Investigating the effect of outriggers on the minimum weight design of real-scale high-rise buildings with semi-rigid connections
JOURNAL OF BUILDING ENGINEERING, cilt.128, 2026 (SCI-Expanded, Scopus)
- Yayın Türü: Makale / Tam Makale
- Cilt numarası: 128
- Basım Tarihi: 2026
- Doi Numarası: 10.1016/j.jobe.2026.116658
- Dergi Adı: JOURNAL OF BUILDING ENGINEERING
- Derginin Tarandığı İndeksler: Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED), Scopus, Compendex, INSPEC
- Karadeniz Teknik Üniversitesi Adresli: Evet
Özet
This study investigates the effect of outrigger systems on the minimum-weight design of high-rise steel frames considering semi-rigid beam-column connections. A unified optimization framework integrating SAP2000 and MATLAB through the OAPI interface is developed to enable automated structural analysis and design updates. Unlike many previous studies that assume rigid connections or evaluate outrigger systems independently, this study considers semi-rigid connection behaviour and outrigger systems together within a consistent optimization framework. The problem is formulated as a discrete, constraint-driven design task based on AISC-LRFD provisions, where member sections are selected from 272 Wide-Flange profiles while satisfying stress, interstorey drift, and displacement limits. Three irregular steel frame models with 17, 24, and 30 storeys are analyzed, and the performance of three metaheuristic algorithms, namely the Honey Badger Algorithm (HBA), Aquila Optimizer (AO), and Grey Wolf Optimizer (GWO), is comparatively evaluated under identical optimization settings. Different loading scenarios are considered across the models to investigate optimization behaviour under varying structural conditions. The results show that the inclusion of outrigger systems leads to an increase in structural weight due to additional structural elements, while providing a noticeable reduction in lateral displacements and an improvement in global stiffness. In terms of optimization outcomes, AO and GWO generally produce lower-weight designs compared to HBA under identical optimization settings, achieving noticeable reductions in structural weight, ranging from approximately 1.8% to 45.7% depending on the structural configuration and outrigger condition. The study provides a consistent evaluation of semi-rigid connection behaviour and outrigger systems within an optimization framework and offers insights for the design of high-rise steel structures.