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- Finite-Elemente-Methode (4)
- Brücke (2)
- Finite Element Method (2)
- Gashochdruckleitungen (2)
- Gestaltoptimierung (2)
- Isogeometric Analysis (2)
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The phenomenon of aerodynamic instability caused by the wind is usually a major design criterion for long-span cable-supported bridges. If the wind speed exceeds the critical flutter speed of the bridge, this constitutes an Ultimate Limit State. The prediction of the flutter boundary, therefore, requires accurate and robust models. The complexity and uncertainty of models for such engineering problems demand strategies for model assessment. This study is an attempt to use the concepts of sensitivity and uncertainty analyses to assess the aeroelastic instability prediction models for long-span bridges. The state-of-the-art theory concerning the determination of the flutter stability limit is presented. Since flutter is a coupling of aerodynamic forcing with a structural dynamics problem, different types and classes of structural and aerodynamic models can be combined to study the interaction. Here, both numerical approaches and analytical models are utilised and coupled in different ways to assess the prediction quality of the coupled model.
Die Zonenmethode nach Hertz ist ein vereinfachtes Verfahren zur Heißbemessung von Stahlbetonbauteilen. Um eine händische Bemessung zu ermöglichen, werden daher verschiedene Annahmen und Vereinfachungen getroffen. Insbesondere werden die thermischen Dehnungen vernachlässigt und das mechanische Verhalten durch einen verkleinerten Querschnitt mit konstanten Stoffeigenschaften beschrieben.
Ziel der vorliegenden Arbeit ist, dieses vereinfachte Verfahren in ein nichtlineares Verfahren zur Heißbemessung von Stahlbetondruckgliedern bei Brandbeanspruchung durch die Einheits-Temperaturzeitkurve zu überführen. Dazu werden die wesentlichen Annahmen der Zonenmethode überprüft und ein Vorschlag zur Weiterentwicklung vorgestellt. Dieser beruht im Wesentlichen auf der Modellierung der druckbeanspruchten Bewehrung. Diese weiterentwickelte Zonenmethode wird durch die Nachrechnung von Laborversuchen validiert und das Sicherheitsniveau durch eine vollprobabilistische Analyse und den Vergleich mit dem allgemeinen Verfahren bestimmt.
Briefly, the two basic questions that this research is supposed to answer are:
1. Howmuch fiber is needed and how fibers should be distributed through a fiber reinforced composite (FRC) structure in order to obtain the optimal and reliable structural response?
2. How do uncertainties influence the optimization results and reliability of the structure?
Giving answer to the above questions a double stage sequential optimization algorithm for finding the optimal content of short fiber reinforcements and their distribution in the composite structure, considering uncertain design parameters, is presented. In the first stage, the optimal amount of short fibers in a FRC structure with uniformly distributed fibers is conducted in the framework of a Reliability Based Design Optimization (RBDO) problem. Presented model considers material, structural and modeling uncertainties. In the second stage, the fiber distribution optimization (with the aim to further increase in structural reliability) is performed by defining a fiber distribution function through a Non-Uniform Rational BSpline (NURBS) surface. The advantages of using the NURBS surface as a fiber distribution function include: using the same data set for the optimization and analysis; high convergence rate due to the smoothness of the NURBS; mesh independency of the optimal layout; no need for any post processing technique and its non-heuristic nature. The output of stage 1 (the optimal fiber content for homogeneously distributed fibers) is considered as the input of stage 2. The output of stage 2 is the Reliability Index (b ) of the structure with the optimal fiber content and distribution.
First order reliability method (in order to approximate the limit state function) as well as different material models including Rule of Mixtures, Mori-Tanaka, energy-based approach and stochastic multi-scales are implemented in different examples. The proposed combined model is able to capture the role of available uncertainties in FRC structures through a computationally efficient algorithm using all sequential, NURBS and sensitivity based techniques. The methodology is successfully implemented for interfacial shear stress optimization in sandwich beams and also for optimization of the internal cooling channels in a ceramic matrix composite.
Finally, after some changes and modifications by combining Isogeometric Analysis, level set and point wise density mapping techniques, the computational framework is extended for topology optimization of piezoelectric / flexoelectric materials.
Gashochdruckleitungen aus Stahl werden mit Hilfe eines deterministischen Sicherheitskonzeptes bemessen. Im unveränderten Bemessungszustand und im bestimmungsgemäßem Betrieb ist die statische Tragfähigkeit der Gashochdruckleitungen gegeben.
Mit den Jahren unterliegen Gashochdruckleitungen aus Stahl geometrischen Veränderungen, die häufig durch Korrosion hervorgerufen werden. Die Beurteilung der statischen Tragfähigkeit erfolgt dann unter Berücksichtigung dieser geometrischen Änderung.
Deterministische Sicherheitsbeiwerte der Bemessung neuer Gashochdruckleitungen können für die Bemessung bestehender korrosionsgeschädigter Gashochdruckleitungen nicht herangezogen werden, da diese einen definierten Beanspruchungs- und Geometriezustand unterstellen, welcher durch den geometrischen Einfluss der Korrosion so nicht mehr besteht.
Die Arbeit befasst sich mit der Ermittlung deterministischer Sicherheitsbeiwerte für die Bemessung korrosionsgeschädigter Gashochdruckleitungen auf Basis von Versagenswahrscheinlichkeiten und stellt ein Anwendungskonzept zu deren Nutzung vor.
Gashochdruckleitungen aus Stahl werden mit Hilfe eines deterministischen Sicherheitskonzeptes bemessen. Im unveränderten Bemessungszustand und im bestimmungsgemäßem Betrieb ist die statische Tragfähigkeit der Gashochdruckleitungen gegeben.
Mit den Jahren unterliegen Gashochdruckleitungen aus Stahl geometrischen Veränderungen, die häufig durch Korrosion hervorgerufen werden. Die Beurteilung der statischen Tragfähigkeit erfolgt dann unter Berücksichtigung dieser geometrischen Änderung.
Deterministische Sicherheitsbeiwerte der Bemessung neuer Gashochdruckleitungen können für die Bemessung bestehender korrosionsgeschädigter Gashochdruckleitungen nicht herangezogen werden, da diese einen definierten Beanspruchungs- und Geometriezustand unterstellen, welcher durch den geometrischen Einfluss der Korrosion so nicht mehr besteht.
Die Arbeit befasst sich mit der Ermittlung deterministischer Sicherheitsbeiwerte für die Bemessung korrosionsgeschädigter Gashochdruckleitungen auf Basis von Versagenswahrscheinlichkeiten und stellt ein Anwendungskonzept zu deren Nutzung vor.
Bauablaufplänen kommt bei der Realisierung von Bauprojekten eine zentrale Rolle zu. Sie dienen der Koordination von Schnittstellen und bilden für die am Projekt Beteiligten die Grundlage für ihre individuelle Planung. Eine verlässliche Terminplanung ist daher von großer Bedeutung, tatsächlich sind aber gerade Bauablaufpläne für ihre Unzuverlässigkeit bekannt.
Aufgrund der langen Vorlaufzeiten bei der Planung von Bauprojekten sind zum Zeitpunkt der Planung viele Informationen nur als Schätzwerte bekannt. Auf der Grundlage dieser geschätzten und damit mit Unsicherheiten behafteten Daten werden im Bauwesen deterministische Terminpläne erstellt. Kommt es während der Realisierung zu Diskrepanzen zwischen Schätzungen und Realität, erfordert dies die Anpassung der Pläne. Aufgrund zahlreicher Abhängigkeiten zwischen den geplanten Aktivitäten können einzelne Planänderungen vielfältige weitere Änderungen und Anpassungen nach sich ziehen und damit einen reibungslosen Projektablauf gefährden.
In dieser Arbeit wird ein Vorgehen entwickelt, welches Bauablaufpläne erzeugt, die im Rahmen der durch das Projekt definierten Abhängigkeiten und Randbedingungen in der Lage sind, Änderungen möglichst gut zu absorbieren. Solche Pläne, die bei auftretenden Änderungen vergleichsweise geringe Anpassungen des Terminplans erfordern, werden hier als robust bezeichnet.
Ausgehend von Verfahren der Projektplanung und Methoden zur Berücksichtigung von Unsicherheiten werden deterministische Terminpläne bezüglich ihres Verhaltens bei eintretenden Änderungen betrachtet. Hierfür werden zunächst mögliche Unsicherheiten als Ursachen für Änderungen benannt und mathematisch abgebildet. Damit kann das Verhalten von Abläufen für mögliche Änderungen betrachtet werden, indem die durch Änderungen erzwungenen angepassten Terminpläne simuliert werden. Für diese Monte-Carlo-Simulationen der angepassten Terminpläne wird sichergestellt, dass die angepassten Terminpläne logische Weiterentwicklungen des deterministischen Terminplans darstellen. Auf der Grundlage dieser Untersuchungen wird ein stochastisches Maß zur Quantifizierung der Robustheit erarbeitet, welches die Fähigkeit eines Planes, Änderungen zu absorbieren, beschreibt. Damit ist es möglich, Terminpläne bezüglich ihrer Robustheit zu vergleichen.
Das entwickelte Verfahren zur Quantifizierung der Robustheit wird in einem Optimierungsverfahren auf Basis Genetischer Algorithmen angewendet, um gezielt robuste Terminpläne zu erzeugen. An Beispielen werden die Methoden demonstriert und ihre Wirksamkeit nachgewiesen.
This thesis addresses an adaptive higher-order method based on a Geometry Independent Field approximatTion(GIFT) of polynomial/rationals plines over hierarchical T-meshes(PHT/RHT-splines).
In isogeometric analysis, basis functions used for constructing geometric models in computer-aided design(CAD) are also employed to discretize the partial differential equations(PDEs) for numerical analysis. Non-uniform rational B-Splines(NURBS) are the most commonly used basis functions in CAD. However, they may not be ideal for numerical analysis where local refinement is required.
The alternative method GIFT deploys different splines for geometry and numerical analysis. NURBS are utilized for the geometry representation, while for the field solution, PHT/RHT-splines are used. PHT-splines not only inherit the useful properties of B-splines and NURBS, but also possess the capabilities of local refinement and hierarchical structure. The smooth basis function properties of PHT-splines make them suitable for analysis purposes. While most problems considered in isogeometric analysis can be solved efficiently when the solution is smooth, many non-trivial problems have rough solutions. For example, this can be caused by the presence of re-entrant corners in the domain. For such problems, a tensor-product basis (as in the case of NURBS) is less suitable for resolving the singularities that appear since refinement propagates throughout the computational domain. Hierarchical bases and local refinement (as in the case of PHT-splines) allow for a more efficient way to resolve these singularities by adding more degrees of freedom where they are necessary. In order to drive the adaptive refinement, an efficient recovery-based error estimator is proposed in this thesis. The estimator produces a recovery solution which is a more accurate approximation than the computed numerical solution. Several two- and three-dimensional numerical investigations with PHT-splines of higher order and continuity prove that the proposed method is capable of obtaining results with higher accuracy, better convergence, fewer degrees of freedom and less computational cost than NURBS for smooth solution problems. The adaptive GIFT method utilizing PHT-splines with the recovery-based error estimator is used for solutions with discontinuities or singularities where adaptive local refinement in particular domains of interest achieves higher accuracy with fewer degrees of freedom. This method also proves that it can handle complicated multi-patch domains for two- and three-dimensional problems outperforming uniform refinement in terms of degrees of freedom and computational cost.
Due to the development of new technologies and materials, optimized bridge design has recently gained more attention. The aim is to reduce the bridge components materials and the CO2 emission from the cement manufacturing process. Thus, most long-span bridges are designed to be with high flexibility, low structural damping, and longer and slender spans. Such designs lead, however, to aeroelastic challenges. Moreover, the consideration of both the structural and aeroelastic behavior in bridges leads to contradictory solutions as the structural constraints lead to deck prototypes with high depth which provide high inertia to material volume ratios. On the other hand, considering solely the aerodynamic requirements, slender airfoil-shaped bridge box girders are recommended since they prevent vortex shedding and exhibit minimum drag. Within this framework comes this study which provides approaches to find optimal bridge deck cross-sections while considering the aerodynamic effects. Shape optimization of deck cross-section is usually formulated to minimize the amount of material by finding adequate parameters such as the depth, the height, and the thickness and while ensuring the overall stability of the structure by the application of some constraints. Codes and studies have been implemented to analyze the wind phenomena and the structural responses towards bridge deck cross-sections where simplifications have been adopted due to the complexity and the uniqueness of such components besides the difficulty of obtaining a final model of the aerodynamic behavior. In this thesis, two main perspectives have been studied; the first is fully deterministic and presents a novel framework on generating optimal aerodynamic shapes for streamlined and trapezoidal cross-sections based on the meta-modeling approach. Single and multi-objective optimizations were both carried out and a Pareto Front is generated. The performance of the optimal designs is checked afterwards. In the second part, a new strategy based on Reliability-Based Design Optimization (RBDO) to mitigate the vortex-induced vibration (VIV) on the Trans-Tokyo Bay bridge is proposed. Small changes in the leading and trailing edges are presented and uncertainties are considered in the structural system. Probabilistic constraints based on polynomial regression are evaluated and the problem is solved while applying the Reliability Index Approach (RIA) and the Performance Measure Approach (PMA). The results obtained in the first part showed that the aspect ratio has a significant effect on the aerodynamic behavior where deeper cross-sections have lower resistance against flutter and should be avoided. In the second part, the adopted RBDO approach succeeded to mitigate the VIV, and it is proven that designs with narrow or prolonged bottom-base length and featuring an abrupt surface change in the leading and trailing edges can lead to high vertical vibration amplitude. It is expected that this research will help engineers with the selections of the adequate deck cross-section layout, and encourage researchers to apply concepts of optimization regarding this field and develop the presented approaches for further studies.
Synergistic Framework for Analysis and Model Assessment in Bridge Aerodynamics and Aeroelasticity
(2020)
Wind-induced vibrations often represent a major design criterion for long-span bridges. This work deals with the assessment and development of models for aerodynamic and aeroelastic analyses of long-span bridges.
Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) and semi-analytical aerodynamic models are employed to compute the bridge response due to both turbulent and laminar free-stream. For the assessment of these models, a comparative methodology is developed that consists of two steps, a qualitative and a quantitative one. The first, qualitative, step involves an extension
of an existing approach based on Category Theory and its application to the field of bridge aerodynamics. Initially, the approach is extended to consider model comparability and completeness. Then, the complexity of the CFD and twelve semi-analytical models are evaluated based on their mathematical constructions, yielding a diagrammatic representation of model quality.
In the second, quantitative, step of the comparative methodology, the discrepancy of a system response quantity for time-dependent aerodynamic models is quantified using comparison metrics for time-histories. Nine metrics are established on a uniform basis to quantify the discrepancies in local and global signal features that are of interest in bridge aerodynamics. These signal features involve quantities such as phase, time-varying frequency and magnitude content, probability density, non-stationarity, and nonlinearity.
The two-dimensional (2D) Vortex Particle Method is used for the discretization of the Navier-Stokes equations including a Pseudo-three dimensional (Pseudo-3D) extension within an existing CFD solver. The Pseudo-3D Vortex Method considers the 3D structural behavior for aeroelastic analyses by positioning 2D fluid strips along a line-like structure. A novel turbulent Pseudo-3D Vortex Method is developed by combining the laminar Pseudo-3D VPM and a previously developed 2D method for the generation of free-stream turbulence. Using analytical derivations, it is shown that the fluid velocity correlation is maintained between the CFD strips.
Furthermore, a new method is presented for the determination of the complex aerodynamic admittance under deterministic sinusoidal gusts using the Vortex Particle Method. The sinusoidal gusts are simulated by modeling the wakes of flapping airfoils in the CFD domain with inflow vortex particles. Positioning a section downstream yields sinusoidal forces that are used for determining all six components of the complex aerodynamic admittance. A closed-form analytical relation is derived, based on an existing analytical model. With this relation, the inflow particles’ strength can be related with the target gust amplitudes a priori.
The developed methodologies are combined in a synergistic framework, which is applied to both fundamental examples and practical case studies. Where possible, the results are verified and validated. The outcome of this work is intended to shed some light on the complex wind–bridge interaction and suggest appropriate modeling strategies for an enhanced design.
The Finite Element Method (FEM) is widely used in engineering for solving Partial Differential Equations (PDEs) over complex geometries. To this end, it is required to provide the FEM software with a geometric model that is typically constructed in a Computer-Aided Design (CAD) software. However, FEM and CAD use different approaches for the mathematical description of the geometry. Thus, it is required to generate a mesh, which is suitable for FEM, based on the CAD model. Nonetheless, this procedure is not a trivial task and it can be time consuming. This issue becomes more significant for solving shape and topology optimization problems, which consist in evolving the geometry iteratively. Therefore, the computational cost associated to the mesh generation process is increased exponentially for this type of applications.
The main goal of this work is to investigate the integration of CAD and CAE in shape and topology optimization. To this end, numerical tools that close the gap between design and analysis are presented. The specific objectives of this work are listed below:
• Automatize the sensitivity analysis in an isogeometric framework for applications in shape optimization. Applications for linear elasticity are considered.
• A methodology is developed for providing a direct link between the CAD model and the analysis mesh. In consequence, the sensitivity analysis can be performed in terms of the design variables located in the design model.
• The last objective is to develop an isogeometric method for shape and topological optimization. This method should take advantage of using Non-Uniform Rational B-Splines (NURBS) with higher continuity as basis functions.
Isogeometric Analysis (IGA) is a framework designed to integrate the design and analysis in engineering problems. The fundamental idea of IGA is to use the same basis functions for modeling the geometry, usually NURBS, for the approximation of the solution fields. The advantage of integrating design and analysis is two-fold. First, the analysis stage is more accurate since the system of PDEs is not solved using an approximated geometry, but the exact CAD model. Moreover, providing a direct link between the design and analysis discretizations makes possible the implementation of efficient sensitivity analysis methods. Second, the computational time is significantly reduced because the mesh generation process can be avoided.
Sensitivity analysis is essential for solving optimization problems when gradient-based optimization algorithms are employed. Automatic differentiation can compute exact gradients, automatically by tracking the algebraic operations performed on the design variables. For the automation of the sensitivity analysis, an isogeometric framework is used. Here, the analysis mesh is obtained after carrying out successive refinements, while retaining the coarse geometry for the domain design. An automatic differentiation (AD) toolbox is used to perform the sensitivity analysis. The AD toolbox takes the code for computing the objective and constraint functions as input. Then, using a source code transformation approach, it outputs a code for computing the objective and constraint functions, and their sensitivities as well. The sensitivities obtained from the sensitivity propagation method are compared with analytical sensitivities, which are computed using a full isogeometric approach.
The computational efficiency of AD is comparable to that of analytical sensitivities. However, the memory requirements are larger for AD. Therefore, AD is preferable if the memory requirements are satisfied. Automatic sensitivity analysis demonstrates its practicality since it simplifies the work of engineers and designers.
Complex geometries with sharp edges and/or holes cannot easily be described with NURBS. One solution is the use of unstructured meshes. Simplex-elements (triangles and tetrahedra for two and three dimensions respectively) are particularly useful since they can automatically parameterize a wide variety of domains. In this regard, unstructured Bézier elements, commonly used in CAD, can be employed for the exact modelling of CAD boundary representations. In two dimensions, the domain enclosed by NURBS curves is parameterized with Bézier triangles. To describe exactly the boundary of a two-dimensional CAD model, the continuity of a NURBS boundary representation is reduced to C^0. Then, the control points are used to generate a triangulation such that the boundary of the domain is identical to the initial CAD boundary representation. Thus, a direct link between the design and analysis discretizations is provided and the sensitivities can be propagated to the design domain.
In three dimensions, the initial CAD boundary representation is given as a collection of NURBS surfaces that enclose a volume. Using a mesh generator (Gmsh), a tetrahedral mesh is obtained. The original surface is reconstructed by modifying the location of the control points of the tetrahedral mesh using Bézier tetrahedral elements and a point inversion algorithm. This method offers the possibility of computing the sensitivity analysis using the analysis mesh. Then, the sensitivities can be propagated into the design discretization. To reuse the mesh originally generated, a moving Bézier tetrahedral mesh approach was implemented.
A gradient-based optimization algorithm is employed together with a sensitivity propagation procedure for the shape optimization cases. The proposed shape optimization approaches are used to solve some standard benchmark problems in structural mechanics. The results obtained show that the proposed approach can compute accurate gradients and evolve the geometry towards optimal solutions. In three dimensions, the moving mesh approach results in faster convergence in terms of computational time and avoids remeshing at each optimization step.
For considering topological changes in a CAD-based framework, an isogeometric phase-field based shape and topology optimization is developed. In this case, the diffuse interface of a phase-field variable over a design domain implicitly describes the boundaries of the geometry. The design variables are the local values of the phase-field variable. The descent direction to minimize the objective function is found by using the sensitivities of the objective function with respect to the design variables. The evolution of the phase-field is determined by solving the time dependent Allen-Cahn equation.
Especially for topology optimization problems that require C^1 continuity, such as for flexoelectric structures, the isogeometric phase field method is of great advantage. NURBS can achieve the desired continuity more efficiently than the traditional employed functions. The robustness of the method is demonstrated when applied to different geometries, boundary conditions, and material configurations. The applications illustrate that compared to piezoelectricity, the electrical performance of flexoelectric microbeams is larger under bending. In contrast, the electrical power for a structure under compression becomes larger with piezoelectricity.