Shape and size optimization of concrete shells

Abstract

Although concrete shells may adopt any form, it would be interesting to know to what extent changes in their shape may avoid the appearance of bending moments or reduce them. The use of optimisation techniques may be effective in providing alternative geometric forms of shells that improve their mechanical behaviour, complying with the design conditions in an optimum way. In this paper, these techniques were used to find optimum geometrical designs having an aesthetic shape similar to the form initially designed for the structure. As an example, a shell based on Candela's blueprints was optimised under a state of predominant gravitational loads. The results confirm that significant improvements in the structural behaviour of the shell may be achieved with only slight changes in its form.