Author(s)

E.J. O'Brien & J.J. O'Donnell

Abstract

The effectiveness of optimisation techniques for material property characterisation E.J. O'Brien, J.J. O'Donnell Department of Civil, Structural and Environmental Engineering, Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland ABSTRACT The paper describes the application of a technique whereby the parameters which characterise a physical process can be found. The technique is based on the use of optimisation to find those values for the characteristic parameters which give a best fit of the measured results to a chosen numerical model. Typically these parameters represent the physical properties of the materials involved in the process. Factors which influence the effectiveness of the technique are described and methods are developed for the assessment of its suitability for various applications. INTRODUCTION There are many situations where the parameters which characterise a physical process are difficult to determine directly. When modelling such a process numerically, it is sometimes convenient

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