From concrete mixture to structural design—a holistic optimization procedure in the presence of uncertainties

Abstract

We propose a systematic design approach for the precast concrete industry to promote sustainable construction practices. By employing a holistic optimization procedure, we combine the concrete mixture design and structural simulations in a joint, forward workflow that we ultimately seek to invert. In this manner, new mixtures beyond standard ranges can be considered. Any design effort should account for the presence of uncertainties which can be aleatoric or epistemic as when data are used to calibrate physical models or identify models that fill missing links in the workflow. Inverting the causal relations established poses several challenges especially when these involve physics-based models which more often than not, do not provide derivatives/sensitivities or when design constraints are present. To this end, we advocate Variational Optimization, with proposed extensions and appropriately chosen heuristics to overcome the aforementioned challenges. The proposed approach to treat the design process as a workflow, learn the missing links from data/models, and finally perform global optimization using the workflow is transferable to several other materials, structural, and mechanical problems. In the present work, the efficacy of the method is exemplarily illustrated using the design of a precast concrete beam with the objective to minimize the global warming potential while satisfying a number of constraints associated with its load-bearing capacity after 28 days according to the Eurocode, the demolding time as computed by a complex nonlinear finite element model, and the maximum temperature during the hydration.

Keywords

• black-box optimization under uncertainty
• mix design
• performance oriented design
• precast concrete
• probabilistic machine learning
• sustainable material design