S Davarifard - MSc graduated, K.N. Toosi University of Technology, Valiasr St., Mirdamad Cr., Tehran, Iran
S.N Moghaddas Tafreshi - Professor, K.N. Toosi University of Technology, Valiasr St., Mirdamad Cr., Tehran, Iran

Geosynthetic material such as geogrid and geocell have been widely used in geotechnical engineering applications for e.g., road construction layers, stable embankments over soft soil, and expedient access over soft ground. An additional, possible, use would be to improve the bearing capacity of footings. Although, the experimental studies on surface footing supported by geocell have most often been studied, there is a major lack of studies into the bearing capacity and pressure distribution of footings with embedment depth when supported on geocell-reinforced soil. This paper describes the effect of embedment depth on increase of bearing capacity of footing supported by geocell-reinforcement, using plate load test in an outdoor test pit, measuring 2000 x 2000 mm in plan and 1000 mm in depth. The test results demonstrate that the bearing pressure increases with embedment depth ratio, however its salient effect occurred with reinforced sand bed.

Bearing pressure, Embedment depth, Geocell reinforcement, Plate load test