The bearing capacity and failure mechanism of a vertically loaded strip footing placed on the top of slopes

This study evaluates the bearing capacity and failure mechanism of strip footings placed on the top of slopes. A set of design charts containing the detailed critical failure mechanism information is presented for engineering practice. The results show that six distinct failure modes can be attributed to the bearing capacity of footings or to the slope stability issues based on the contribution of the soil self-weight. The occurrence of toe failure (S) is the threshold between the two geotechnical issues. The analytical solution based on the face failure mode is a conservative solution for bearing capacity issue.