OPTIMIZATION OF ADDITIVELY MANUFACTURED METAL DAMPERS

This paper presents a novel typology of metallic energy dissipation device (damper) for seismic protection of buildings, distinguished by its capacity to independently modulate strength and stiffness parameters. This objective is accomplished through the implementation of non-standard geometries, enabled by advanced additive manufacturing techniques and informed by topological optimization methodologies. These methods are applied to conventional baseline geometries, chosen to preserve a pre-determined stiffness level. The optimization process strategically reduces the yielding strength of the original configuration without compromising its initial stiffness, allowing the damper to engage its energy dissipation function under low seismic demand. At the same time, the maintained high stiffness ensures the capacity of the damper of attracting seismic forces when is integrated into structural frames during earthquake events. Two type of devices are proposed: they are engineered to operate under axial and torsional loading conditions and are derived from spherical and cylindrical baseline geometries, respectively. Numerical models are developed in ABAQUS environment, where, by applying topological and geometrical optimization algorithms, the yielding strength is reduced by 50% while preserving the original stiffness characteristics. The results confirm that the optimized dampers, for both investigated geometries, meet the design targets in terms of strength and stiffness, highlighting their potential effectiveness in seismic energy dissipation.