Tower Design using Etabs:

Chapter 2
Pile Caps Design
 ABSTRACT
“Chapter 1 of Tower Design using Etabs ” produced a full model with the
needed loads and parameters thus this
t his series will discuss about
transferring the loads from the vertical structural elements
ele ments to the
foundation. Our aim is to clarify why we are using piles, when they
t hey are
used and how to use them as a foundation for our structure.

Wri
Wr i tte
tten by : Nada Zarrak

C hecked by 
by : Ahmed Sameer Zarrak

1|Page
 Table of Contents:
ABSTRAC
ABSTRACT
T................................
.................................................
..................................
.................................
.................................
............................
........... 1
*Piles
*Piles Concept:
Concept:......................................
.......................................................
.................................
.................................
...............................
.............. 3
-Definiti
-Definition
on of Pile: .......................
........................................
.................................
..................................
..................................
...................
... 3
-When Piles are used?................................
.................................................
..................................
.................................
......................
...... 3
-Number
-Number of piles:..................................
..................................................
..................................
..................................
...........................
........... 3
-Load Applied on pile: ....................................................................................... 4
-Capacity of pile due to soil: .............................................................................. 4
*Pile caps and Piles first Assumption: ................................................................... 6
*AutoCAD
*AutoCAD Stage:.................
Stage:..................................
..................................
..................................
.................................
..............................
.............. 9
-AutoCAD Drawing Steps: ...............................................................................11
*Etabs
*Etabs Stage: .................................
.................................................
.................................
.................................
..................................
......................13
....13
*Safe2016
*Safe2016 Stage: .................................
.................................................
.................................
.................................
................................1
................14
4
*Modal Analysis:
Analysis: ...............................
................................................
..................................
.................................
................................2
................26
6
-Piles
-Piles Reaction
Reaction Check:
Check: ...............................
................................................
..................................
.................................
.....................26
.....26
-Pile
-Pile Caps Design:
Design: ...............................
................................................
...................................
..................................
..........................29
..........29
1. Punching Shear Check: .......................................................................29
2. Pile Caps Reinforcement: ....................................................................30
3. Pile Caps Typical detail Plan: ..............................................................35
Conclusi
Conclusion:
on: .................................
..................................................
..................................
.................................
.................................
...........................36
..........36

2|Page
Piles Concept:

Definition of Pile:

Piles are vertical elements used mainly to transfer loads of the structure to the
t he soil or

rock . Piles material could be reinforced concrete, steel or t imber and it depends on the

situation of the site or the decision of the structural

st ructural engineer. The design of piles are

divided into two sections, short pile and long pile. When length of pile (L) over its

diameter (D) is less than

t han 4, it is considered as a short pile and when its length (L) over

its diameter (D) is more than

t han 4, it is considered as a long pile. It is the job of the sub-

contractor to classify the pile design in order to design it as per requirements.

When Piles are used?

Piles are used in areas where the bearing capacity of

o f the soil is very low when

compared to the load applied from the structure. To illustrate, when the applied

vertical load (Reaction from the vert ical super structural elements-walls or columns)

over the area of the structure is greater than the bearing capacity of the soil

 
(
  
≥ s). Thus, deeper foundation is required to reach to a higher

 bearing capacity  s.

Number of piles:

When the structural engineer determines to use the Piles as a foundation

foundation type for the

super structure, he has to determine the number of piles required. The piles n umber

are determined by dividing the load applied over the pile’s capacity.

pile’s  capacity.  = 


3|Page
From Etabs we can get the load applied on each column thus we can deter mine how

many number of piles needed under each column. The pile capacity is divided into

two capacities. First is due to its material and second due to soil. Since the pile

capacity due to material is more than

t han the capacity due to soil, we have to take the

smallest value to ensure a safer design. To get the pile’s capacity

capacit y due to soil we have

to check the technical soil report.

Load Applied on pile:

As we know, we have the factored load and the service stat e however, which one we

should consider in the design stage! We might think it is proper to take t he factorized

loads but in case of pile caps and piles, t he safest among these two is the SERVICE

LOAD STATE. The

The reason behind it is the difference
differe nce between the Safety Factor of

loads applied and pile’s capacity.

pile’s capacity. The average factor of safety considered for piles is

2.5 however, for the Ultimate Load Combination

Combination we have 1.2DL+1.6 LL. Such

noticable difference will reduce the amoun

a mountt of Safety
Safet y Factor and in such cases; the

Service Load State should be taken into account.

Capacity of pile due to soil:

The relationship between the pile and the soil are fr iction and end bearing. Both

relationships gives the pile a capacity to

t o handle the vertical load applied. There are

several theories to calculate t he friction and the end bearing forces but as a str uctural

engineer, the soil laboratories will provide both forces depending on the t ype of the

4|Page
soil, the standard penetration test and many other factors. As a result,
r esult, the total

capacity of the pile will equal to t he capacity due to friction and end bearing.

Figure 1: Friction and End Bearing Capacity due to Soil, http://civiltraining.in

The table below is an example of a pile capacity with reference to its length, depth of
 boreholes and pile diameter. For example for a depth of 20 m, a pile length of 11 and
a pile diameter of 0.6m, the pile capacity due to skin friction is 2305 KN and 1018
KN from end bearing thus total capacity of the pile is equal to 3323 KN.

Figure 2: Soil Report example for a pile cap capacity due to soil

5|Page
Pile caps and Piles first Assumption:

In general, the Soil Report confirm about using Piles as a Foundation. As a result, the

first step is to draw t he first assumption of the arrangement of the Piles and the Pile

Caps depths.

Open EtabsDisplayForce/Stress DiagramsSupport/Spring reactions

Figure 3: Etabs2015-Display Reactions-Envelop Service

In order to show the Columns and Walls reaction you have to set the Plan to 3 -d from
the tool bar on Etabs.

6|Page
Figure 4: Etabs-Column and Walls reaction

An Example on how to determine number of

o f Pile needed below each column
co lumn or wall

is as the following:

Reaction from Wall = 1255 KN + 1121 KN = 2376 KN

Using Table of Piles Capacity “Figure 2”, Pile diameter of 0.6m and z= 20m has a

capacity of 3323 KN which is more than the wall reaction thus one pile is used.

Several Parameters are used when drawing Piles and Pile Caps:

1. Min distance between two piles is 2.5Ø, while Ø is Pile Diameter.

2. A cover of 20 or 25 cm is added from the first edge when assigning sizes of

Pile Caps.

7|Page
 3. The center of mass of Pile should be located at the center of mass of the

Column.

4. Tie Beams should be added in order to link the Pile Caps together.

5. Minimum Pile Cap Thick = 50 Ø (Pile Rebar Diameter) + 20cm Rebar Cover
+ 10 cm Pile embedment

Figure 5: Pile Cap Min Thickness Explanation

8|Page
 AutoCAD Stage:

One of the main part in the Design Process is AutoCAD as it is used to DRAW the

first assumption of the required Piles beneath each column and wall. The figure below

shows the application of the criteria mentioned previously. A Pile of 0.6m diameter

(green) is used to support a 2m Wall (yellow) with

w ith a cover of 20cm (red) at t he first

face for the size of the Pile Cap (white).

Figure 6: Case 1, Pile and Pile Cap DWG example.

Figure 7: Case 2, Three Piles distribution below a vertical support

9|Page
As shown in the figure above, the reaction from the wall resulted in three piles in a

diameter of 1.2 m. The min distance from c/c of pi les was (2.5x1.2) =3 m.

Figure 8: Case 3, Piles distribution below Core Wall

Figure 7 shows the economical side of arranging piles. The Core wall is only carrying

five podiums thus only four piles needed with a diameter of 0.7m. The piles were

located at the inner edge of the core

cor e as they satisfy the
t he regulation of min 2.5Ø

distance from c/c pile and as a result, the Pile Cap size
s ize has been reduced. In addition

the following steps below will help you to produce a neat and easy drawing to be

exported into SAFE2016.

SAFE2016.

10 | P a g e
AutoCAD Drawing Steps:

1. Arrange Pile Caps, Piles Diameter and Tie Beams in different Layers as

shown in Figure 9 in order to ease drawing in SAFE.

Figure 9: AutoCAD Layers of Piles, Pile Caps and Tie Beams

2. Make sure the Origin Points in your Drawings same as in your imported E2K

in order to be located at the

t he same position.

3. Make sure the Unit used in AutoCAD is “Millimeters” as in your E2K file.

Figure 10: AutoCAD Drawing Units

11 | P a g e
 4. Save the Drawing into a DXF File Format in order to be read by SAFE2016

Figure 11: AutoCAD Final Stage DWG with Piles and Pile Caps

12 | P a g e
Etabs Stage:

The first chapter of Tower design using Etabs modeled and analyzed a residential

tower. Our next aim is to design the foundation “Pile Caps” in order to support our

structure. The main step of the whole process is to export t he reactions from the

vertical elements “Columns and Walls”.

1. File  Export  Story as Safe V12.f2k File

Figure 12: Option for Export to Safe.f2k file

 Story: Base
 Loads to Export: Export Floor Loads and Loads from Above
 Select Load Cases: All
 Select Load Combinations: Service Load Combos ONLY

13 | P a g e
Safe2016 Stage:

1. From AutoCAD save the DWG to a DXF

2. Open Safe  File SAFE.F2K File  Choose you F2K File.
3. File  Import  DXF/DWG Architectural Plan

Figure 13: Imported E2K with DXF Plan

14 | P a g e
 1. Define Material: Define Material Add new Material:

Material Name: Fcu 50

Material Type: Concrete

Weight per Unit Volume: 25 kN/m3

Modulus of Elasticity: 4700 √  ′  as per ACI 318

Specified Concrete Compressive Strength, F’c = 0.8xFcu

Figure 14: SAFE2016, Material Property Data

2. Define Slab Property: Define  Slab Properties  Add new Property:

Slab Material: assign the Material you defined

Analysis Property Data, Type: Slab

Analysis Property Data, Thickness: as assumed

Choose Thick Plate

15 | P a g e
 Figure 15: SAFE2016, Slab Property Data

3. Piles capacity in SAFE are represented as Point Springs with


Vertical stiffness K=  ,
∆
P is Pile Capacity

Δ is allowable displacement for pile= 0.01*D, D=Pile Diameter , mm

Horizontal Stiffness = 0.1K

Define Point Spring: Define  Point Spring Properties  Add New Property:

Translation Z (Linear) = K

Translation X = 0.1K

Translation Y = 0.1K

 Nonlinear Option=
Option= None (Linear), used in case of a sensitive building

16 | P a g e
 Figure 16: SAFE2016, Point Spring Property Data

4. Make Sure an Envelope Service Combination

Co mbination Exists.

Figure 17: SAFE 2016 Load Combination Data, Envelope-Service

17 | P a g e
 5. Start Drawing the Pile
P ile Caps using “Draw Slabs/Areas" Command in the left
 bar tools.

Draw Slabs/Areas

Slab Thickness:

 Blue: 3000mm
 Yellow: 2000mm
 Red: 1200mm

Figure 18: SAFE2016, Pile Caps Plan with section properties

18 | P a g e
 6. To draw Piles that are represented by Point
Point Springs as mentioned previously:

- p lans to ease assigning  For

Try to show each pile diameter in separate plans

example: Option  Architectural Opt ions  Choose Pi60

Plan Options

- In order to assign Point Spring you have to draw first a Point  Draw 

Draw Points “Check Figure 19”

Figure 19: SAFE2016, Draw Points Command

-

- Select the Points for Pi60  Assign  Support Data  Point Springs 

Choose Pi60 for an example.

- Follow the same steps for the rest of Piles Diameter

- Make sure Points option is checked in the “Set Display Option”

19 | P a g e
 Figure 20: SAFE2016, Piles as Points Spring Plan

20 | P a g e
 7. Define Tie Beams: Define  Beam Properties  Add New Property:

Beam Material: Fcu50

Beam Shape Type: Rectangle Beam

Web Width at Top: 300 mm

Web Width at Bottom: 300mm

Depth: 1000mm

Figure 21: SAFE2016, Beam Property Data, TB

- Draw Beam using “Draw Beams/Lines Command” on the left bar tools.

Draw Beams/Lines

21 | P a g e
 Figure 22: SAFE2016, Tie Beams Plan Extrude View

22 | P a g e
 8. Draw Design Strips: Design strips are drawn in order to check and design the
Pile Caps. Both direction
direct ion (X&Y) should be added and they are represe nted by
Strip Layer Type. It’s the Engineer’s decision in defining the direction type.
Usually Layer A is considered the X direction and Layer B is the Y
Direction. Strip widths usually taken
take n to be 3m.

Draw Design Strips

Figure 23: SAFE2016, Design strips Layer A

Figure 24: SAFE2016, Design strips Layer B

- Start Width and End Width: used to define the width of the strip
st rip in which
it will study the slab area for the
t he design process.
- Drawing design strips is like section cut but it covers more in width.
- Draw design strips for each pile cap separate ly in order to find the
reinforcement required for both directions.

23 | P a g e
 Figure 25: Pile Caps size

- Figure 25 shows a pile

p ile cap of 160x460 size
- To draw design strip for the pile cap of 160x460 size 

Figure 26: Design Strip width example, Layer A

Figure 27: Design Strip width example, Layer B

24 | P a g e
 - Figure 26 shows the width taken to cover the slab in the Y direction as the
 pile cap size is 1000mm thus the start and end
end with as taken as 0.5m and
strip layer type is B as we defined
de fined layer B to be Y direction. Then draw the
design strip at the middle of the pile cap “ Pink Line”
- To Show the width  Set Display option 

Figure 28: SAFE2016, Set Display Option

- The same procedure is done for the other direction and for the rest for the
Pile Caps.
9. Save the Model and Run.

25 | P a g e
Modal Analysis:

Piles Reaction Check:

After running the Model, display the react ion from Envelope
Envelope Service Combination in

order to compare it with the pile’s capacity.

- Display  Show Reaction Forces  Check the figure below

Max or Min used to check the

Piles’
Piles’ capacity in Compression
and Tension

Figure 29: SAFE2016, Display Reaction, Point Reactions

26 | P a g e
 - The two figures below show two different cases for the assumption of
 pile’s capacity

Case 2

Case 1

Case 2

Case 1

27 | P a g e
 - Case 1: The Reaction
React ion from Envelope
Envelope Service
Ser vice Combination= 1506.566 KN

Pile Capacity for P60= 3323 KN as per Figure 2  Assumption Correct

- Case 2: The Reaction

React ion from Envelope Service Combination=6918.95
Combination=6918.95 KN

Pile Capacity for P70= 4075 KN  Extra Pile need to be added.

- Follow the procedure for the rest of the piles until you e nd up with a safe

foundation.

- It is important to check the Pile’s capacity

capacit y in Compression and Tension,

using Max or Min display in Load Combination. Both should determine

the appropriate Piles that should be used.

28 | P a g e
Pile Caps Design:

1. Punchi
Punchi ng She
S hea
ar C heck:
heck:
- The first check of the Pile caps is “Punching”; this criterion will be the

first step for the check of the cap’s thickness. However since our columns

are tied with “Tie Beams”, no punching check needed and the
t he program

would give an “N/C” Notation.

Notation.

To check Punching: Display  Show Punching Shear Design or from

Tools:

Figure 30: SAFE2016, Punching Shear Check, N/C

29 | P a g e
 2. P i le C aps Re
R ei nfo
nfor cem
cement:

To design the Pile Caps:

- Check Material of Rebar: Define  Materials 

Figure 31: SAFE2016, Material Property Data, Rebar

Material Type: Rebar

Weight per Unit Volume: 78.5 KN/m3

Fy = 420 N/mm2

30 | P a g e
 - Display  Show Slab Design:

Figure 32: SAFE2016, Slab Design

- Design Basis: Strip Based  as per our strip addition

additio n
- Design Type: Enveloping Flexural Reinforcement
- Reinforcing Display Type: for example, size of bar to be added in Top and
Bottom = 20 mm, it is up to the Engineer’s choice on how to display the
Rebar required.
- Show Rebar Above Specified Value: None, or it is used when the
minimum rebar is defined so the addition would be shown on the plan.
- Apply

31 | P a g e
 Figure 33: SAFE2016, Layer A, Top and Bottom Flexural Reinforcement

- Using the cursor, the max number of Bars in Top is 15T20 and Bottom
15T32 “Long Rebar”, using “figure 37” you can check the typical detail
deta il of
 pile cap reinforcement.

Figure 34: SAFE2016, Layer B, Top and Bottom Flexural Reinforcement

32 | P a g e
For Shear reinforcement or face rebar check:

Figure 35: SAFE2016, Slab Design, Shear Reinforcement

Figure 36: SAFE2016, Shear Reinforcement, Layer A and B

33 | P a g e
 - As shown in “figure 36”, the design strip A and B shows that the pile cap

needs an Area of 1523.353 mm2 of shear reinforcement or face bar  Ø16

is used.

- To check Spacing: the Pile Cap width = 1600 mm, cover of rebar = 150

mm  (1600 – 
 (1600  –  (2x150) – 
 (2x150)  –  (15x32)
 (15x32) /14) = 58.57 mm  Spacing between

 bars is satisfied.

Figure 37: Schedule of Pile Cap Example

34 | P a g e
 3. P i le C aps Typ
T ypii cal
cal deta
detaii l Pla
P lan:
n:

Figure 38: Pile Cap Typical Detail Plan

Figure 39: Pile Cap Typical Section with Pile Lapping Reinforcement

35 | P a g e
 Conclusion:
The Manual explains the concept of transferring the load from the super

structure up to the soil throughout Piles, which has a capacity of (End bearing,

and Skin friction). Specialized Technical laboratories provide the capacities’

value from working loads that are estimated based on the unconfined

compressive strength of the rock cores extracted from various depths of the

drilled Boreholes in addition to its capacity in tension. At the end of this report,

you will be able to extract number of piles needed, sufficient pile cap

thicknesses and an appropriate finalized foundation.

Special Thanks to my Father..

For any Information, Questions or Doubts please

pl ease contact:
Nada.Zarrak@hotmail.com

36 | P a g e