OPTIMIZATION OF ABOVE-GROUND CYLINDRICAL REINFORCED CONCRETE TANKS UNDER BLAST LOADING CONSIDERING FLUID-STRUCTURE INTERACTION EFFECTS USING THE PSO ALGORITHM
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Abstract
Above-ground storage tanks are significantly more vulnerable to damage from blast loading compared to bury or semi-buried concrete and steel tanks, primarily due to their exposed nature. To accurately assess the real behavior of above-ground tanks, it is essential to account for fluid-structure interaction (FSI) effects. Accordingly, in this study, 24 finite element models of cylindrical reinforced concrete tanks were developed in ABAQUS software and subjected to blast loading, incorporating FSI effects. The key variables considered include explosive mass, explosive distance, fluid fill level, tank wall height, and mesh size. The investigated responses encompass circumferential (hoop) stress and radial displacement. The design constraints were set as maximum allowable hoop stress (30MPa) and maximum displacement (20mm). The optimal tank was designed using C30 concrete and steel with a yield strength of 400 MPa. The tank dimensions were 15m in height and 33.85m in diameter. The explosive mass and explosive distance were set at 1000kg and 10m, respectively. The objective function was to minimize the tank weight while simultaneously satisfying the stress and displacement constraints. Using the Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) algorithm, the minimum weight of the cylindrical reinforced concrete tank was determined to be 23933kN, which was achieved after approximately 25 iterations.
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