Guided Water Strider Algorithm for Structural Damage Detection Using Incomplete Modal Data

Abstract

Over the last decades, metaheuristic algorithms have become versatile tools for solving various engineering optimization problems. That is why their application for structural damage identification has attracted the attention of researchers in civil engineering. In this paper, a guided structural damage detection approach using the recently developed optimization algorithm, water strider algorithm (WSA), is applied to detect multiple damage cases in structures. To reduce the computational costs, modal strain energy as a sensitive characteristic is used to localize damage locations in structures and guide the optimization algorithm. Considering incomplete modal data, four numerical examples and two with-noise and noise-free scenarios are examined. The results indicate the applicability and accuracy of the WSA in structural damage detection compared to other algorithms.