Topology Optimization in Civil Engineering − On the Consideration of Concrete Failure Characteristic and Self‐Weight

ABSTRACT The mechanical efficiency of civil engineering structures is a key factor in the sustainable transformation of the building sector. This study presents topology optimization in civil engineering design. The static load profile of civil engineering structures is typically dominated by their self‐weight, which introduces, as a special methodological aspect, a design‐dependent load vector. Concrete, the most popular building material, is characterized by a pronounced tensile–compressive strength anisotropy with high compressive strength. The characteristics of the use case are implemented to an sqp ‐based topology optimization routine that is extended to the consideration of internal forces. To account for tensile–compressive strength anisotropy, a penalization scheme for tensile loading is introduced, which is based on the scaling of the contribution of areas subject to tensile strains to the optimization objective function and its gradient. This study investigates the suitability of the suggested approach for obtaining primarily compression‐loaded structures. The method is tested using a benchmark problem considering self‐weight, and applied to particular examples from bridge design. The optimization results are analyzed, and the method is evaluated.