Spread footing

A shallow foundation is a type of building foundation that transfers building loads to the earth very near to the surface, rather than to a subsurface layer or a range of depths as does a deep foundation. Shallow foundations include spread footing foundations, mat-slab foundations, slab-on-grade foundations, pad foundations, rubble trench foundations and earthbag foundations.

A spread footing foundation, which is typical in residential building, has a wider bottom portion than the load-bearing foundation walls it supports. This wider part "spreads" the weight of the structure over more area for greater stability.

The design and layout of spread footings is controlled by several factors, foremost of which is the weight (load) of the structure it must support, penetration of soft near-surface layers, and penetration through near-surface layers likely to change volume due to frost heave or shrink-swell.

These foundations are common in residential construction that includes a basement, and in many commercial structures. But for high rise buildings they are not sufficient. A spread footing that changes elevation in a series of vertical steps so that it follows the contours of a sloping site or accommodates changes in soil strata, is called a stepped footing.

Mat-slab foundations distribute heavy column and wall loads across the entire building area, to lower the contact pressure compared to conventional spread footings. Mat-slab foundations can be constructed near the ground surface, or at the bottom of basements. In high-rise buildings, mat-slab foundations can be several meters thick, with extensive reinforcing to ensure relatively uniform load transfer.

Slab-on-grade or floating slab foundations are a structural engineering practice whereby the concrete slab that is to serve as the foundation for the structure is formed from a mold set into the ground. The concrete is then placed into the mold, leaving no space between the ground and the structure. This type of construction is most often seen in warmer climates, where ground freezing and thawing is less of a concern and where there is no need for heat ducting underneath the floor.

The advantages of the slab technique are that it is cheap and sturdy, and is considered less vulnerable to termite infestation because there are no hollow spaces or wood channels leading from the ground to the structure (assuming wood siding, etc., is not carried all the way to the ground on the outer walls).

...
Wikipedia