Quantitative verification of the morphing evolutionary structural optimization method for some benchmark problems using a new performance index

Morphing Evolutionary Structural Optimization (MESO) is a soft-kill version of Evolutionary Structural Optimization (ESO). This paper proposes a new optimality criteria-based performance index for monitoring the optimization process of the conventional MESO method. Also, a quantitative verification of the MESO for some benchmark problems with equality constraints is presented. For some structures like Michell trusses, a qualitative verification of the ESO method has been already reflected in the literature. However, in this study, a quantitative verification of the MESO method in the shape optimization is shown by comparing the results with analytical solutions. An excellent convergence of the MESO method in stiffness, frequency and weight optimization problems with equality constraints to optimum clearly reveals that this method is a robust optimization technique, which can be easily implemented and applied to a wide range of problems.