Determination of Soil Bearing Capacity from Spectral Analysis of Surface Wave Test, Standard Penetration Test and Mackintosh Probe Test

Abstract

Spectral Analysis of Surface Wave (SASW) method is one of soil investigation methods which promotes cost-effective and less time-consuming procedures, apart form of its non-destructive nature. This study aims to determine the soil ultimate bearing capacity obtained from the SASW method by using Ali Keceli’s equation for sandy silt soil. The finding in terms of bearing capacity is then compared to the Standard Penetration Test (SPT) and Mackintosh Probe (MP) results. All the tests were conducted at seven different locations. It is found that there is no 1:1 relationship between the bearing capacity obtained from SPT and SASW although the pattern of the trendline is similar. However, the pattern of the trendline captured is not as similar as SPT for MP and SASW. The coefficient of determination (R2) between SPT and SASW varies from 0.74 to 0.95 and the R2 between the MP and SASW varies from 0.43 to 0.77. The overall R2 found for SPT and SASW is 0.87 and 0.74 for MP and SASW in all locations. For the comparison with SPT and MP, SASW is well-correlated with SPT and moderately with MP. From this study, it can be concluded that SASW has the potential to determine the ultimate bearing capacity of soil as an alternative to SPT and MP tests.