Harmony Search Optimisation of Dispersed Laminated Composite Plates

Abstract

One of the major goals in the process of designing structural components is to achieve the highest possible buckling load of the structural component while keeping the cost and weight at a minimum. This paper illustrates the application of the harmony search algorithm to the buckling load maximisation of dispersed laminated composite plates with rectangular geometry. The ply thicknesses and fiber orientation angles of the plies were chosen as the design variables. Besides the commonly used carbon fiber reinforced composites, boron/epoxy and glass/epoxy composite plates were also optimised using the harmony search algorithm. Furthermore, the optimisation algorithm was applied to plates with three different aspect ratios (ratio of the longer side length to the shorter side length of the plate). The buckling loads of the plates with optimised dispersed stacking sequences were compared to the buckling loads of plates with the commonly applied 0°, ±45°, and 90° fiber angle sequence and identical ply thicknesses. For all three aspect ratios and materials in this study, the dispersed stacking sequences performed better than the plates with regular stacking sequences.

Eco-Friendly Design of Reinforced Concrete Retaining Walls: Multi-objective Optimization with Harmony Search Applications

“…It aims to obtain a global solution as the perfect state, which is calculated by an objective function [45]. Recently, HS was employed in structural engineering problems such as the optimization of RC frame structures [46], RC beams [47], dispersed laminated composite plates [48], steel plate girders [49], analysis of plane stress systems via total potential optimization [50], and nozzle movement for additive manufacturing of concrete structures and concrete elements [51].…”

CO2 Emission Optimization of Concrete-Filled Steel Tubular Rectangular Stub Columns Using Metaheuristic Algorithms

“…A metaheuristic algorithm that found application in diverse areas of engineering is the harmony search technique that was invented by Geem [12]. Initially conceived for the optimization of discrete-valued data, the technique eventually evolved in such a manner that it applies to a wide range of problems including water network design [24,25], analysis of plane stress systems [26], design of retaining walls [27], vehicle routing [28], and stacking sequence optimization of laminated composite plates [29].…”

Metaheuristic Optimization of Laminated Composite Plates with Cut-Outs

“…Concerning the choice of optimization technique, Cakiroglu et al [23] have shown that the harmony search (HS) optimization technique was capable of obtaining dispersed stacking sequences that perform better than conventional sequences, such as the [45, −45, 0, 90, 0, 90, 0, −45, 45] fiber angle sequence used by Führer [42]. The present study adopted the optimum stacking sequence from the analyses done by Cakiroglu et al [23] as a starting configuration and further improved this stacking sequence in the presence of cut-outs. In addition to circular cut-outs, the use of rectangular and triangular cut-outs is investigated, including an analysis of the effects of each on the structural performance.…”

“…All plate configurations have the same length for their shorter sides, which is 150 mm long, resulting in a cut-out area of 1964 mm 2 . As the starting configuration for the stacking sequence, the best-performing layup is taken from the previous study by the authors for all three aspect ratios [23]. These layup configurations are further optimized, and the results are compared to the performance of plates with cut-outs having the regular stacking sequence from Führer [42].…”

“…Because of the advantages of using laminated composites in structural applications, their performance has been researched extensively. In these fields, various optimization studies have been carried out to maximize the performance of these structures while reducing cost [6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23]. Vo-Duy et al [24,25] presented the weight minimization and natural frequency maximization problems of laminated plates using an adaptive elitist differential evolution algorithm treating the ply thicknesses, fiber orientations, and the fiber volume fractions as the variables of optimization.…”