Optimization of reinforced concrete cantilever retaining walls by the use of intelligent water drops algorithm (IWDA)

Subject Areas : structural design

Samane Laali ¹ , Mehdi Shalchi Tousi ² , Mahmoud Ghazavi ³

1 - Department of Civil Engineering, University of Science and Culture, Tehran, Iran
2 - Department of Civil Engineering, Islamic Azad University South Tehran Branch, Tehran, Iran
3 - Department of Civil Engineering K.N. Toosi University of Technology

Received: 2022-10-28 Accepted : 2023-03-12 Published : 2022-08-01

Keywords: Optimization, Intelligent Water Drop Algorithm, Concrete retaining walls, Lateral earth pressures,

Abstract :

In this paper, cost and weight optimization for reinforcement cantilever concrete retaining wall is investigated using intelligent water drops algorithm (IWDA). The algorithm capability was compared with that of others in the literature. A computer program has been developed to analyze reinforced concrete cantilever retaining walls using the IWDA algorithm. The results show that the IWDA algorithm is able to optimize retaining walls from viewpoints of cost and weight. The effect of the wall geometry has been investigated by considering four types of T-shape walls in order to discover the influence of contributing variables on objective functions. It has been found that backfill slope, unit weight and friction angle are important parameters affecting retaining wall cost and weight. Also, the Coulomb method in computing lateral earth pressure on retaining walls leads to lower cost and weight for retaining walls than the Rankine method. In general, optimizing retaining walls may lead to approximately 44 percent saving.