Ricerca di modelli strut-and-tie negli elementi in c.a. mediante un metodo di ottimizzazione strutturale topologica

An automatic procedure for the generation and the design of strut-and-tie models in plane R.C. elements, using topology optimisation, is presented. The first part of the procedure consists in searching, through a combination of FE analyses and an optimisation algorithm, the maximum stiffness material distribution, that identifies the strut-and-tie model. The second part of the procedure allows for checking the stresses in the concrete struts and designing the quantities of reinforcements. The proposed procedure is applied to two well-known examples: a beam with a sudden change of the transversal section and a deep beam with a hole. In both cases the obtained strut-and-tie models are geometrically similar to those from other authors, and also the forces into the truss elements are almost identical. Few differences are found and are discussed in detail.