Isogeometric Topology Optimization of Continuum Structures using Evolutionary Algorithms

Abstract

Isogeometric analysis is a popular method for the analysis of problems involving complex geometry and governed by differential equations. Meta-heuristics are widely used to determine the optimum distribution of material within the given design domain. The focus of this study is to perform isogeometric topology optimization of continuum structures using meta-heuristics nature inspired firefly algorithm. NURBS basis functions are used to construct the geometric model and to calculate the displacements as well. In this paper, a two dimensional plate structure is modeled using NURBS basis functions and analyzed for the given loading and boundary conditions. ESO technique is used to identify the elements which carry the material and penalize the remaining elements which do not carry any stress. Few examples have been solved and the results are presented. The results clearly show that the distribution of material using isogeometric analysis is similar to the distribution of material using FEA.

Cite this Article

Sahithi NSS, Chandrasekhar KNV, Muralidhara Rao T. Isogeometric Topology Optimization of Continuum Structures using Evolutionary Algorithms. Journal of Experimental & Applied Mechanics. 2017; 8(3): 11–22p.