Concurrent Topology Optimization of Composite Plates for Minimum Dynamic Compliance

Area of Science:

• Mechanical Engineering
• Materials Science
• Computational Mechanics

Background:

• Composite plates are crucial for vibration mitigation in various engineering applications.
• Optimizing damping performance requires advanced design methodologies considering material properties and structural configuration.
• Existing methods often struggle with the complexity of two-scale design for dynamic response.

Purpose of the Study:

• To propose a novel density-based concurrent topology optimization method for two-scale composite plate design.
• To enhance vibration mitigation capabilities through optimized damping performance.
• To integrate microstructural and macrostructural design for improved dynamic response.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a density-based concurrent topology optimization approach.
• Employed a complex stiffness model to account for material damping.
• Applied the mode superposition method for efficient frequency response analysis.
• Integrated microscale (periodic composites) and macroscale (distribution) optimization.
• Implemented adjoint sensitivity analysis for derivative computation.

Main Results:

• Successfully demonstrated a concurrent optimization framework for two-scale composite plates.
• Achieved enhanced vibration damping through integrated micro- and macro-level design.
• Validated the proposed methodology with numerical examples under various conditions.
• Showcased the effectiveness of the complex stiffness model and mode superposition method.

Conclusions:

• The proposed method enables effective two-scale design of composite plates for vibration mitigation.
• Concurrent optimization of micro- and macro-structures leads to superior dynamic performance.
• This work provides a foundation for inverse design of composite structures with tailored dynamic properties.