Publications

Barradas Cardoso, J., Sousa, L.G., Castro, J.A. and Valido, A.J. (2002), “Optimal Design of Thin-Walled Composite Beam Structures”, Structural and Multidisciplinary Optimization, Volume 24, pp. 205-211

This work deals with design sensitivity analysis and optimal design of composite structures modeled as thin-walled beams. The structures are treated as a torsion-bending resistant beams. The analysis problem is discretized by a finite element technique. A twonode Hermitean beam element is used. The beam sections are made from an assembly of elements that correspond to flat layered laminated composite panels. Optimal design is performed with respect to the lamina orientations and thickness of the laminates. The structural weight is considered as the objective function. Constraints are imposed on stresses, displacements, critical load and natural frequencies. Two failure criteria are used to limit the structural strength: Tsal-Hill and maximum stress. The Tsai-Hill criterion is also adopted to predict the first-plyfailure loads. The design sensitivity analysis is analytically formulated and implemented. An adjoint variable method is used to derive the response sensitivities with respect to the design. A mathematical programming approach is used for the optimization process. Numerical examples are performed on three-dimensional structures.

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