This book presents the fundamental features of the design and performance of combined pile-raft foundations (CPRFs). Whereas in a traditional foundation the loads are carried either by the raft or by the piles, the capacity of CPRFs is assessed for the foundation as a whole, reducing total and differential settlements economically.
The five chapters provide an overview of the historical development of piled rafts in practice and research, and of the design concepts developed for piled rafts over the last decades. Fundamental aspects of their bearing behaviour are presented, as well as an overview of the framework of the design process for CPRFs, including the safety concept, the design approach summarized in the ISSMGE Combined Pile-Raft Foundation Guideline (ISSMGE TC 212 2013) and the interaction between structural and geotechnical engineering. For numerical analysis based on the finite element method, guidance is given on creating the model and performing the calculations b
