Relations between load and settlement of circular foundations on or in a dense sand expressed by a function of diameter and depth

When load acts on a circular foundation on or in a dense sand, average contact pressure on the lower surface of the foundation is q and settlement of the foundation is s. Diameter and depth of the foundation are B and Df. When the sand, B and Df are given, we can know the relation between q and s/B by, e.g. a loading test, i.e. the relation is determined by B and Df for the sand. Using the results of numerical analyses, we express a relation between q and s/B up to s=0.1B by functions of a single variable which is a linear combination of B and Df. Consequently when two foundations have different B's and different Df's but have the same value of the variable, the relations are the same. Then we examine whether the functions can express the results of eleven tests of model foundations of wide range of B and/or Df. In all the tests, the relations are expressed with sufficient accuracy. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.