Shape optimization of structures under earthquake loadings
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Abstract
The optimum design of structures under static loads is well-known in the design world; however, structural optimization under dynamic loading faces many challenges in real applications. Issues such as the time-dependent behavior of constraints, changing the design space in the time domain, and the cost of sensitivities could be mentioned. Therefore, optimum design under dynamic loadings is a challenging task. In order to perform efficient structural shape optimization under earthquake loadings, the finite element-based approximation method for the transformation of earthquake loading into the equivalent static loads (ESLs) is proposed. The loads calculated using this method are more accurate and reliable than those obtained using the building regulations. The shape optimization of the structures is then carried out using the obtained ESLs. The proposed methodologies are transformed into user-friendly computer code, and their capabilities are demonstrated using numerical examples.
Keywords
Shape optimization Earthquake loading Equivalent static loads Finite element modeling Dynamic response of structure1 Introduction
Most of the forces in the real world are dynamic in nature; in addition, their magnitudes are variable in the time domain. A dynamic analysis of structures requires the large amounts of information processing and data interpretation. Especially, when the optimization of structures under earthquake loading is required, the data processing is a cumbersome task. Accordingly, static loads could be utilized as a substitute for earthquake loadings, if they produce the same responses as the dynamic loads at the arbitrary time. Because of the facilities of the static analyses, the users of building codes have an interest to apply them in their design purposes. Application of dynamic coefficients or factors is a common way for transformation of dynamic loadings into static ones. However, the dynamic factors are not based on mathematical logic. They are mostly determined by engineering judgments and experience. Usually, these coefficients produce over-estimate loads and render the designs uneconomical (Humar and Maghoub 2003).
In competitive world, optimum design has great importance in economic design of structures. Therefore, optimum design of structures under dynamic loading is active in the fields of structural design. Because of the time-dependent behavior of the constraints and sensitivity analysis difficulties, optimization for earthquake loadings is a heavy duty. Accordingly, researchers have worked for many years in this field to determine the simple methods for optimum design of structures under such loads (Kang et al. 2006). Some researchers have focused on the methods that directly deal with dynamic loadings (Cassis and Schmit 1976; Feng et al. 1977; Yamakawa 1981; Mills-Curran and Schmit 1985; Greene and Haftka 1989, 1991; Chahande and Arora 1994).
Mathematics-based optimization procedures involve sensitivity calculations. Several methods have been proposed for sensitivity analysis in the structural optimization field under transient loadings (Yamakawa 1981; Mills-Curran and Schmit 1985; Greene and Haftka 1989, 1991). Dynamic response optimization is still difficult due to the large amounts of computational time required for analyses and gradient calculations. For that reason, the methods have been limited to small-scale structures with few degrees of freedom. For large-scale structures such as buildings and dams, the optimum design under dynamic loadings seems to be impossible, because difficulties arise in treating time-dependent behavior of constraints and objective functions. When structural optimization problems under dynamic loads are substituted with static response optimizations, two aspects should be considered. The first is the reliable transformation of dynamic loadings into static loads and the second is appropriate application of the resulting static loads into the optimization procedure.
Cheng and Truman (1983) studied the optimization of the structures by modal response spectrum method. Truman and Petruska (1991) applied optimality criterion techniques for optimization of two-dimensional structures using time history analysis of seismic excitations. Although, the above researches are limited to seismic loads, the transformation is based on experimental codes, and it lacks generality. Choi et al. (2005) and Choi and Park (1999a, b) proposed several methods to find reliable equivalent static loads from dynamic loading. Two kinds of ESLs are considered in the literature: exact and approximate. Although, the location of the approximated ESLs should be pre-assumed in these methods, and the ESLs are calculated at some peaks of important locations (Kang et al. 2001). The pre-assumptions for load locations create different ESLs. It is difficult to choose the locations and to calculate the sensitivities of the ESLs with respect to the design variables.
In order to overcome these difficulties, two methods have been proposed for dynamic response optimization (Choi and Park 2002). First, exact ESLs are calculated at the time intervals during the dynamic loading. Second, an ESL set is defined as a static load set to generate the same response field that occurs under the dynamic load at a certain time. As a result, ESLs are generated for all nodes, and the pre-assumed locations are not required. In addition, the ESLs are calculated for all time intervals (Choi and Park 2002; Park et al. 2005; Hong et al. 2010; Kim and Park 2010). However, the proposed methods are complicated for optimization procedure. For engineering applications, performing optimization for all time intervals is difficult and requires a large amount of calculations. In addition, the dynamic response optimization studies using the above methods are limited to small cases with few degrees of freedoms and for very simple loadings such as impacts. In this paper, the ESLs are calculated by an approximation method, and the optimization procedure is very easy to apply.
Recently, structural optimization under earthquake loadings has been investigated in the civil engineering field. To our knowledge, comprehensive studies for shape optimization under direct earthquake excitation have not been reported in the literature. Accordingly, the present paper, implements a displacement-based finite element approach for transformation of earthquake loading into equivalent static loads. In order to calculate the equivalent static loads from earthquake loading, a mathematics—based optimization technique is used. In addition, shape optimization is applied to the combination of gravity, hydrostatic and seismic loadings due to its importance in the structural design criteria. Here, two-dimensional continuous structures are optimized directly under earthquake loading without any assumptions or complicated formulations. Accordingly, the optimum design of large-scale structures under earthquake loadings can be obtained by the proposed method.
2 Transformation of earthquake loading into ESLs
In spite of static loads, the values and the directions of earthquake loadings are time variants. It means that the static load has a different effect as the dynamic one. Since the static loads are easy to utilize in the optimization procedure, earthquake loadings are transformed into equivalent static loads (ESLs). The ESLs are static loads that produce the same displacement field as the earthquake loadings.
3 Finite element model
Physical and natural coordinate systems for solid element
4 Shape optimization under seismic excitation
Mathematically, it is impossible to optimize a large-scale structure under earthquake loadings because the involved functions are defined over the time domain, and sensitivity analysis is very difficult. As mentioned earlier, only small-scale problems have been solved or the dynamic loads have been transformed into static loads using dynamic factors.
Shape optimization procedure for earthquake loadings using ESLs approach
Schematic deformations of a cantilever beam under vibrating load
The approximated ESL can reduce considerable calculations. Structural optimization under dynamic load seems to be quite difficult. By using this method, dynamic response optimization can be accomplished for structures. A dynamic load can be transformed to the multiple static loads. The multiple loads can be handled as a multiple loading condition in optimization procedure.
4.1 Static shape optimization
4.2 Sensitivities calculations
Finite-difference approximations might have accuracy problems. Two sources of errors should be considered whenever these approximations are used. First, the truncation error, which is a result of neglecting terms in the Taylor series expansion of the perturbed response. The second is the condition error, which is the difference between the numerical evaluation of the function and its exact value. These are two conflicting considerations. That is, a small step size \(\updelta \)x\(_{\mathrm {i}}\) will reduce the truncation error, but may increase the condition error. To eliminate round-off errors due to approximations it is recommended to increase the step-size. Here, the step size is assigned to the \(\updelta \)x\(_{\mathrm {i}}\) \(=\) 0.005x\(_{\mathrm {i}}\).
5 Numerical studies
Shape optimization of two-dimensional structures under earthquake loading is studied here. The first case is a plane stress cantilever beam, and the second one is a plane strain concrete gravity dam. Vertical component of Kobe earthquake is used for the beam excitation, and horizontal component of El-Centro earthquake is applied for the dam excitation. Design variables in both cases are \(\mathbf {X}=\left \{ {\text {h}_{\text {c}} ,\text {h}_{\text {m}},\text {h}_{\text {b}}} \right \}\). Where h\(_{\mathrm {c}}\), h\(_{\mathrm {m}}\), h\(_{\mathrm {b}}\) are the widths of the structures at the reference points (two ends and middle), respectively.
5.1 Case 1
The geometry and finite element mesh of the cantilever beam for initial design
Material properties and allowable stresses of the cantilever beam
| f\(_{\mathrm {cc}}\) (MPa) | E\(_{\mathrm {c}}\) (GPa) | \(\upgamma _{\mathrm {C}}\) (kN/m\(^{3}\)) | \(\upnu _{\mathrm {C}}\) | \(\upsigma _{\text {allw}}^{\text {t}}\) (MPa) | \(\upsigma _{\text {allw}}^{\text {c}}\) (MPa) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 35.00 | 21.00 | 23.50 | 0.30 | 2.50 | 0.20f\(_{\mathrm {cc}}\) |
TAZ090 component of Kobe earthquake
Free end vertical displacements of the beam under Kobe earthquake for initial design
ESLs locations and their values (kN) under Kobe earthquake for initial design
Vertical displacements for the ESLs and the earthquake loading
| Node no. | ESLs displacements (mm) | Dynamic displacements (mm) | Error \(\left | {\frac {\text {d}_{\text {dy}} -\text {d}_{\text {st}}} {\text {d}_{\text {dy}}} } \right |\) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | \(-0.836\) | \(-0.684\) | 0.22 |
| 2 | \(-0.647\) | \(-0.536\) | 0.21 |
| 3 | \(-0.463\) | \(-0.394\) | 0.18 |
| 4 | \(-0.293\) | \(-0.256\) | 0.14 |
| 5 | \(-0.149\) | \(-0.135\) | 0.10 |
| 6 | \(-0.047\) | \(-0.044\) | 0.07 |
Nodal numbers for comparing the principal stresses for the cantilever beam
Principal stresses for ESLs, earthquake loading and errors for original design
| Node no. | \(\upsigma _{1}^{\mathrm {Esl}} \) (Mpa) | \(\upsigma _{1}^{\mathrm {dyn}} \) (Mpa) | Error \(\left | \frac {\upsigma _{1}^{\mathrm {dyn}}- \upsigma _{1}^{\mathrm {Esl}}} {\upsigma _{1}^{\mathrm {dyn}}} \right |\) | \(\upsigma _{3}^{\mathrm {Esl}} \) (Mpa) | \(\upsigma _{3}^{\mathrm {dyn}} \) (Mpa) | Error \(\left | \frac {\upsigma _{3}^{\mathrm {dyn}}- \upsigma _{3}^{\mathrm {Esl}}} {\upsigma _{3}^{\mathrm {dyn}}} \right | \) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | \(-\)10.42 | 4.00 | 3.61 | \(-75.97\) | \(-4.00\) | 17.99 |
| 9 | 14.95 | 16.00 | 0.07 | \(-42.19\) | \(-16.00\) | 1.64 |
| 10 | 34.63 | 31.98 | 0.08 | \(-53.22\) | \(-31.98\) | 0.66 |
| 11 | 48.19 | 47.95 | 0.01 | \(-62.73\) | \(-47.95\) | 0.31 |
| 12 | 58.97 | 63.90 | 0.08 | \(-69.55\) | \(-63.90\) | 0.09 |
| 13 | 67.07 | 79.84 | 0.16 | \(-75.07\) | \(-79.84\) | 0.06 |
| 14 | 73.12 | 91.79 | 0.20 | \(-74.84\) | \(-91.79\) | 0.25 |
According to (12), the values of displacements under ESLs are usually greater than those from original dynamic loading. In spite of displacements, for stresses this criterion is not satisfied. As seen from Table 3, at some nodes such as 9, 12, 13 and 14, values of principal stresses under ESLs are less than those under earthquake loading.
Final geometry of the beam and ESLs values (kN) for optimum design
5.2 Case 2
The finite element mesh of the dam and the locations of the ESLs
Horizontal component of El-Centro earthquake
Material properties and allowable stresses for the concrete gravity dam
| f\(_{\mathrm {cc}}\) (Mpa) | E\(_{\mathrm {c}}\) (Gpa) | \(\upgamma _{\mathrm {C}}\) (kN/m\(^{3}\)) | \(\upgamma _{\mathrm {w}}\) (kN/m\(^{3}\)) | \(\upnu _{\mathrm {C}}\) | \(\upsigma _{\text {allw}}^{\text {t}}\) (Mpa) | \(\upsigma _{\text {allw}}^{\text {c}}\) (Mpa) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 25.00 | 20.00 | 23.50 | 10.00 | 0.20 | 2.00 | 0.22f\(_{\mathrm {cc}}\) |
Horizontal displacements of top of the dam under El-Centro earthquake for initial design
Values of ESLs, displacements uder ESLs and dynamic loading and errors in the initial design for the concrete gravity dam
| Node no. | ESLs (P\(_{\mathrm {j}}\)) (kN) | ESLs displacements (mm) | Dynamic displacements (mm) | Error \(\left | {\frac {\text {d}_{\text {dy}} -\text {d}_{\text {st}}} {\text {d}_{\text {dy}}} } \right |\) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | \(-2860\) | \(-10.401\) | \(-8.757\) | 0.19 |
| 2 | \(-2720\) | \(-9.125\) | \(-8.033\) | 0.14 |
| 3 | \(-2640\) | \(-8.212\) | \(-7.285\) | 0.13 |
| 4 | \(-2590\) | \(-7.332\) | \(-6.522\) | 0.12 |
| 5 | \(-2410\) | \(-6.465\) | \(-5.763\) | 0.12 |
| 6 | \(-2220\) | \(-5.631\) | \(-5.024\) | 0.12 |
| 7 | \(-1976\) | \(-4.837\) | \(-4.316\) | 0.12 |
| 8 | \(-1798\) | \(-4.099\) | \(-3.650\) | 0.12 |
| 9 | \(-1599\) | \(-3.414\) | \(-3.029\) | 0.13 |
| 10 | \(-1369\) | \(-2.782\) | \(-2.459\) | 0.13 |
| 11 | \(-1194\) | \(-2.210\) | \(-1.941\) | 0.14 |
| 12 | \(-1013\) | \(-1.693\) | \(-1.475\) | 0.15 |
| 13 | \(-914\) | \(-1.234\) | \(-1.060\) | 0.17 |
| 14 | \(-730\) | \(-0.816\) | \(-0.693\) | 0.18 |
| 15 | \(-511\) | \(-0.430\) | \(-0.362\) | 0.19 |
Shape variations of the dam during optimization iterations
Values of ESLs during optimization iterations
| Node no. | ESL (kN) iteration.1 | ESL (kN) iteration.2 | ESL (kN) iteration.3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | \(-2860\) | \(-2104\) | \(-2010\) |
| 2 | \(-2720\) | \(-2011\) | \(-1900\) |
| 3 | \(-2640\) | \(-1920\) | \(-1820\) |
| 4 | \(-2590\) | \(-1831\) | \(-1705\) |
| 5 | \(-2410\) | \(-1750\) | \(-1600\) |
| 6 | \(-2220\) | \(-1653\) | \(-1523\) |
| 7 | \(-1976\) | \(-1570\) | \(-1350\) |
| 8 | \(-1798\) | \(-1504\) | \(-1110\) |
| 9 | \(-1599\) | \(-1421\) | \(-1001\) |
| 10 | \(-1369\) | \(-1350\) | \(-922\) |
| 11 | \(-1194\) | \(-1274\) | \(-780\) |
| 12 | \(-1013\) | \(-1190\) | \(-660\) |
| 13 | \(-914\) | \(-1103\) | \(-500\) |
| 14 | \(-730\) | \(-910\) | \(-421\) |
| 15 | \(-511\) | \(-782\) | \(-253\) |
The developed computer program is verified using the benchmarks in the literature for calculated ESLs. However, to the best of our knowledge, there are not similar benchmarks in the literature to compare the obtained optimum shapes.
6 Conclusion
- 1.
In order to obtain accurate results, the number of equivalent static loads on the structures should be increased. In the proposed approach, the displacement field of the ESLs is greater than that of the dynamic load. Consequently, the design under the ESLs might be over-designed; however, because of different natures of static and dynamic loadings, the responses are not comparable.
- 2.
The proposed approximate method is useful in its engineering designs. In this method, the determination of the number of nodes in which the ESLs are imposed, is important since it is the index of approximation.
- 3.
In the finite element analysis, the stresses are computed from the differentiations of the displacement field. Therefore, the accuracies of stresses are less than the accuracies of the displacements. Accordingly, the displacement-based finite element analysis has been used in the calculation of ESLs.
- 4.
In order to evaluate the constraints in the shape optimization process, stress analysis is needed. Nevertheless, in spite of displacements, the stresses in the ESLs and original dynamic loading cases are not comparable, because the natures of ESLs and earthquake loadings are not same. Accordingly, calculation of ESLs using stress-based finite element approach could be an alternative method. This method could be used as a new research methodology for the optimum design of structures.
- 5.
In the previous researches, shape optimization has been done at each time intervals. In comparison with the past researches, using obtained ESLs by this method to perform the optimum design in the critical times is more efficient and cost effective.
- 6.
The proposed method needs transient dynamic analysis of the structure in calculation of the ESLs in each optimization cycle. However, the optimum design of structure is independent of performing the dynamic analysis. Similarly, the building codes and static optimizations do not require performing a dynamic analysis.
- 7.
Shape optimizations are achieved with only a few iterations, and the computations are efficient in comparison with past researches.
Notes
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