Otimização topológica de vigas metálicas com aberturas na alma

Abstract

Height limitations are frequently imposed on multi-floor constructions for numerous reasons, such as urban zoning regulations, economic aspects and others. An excellent solution to circumvent these limitations is the use of beams with web openings, which allow service ducts to pass through without the need to increase the ceiling s total depth. They are also less sensitive to deformations and more resistant to bending. However, when subjected to concentrated loading, these beams can present high stress gradients, which may indicate that they are susceptible to failure. In this way, it becomes clear that these holes do not present an optimum topology, and this removal of material that creates web openings can be looked at from a topology optimization point of view. Thus, this work aims to find a new shape for the web holes of perforated beams using the ABAQUS software optimization module. A comparative study of the results obtained from the structural point of view is carried out in terms of stresses and critical loads. These analyses are performed for cellular (circular openings) and optimized beams with the same volume (weight); the only difference between them is the distribution and shape of the holes along the web. The results obtained showed a good structural behavior of the optimized beams when compared to the cellular one, in terms of strength and stiffness. Finally, an alternative model was proposed based on the one obtained by the optimization procedure; this model also presented a better performance in comparison to the cellular beam.