Simultaneous Optimization of Design Layout and Material Properties in Reinforced Concrete Structures

ABSTRACT The sustainable transformation of the building sector requires the design of mechanically efficient civil engineering structures, the consideration of material properties in the design layout plays an important role in this context. Steel‐reinforced concrete is an anisotropic bi‐material composite, which represents one of the most popular building materials. The simultaneous optimization of structural geometry and local material properties aims to determine design layouts that do not only consider the inhomogeneous and anisotropic material properties in the form‐finding but also ensure a mechanically efficient material layout. The material layout is addressed in terms of the local reinforcement degree as well as its orientation. This study presents a reinforced concrete model that is based on the theory of mixtures and applies the concept of volume fractions, the implementation of the multi‐variable optimization problem in an sqp ‐based monolithic structural optimization routine, and the mechanical properties of the optimized structures.