Jestr Journal of Engineering Science and Technology Review 14 (3) (2021) 51 - 58

Research Article
JOURNAL OF
Engineering Science and
Technology Review

r
www.jestr.org

Theoretical Solution of Elastic Foundation Beam based on the Principle of Minimum

Complementary Energy
Yubo Chen1, Chunliu Li2,*, Shuren Wang1, 3, Youkai Wang1 and Dingqi Li1
1
International Joint Research Laboratory of Henan Province for Underground Space Development and Disaster Prevention,
Henan Polytechnic University, Jiaozuo 454003, China
2
Institute of Urban Construction, Hebei Normal University of Science & Technology, Qinhuangdao 066004, China
3
School of Minerals and Energy Resources Engineering, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia

Received 7 January 2021; Accepted 28 May 2021

___________________________________________________________________________________________

Abstract

To simplify and solve the problem of the foundation beam, a half-space elastic foundation beam was selected, and the
elastic foundation beam was systematically explored based on Boussinesq solution and the principle of minimum
complementary energy. The step-by-step loading method was adopted to derive the settlement formula of the foundation
beam. The superposition principle was used and the flexibility influence matrix was introduced to obtain the deformation
energy of the foundation beam under the action of external force, and the complementary energy functional of foundation
beam was established. Combined with the engineering example, the force and settlement of the foundation beam under
the concentrated load and uniform load were calculated respectively, and the distribution characteristic of the ground
reaction was analysed. Results show that the linear homogeneous differential equations with ground reaction as the basic
unknown quantity are established and the method for solving the ground reaction is given. The comparison analysis
proves that the new method is accurate and feasible. The new algorithm using the principle of minimum complementary
energy can provide a reference for solving the similar engineering problems.

Keywords: Elastic foundation beam, Principle of minimum complementary energy, ground reaction, Settlement
__________________________________________________________________________________________

1. Introduction foundation beam model [12], and half-space elastic

foundation beam model [13].
Foundation beams are basic structures in construction and The principle of minimum potential energy is based on
are widely used in various civil and industrial buildings, displacement as the basic unknown quantity. The potential
such as highway construction, strip foundations in railway energy functional is established to solve the settlement,
track design, grid beam foundations, and other building while the ground reaction is calculated from the
structures [1]. Since most engineering structures can be displacement. However, it is rarely reported to solve the
simplified into the calculation of elastic foundation beams, foundation beam based on the principle of minimum
such as high-speed railway, underground pipelines, roof and complementary energy. The reason is that the premise of
floor of the roadway, and other engineering problems [2-4]. using the stress variation method is to set the known stress
Although the calculation of elastic foundation beams is a not only to satisfy the stress boundary condition, but also to
classic research field, with the progress of the technology, satisfy the equilibrium equation, which is difficult to achieve
new foundation models and calculation methods are for general problems. But it is satisfactory for the half-space
emerging one after another [5-8]. elastic foundation beam, and this method can directly solve
At present, the classic theory of elastic foundation beam the ground reaction, avoiding the error of the reaction
is widely used in construction fields, such as roads, railways obtained by the second calculation of the displacement.
and buildings [9-10]. As the scale of modern architectural Although an ideal foundation calculation model has been
design continues to increase, the weight of the building itself established, while with the development of large-scale
continues to increase, and the cost of the building foundation construction projects, the interaction of ground and
also continues to increase, which makes it becoming an foundation beams, slabs and other foundations requires more
important problem to design a foundation that meets the in-depth theoretical studies. How to solve the internal force
needs of the project within an economically reasonable and displacement of the foundation beam more accurately
range. To solve the ground reaction is equivalent to the and conveniently has become the key problem.
contact problem. The difficulty in solving such problems is
the calculation and solution of the interaction between the
ground and the foundation beam. Therefore, the key is to 2. State of the art
choose a suitable foundation model and solution method.
The studies on elastic foundation beam models mainly Because the Winkler model requires few parameters, it has
include Winkler foundation beam model [11], two-parameter been widely used in the world. Many researchers have
studied the Winkler foundation beam combined with the
______________
*E-mail address: lclcc_010@163.com related engineering practice. Yu and Wang established a
ISSN: 1791-2377 © 2021 School of Science, IHU. All rights reserved. calculation model between the side walls of the tunnel based
doi:10.25103/jestr.143.06
 Yubo Chen, Chunliu Li, Shuren Wang, Youkai Wang and Dingqi Li/
Journal of Engineering Science and Technology Review 14 (3) (2021) 51 - 58
on the Winkler foundation beam model, they analyzed the the minimum complementary energy principle, the
distribution of deflection, bending moment and shear force homogeneous linear equations with ground reaction as the
of the side wall [14]. Ge and Xu established a numerical basic unknown quantity were obtained. Finally, combining
method to identify the void area between the foundation with a specific example, the solution was given and
beam and the ground based on the Winkler foundation beam compared with other theoretical solutions to prove the
model [15]. According to the principle of the Winkler elastic correctness and applicability of the new method. The results
foundation beam, the Winkler foundation model has some can provide the theoretical basis and technical support for
defects: The impact of shear deformation and the continuity the similar practice.
of the ground are not considered, and the settlement of the The rest of this study is organized as follows. Section 3
foundation only occurs within the range of its base, which is describes the research methods. Section 4 gives the results
obviously inconsistent with the reality. In addition, and discussion, and finally, the conclusions are summarized
according to the Winkler’s assumption, the coefficient K of in Section 5.
the ground is a constant. But K has more influencing factors
and it is not easy to determine [16-18].
For the elastic half-space foundation model, it considers 3. Methodology
the diffusion of stress and deformation and the interaction
between adjacent loads, which is more in line with the The strain energy generated in the deformation process of
engineering. Wang studied the analytical solutions of free the foundation under the action of the force was calculated,
beams on the elastic half-space ground under arbitrary and then the expression of the complementary energy of the
lateral loads, including the beam deflection, bending foundation was derived. Based on the deformation generated
moment and the contact reaction between the foundation when the beam was bent, the expression of the
beam and the ground [19]. Based on the Boussinesq’s complementary energy of the foundation beam was derived
solution of a half-space elastic ground, Mi studied the local homogeneously. Finally, based on the energy principle, the
elastic solution of the displacement and stress on the surface complementary energy functional of the foundation beam
loaded with nanomaterials under the load considering the was established.
effect of friction [20]. Kontomaris and Malamou solved the
contact force between the rigid ball and the elastic body 3.1 Theoretical analysis of foundation beam
based on the elastic half-space model, and they analysed the The foundation beam is analysed theoretically to study the
deformation law and applicability of the theory under applicability of the minimum complementary energy
different radii of the ball [21]. Baraldi and Tullini proposed a principle. As shown in Fig. 1, the equilibrium differential
simple and effective numerical model of bilateral frictionless equation of the classical beam on elastic foundation is as Eq.
contact between the flexible and rigid foundations in a three- (1).
dimension elastic half-space. They studied the laterally d 4w
isotropic foundations parallel to the isotropic plane of the Eb I 4 = q ( x ) - p ( x ) (1)
dx
half-space boundary and obtained the settlement, the where, w is the deflection of the beam, Eb is the elastic
relationship between the inverse forces [22]. Tang et al. modulus of the beam, I is the moment of inertia, q(x) is the
introduced the new parameters based on the half-space external load on the foundation beam, and p(x) is the ground
elastic model to give answers to satisfy various transverse reaction.
anisotropic elastic models, and they specifically analysed the
influencing factors of the transverse anisotropy [23-25]. The
above mentioned researches all use the half-space elastic
foundation model. But they all have the common
shortcoming that the calculation model based on
Boussinesq’s solution is difficult to be solved directly by
mathematical methods. Therefore, the difficulty in solving
the half-space elastic foundation beam lies in the
mathematical solution.
Among the methods for solving the elastic foundation
beams, the principle of minimum potential energy based on Fig. 1. Mechanical mode of the foundation beam.
the principle of energy variation has been widely used. Based on the Boussinesq’s solution of the half-space
Based on the principle of minimum potential energy and the elastic foundation model, the balance governing equation of
analytical solution of the Winkler foundation beams, Li et al. the half-space elastic foundation beam is derived:
constructed the Euler beam and Timoshenko beam elements
[26-27]. Similarly, Guo et al. used the variational principle 1 - µ 2f d 4 é p(x , V )dxdV ù q( x ) - p( x )
to solve the analytical solution of the bi-parameter elastic × ê òò ú= (2)
foundation beam considering the axial force [28]. Wang et al.
π E f dx 4 êë Ω ( x - x ) ( x - V ) úû
2 2
Eb I
analysed the deflection curve of half-space elastic
foundation beams and compared them with other numerical where, Ef is the elastic modulus of ground, μf is the
methods to analyse the advantages and disadvantages of the Poisson’s ratio of ground. In Eq. (2), p(x) is the unknown
approximate solution [29-31]. function which satisfies the equilibrium condition:
In this study, the elastic half-space foundation beam was
taken as the research object, and the superposition principle ò p( x )dx = ò q( x )dx (3)
was used to deduce the displacement reduction formula of
the elastic half-space foundation under the load transfer Since it is difficult to solve the Eq. (2) mathematically in
action of the upper beam, and the complementary energy combination with the static boundary conditions. For the
functional of the foundation beam was established. Based on foundation beam, the external load on the foundation beam

52
 Yubo Chen, Chunliu Li, Shuren Wang, Youkai Wang and Dingqi Li/
Journal of Engineering Science and Technology Review 14 (3) (2021) 51 - 58
and the ground reaction are shown in Fig. 1, which satisfies (a) Settlement of element center (b) Loading area outside element
the force balance condition, that is, satisfies the known force Fig. 3. Settlement calculation diagram of the element.
boundary condition. The deduction of the complementary
The deformation region of the element is represented by
energy from the balance equation of the foundation beam is
Ω. Taking a micro element in the Ω area, the load on the
based on the equivalent relationship between the deflection
micro element is pdxdy and the load on the micro element
equation and the bending moment equation, which shows
can be regarded as the concentrated load. Based on the
that each cross-section in the foundation beam satisfies the
settlement formula under the concentrated load on the half-
balance differential equation. For the ground, based on the
space elastic ground model, the vertical displacement at the
Boussinesq’s solution to solve the deformation of the half-
center point N of the element under the concentrated load
space elastic ground under the action of force, which shows
can be calculated as Eq. (4).
that any point in the ground satisfies the balance differential
equation and the boundary conditions of force and
displacement. The settlement and force at infinity of the p(1 - µ 02 ) dxdy
w= òò (4)
ground tend to be zero when the weight of the ground is not π E0 Ω (x - a ) 2
+ y2
taken into account, the principle of minimum
complementary energy is suitable for the solution of the where, E0 and μ0 is the elastic modulus and the Poisson’s
foundation beam. ratio of the ground, respectively.
Setting N point as the point in the polar coordinate
3.2 Settlement analysis of half-space elastic ground system, and X-axis is the polar axis of the polar coordinate
To establish the complementary energy functional of the system, the combination of Φ1 and Φ2 into Ω1 is regarded as
foundation beam based on the Boussinesq’s solution, the a region. The rectangular cell ABCN is shown in Fig. 3(a),
settlement formula of the foundation beam under the ∠BNA=α, NA=CB=a, BA=CN=b, so the interval range of
transferred load was deduced, and the complementary
Φ1 and Φ2 is as following:
energy formula of the half-space elastic ground under the
load was further obtained.
As shown in Fig. 2, the contact part of the beam and F1 : 0 £ q £ a , 0 £ r £ a secq
ground is divided into n numbers of equal size elements p (5)
along the length direction by using the method similar to the F 2 : a £ q £ , 0 £ r £ b cscq
2
finite element. Let each cell be 2a in length and 2b in width.
For the beam with rectangular section, the change of the load
The whole rectangular element is divided into four parts:
on the groud in the beam width is ignored. Referring to the
Ω1, Ω2, Ω3, and Ω4. Since Ω1 = Φ1 + Φ2. So Eq. (4) can be
groud reaction shown in Fig. 1, the distributed force on the
calculated as follow:
foundation is recorded as p(x). When the element size is
small enough, the uniform force on each element can be
regarded as a set of concentrated forces. As seen from Fig. 2, dxdy dxdy dxdy
the uniform force of 4abp can be equivalent to the òòW (x - a ) 2
+y 2
= òò
F (x - a ) 2
+y 2
+ òò
F (x - a )2 + y 2
(6)
concentrated force of p1 . So the complementary energy 1 1 2

functional of the foundation beam is deduced, the formula Based on the polar coordinate, Eq. (6) can be solved as
for the settlement of the loaded element is deduced. Eq. (7).

dxdy
òò
W1 (x - a ) 2
+ y2
a a secq 1 p
b cscq 1 (7)
= ò0 dq ò0 × r dr + òa2 dq ò0 × r dr
r r
Fig. 2. Schematic diagram of the equivalent concentrated forces on the = a ln 1 + tan 2 a + tan a - b ln 1 + cot 2 a - cot a
foundation beam.
Setting cotα=a/b=m, then Eq. (7) can be simplified as
As shown in Fig. 3(a), taking any unit in Fig. 2 as the following:
research object and set N as the center of the element. The
whole rectangular region is divided into four equal sized
regions. The ABCN is composed by two parts: Φ1 and Φ2. dxdy é 1 + 1 + m2 ù
òòW = b êm ln + lnæç m + 1 + m 2 ö÷ú (8)
The displacement at point N under the action of load in (x - a )2 + y 2 êë m è øú
û
ABCN region is calculated, and then the displacement 1

expression at the center point of the rectangular element can

be obtained by superposition of four regions. Substituting Eq. (8) into Eq.(4), then Eq. (9) is:

bp(1 - µ 02 ) é ù
w=
π E0 ë
êm ln
1 + 1 + m2
m
+ ln m + 1 + m 2 ú ( ) (9)
û

According to the theory of elasticity, the settlement at

the center point N of the element is the total settlement of the
four parts at N, then Eq. (10) is:

53
 Yubo Chen, Chunliu Li, Shuren Wang, Youkai Wang and Dingqi Li/
Journal of Engineering Science and Technology Review 14 (3) (2021) 51 - 58

4bp(1 - µ02 ) é ù
wN =
π E0
ê m ln
1 + 1 + m2
m
+ ln m + 1 + m 2 ú( ) (10)
ë û n
1 n n n
U1 = åU
i =1
i =
2 åw
i =1
ii pi + å åw
i =1 j =i +1
ij pi (14)
The calculation of the settlement caused by the load
outside the element area is shown in Fig. 3(b). Similarly,
taking a micro-element in ABCD, and regarding the force on
the micro-element as a concentrated force too. So the
settlement of the force on the element ABCD to the point O
is the superposition of two parts. The settlement at O can
also be expressed by w as Eq. (11).
Fig. 4. Schematic diagram of wij.

p(1 - µ02 ) dxdy For each element, there is a linear relationship between
w= òò (11)
π E0 W (2a - x + d ) 2
+y 2
the concentrated load pi and wii . If the size of each cell is the
same, the scale factor kii is equal as Eq. (15).
where, d is the distance between the center point O of the
element for settlement calculation and the nearest boundary pi = kii wii (i, j = 1,2,!, n ) (15)
D of the loaded element.
The specific derivation process is omitted and the Since there is a similar linear relationship between
solution in the polar coordinate is calculated as Eq. (12).
the wij and p j ,the relationship coefficient is recorded as kij:

æ 2ay 2 (d + 2a ) ö
w=
2 p(1 - µ02 ) ç
+ b[y ( d ) - y (d + 2 a )]
÷
(12)
p j = kij wij (i, j = 1,2,!, n ) (16)
ç ÷
pE0 ç 3 3
÷
è + d [y 2 (d + 2a ) -y 2 (d )]ø Setting cij=1/kij, and cij is the flexibility influence
coefficient of j element to i element, combined with Eqs.
where, ψ2(t) and ψ3(t) in Eq. (12) are expressed as following: (15) and (16), the complementary energy of the ground can
be calculated as Eq. (17).
b + t 2 + b2
y 2 (t ) = ln , y 3 (t ) = ln t 2 + b 2 - t
t 1 n n
U1 = å å cij pi p j
3.3 Complementary energy analysis of ground settlement 2 i =1 j =1
(17)
When the foundation beam is under the loading, it is 1 n n n
= å cii pi + å å cij pi p j
2

assumed that the ground and the foundation beam are in 2 j =1 i =1 j = i +1

complete contact during the deformation process, and only

the settlement in the vertical direction of the ground is The vertical settlement wii of the element can be
considered regardless of the interlayer friction. According to calculated based on the Boussinesq’s solution in polar
the equivalent principle in elasticity, the deformation energy coordinate as Eq. (18).
is independent of the order of the force applied by the elastic
body, and depends on the external force and the final
pi (1 - µ02 ) é ù
deformation of the elastic body. For the deformation energy wii =
π aE0 ë
êm ln
1 + 1 + m2
m
+ ln m + 1 + m 2 ú ( ) (18)
of the ground, it is assumed that the concentrated loads are û
loaded on the ground in order from left to right. Assuming
the work done by the concentrated load pi on the ground is As shown in Fig. 4, the settlement wij caused by the
U i ( i = 1,2,!, n ) as Eq. (13). equivalent concentrated force p j at the center point xi of
other elements can be calculated as Eq. (19).
1 1
U 1 = w11 p1 + (w12 p1 + ! + w1n p1 ) = w11 p1 + å w1n p1
n

2 2 p j (1 - µ 2f ) é b+o l-s s(b + o ) ù

i =2
wij = 2a ln + b ln + s ln (19)
1 1 2 π abE f êë s + 2a o - s - 2a (s + 2a )(b + l )úû
U 2 = w22 p2 + (w22 p2 + ! + w2 n p2 ) = w22 p2 + å w2 n p2
n

(13)
2 2 i =3

!! where, s is the distance between the center of the i element

1 n and the left boundary of j element. o = b 2 + (s + 2a )2 ;
U i = wii pi + å wij pi
2 l l
s = ( j - i - 1) +
j =i +1
.
l = b2 + s2 ; n 2n
where, wij is the settlement at the center of the element i By introducing the flexibility influence matrix, Eq. (13)
caused by the force on the element j, as shown in Fig. 4. is written in the matrix form as Eq. (20).
According to the superposition principle of elasticity, the
sum of the work done by each concentrated load is the work T
æ p1 ö æ c11 c21 " cn1 öæ p1 ö
of all concentrated load. Because the relationship of the ç ÷ ç ÷ç ÷
force-displacement is linear, the complementary energy and 1 ç p2 ÷ ç c12 c22 " cn 2 ÷ç p2 ÷
U1 = ç ÷ ç ! (20)
the strain energy are equal. The complementary energy of 2 ! ! # ! ÷ç ! ÷
the ground is the work done by all concentrated loads, and çç ÷÷ çç ÷ç ÷
è pn ø è c1n c2 n " cnn ÷øçè pn ÷ø
which can be expressed by U1 as Eq. (14).

54
 Yubo Chen, Chunliu Li, Shuren Wang, Youkai Wang and Dingqi Li/
Journal of Engineering Science and Technology Review 14 (3) (2021) 51 - 58
According to the relationship between the second
The ratio of settlement at the center point of element i to derivative of deflection equation and moment equation as Eq.
that at the center point of element j is denoted by qij, which (28):
has the following characteristics:
wii M (x )
qii = = 1 ( i = 1, 2,!, n ) (21) w¢¢( x ) = (28)
wii Eb I
So Eq. (27) is rewritten as Eq. (29).
wij
qii = (i = 1,2,!, n; j = 1,2,!, n; j > i ) (22) 1 l
ò [M (x )] dx
2
w jj U2 = (29)
2 Eb I 0

where, qij is related to the relative position of the element where, M(x) can be expressed according to the force of the
and not related to the load size. foundation beam as shown in Fig. 1. The bending-moment
According to the half-space elastic ground model, qij is equation M(x) can be calculated as Eq. (30).
symmetry: qij=qji. From Eqs. (18), (19), and (20), qij can be
obtained. x
According to the relative position of the element, and
after calculation and verification, the general equation of the
M (x ) = ò (x - V )[ p(x ) - q(x )]dV
0
(30)

influence coefficient qij can be calculated as Eq. (23).

The total complementary energy of the foundation beam
system includes the deformation energy of the ground and
qij = q[i, j ] = q[n, n + j - i ] (23) the foundation beam. The complementary energy functional
V can be calculated as Eq. (31).
By introducing the influence coefficient of flexibility and
combining Eqs. (6) and (12), wij can be rewritten as Eq. (24). 1 T 1 l
ò [M (x)] dx
2
V = U1 + U 2 = P KfP+ (31)
2k 2 Eb I 0
qij
wij = cij p j = qij w jj ; cij = (24)
k jj As shown in Eq. (31), the complementary energy
functional is a function of pi . Based on the principle of
Eq. (20) is rewritten as Eq. (25). minimum complementary energy, the ground reaction of the
system can be calculated as Eq. (32).
T
æ p1 ö æ q11 q12 " q1n öæ p1 ö
ç ÷ ç ÷ç ÷
1 ç p2 ÷ ç q21 q22 " q2 n ÷ç p2 ÷ ¶V
U1 = (25) =0 (i = 1,2,!, n ) (32)
2k ç ! ÷ ç ! ! # ! ÷ç ! ÷ ¶pi
ç ÷ ç ÷ç ÷
ç p ÷ çq q " qnn ÷øçè pn ÷ø
è n ø è n1 n2
1 T According to the precondition of half-space elastic
= P KfP
2k foundation beam, the known deformation compatibility
condition should be satisfied, and the deflection of each
Since the scale factor kii of the equal size element is point on the beam is equal to the settlement of the
corresponding part of the ground. In addition, the ground
equal, it is expressed by k in Eq. (25). reaction must satisfy the equilibrium condition as Eq. (33).
The complementary energy expression of the ground is
obtained as Eq. (26). l
ò Q(x )dx = å p
0
i ( i = 1, 2,! n ) (33)
1 T
U1 = P KfP (26)
2k 4. Results and discussion

3.4 Complementary energy analysis of foundation beam As shown in Fig. 5, supposing a foundation beam is in
Assuming that the deflection curve of the foundation beam complete smooth contact with the ground, the elastic
and the settlement of the ground are equal everywhere, modulus and the bending stiffness of the foundation beam is
ignoring the friction between the foundation beam and the Eb = 2 GN/m2 and EbIb = 145.8 MN·m2 respectively, the
ground. It is known that the length of the foundation beam is length and width of which are l = 6 m and 2b = 0.7 m
l, the uniformly distributed load q(x) and the concentrated respectively. The elastic modulus and Poisson’s ratio of the
load Qi (i=1, 2, ···, n) act on the foundation beam, the ground is Ef = 6.5 MPa and μf = 0.25, respectively. Assuming
deflection curve of the foundation beam is w(x), and the working condition 1: The central part of the foundation
complementary energy (the deformation energy of the beam) beam is subjected to a concentrated force Q = 80 kN;
of the foundation beam is U2. It can be calculated as Eq. (27). Working condition 2: There is uniform load q(x)=20 kN/m
on the foundation beam.
1
U 2 = Eb I ò0[w¢¢( x )] dx
l 2
(27)
2

55
 Yubo Chen, Chunliu Li, Shuren Wang, Youkai Wang and Dingqi Li/
Journal of Engineering Science and Technology Review 14 (3) (2021) 51 - 58

Fig. 5. The forces of the foundation beam.

According to the above mentioned method, the contact

part between the foundation beam and ground is divided into
10 equal large elements along the length in Fig. 5. Assuming (b) The uniform load
Fig. 6. The fitting curve of the ground reaction.
the concentrated force on each element is
is pi ( i = 1, 2,! n ) , the equation is established by Eq. (32), Based on the results of the obtained ground reaction,
and the equivalent concentrated load on each element is combined with Eqs. (18) and (19) to solve the settlement of
obtained. The solution process is to write a self-development the elastic foundation beam under the load, it is conducive to
calculation program for calculation. Tables 1 and 2 show the the least square method to fit the curve. The results are
solution results of the foundation beam under the shown in Fig. 7.
concentrated and uniform loads, respectively. In addition, based on the comparative analysis of the
calculation examples [30], the method proposed in literature
Table 1. The concentrated load on the element. [30] is based on the generalized variational principle to solve
Equivalent the elastic foundation beam. The main calculation
p1 p2 p3 p4 p5
concentrated force parameters are as follow: the elastic modulus of the beam is
Result (kN) 9.02 7.32 7.58 7.91 8.18 Eb= 2.1 GN/m2. The length, the width and the height of the
Equivalent foundation beam is l = 6 m, 2b = 0.7 m, and h = 0.4 m,
concentrated force
p6 p7 p8 p9 p10
Result (kN) 8.18 7.91 7.58 7.32 9.02 respectively. The elastic modulus and Poisson’s ratio of the
ground is Ef = 1.5 MPa and μf=0.3, respectively. The solution
Table 2. The uniform load on the element. is carried out under the action of the concentrated force Q =
Equivalent 45 kN in the middle of the foundation beam and uniformly
p1 p2 p3 p4 p5
concentrated force distributed load q(x)=15 kN/m, respectively.
Result (kN) 15.81 11.57 11.07 10.82 10.73
Equivalent
concentrated force
p6 p7 p8 p9 p10
Result (kN) 10.73 10.82 11.07 11.57 15.81

The concentrated force in Table 1 is equivalent to the

average force on each element as follow: pi =4abp. Then,
the distribution curve of the ground reaction is obtained by
fitting with the least square method. As shown in Fig. 6,
there is a large ground reaction at the end of the foundation
beam. In the deformation process of the half-space elastic
ground and foundation beam, when the bending stiffness of
the foundation beam is relatively large, although the soil
around the end of the beam is not subject to the load, it has
the effect of supporting constraint on the end of the beam,
and the end of the beam is strongly supported, resulting in (a) The concentrated load
the stress concentration phenomenon of sharp increase of the
contact force.

(b) The uniform load

(a) The concentrated load Fig. 7. The fitting curve of the settlement.

As shown in Fig. 8, the results of the two methods are

very similar, which verifies accuracy of the new method.

56
 Yubo Chen, Chunliu Li, Shuren Wang, Youkai Wang and Dingqi Li/
Journal of Engineering Science and Technology Review 14 (3) (2021) 51 - 58
However, after the detailed comparative analysis, the To simplify and solve the problem of the foundation beam,
complicated formula derivation is carried out in the literature based on the principle of minimum complementary energy,
[30]. The method in this study is more intuitive to solve the the interaction of the half-space elastic foundation beam
ground reaction directly. In addition, the new solution is system under the concentrated and uniform load was
simpler, and the derivation process of the formula is analysed. The main conclusions are as following:
simplified. The calculation is greatly reduced and it can be (1) The polar coordinate solution of the settlement of the
solved by the programming of the mathematical software. half-space elastic ground is derived. The expressions of the
deformation energy of the half-space elastic ground and
foundation beam are derived by step-by-step loading. The
complementary energy functional of the half-space elastic
foundation beam system is established.
(2) Not only the homogeneous equations are established,
but also the analytical solution and settlement of the
foundation beam system under the uniform and concentrated
loads are solved respectively. The stress concentration at the
end of the foundation beam under the action of load is
explained reasonably.
(3) The feasibility and accuracy of the new method are
verified. Meanwhile, the disadvantages of other methods and
the complicated calculation process are avoided. The new
(a) The concentrated load
method can be used in the calculation of the similar
engineering, which calculation process is simple and the
accuracy is high.
Although the free foundation beam at both ends is
studied, but for some practical problems, there are
constraints at the end of the beam, so the simply supported
foundation beam or fixed foundation beam must also be
further studied. The settlement formula of any point in the
element should be more accurate deduced.

Acknowledgements
This work was financially supported by the National Natural
Science Foundation of China (51774112; U1810203), and
the Fundamental Research Funds for the Universities of
Henan Province (NSFRF200202), China.

(b) The uniform load This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the
Fig. 8. Comparative analysis of the ground reaction. Creative Commons Attribution License.

5. Conclusions

______________________________
References

1. Ključanin, D., Manđuka, A. “The cantilever beams analysis by the 8. Wang, S. R., Xu, D. F., Hagan, P., Li, C. L. “Fracture
means of the first-order shear deformation and the Euler-Bernoulli characteristics analysis of double-layer rock plates with both ends
theory”. Technical Journal, 13(1), 2019, pp. 63-67. fixed condition”. Journal of Engineering Science and Technology
2. Zhao, M. H., Liu, J. H., Yang, C. W., Xiao, Y., “Inner-force Review, 7(2), 2014, pp. 60-65.
calculation of bridge pile foundation in a high-steep slope based on 9. Wang, J.J., Lu, Y., Lei, Y., Wang, H. L. “Comparative study on
the Pasternak double-parameter spring model”. Hydrogeology and flexural behavior of steel-timber composite beams and glued timber
Engineering Geology, 45(1), 2018, pp. 52-59. I-beams”. Journal of Engineering Science and Technology Review,
3. Khan, M. A., Wang, J. X., Sarker, D., “Development of analytic 13(6), 2020, pp. 175-186.
method for computing expansive soil-induced stresses in highway 10. Wang, S. R., Xiao, H. G., Cao, C., Zou, Z. S., Liu, X. L.
pavement”. International Journal of Geomechanics, 20(2), 2020. “Simulation verification analysis of anchoring characteristics of
pp. ID 04019160. transverse rib steel bar during pull-out test”. Dyna, 91(5), 2016, pp.
4. Ding, M., Li, X., Ma, Q., “Mechanical analysis of the sole plate of 548-553.
semi-rigid light steel column footings based on Winkler model of 11. Huang, M. S., Zhou, X. C., Yu, J., Leung, C. F., Jorgin, Q. W. T.,
elastic foundation beams”. Engineering Mechanics, 31(5), 2014, “Estimating the effects of tunnelling on existing jointed pipelines
pp. 158-165. based on Winkler model”. Tunnelling and Underground Space
5. Zhao, Y. H., Wang, S. R., Zou, Z. S., Ge, L. L., Cui, F. “Instability Technology, 86, 2019, pp. 89-99.
characteristics of the cracked roof rock beam under shallow mining 12. Esen, I., “Dynamic response of a functionally graded Timoshenko
conditions”. International Journal of Mining Science and beam on two-parameter elastic foundations due to a variable
Technology, 28(3), 2018, pp. 437-444. velocity moving mass”. International Journal of Mechanical
6. Wang, S. R., Xiao, H. G., Hagan, P., Zou, Z. S. “Mechanical Sciences, 153, 2019, pp. 21-35.
behavior of fully-grouted bolt in jointed rocks subjected to double 13. Anyaegbunam, A. J., “Complete stresses and displacements in a
shear tests”. Dyna, 92(3), 2017, pp. 314-320. cross-anisotropic half-space caused by a surface vertical point
7. Krantovska, O., Petrov, M., Ksonshkevych, L., Orešković, M., Snii, load”. International Journal of Geomechanics, 14(2), 2014, pp.
S., Іsmailovа, N. “Numerical simulation of the stress-strain state of 171-181.
complex-reinforced elements”. Technical Journal, 13(2), 2019, pp.
110-115.

57
 Yubo Chen, Chunliu Li, Shuren Wang, Youkai Wang and Dingqi Li/
Journal of Engineering Science and Technology Review 14 (3) (2021) 51 - 58
14. Yu, Y. X., Wang, B. Q., “Study on the plastic zone of weak floor in 24. Ai, Z. Y., Ren, G. P., “Dynamic response of an infinite beam on a
rock tunnel by Winkler foundation model”. China Journal of transversely isotropic multilayered half-space due to a moving
Highway and Transport, 28(9), 2015, pp. 82-90. load”. International Journal of Mechanical Sciences, 133(9), 2017,
15. Ge, H. H., Xu, J. Y., “A numerical method for cavity identification pp. 817-828.
in beams on an elastic foundation”. Tsinghua Science and 25. Kargaudas, V., Adamukaitis, N., Zmuida, M., “Elastic foundation
Technology, 12(5), 2007, pp. 540-545. displacement approximations”. Baltic Journal of road and bridge
16. Bu, X. M., “Unified solution of non-tension Winkler elastic Engineering, 14(2), 2019, pp. 125-135.
foundation beams”. Journal of Industrial Construction, 26(1), 26. Li, X., Wang, H. Z., Li, S. P., “Element for beam on Winkler
1996, pp. 28-30. elastic foundation based on analyticaltrivial functions”.
17. Chen, L. J., Zhang, Y. L., “Double parameter elastic foundation Engineering Mechanics, 32(3), 2015, pp. 66-72.
beam model of feet-lock pipes”. Chinese Journal of Rock 27. Wieckowski, Z., Swiatkiewicz, P., “Stress-based FEM in the
Mechanics and Engineering, 35(5), 2016, pp. 989-999. problem of vending of Euler–Bernoulli and Timoshenko beams
18. Zhang, J. M., Shang, Y. J., Wang, R. Y., “Force analysis method of resting on elastic foundation”. Materials, 14(2), 2021, pp. ID 460.
buried pipeline in landslide section based on Pasternak double- 28. Guo, C. X., Wang, Y. S., He, F. S., “Static problems of two
parameter model”. Journal of Central South University (Science parameter elastic foundation finite-length beams with axial force”.
and Technology Edition), 51(5), 2020, pp. 1328-1336. Chinese Journal of Applied Mechanics, 34(3), 2017, pp. 470-475.
19. Wang, A. Q., “Analytic solution of beams loaded vertical forceon 29. Wang, Y. K., Liu, Z. H., Liang, W. M., “The solution for the
elastic half-space”. Journal of Chang’an University (Natural system of half-space elastic foundation and elastic foundation beam
Science Edition), 28(5), 2008, pp. 73-76. with the principle of minimum potential energy”. Journal of Henan
20. Mi, C. W., “Surface mechanics induced stress disturbances in an Polytechnic University (Natural Science Edition), 30(4), 2011, pp.
elastic half-space subjected to tangential surface loads”. European 462-466.
Journal of Mechanics, 50(11), 2017, pp. 59-69. 30. Zhang, Q. S., “The generalized variational principle and
21. Kontomaris, S. V., Malamou, A., “A novel approximate method to approximate calculation of beams and plate on half-space elastic
calculate the force applied on an elastic half-space by a rigid foundations”. Master thesis of Southeast University, China, 2012,
sphere”. European Journal of Mechanics Physics, 42(2), 2021, pp. pp. 30-57.
ID 025010. 31. Guo, Y. Z., “Generalized variational principle with two kinds of
22. Baraldi, D., Tullini, N., “Static stiffness of rigid foundation resting variational functions for beams on elastic foundations”.
on elastic half-space using a Galerkin boundary element method”. Engineering and Test, 50(4), 2010, pp:1-2.
Engineering Structures, 225, 2020, pp. ID 111061.
23. Tang, C. X., Lu. Z., Yao, H. L., Guo, S., Huang, X. Q., Liu, J.,
“Semianalytical solution for dynamic responses of railway track
system on unsaturated poroelastic half-Space subjected to moving
trainload”. International Journal of Geomechanics, 21(3), 2021, pp.
ID 04021016.

58