Computers and Structures 71 (1999) 143±162

Optimum design of single core shear walls

S.S. Al-Mosawi, M.P. Saka*
University of Bahrain, Civil Engineering Department, P.O. Box 32038, Bahrain
Received 1 July 1997; accepted 12 November 1999

Abstract

Design of reinforced concrete thin walled open sections subjected to combined loading such as axial force, biaxial
bending moment and torsional moment is cumbersome. This is due to the fact that such structures possess very little
torsional rigidity and the plane cross section does not remain plane after the deformation. In this study, an
algorithm is developed for the optimum design of reinforced concrete thin walled sections. Single core lipped
channel shape shear walls are considered as a design example. The design algorithm treats the area of reinforcement
bars as variables in addition to cross sectional dimensions of the thin walled section. The limit state theory is used
in the formulation of the design problem. In addition to displacement constraints the strain limitations in concrete
and the yielding constraints for rebars are considered. A numerical procedure is presented for computations of
sectional and sectorial properties. The e€ect of warping due to torsional deformation of the core is included using
Vlasov theorems. The solution of the design problem is obtained employing the optimally criteria method.
Application of the algorithm is demonstrated in designing a core structure with a lipped channel cross section.
# 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Structural optimization; Shear walls; Optimally criteria method; Reinforced concrete structures; Structural engineering;
Thin-walled sections; Warping; Tall structures; Reinforced concrete sections under combined loading

1. Introduction of such structures [3,4]. In these papers coupled shear

High-rise buildings have become one of the impress-
ive re¯ections of today's civilization. The outlook of
cities all over the world has been changing with these
tall and slender structures. The developments in com-
putational technology and innovative design techniques
have provided the required support for designers to be
able to move towards the skylines. The analysis and
design of tall structures are well established [1,2].
However, there are few works on the optimum design
* Corresponding author. Tel.: +973 782194 or +973
782134; fax: +973 684844
E-mail address: mpsaka@batelco.com.bh (M.P. Saka)
wall systems and wall-frame structures with rectangu-
lar cross sections only were considered. The literature
survey carried out on the topic has not enabled the
authors to trace any research work carried out on the
optimum design of single core shear wall structures. It
was interesting to notice that, although these structures
are very widely employed in high rise buildings to pro-
vide a required lateral sti€ness, no algorithm has been
developed for their optimum design.
The algorithm developed in this study obtains the
optimum cross sectional dimensions as well as area of
reinforcement for single core lipped channel shape
shear walls. It treats the width, depth, length of lips,
the thickness of wall and area of reinforcement as de-
sign variables. It considers the displacement limitations

0045-7949/99/$ - see front matter # 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.
PII: S 0 0 4 5 - 7 9 4 9 ( 9 8 ) 0 0 2 3 9 - 9
144 S.S. Al-Mosawi, M.P. Saka / Computers and Structures 71 (1999) 143±162

Nomenclature

ax linear x-coordinate of principal pole

ay linear y-coordinate of principal pole
Ai area of i-th concrete element
Asti area of the equivalent area of i-th steel
At total area of the cross section
Bo bimoment
Ec modulus of elasticity for concrete
Es modulus of elasticity for steel
f max
st maximum stress of reinforcement bar
fsti stress in reinforcement bar i
fy yield stress of reinforcement bar
F objective function
gj jth constraint
Ixx moment of inertia about xx axis
Iyy moment of inertia about yy axis
Ixy product moment of inertia
Io sectorial moment of inertias
J torsional constant
p total number of restricted joint displacements
Sxi statical moment of each element about xx axis
Syi statical moment of each element about yy axis
Soi sectorial static moment
Sox sectorial linear statical moment of the section about xx axis
Soy sectorial linear statical moment of the section about yy axis
Swc sectorial statical moment of concrete
Sos sectorial statical moment of steel
xR, yR an arbitrary orthogonal coordinate system
dju maximum allowable displacement
e normal strain
emax maximum concrete strain at failure
eu ultimate concrete strain in compression
so warping stress
s ci normal stress in concrete element i
osi sectorial coordinate of point i
oAO principal sectorial coordinates of section

in the design problem and employs limit state theory
to formulate the mathematical model. This necessitates
the restriction of the ultimate strain at the most
stressed point in concrete to 0.003 and the stresses in
rebars not to be more than their yields strength [5].
The strains and stresses in the reinforced concrete thin
walled section are calculated when the section is sub-
jected to the axial force, transverse shear forces, biaxial
bending moments and torsional moments which occur
due to lateral and gravity loads acting on the single
core system. The presence of torsional moment causes
the warping of thin walled cross section. The e€ect of
warping in the computation of stress are included
using Vlasov's theorems [17]. This in turn necessitates
the calculation of sectorial properties of the cross sec-
tion. The formulation of the design problem yields to
a highly nonlinear mathematical model. The optimality
criteria method is eciently used to obtain the solution
of the design problem.
2. Optimum design problem
The optimum design problem of reinforced concrete
thin walled open cross section core structures shown in
Fig. 1 can be expressed as follows, if the limit state
theory is used in the formulation:
Min: F ˆ f …x i †
 S.S. Al-Mosawi, M.P. Saka / Computers and Structures 71 (1999) 143±162 145

Fig. 1. Single core shear wall. (a) Single core shear wall. (b) Generalized displacement for core element. (c) Member end forces.

subject to where xi represents the design variables which consists

of cross sectional dimensions x1, x2, x3, x4 and the
gj …x i † ˆ dj ÿ dju R0 j ˆ 1, . . . ,p area of reinforcement x5 of the core as shown in Fig.
2(a). f(xi ) is the objective function which is taken as
the volume of core system. The core is divided into
gs …x i † ˆ emax ÿ eu R0 number of small elements, each containing one layer of
rebars as shown in the same ®gure and the length of
gst …x i † ˆ f max
ÿ fy R0 each element is equal to the spacing between the bars.
st
Although in practice there are usually two rebars
placed near the edge of walls of core, in this study
x i ÿ x li r0 …1† these two bars are theoretically represented by a single
146 S.S. Al-Mosawi, M.P. Saka / Computers and Structures 71 (1999) 143±162

bar which is placed in the middle of each element. This it becomes

assumption is made by considering the fact that the
thickness of wall of core structure is quite small com-
pared with its other dimensions. Furthermore a uni-
form distribution of rebars is also considered
throughout the core system. The area of the single re-
inforcement bar is taken as design variable and rep-
resented by x5. Hence there are ®ve variables in the
design problem.
When f(xi ) is expressed in terms of design variables,
f …x i † ˆ ‰x 4 …x 1 ‡ 2x 2 ‡ 2x 3 † ‡ …m ÿ 1†x 5 Šh …2†
where m is the total number of nodes in the core as
shown in Fig. 2(a) and h is the height of the core struc-
ture. Notice that each small element in the core is
de®ned by two nodes.
xli is the lower bound on design variable xi. dj is the
lateral displacement of the core and dju is its upper
bound which is taken as H/500 [5] where H is the

Fig. 2. Single core shear wall divided into small elements. (a) Core section with reference and principal axes. (b) Small element of core.
 S.S. Al-Mosawi, M.P. Saka / Computers and Structures 71 (1999) 143±162 147

height of the joint where the sway is restricted. emax is X

the maximum concrete strain in compression and eu is
its upper bound which is given in [5] as 0.003. f max
st is
the stress in the most stressed bar. Since the reinforce-
ment bars cannot be loaded more than their yield
strength, this stress should be less than or equal to
yield stress fy of steel bar.
3. Optimality criteria for design variables
The optimality criteria method is adopted to obtain
the solution of the design problem (1) due to its
robustness and e€ectiveness [6±13]. This approach
transforms the constrained design problem into an
unconstrained one by making use of Lagrange multi-
nm
dj ˆ fxgTl ‰K Šl fxglj …5†
lˆ1
where nm is the total number of elements along the
core, {x }lj is the virtual displacement vector of member
l due to unit loading applied in the direction of jth
restricted displacement. [K ]l is the sti€ness matrix of
element l in global coordinates and {x }Tl is the displa-
cement vector due to applied loads. When the deriva-
tives of the objective function and constraints with
respect to the design variable xk are calculated from
Eqs. (1) and (5) and substituted into Eq. (4), the opti-
mally criteria for this design variable is obtained. The
typical recursive relationship for the design variable xk
is given in the following:

2" #     31=r
X
p X
nm
@ ‰K Šl @ Emax @ f max
6 lj fxgTl fxglj ‡ ls ‡ lst st
7
6 @xk @xk @xk 7
6 jˆ1 lˆ1 7
x kn‡1 ˆ x nk 6 7 …6†
4 @ f …x i † 5
@xk

pliers. Hence, the lagrangian of the design problem where n and n+1 represent the current and the next
(1) becomes iteration numbers. r is a preselected constant known as
step size.
L…x i ,lj ,ls ,lst † ˆ f …x i †ÿ The optimum design procedure makes use of the
recursive relationship (6) in every iteration to calcu-
X
p
late the new values of the design variables. This re-
lj gj …x i † ÿ ls gs …x i † ÿ lst gst …x i † …3†
jˆ1 lationship requires the displacements, maximum strain
of concrete and the maximum stress in rebars at the
where lj, ls and lst are Lagrange multipliers for the most stressed cross section of the core. This is
displacement, strain and yield stress constraints, re- obtained by carrying out an analysis of the core
spectively. The necessary condition for the local con- under the external loads. During this analysis the dis-
strained optimum is obtained by di€erentiating this
placements due to virtual loads are also obtained.
equation with respect to design variable xk.
The sti€ness matrix of the member in global coordi-
nates, strains in concrete and stresses in rebars are
@ L…x i ,lj ,ls ,lst † @ f …x i †
ˆ ÿ function of design variables and their derivatives can
@xk @xk
easily be calculated. Hence after the analysis of the
Xp
@ gj …x i † @ gs …x i † @ gst …x i † core, the new values of design variables are computed
ÿ ls ÿ lst ˆ0 …4† using Eq. (6) provided that the values of Lagrange
jˆ1
@ x k @ x k @xk
multipliers are known. These parameter are obtained
By using the virtual work method, the jth displacement from the following simple recursive relationship as
in the core can be expressed as suggested in [6].
148 S.S. Al-Mosawi, M.P. Saka / Computers and Structures 71 (1999) 143±162
 1=c
dj obtain the coordinates of nodes according to this
ljn‡1 ˆ lnj …7†
dju system.
3. Calculate the total area of the cross section as
 1=c
emax X
mÿ1
lsn‡1 ˆ lns …8†
eu At ˆ …Ai ‡ Asti † …10†
iˆ1

 max 1=c where Ai is the area of each small concrete element

f
lstn‡1 ˆ lnst st
…9† which is equal to
fy
Ai ˆ ti si
where c is a preselected constant. These are derived
from the constraints of design problem (1) by tak- q
ing them as equality, multiplying both sides of ˆ ti …x r,…k‡1† ÿ x r,k †2 ‡ … yr,…k‡1† ÿ yr,k †2 …11†
these equations by l cj, l cs and l cst then taking the cth
root. It is apparent that the use of these expressions in which ti and si are the thickness and length of
requires the selection of initial values for Lagrange each small element. Asti is the equivalent area of
multipliers. steel which is computed as

Asti ˆ nx 5 ; if rebar is in the tension zone …12†

4. Analysis of single core shear walls

Asti ˆ …n ÿ 1†x 5 ;
…13†
The reinforced concrete open-section thin walled if rebar is in the compression zone
shear wall is analyzed as a space structure. Due to
the fact that e€ect of warping is important in the where n = Es/Ec is the modular ratio in which Es
analysis of such structures, seven degrees of freedom and Ec are the modulus of elasticity of concrete and
are considered at a joint, as shown in Fig. 1(b). Six steel. m is the total number of nodes in the thin
of these are the familiar translations and rotations walled section.
about three orthogonal axis and the seventh one is 4. Transform the arbitrary coordinate system XR, YR
the warping displacement [2]. Consideration of seven into centroidal coordinate system X, Y.
degrees of freedom at a joint leads to a member
sti€ness matrix for a thin walled space element with X
m ÿ1
… yr,…k‡1† ‡ yr,k †
an order of 14  14. The construction of the member Sx ˆ …Ai ‡ Asti †  …14†
iˆ1
2
sti€ness matrix makes it necessary to calculate the
sectional properties of section such as sectorial coor-
dinate and sectorial moment of inertia (warping con- X
m ÿ1
…x r,…k‡1† ‡ x r,k †
stant) in addition to the sectional properties such as Sy ˆ …Ai ‡ Asti †  …15†
2
the area and the moment of inertia about three or- iˆ1

thogonal axes.
Sy Sx
4.1. Computation of sectional and sectorial properties x0 ˆ y0 ˆ …16†
At At

The sectional and sectorial properties of reinforced where Sx and Sy are the statical moment about arbi-
concrete thin walled section are calculated by in- trary coordinate system XR, YR. x' and y' are shown
itially dividing the section into number of small el- in Fig. 2(a).
ements each of which contains a rebar at its center 5. Calculate the coordinates of nodes and center point
as shown in Fig. 2. The width of each small el- of elements with respect to the centroidal coordinate
ement is pre-selected prior to discretization. The system
procedure is based on Vlasov's theorems [17] and
similar to [14]. The steps of procedure is given in x k ˆ x r,k ÿ x 0 yk ˆ yr,k ÿ y 0 …17†
the following.
x k‡1 ‡ x k yk‡1 ‡ yk
1. Divide the cross section into a number of small el- xi ˆ yi ˆ …18†
2 2
ements in which each element is de®ned by two
node numbers. k represents a node number. where xk, yk and xi, yi are the coordinates of node k
2. Choose an arbitrary coordinate system XR, YR and and center point of element i which has end nodes k
 S.S. Al-Mosawi, M.P. Saka / Computers and Structures 71 (1999) 143±162 149

and k+1 with respect to centroidal coordinate sys- X

m ÿ1
So yC1 ˆ …o CC1,i x i Ai ‡ o SC1,i x i Asti † …26†
tem. iˆ1
6. Calculate the moment of inertia of the section with
respect to centroidal coordinate system where

X
mÿ1 o CC1,i ˆ 0:5…o CC1,k ‡ o CC1,…k‡1† †;
Ixx ˆ …Ai  y2i ‡ Asti  y2i † …19† …27†
iˆ1 o SC1,i ˆ 0:5…o SC1,k ‡ o SC1,…k‡1† †

X
mÿ1 The location of the principal pole is then obtained
Iyy ˆ …Ai  x 2i ‡ Asti  x 2i † …20† from
iˆ1
!
Iyy So x C1 ÿ Ixy So yC1
ax ˆ ÿ …28†
X
mÿ1 Ixx Iyy ÿ I 2xy
Ixy ˆ …Ai  x i  yi ‡ Asti  x i  yi † …21†
iˆ1
!
Ixx So yC1 ÿ Ixy So x C1
7. Locate the pole at the center of gravity C of the sec- ay ˆ ‡ …29†
Ixx Iyy ÿ I 2xy
tion for simplicity and select C1 as the initial radius
of the sectorial coordinate.
8. Determine the location of shear center. For this, The principal pole is the shear center of the sec-
®rst calculate the non-principal sectorial coordinate tion and its coordinates ax and ay are shown in
of the section. Fig. 2(a).
9. Calculate the principal sectorial coordinates and
o CC1,…k‡1† ˆ o CC1,k ÿ o C principal sectorial moment of inertia. This is
C1,k‡1
achieved ®rst ®nding non-principal sectorial coor-
dinates of the section using A1 as the initial
in which radius.
…22†
o CC1,k‡1 ˆ …j x i  Dyi j ‡ j yi  Dx i j† o CA1,…k‡1† ˆ o CA1,k ÿ o CC1,…k‡1† ÿ …j ax j Dyi ‡

j ay j Dx i † …30†
o SC1,…k‡1† ˆ o SC1,k ÿ o SC1,k‡1

o SA1,…k‡1† ˆ o SA1,k ÿ o SC1,…k‡1† ÿ …j ax j DySi ‡

in which
…23† j ay j DxSi † …31†
o SC1,k‡1 ˆ …j x i  Dysi j ‡ j yi  Dx si j†
Note that o C S
A1,1=o A1,1=0. The sectorial statical
where o C S
C1,k and o C1,k are the sectorial coordinates moments S C o and S S
o for concrete and rebar parts of
of point k from arbitrarily chosen pole C and an in- the section are calculated from
itial radius of C1 for concrete and steel elements, re-
spectively. Note that o C S
C1,k and o C1,k are equal to
X
mÿ1 X
mÿ1
S Co ˆ o CA1,i  Ai , S So ˆ o SA1,i  Asti …32†
zero at point 1. Dxi and Dyi are calculated from
iˆ1 iˆ1

Dx i ˆ x k‡1 ÿ x k , Dyi ˆ yk‡1 ÿ yk …24†

o CA1,k ‡ o CA1,…k‡1†
The area of reinforcement bars is converted into o CA1,i ˆ ,
equivalent square areas so that sectorial coordi- 2
…33†
nate of each bar can be calculated easily. The o SA1,k ‡ o SA1,…k‡1†
sides of this o SA1,i ˆ
p equivalent square is taken as 2
Dxsi=Dysi= Asti .
The sectorial coordinates calculated above are The total sectorial statical moment of the section
used to calculate the sectorial statical moments of becomes
the section
So ˆ S Co ‡ S So …34†
X
mÿ1
So x C1 ˆ …o CC1,i yi Ai ‡ o SC1,i yi Asti † …25† The amount of coordinate transformation required to
iˆ1 render oA1 into the principal oAO is calculated from
150 S.S. Al-Mosawi, M.P. Saka / Computers and Structures 71 (1999) 143±162

So
o AO ˆ …35† excluded from the computation of the sectional and
At sectorial properties of the cross section. This
The principal sectorial coordinate for each point k requires knowledge of the location of the neutral
and center point of each element is determined from axis. However, at the initial stage this information
is not available. Hence, it becomes necessary ®rst
o CAO,k ˆ o CA1,k ÿ o AO , o SAO,k ˆ o SA1,k ÿ o AO …36† to ®nd the location of the neutral axis. This is
achieved by using an iterative process as outlined
below.
o CAO,k ‡ o CAO,…k‡1†
o Ci ˆ ,
2 1. Calculate sectional and sectorial properties of the
…37† cross section considering all small concrete elements
o SAO,k ‡ o SAO,…k‡1† and rebars along the section.
o Si ˆ
2 2. Analyze the core system with these sectional and
Finally the principal sectorial moment of inertia is sectorial properties and obtain the member end
obtained from forces.
3. Calculate normal stresses at the center of concrete
X
mÿ1 elements for the cross section of the core subjected
Io ˆ ‰…o Ci †2  Ai ‡ …o Si †2  Asti Š …38† to above end forces.
iˆ1 4. From the signs of normal stresses, determine the
tension zone in the cross section.
5. Remove the small elements which are located
in the tension zone and calculate sectional and
4.2. Computation of stresses and strains sectorial properties of remaining cross section.
6. Repeat steps 3±5 until convergence is obtained at
The stresses at the center of each small el- the value of sectorial moment of inertia.
ement and in the reinforcement bars of the thin- 7. After convergence is achieved under the current
walled reinforced concrete section subjected to member end forces, it becomes necessary to reana-
combined axial force, biaxial bending moment lyze the core and to update member end forces for
and torsional moment is computed from the fol- this new cross section.
lowing expression: 8. Go to step 3 until convergence is achieved at the
member end forces.
Pz Mx Iyy ÿ My Ixy
sCi ˆ 2 2 yi
At Ixx Iyy ÿ I 2xy

My Ixx ÿ Mx Ixy oC
2 2
x i 2Bo i
Ixx Iyy ÿ I xy Io
5. Computation of derivatives

Pz Mx Iyy ÿ My Ixy Use of recursive relationship (6) for design vari-

fsti ˆ 2 2 yi
At Ixx Iyy ÿ I 2xy ables in the optimum design cycles requires the
…39† computation of derivatives of member sti€ness
My Ixx ÿ Mx Ixy o Si matrix in global coordinates, and the derivative of
2 x i 2B o
Ixx Iyy ÿ I 2xy Io the maximum strain and also the derivative of the
maximum stress in rebar with respect to design
where Pz, Mx, My are the axial force and the bending variables. Using the chain rule the derivatives of
moments about the X and Y axes. Bo is the bimoment terms in the sti€ness matrix can be reduced to the
acting on the section. Once the analysis of the core sys- derivatives of sectional and sectorial properties of
tem is carried out under the applied loads, these mem- the cross section with respect to design variables as
ber end forces readily become available. The sectional given in [15]. The derivative of maximum strain in
properties At, Ixx, Iyy, Ixy and the sectorial properties the cross section is calculated from
oC S
i , o i , Io are calculated as explained in the previous
section. It is apparent that once the stress is obtained @ emax 1 @ smax
at the center of each concrete element, the strain at the ˆ …40†
@xk EC @ x k
same point is determined as s C i /EC.
It is to be noted that the small concrete elements The derivative of stress with respect to design vari-
in the tension zone of the cross section should be able xk is obtained from Eq. (39)
 S.S. Al-Mosawi, M.P. Saka / Computers and Structures 71 (1999) 143±162 151

@ smax Pz @ At
ˆÿ 2
@xk At @ x k
Mx Iyy ÿ My Ixy @ yi
‡ 
Ixx Iyy ÿ I 2xy @xk
   
@ Iyy @ Ixy @ Iyy @ Ixx @ Ixy
…Ixx Iyy ÿ I 2xy † Mx ÿ My ÿ …Mx Iyy ÿ My Ixy † Ixx ‡ Iyy ÿ 2Ixy
@xk @xk @xk @xk @xk
‡ yi
…Ixx Iyy ÿ I 2xy †2

My Ixx ÿ Mx Ixy @xi

‡ 
Ixx Iyy ÿ I 2xy @xk
   
@ Ixx @ Ixy @ Iyy @ Ixx @ Ixy
…Ixx Iyy ÿ I 2xy † My ÿ Mx ÿ …My Ixx ÿ Mx Ixy † Ixx ‡ Iyy ÿ 2Ixy
@xk @xk @xk @xk @xk
‡ xi
…Ixx Iyy ÿ I 2xy †2
 
@ o Ci C @ Io
Io B o ÿ Bo o i
@xk @xk
‡
…Io †2
…41†

The derivative of maximum stress in rebar with respect
to design variable xk is obtained from Eq. (39). The
gradients of objective function can be determined ana-
lytically from Eq. (2). It is apparent that all the deriva-
tives of the sti€ness matrix, maximum strain in
concrete and maximum stress in rebars are functions
of the derivatives of sectional and sectorial properties
of the cross-section. Due to the fact that Ixx, Iyy, Ixy,
Io, xi, yi, o C S
i and o i are not explicit expressions of de-
sign variables, numerical di€erentiation is used to com-
pute their derivatives with respect to design variables.
The following central-di€erence expression is used for
this purpose which has an error of h 4 [16].
@f ÿfj‡2 ‡ 8fj‡1 ÿ 8fjÿ1 ‡ fjÿ2
ˆ …42†
@xk 12h
where f represents any of the sectional and sectorial
properties of the cross section and h is taken as 0.01.
For example, if the derivative of the moment of inertia
of the thin walled section about x±x axis with respect
to design variables x1 is required at any design cycle
fj+2, fj+1, fjÿ2 and fjÿ1 are replaced by Ixx,j+2, Ixx,j+1,
Ixx,jÿ2 and Ixx,jÿ1. The numerical procedure explained
in the previous section is used to calculate the value of
Ixx,j+2 when the current value of x1 is increased by
0.02 while the values of the other variables are kept
the same. The same process if repeated for the compu-
tation of each moment of inertia and in each case the
current value of x1 is increased or decreased by an
amount of 0.01 or 0.02, respectively.
6. Optimum design procedure
The optimum design algorithm developed consists of
the following steps:
1. Input the geometrical properties of core structure,
initial values of design variables, Lagrange multi-
pliers and length of small element as well as lower
bound values of design variables.
2. Calculate the sectional and sectorial properties of
the transformed cross section.
3. Analyze the core system with the current sectional
and sectorial properties and obtain the joint displa-
cements and member end forces.
4. Calculate normal stresses at the center of each con-
crete element on the cross section at the support level.
5. Recalculate the sectional and sectorial properties of
the section after the removal of concrete elements in
the tension zone.
6. Check whether convergence is obtained in the value
of the cross-sectional moment of inertia. If not go
to step 4, otherwise go to step 7.
7. Check whether convergence is obtained in the member
end forces. If not go to step 2, otherwise go to step 8.
8. Compute Lagrange parameters from Eqs. (7)±(9).
9. Calculate the derivatives of sectional and sectorial
properties with respect to design variables using Eq.
(42).
10. Determine the new values of design variables from
the recursive relationship (6).
152 S.S. Al-Mosawi, M.P. Saka / Computers and Structures 71 (1999) 143±162

Fig. 3. Fifteen-story single core tall building. (a) Node membering of single core shear wall. (b) Cross-section of tall building.
Number of stories = 15; story height = 3.8 m; characteristic concrete strength = 275 kN/mm2; characteristic steel strength = 420
kN/mm2; modulus of elasticity for concrete = 24.82 kN/mm2; modulus of elasticity for steel = 200 kN/mm2; shear modulus = 10.34
kN/mm2; Poisson's ratio = 0.2.

11. Compare the values of design variables with its
lower bounds and take the largest for the next de-
sign cycle.
12. Check whether convergence is obtained on the
objective function. If there is no convergence go to
step 2, otherwise go to step 13.
13. Check whether the restricted displacement or maxi-
mum strain in concrete or maximum stress in rebar
is within their upper bounds. If not go to step 2,
otherwise print the optimum values of design vari-
ables and stop.
 S.S. Al-Mosawi, M.P. Saka / Computers and Structures 71 (1999) 143±162
The experience obtained from the design examples has
shown that selection of the initial design point as feas-
ible or infeasible does not a€ect the performance of
the algorithm. It operates equally well from both
points. However, it is apparent that if the initial design
point is selected to be far away from the optimum, the
algorithm requires more iterations to converge to the
®nal design.
After several trials, 1000 was found to be suitable
for the initial value of Lagrange multipliers for displa-
cement constraints and 1  109 for strain and stress
constraints. The step sizes 1/r in Eq. (6) and 1/c in
Eqs. (7)±(9) are taken as 0.001 and 2, respectively.
It can be noticed from the above steps that the al-
gorithm consists of several cycles one in another. The
®rst one involves ®nding the location of the neutral
axis. In every iteration when a small concrete element
is removed from the tension zone, the sectional and
sectorial properties are recalculated. This procedure is
continued until convergence is obtained in the value of
the cross-sectional moment of inertia. When this is
achieved, it then becomes necessary to update the re-
sponse of the core structure with these new values of
cross-sectional properties. These two iterations one in
another are repeated until the convergence is obtained
in the member end forces. The algorithm then moves
to the next optimum design cycle. The optimum design
cycles are terminated when the convergence is obtained
Fig. 4. Design history for variables which the loading is in the x-direction.
153
in the objective function while all the displacements
and strain constraints are satis®ed. It is apparent that
the algorithm proposed requires a large number of iter-
ations in each design cycle. This in turn necessitates
large computational time. It took around an hour of
computations in a PC with 486CPU and 66 MHz
speed to obtain the ®nal designs in the examples con-
sidered. It would certainly take less time in a PC with
the latest con®gurations.
7. Design examples
The simple core structure with a lipped channel
cross section is shown in Fig. 3. The material proper-
ties of concrete and steel are given in the ®gure. The
lateral displacements of joints 1, 2 and 3 are limited to
114, 106.4 and 98.8 mm. The maximum strain in con-
crete is restricted to less than 0.003. The lower bounds
on dimensional variables x1, x2, x3 and x4 are selected
as 5, 4, 1.5 and 0.20 m, respectively, and for x5 the
area of reinforcement in each concrete element is taken
as 900 mm2. The cross section shown in Fig. 3(b) is
divided into 80 small elements, each of which has a re-
inforcement at its center.
This core structure was designed three times. In the
®rst design a uniformly distributed lateral loading of
18 kN/m, as shown in Fig. 3, was considered to be act-
 154

Table 1
Sectional and sectorial properties during ®rst optimization cycle

Iteration number Sectional and sectorial properties

For optimization cycle For member end forces For sectional and sectorial properties Ixx (cm4) Iyy (cm4) Ixy (cm4) AR (cm2) Iw (cm6)

1 1 1 1.628  109 9.683  108 998701.6 37145.29 1.111  1014

2 9.001  108 2.920  108 1655190 22687.29 1.376  1013
3 6.557  108 2.740  108 1714473 18777.29 7.864  1012
4 6.069  108 2.740  108 1716130 17995.29 7.554  1012
2 1 6.069  108 2.740  108 1716130 17995.29 7.554  1012
2 5.938  108 2.598  108 1.236  107 17752.29 6.437  1012
3 5.932  108 2.598  108 1.225  107 17743.29 6.432  1012
3 1 5.932  108 2.598  108 1.225  107 17743.29 6.432  1012
2 5.932  108 2.598  108 1.225  107 17743.29 6.432  1012
Final values of sectional and sectorial properties of the section to be used in the next 5.932  108 2.598  108 1.225  107 17743.29 6.432  1012
optimization cycle.
S.S. Al-Mosawi, M.P. Saka / Computers and Structures 71 (1999) 143±162
 S.S. Al-Mosawi, M.P. Saka / Computers and Structures 71 (1999) 143±162
ing in the x-direction. The initial design point was
selected as the lower bounds on variables. The opti-
mum values for design variables were obtained after 21
iterations as 6.561 m for length 5.435 m for width,
1.647 m for lip length and 0.25 m for the thickness of
shear wall. The optimum area for each bar was
1283 mm2. The design history for each variable is
shown in Fig. 4. The values of sectional and sectorial
properties obtained in the ®rst optimum design cycle
using the iterative technique suggested in this study are
given in Table 1.
The same core structure was designed the second
time by considering the uniformly distributed lateral
loading of 18 kN/m acting along the y-direction which
is shown in Fig. 3(a). The optimum values of design
variables were obtained after 24 iterations as 5.875 m
for the length, 4.534 m for the width, 1.687 m for the
lip length and 0.218 m for the thickness of the shear
wall. The optimum area of each reinforcement was
1092 mm2. The design history for each variables is
shown in Fig. 5. The variation of volume of the core
during optimum design cycles in both designs is shown
in Fig. 7. In both optimum designs the displacement
limitation at the tip was dominant. The maximum
strain in concrete was 0.0011 when the loading was in
the x-direction and was 0.0007 when the loading was
in the y-direction. Comparison of both optimum
volumes shows that the core subjected to lateral loads
in the x-direction comes out as heavier. This is due to
Fig. 5. Design history for variables when the loading is in the y-direction.
155
the fact that the core structure is narrower along the
x-direction and requires greater sti€ness to resist the
lateral loads.
Finally the uniformly distributed lateral load of 18
kN/m was applied to the core from both x and y direc-
tions simultaneously. The optimum values of design
variables in this case were obtained after 21 iterations
as 6.363 m for the length, 4.954 m for the width,
1.878 m for the lip length and 0.24 m for thickness of
the shear wall. The optimum area of reinforcement
was 1157 mm2. The design history for each variable is
shown in Fig. 6. The variation of the volume of the
core during the optimum design cycles is shown in Fig.
7. In the optimum design the displacement limitation
was dominant. It is interesting to notice from Fig. 7
that the optimum volume of the core under this load-
ing is between the optimum volumes obtained in the
previous two cases.
Both initial and ®nal shapes of the core structure
obtained for the above three di€erent loadings are
shown in Fig. 8 (a)±(c).The sectorial coordinate dia-
grams of the optimum shapes obtained under three
di€erent loadings are shown in Fig. 9. It should be
noticed that the diagrams are not symmetrical. This is
due to the fact that the concrete section below the neu-
tral axis is not taken into consideration, which turns
the lipped channel section into an unsymmetrical sec-
tion about both axes.
 156

Fig. 6. Design history for variables when the loading is in x- and y-directions.
S.S. Al-Mosawi, M.P. Saka / Computers and Structures 71 (1999) 143±162
 S.S. Al-Mosawi, M.P. Saka / Computers and Structures 71 (1999) 143±162
Fig. 7. Variation of core volume during optimum design cycles.
8. Discussion
ACI code [5] covers the design of structural walls or
shear walls with rectangular cross section in Section
21.6. The same code does not have any clause which
particularly refers to the design of core shear walls.
However, there is no reason to expect the core shear
walls to behave di€erently from those having rectangu-
lar cross section.
The basic requirement of the strength is expressed as
Design strength … factored resistance†
rRequired strength … factored load effects†
The required strength is computed by analyzing the
structure under the governing combination of factored
loads. The design strength refers to the nominal
strength of a cross section computed using the nominal
dimensions and speci®ed material strength. This
strength is reduced by the factor of f to account for
possible variations in dimensions and material strength
and possible inaccuracies in strength equations.
The design algorithm presented can easily be
extended to cater for ACI code requirements. This can
be achieved by replacing the constraints considered in
the design problem (1) with those of design strength of
157
the cross section of the core less than or equal to its
required strength.
In each optimum design cycle after locating the neu-
tral axis of the cross section under the factored loads,
the factored resistance for axial, moment and shear
and calculated on the basis of having ultimate com-
pressive strain in concrete as 0.003 and ultimate stress
in the reinforcement bars not more than the yield
stress.
Although in this study single core lipped channel
shape shear walls were considered, the algorithm devel-
oped is general. It can be used in the optimum design
of other core shear walls with di€erent shapes such as
angle Z and I. This does not introduce any diculty
due to the fact that the algorithm presented calculates
the sectional and sectorial properties of the cross sec-
tion starting from an arbitrary set of orthogonal axes.
As explained in the previous sections, due to the
complexity of the design problem the algorithm pre-
sented requires a large number of iterations to achieve
the optimum shape for core shear wall. As a result of
this, a large computational time becomes a necessity to
reach the ®nal design. At the time of study, it is not
possible to comment on the eciency of the algorithm
due to the lack of similar design examples in the litera-
ture.
158 S.S. Al-Mosawi, M.P. Saka / Computers and Structures 71 (1999) 143±162

Fig. 8. Initial and optimum shapes for the core structure. (a) Loading is in the x-direction; (b) loading is in the y-direction; (c)
loading is in x- and y-directions.
S.S. Al-Mosawi, M.P. Saka / Computers and Structures 71 (1999) 143±162 159

Fig 8 (continued)
160 S.S. Al-Mosawi, M.P. Saka / Computers and Structures 71 (1999) 143±162

Fig 8 (continued)
 S.S. Al-Mosawi, M.P. Saka / Computers and Structures 71 (1999) 143±162 161

Fig. 9. Sectorial coordinates for optimum shapes. (a) x-Direction loading; (b) y-direction loading; (c) x- and y-direction loading.
162 S.S. Al-Mosawi, M.P. Saka / Computers and Structures 71 (1999) 143±162
The use of the algorithm is easy. It does not need
any additional information other than the usual struc-
tural input data and the initial values for the design
variables.
9. Conclusions
The optimum design algorithm developed in this
study for reinforced concrete thin walled open sections
is general. It is based on the limit state theory and con-
siders displacement limitations in addition to strain
constraints in concrete and yielding constraints in
rebars. It considers the e€ect of warping which can be
considerable in the computation of normal stresses
when the thin walled section is subjected to a torsional
moment. The design algorithm makes use of sectorial
properties of section which is quite useful in describing
deformations and stresses when the plane cross section
no longer remains plane. A numerical procedure pre-
sented in this study automates the computation of sec-
tional and sectorial properties in addition to the
determination of the shear center of reinforced con-
crete thin walled sections. Furthermore an iterative
procedure is developed for ®nding the location of the
neutral axis in reinforced concrete thin walled section
subjected to axial force, biaxial bending moments and
torsional moment. It is shown that optimality criteria
method can e€ectively be used in obtaining the opti-
mum solution of highly nonlinear design problem.
Optimum solutions of both examples are determined
after 20 design cycles each of which involves large
number of iterations. It was not possible to carry out a
comparison of the ®nal shapes obtained with other
works due to the lack of design examples in the litera-
ture. It is also apparent that in high-rise buildings
shear walls are normally interconnected with slabs and
cannot deform freely, as assumed in the model con-
sidered in this study. However this work constitutes
the ®rst step in the development of an algorithm for
the optimum design of multiple core shear walls in
which the e€ects of inplane sti€ness of ¯oor dia-
phragms are taken into account.
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