BARRIOS PADURA, A.; BARRIOS SEVILLA, J.; GARCÍA NAVARRO, J. Settlement predictions, bearing capacity and safety factor of subsoil of Seville's Giralda. International Journal of Architectural Heritage, 6 (2012) pp. 626-647.
Abstract: The works carried out during the last years in the Giralda of Seville, have provided an understanding of the foundations of the tower constructed next to the mosque, which had been built earlier. In a first stage, eight test boreholes were drilled with a 17º-18.5º inclination. The samples extracted were tested and analyzed, determining the typology, dimension, depth to the bearing layer of the tower and the characteristics of the materials forming the foundations. In the same way, vertical test boreholes were carried out at the tower sorrounds, and soil samples were extracted at different distances for analysis and characterization. Five layers of the soil have been determined, from the superficial backfill layers to the blue marl found at a depth of -18 m. The data provided by this study have been used to calculate the settlements produced using a finite element program, specific for this construction type. This program has been designed considering the different loads and time spent for each of the six construction phases, including the Almohad construction (12th century) and the construction of the bell towe (built in the 16th century). Using the same program, a simulation has determined the circumstances in which the tower settlement would have generated the foundation collapse.
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