Open Access

ARTICLE

A Novel Multi-Objective Topology Optimization Method for Stiffness and Strength-Constrained Design Using the SIMP Approach

Jianchang Hou¹, Zhanpeng Jiang¹, Fenghe Wu¹, Hui Lian¹, Zhaohua Wang², Zijian Liu³, Weicheng Li^1,*

1 Department of Mechanical Engineering, Yanshan University, Qinhuangdao, 066004, China
2 School of Mechanical Engineering, Taiyuan University of Science and Technology, Taiyuan, 030024, China
3 Engineering Training Center, Yanshan University, Qinhuangdao, 066004, China

* Corresponding Author: Weicheng Li. Email:

Computer Modeling in Engineering & Sciences 2025, 144(2), 1545-1572. https://doi.org/10.32604/cmes.2025.068482

Received 30 May 2025; Accepted 08 August 2025; Issue published 31 August 2025

Abstract

In this paper, a topology optimization method for coordinated stiffness and strength design is proposed under mass constraints, utilizing the Solid Isotropic Material with Penalization approach. Element densities are regulated through sensitivity filtering to mitigate numerical instabilities associated with stress concentrations. A p-norm aggregation function is employed to globalize local stress constraints, and a normalization technique linearly weights strain energy and stress, transforming the multi-objective problem into a single-objective formulation. The sensitivity of the objective function with respect to design variables is rigorously derived. Three numerical examples are presented, comparing the optimized structures in terms of strain energy, mass, and stress across five different mathematical models with varying combinations of optimization objectives. The results validate the effectiveness and feasibility of the proposed method for achieving a balanced design between structural stiffness and strength. This approach offers a new perspective for future research on stiffness-strength coordinated structural optimization.

---

Keywords

---