Papers and Reports

This program has been developed for past years, and this has been employed to analyze several foundation structures for sanitary and water treatment plant projects throughout the United States, and the resulting ‘feedback’ has resulted in this further extension. Generally, there are two methods for analysis the foundation structures. The first method is characterized by converting the pressure reactions into the equivalent spring constants to be located at every point as if there were independent elastic supports along the finite element bridge. The second method is furnished by continuity of the elastic solid, in contrast to the first method, it is the case of complete continuity under the bridge. The first method is much mathematically simpler, reader can refer to Wang’s and Bowles’ (5.7) as is an elementary solution (approximate) for the elastic solid foundation, consequently, the resultants would be questionable if widened the finite length for computation. For this reason, the second method will be fully carried out in this program by mathematical model for the analysis of the structures on elastic foundation. Therefore the method applied in this literature will be the entire classic engineering mathematical response. For the variable thickness beam on elastic foundation, the problems will be solved by corrective force method in same manner as for statically indeterminate structures. The approaching technique will be also described in this literature. This program was developed by Structural Department, Brown and Caldwell Consulting Engineers, Walnut Creek, California.