Topology optimization of steel slotted dampers with the hybrid cellular automata technique

Abstract

Cellular automata is a computational technique that has proven valuable for solving engineering problems. In the field of structural optimization, it has been applied to find the optimal topology of a structure, given the similarities between the problem characteristics and the computational representation. This paper proposes a cellular automata-based methodology for the topology optimization of steel slotted dampers. A multi-objective approach is formulated to maximize the energy dissipation capacity and minimize the damper’s mass. A single-cycle displacement protocol is utilized to determine energy dissipation capacity in Ansys. The results demonstrate that the proposed algorithm improves the optimal shape obtained from a configuration with vertical slots more efficiently than other two algorithms in the literature. The energy dissipation capacity was increased by 3.5 times while using only fourteen iterations to converge. By testing several initial slot configurations, the CA-based method proved to be less dependent on the initial decision. Finally, the effects of using a one-cycle displacement protocol, symmetry considerations, and the height/width ratio are also discussed.