Kanata, Ontario, Canada

    Peter T. Bobrowsky

  2. London, United Kingdom

    Brian Marker

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© 2017 Springer International Publishing AG

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Keaton, J.R. (2017). Bearing Capacity. In: Bobrowsky, P., Marker, B. (eds) Encyclopedia of Engineering Geology. Encyclopedia of Earth Sciences Series. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-12127-7_27-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-12127-7_27-1

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-12127-7

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-12127-7

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference Earth and Environm. ScienceReference Module Physical and Materials ScienceReference Module Earth and Environmental Sciences

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