Otimização topológica de um braço de pulverizador agrícola em material compósito

Abstract

This work aims to perform a topological optimization of an agricultural sprayer arm made of steel, aiming to maximize rigidity while restricting volume. Additionally, it applies a postoptimization analysis with the properties of an orthotropic material to assess the structural viability of sprayers made from composite materials. The analyzed domain consists of a hollow tube with an 8 mm wall, treated as a cantilever beam. The process starts with obtaining the loadings and conducting a static analysis of the structure, referred to as pre-optimization analysis, to identify critical stress concentrations and areas with significant displacements, ensuring a geometry closer to real-world conditions. Next, three distinct topological optimizations are performed on the structure, varying the volume constraints in each case, while the objective function remains the maximization of rigidity. Once the optimizations are completed, the chosen model is generated using CAD software, taking into consideration manufacturing feasibility. Afterward, a post-optimization structural analysis is carried out, considering the anisotropy of the composite material. This step ensures the orientation of the fibers and the thickness distribution of the composite. In the pre-optimization analysis, the rigidity was determined to be 635.45 N/mm. The optimized models achieved rigidity values of 260.55 N/mm, 261.72 N/mm, and 214.34 N/mm, respectively. The model that considered fiber orientations obtained a rigidity of 318.62 N/mm, with a 70% reduction in mass compared to the original design.