{"693389":{"#nid":"693389","#data":{"type":"event","title":"MS Defense by Aryaman Bhatnagar","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EAryaman Bhatnagar\u003Cbr\u003E(Advisor: Dr. Emily D. Sanders)\u003Cbr\u003Ewill defend a master\u2019s thesis entitled,\u003Cbr\u003ETopology Optimization of Elastic Catenary Cable Networks\u003Cbr\u003EOn\u003Cbr\u003EWednesday, October 28, 2026 at 2:00 p.m. (EDT)\u003Cbr\u003EOnline via Zoom\u003Cbr\u003EZoom link: https:\/\/gatech.zoom.us\/j\/5879702561\u003Cbr\u003EAbstract\u003Cbr\u003EA cable supports load by deforming into an equilibrium configuration \u2014 the catenary \u2014 in which\u003Cbr\u003Einternal tension balances applied forces and self-weight at every point. The classical catenary\u003Cbr\u003Eassumes inextensibility, leading to a convenient closed-form solution of the catenary\u2019s shape, but\u003Cbr\u003Eit neglects the elasticity of real materials. When the material\u2019s elasticity is considered, a nonlinear\u003Cbr\u003Esystem of equations, with no closed-form solution, is needed to capture the coupling between axial\u003Cbr\u003Estrain and structural form. Designing a network of such cables \u2014 an elastic catenary structure \u2014\u003Cbr\u003Efor minimal compliance, poses two key challenges: (1) the stiffness of the system depends on the\u003Cbr\u003Ecurrent deformed configuration (i.e., geometric nonlinearity) and (2) self-weight loads evolve with\u003Cbr\u003Ethe design (i.e., design-dependent loads), leading to a non-monotonic compliance objective\u003Cbr\u003Efunction that decreases or increases with volume when external loads or self-weight, respectively,\u003Cbr\u003Edominate. In this thesis, a topology optimization framework that overcomes these two challenges\u003Cbr\u003Eis proposed for design of optimized catenary structures. A dense network of candidate cables are\u003Cbr\u003Esized to minimize compliance under a volume constraint. In each design iteration, the structural\u003Cbr\u003Eresponse is computed using nonlinear structural analysis, in which the global tangent stiffness\u003Cbr\u003Ematrix is assembled from individual elastic catenary elements. A sensitivity separation scheme is\u003Cbr\u003Eadopted to decompose the objective function into monotonically increasing and decreasing\u003Cbr\u003Ecomponents such that a convex approximate subproblem with non-monotonic objective facilitates\u003Cbr\u003Euse of optimality criteria methods. Key contributions include: (1) analytical sensitivities of catenary\u003Cbr\u003Estructural compliance under design-dependent loading; (2) an open-source MATLAB code for\u003Cbr\u003Etopology optimization of elastic catenary structures; (3) case studies investigating how geometry\u003Cbr\u003Eand load path co-evolve, regimes where elastic catenary solutions diverge from inextensible\u003Cbr\u003Emodels, and the practicality of the proposed method for form finding of grid shells.\u003Cbr\u003ECommittee\u003Cbr\u003E\u2022 Dr. Emily D. Sanders \u2013 Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering (advisor)\u003Cbr\u003E\u2022 Dr. Edvard P.G. Bruun \u2013 School of Civil and Environmental Engineering\u003Cbr\u003E\u2022 Dr. Antonia Antoniou \u2013 Woodruff School of Mechanical Engineering\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":"","format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003ETopology Optimization of Elastic Catenary Cable Networks\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"Topology Optimization of Elastic Catenary Cable Networks"}],"uid":"27707","created_gmt":"2026-10-22 13:16:44","changed_gmt":"2026-10-22 13:17:19","author":"Tatianna Richardson","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","field_event_time":{"event_time_start":"2026-10-28T14:00:00-04:00","event_time_end":"2026-10-28T15:00:00-04:00","event_time_end_last":"2026-10-28T15:00:00-04:00","gmt_time_start":"2026-10-28 18:00:00","gmt_time_end":"2026-10-28 19:00:00","gmt_time_end_last":"2026-10-28 19:00:00","rrule":null,"timezone":"America\/New_York"},"location":"Online via Zoom ","extras":[],"groups":[{"id":"221981","name":"Graduate Studies"}],"categories":[],"keywords":[{"id":"111531","name":"ms defense"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[],"event_categories":[{"id":"1788","name":"Other\/Miscellaneous"}],"invited_audience":[{"id":"78771","name":"Public"}],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[],"email":[],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}