An effective optimization procedure based on structural reliability

• Published in: Computers & structures Vol. 52; no. 5; pp. 1061 - 1067
• Main Authors: Weiji, Li, Li, Yang
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford Elsevier Ltd 03.09.1994; Elsevier Science
• Subjects: Exact sciences and technology; Fracture mechanics (crack, fatigue, damage...); Fracture mechanics, fatigue and cracks; Fundamental areas of phenomenology (including applications); Physics; Solid mechanics; Structural and continuum mechanics; Uncertain system; Ruptures; Truss structure; Numerical solution; Reliability; Probabilistic estimation; Optimization
• ISSN: 0045-7949; 1879-2243
• DOI: 10.1016/0045-7949(94)90090-6

Optimization based on structural reliability is a new research subject. It includes several uncertainty factors, e.g., strength of structure and applied loads. For a given structure the full reliability design of the structural elements is performed, which is considered as the initial design. The optimization problem can be stated as minimizing the structural weight and satisfying the reliability index requirement for every main failure mode. Linearizing the reliability index, it becomes a linear programming problem. The illustrative examples, including 6-bar, 10-bar, 25-bar trusses and box structures, give quite satisfactory results and confirm the effectiveness of the proposed procedure.