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GATE 2018 CE (CE1) – Question 20

Geotechnical Engineering · Shallow foundations: bearing capacity, combined footing, raft, settlement · 1 mark · Multiple choice

For a strip footing on sand, approximately what percentage reduction in bearing capacity occurs when groundwater rises from much deeper than the footing width to the footing base?

  1. 0
  2. 25
  3. 50
  4. 100

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Show answer and explanation

Correct answer: (C) 50

Explanation

For sand with groundwater at the footing base, the soil-weight contribution uses submerged unit weight instead of the original unit weight. Under the conventional approximation that this is about half, bearing capacity falls approximately 50% (C).