TABLE 4-2

TABLE 4-3

Bearing-capacity factors for the

Terzaghi equations

Shape, depth, and inclination factors for

the Meyerhof bearing-capacity equations
of Table 4-1

Values of A7y for </> of 0, 34, and 48 are original

Terzaghi values and used to back-compute Kp7

<Meg

Nc

Nq

N7

K^

0
5
10
15
20
25
30
34
35
40
45
48
50

5.7*
7.3
9.6
12.9
17.7
25.1
37.2
52.6
57.8
95.7
172.3
258.3
347.5

1.0
1.6
2.7
4.4
7.4
12.7
22.5
36.5
41.4
81.3
173.3
287.9
415.1

0.0
0.5
1.2
2.5
5.0
9.7
19.7
36.0
42.4
100.4
297.5
780.1
1153.2

10.8
12.2
14.7
18.6
25.0
35.0
52.0
82.0
141.0
298.0

Factors

Value

For

Shape:

Depth:

Inclination:

800.0

*NC = 1.5TT + 1. [See Terzaghi (1943), p. 127.]

Where Kp = tan 2 (45 + 4>/2) as in Fig. 4-2

0 = angle of resultant R measured from vertical without
a sign; if d = OaIl/, = 1.0.
B, L, D = previously defined

so that the shear resistance along cd of Fig. A-3a could be neglected. Table 4-1 lists the
Terzaghi equation and the method for computing the several N1- factors and the two shape
factors si. Table 4-2 is a short table of TV factors produced from a computer program and
edited for illustration and for rapid use by the reader. Terzaghi never explained very well
how he obtained the KP7 used to compute the bearing-capacity factor N 7 . He did, however,
give a small-scale curve of <fi versus N7 and three specific values of N7 at cf) = 0, 34, and
48 as shown on Table 4-2. The author took additional points from this curve and used a
computer to back-compute KP7 to obtain a table of best-fit values from which the tabulated
values of N7 shown in Table 4-2 could be computed from the equation for N7 shown in Table
4-1. Inspection of Table 4-4 indicates that the Meyerhof N7^M) values are fairly close except
for angles of (/> > 40. Other approximations for N7 include the following:
N7 = 2(Nq + l)tan<
N7 = 1.1(A^ - 1) tan 1.30

Vesic (1973)
Spangler and Handy (1982)

The N7 value has the widest suggested range of values of any of the bearing-capacity N
factors. A literature search reveals
38 < N7 < 192

for</> - 40

In this textbook values from Tables 4-2 and 4-4 give a range from about 79 to 109.
Recently Kumbhojkar (1993) presented a series of values of N7 with the claim they are
better representations of the Terzaghi values than those of Table 4-2. An inspection of these