First Internal Grant in CIEM

Ahmed Emad (NU Alumni) acquired an Internal grant from NU (250,000 LE) to start his research on concrete folded foundations with EPS base isolation. . This proposal aims to introduce a folded footing invention that guarantees a reduction in the footing's internal tension stresses, and a minimization of the soil stresses and settlements beneath the footing. This goal can be satisfied by locating pyramidal-shaped expanded polystyrene (EPS) material under the folded footing to act as a filler of the internal cavity of the footing and to provide a straight contact surface between filling material and soil. In this work, the effect of adding an EPS volume inside the footing on the amount of steel reinforcement will be studied under static loading conditions.