CASE 4

Permissible! settlements - Palace of Fine Arts, Mexico City,

Mexico
case Objectives:
this case illustrates that:
· the nature of the ground was either completely ignored or totally misunderstood
· raft foundations even of considerable thickness can behave in a flexible manner, settling into a
dish-shaped profile
· structures can undergo very large settlements but still provide their intended function (or most
of it)although the serviceability is likely to be impaired
· cracked and heavily distorted structures are unsightly and undesirable whereas a titled structure
can become a curiosity and tourist attraction

The Palacio de Bellas Artes, one of the finest architectural examples in the city, was commenced
in 1904 and following several interruptions was completed in 1934. The structure settled
considerably during and after construction and by 1950 it had settled 3 m below street level
greatly distracting from its architectural merit. Regional settlements in Mexico City due to
groundwater abstraction by pumping have taken place since the latter half of the 19th century and
these have contributed to the structure's settlement, see the
case study in Chapter 6.
The building comprises a structural steel frame
supported on a raft (or mat) foundation 1.8 to 3 m thick..
The building is approximately rectangular with overall
dimensions of 81.4 m by 118.9 m. The raft foundation
extends 1.5 m beyond the structure on all sides except on
the south side where it extends 18m beyond the structure.
The raft was constructed in at least two lifts with 1.2 m of
unreinforced concrete placed first, then steel grillages
followed by lighter weight concrete. The latter was made
using porous volcanic rock as aggregate since settlements
had already been observed following the initial pour. The
grillages consisted of I-beams criss-crossing between the
column bases but these were placed in the upper part of the
raft.
A 1907 survey on top of the raft before the steel
frame had been constructed showed a noticeable
dish-shaped profile with a maximum settlement in the
middle of 38 mm. By 1908 when the steel frame had been
completed the partly built structure had settled 1.68 m and
during 1910 a diagonal crack appeared across the raft. At
this time the settlement was peaking at 43 mm per month (about 1.4 mm per day) and the
north-west corner was settling faster, possibly as a result of more loading at this end.
In 1911-12 stabilisation measures were carried out consisting of encircling the structure with a
row of steel sheet piling about 3 m away from the structure to resist the horizontal pressures or
lateral squeezing of the soil and grout injection into the soils between the sheet piling and the
structure was carried out to stiffen this soil and to (theoretically)increase the bearing area of the
raft foundation. The grout was a 1:2 cement:sand mixture and about 20,000 bags of cement and
4000 m3 of sand were injected. This could have been a very early attempt at compensation
grouting. The rate of settlement was reduced to 11 mm per month but it was still continuing.
At this time cracks in the structure were so large that a person could crawl through them (Rossi,
1955).
Settlement measurements carried out in 1950 (Thornley et al., 1955) showed that the palace
was settling at a rate of 38 mm per year more than the surrounding streets and that the Palace was
in the centre of a settlement bowl extending beyond the structure. It was found that the Palace
itself was settling at a rate of nearly 125 mm per year and that most of the settlement was
occurring within the clay to 33 m below ground level.
Pile foundations taken to the first sand stratum had been used successfully to support adjacent
arge buildings. Indeed, Rossi pointed out that several old Spanish buildings had to be removed to
prepare the site. These were found to have been supported on pile foundations but the piles were
removed and the voids filled with concrete. Rossi proposed demolishing the structure and starting
again using a pile foundation but the architect refused
It is easy to criticise in hindsight but foundation methods previously used on a site should not
be ignored. Thornley's solution was to underpin the structure on piles taken to the first sand layer
and allow the surrounding area to settle under the regional effects.
Other relevant chapters are 5, Stress Distribution and 6, Consolidation.