Simulative study of the interactions between two neighboring shallow foundations

Foundations are designed to receive both imposed loads and superimposed loads and evenly distribute these loads to the bearing soil. Construction of load bearing elements can necessitate that two shallow foundations should have a close proximity. This close proximity gives birth to interactions studied numerically in this article. This study investigates the influence of horizontal and vertical space separation on the settlement of the foundations in soft clay soil. In this study, the Numerical method of research Cast3m was used.  A geometrical model with mechanical characteristics to translate exactly a real case was built. At the end of the simulation, the space separation versus settlement behavior followed an exponential increase whereby, beyond a space separation to base ratio greater than or equal to 0.7 there was no interaction. The closer the two foundations, the more the horizontal displacements at the extremities of both foundations-both foundations tend to function like a single footing when they are closely spaced. This study is a breakthrough in foundation interactions for the case of clay soil as many researchers have concentrated their studies on sandy soil. Civil Engineers, Architects should consider the effect of space separation influence carried out in this study when doing conception and analysis of structures.