Evolutionary thickness design with stiffness maximization and stress minimization criteria (Q2770897)

Based on evolutionary structural optimization, the authors consider the problem of multi-criteria design involving the static stiffness and strength of structures. To this end they introduce two characteristic quantities, a stiffness and a stress sensitivity number. In the case of multiple maximum stress or multiple loads, a discrete \(L^\infty\) or a discrete weighted \(L^2\) norm is used to obtain an overall senstivity number. To realize both stiffness maximization and stress minimization, the weighted sum of the corresponding objective functions is considered. Then an optimization process is implemented by removing material from elements with smallest sensitivity numbers and adding it to elements with largest sensitivity numbers. The authors consider several examples, including single and multiple load cases, and discuss the choice of weights in the objective function. Finally, they apply their algorithm to a topology optimization recovering results that have been obtained by a hybrid deterministic/stochastic optimization method.