ABSTRACT

The Pareto frontier solution is used to define the feasible surface of the design variables. The Pareto frontier, ultimate limit state and target reliability, defined as additional constraints are employed to identify the optimal design solution. The development in structural reliability methods and optimisation tools permits a coupled reliability based design approach to be employed in which the uncertainties related to the design variables can be directly accounted for. A genetic algorithm with termination criteria is employed for a non-linear optimization problem in defining the best design solutions of the stiffened plate subjected to compressive loads. The objective is to perform a multi objective, nonlinear structural optimization of a stiffened plate subjected to combined stochastic compressive loads accounting for the ultimate strength and reliability based constraints in the design. The type of load subjected to stiffened plate will induce plate buckling since the stiffener is subjected to a tensile load and the attached plate to compressive load.