Optimum Design of Steel Floor Systems Using ECBO

Decks, interior beams, edge beams, and girders are parts of a steel floor system. If the deck is optimized without considering beam optimization, finding the best result is simple. However, a deck with a higher cost may increase the composite action of the beams and decrease the beam cost, thus reducing the total expense. Also, a different number of floor divisions can improve the total floor cost. Increasing beam capacity by using castellated beams is another efficient cost-saving method. In this study, floor optimization is performed and these three issues are discussed. Floor division number and deck sections are some of the variables. Also, for each beam, profile section of the beam, beam-cutting depth, cutting angle, spacing between holes, and number of filled holes at the ends of castellated beams are other variables. Constraints include the application of stress, stability, deflection, and vibration limitations according to the load and resistance factor (LRFD) design. The objective function is the total cost of the floor consisting of the steel profile, cutting and welding, concrete, steel deck, shear stud, and construction costs. Optimization is performed by enhanced colliding bodies optimization (ECBO). Results show that using castellated beams, selecting a deck with a higher price and considering the different number of floor divisions can decrease the total cost of the floor (Kaveh and Ghafari [1]).