The objective of the present work is to perform a technical and economic analysis of the adoption of shell as a structural solution for the foundation of industrial vertical silo. Initially projected in a rigid and flat slab, the foundations of a vertical silo were optimized by numerical computational modeling through a parallel Finite Element Method code, adopting shell in the form of reversed cone. It will be shown that a significant reduction of structural concrete of steel was obtained with the optimization of the silo foundations, and by this way, economy in the execution of the structure.

Structural engineering simulations have required increasingly complex computational models to replace physical tests accurately. This work focuses on the numerical analysis of vehicle body structures, whose size and complexity make the use of very accurate nonlinear models unfeasible due to the prohibitive computational costs involved. The purpose of this study is to find a new approach to model spot-welded joints in linear finite element models of thin-wall vehicle body structures, improving the accuracy of the model without increasing its complexity. Using a set of simplified nonlinear models, we fitted the stiffness and damping properties of these welded joints and used those adjusted values into a linear model of the entire vehicle body structure. The results were compared with experimental tests, showing a clear improvement in the accuracy of the modal and frequency responses provided by the linear finite element model, but keeping its initial complexity level. The adjusted model was then used in an optimization analysis to reduce the structure's weight, leading to interesting cost savings and important reductions in the use of natural resources and carbon emissions.

In this work, the structural behavior of reinforced hollow-core concrete slabs considered as industrial pavement will be displayed. The geometry of the plates was obtained by numerical modeling through computer algorithm based on the parallel Finite Element Method in, considering both the soil and concrete like elastoplastic materials. It will be shown that greater speed of execution and significant reduction in consumption of materials, and by this way, economy in the implementation of an industrial pavement through the design of a precast hollow-core concrete slab was obtained.