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Computers and Concrete Volume 34, Number 6, December 2024 , pages 737-750 DOI: https://doi.org/10.12989/cac.2024.34.6.737 |
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A new approach to minimize the economic cost of the deck in concrete slab bridges by means of metaheuristics |
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Jesús A. Torrecilla-Pinero, Juan A. Gómez-Pulido and Enrique Cortés-Toro
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| Abstract | ||
| Slab bridge is a structural type with costs similar to those of precast girder bridges. The optimization of their design variables can be a competitive aspect when opting for this type of construction. In this paper, the optimization of the economic cost of the concrete slab deck is considered, where the many functions involved in the design of the structure are taken here as constraints of the optimization problem. On the other hand, the price of the deck can be approached as a linear combination of the quantity of the different materials that are part of it, being the coefficients of that combination the unit prices of each material. In order to find an optimal combination of the design parameters to minimize the deck price, avoiding approximate or manual calculation methods, the use of single-objective optimization metaheuristics is proposed. Four representative algorithms were applied: genetic algorithm, pattern search, variable neighbourhood search, and vapour-liquid equilibrium. The optimization problem was approached as a black box containing all the formulations, relationships, and constraints involved in calculating the cost of the deck. After extensive calculations and comparisons, it is concluded that variable neighbourhood search provide better mean results with minimal data dispersion than the other metaheuristics, and a more stable behavior in the search for an optimal solution, avoiding falling into local solutions. | ||
| Key Words | ||
| concrete; deck; economic cost; optimization; metaheuristics; slab bridges | ||
| Address | ||
| Jesús A. Torrecilla-Pinero: Department of Civil Engineering, Universidad de Extremadura, School of Technology, Cáceres 10003, Spain Juan A. Gómez-Pulido: Department of Technologies of Computers, Universidad de Extremadura, School of Technology, Cáceres 10003, Spain Enrique Cortés-Toro: Faculty of Engineering, Universidad de Playa Ancha, Av. Leopoldo Carvallo 270, Valparaíso 850, Chile | ||