Design and simulation analysis of trimaran bulkhead based on topological optimization

In order to improve the overall performance of trimaran, the lightweight design of trimaran bulkhead is proposed by using structural topology optimization method. And ensure that the trimaran bulkhead has sufficient structural strength while the structural quality is reduced, seven structural strength checking conditions of trimaran are designed based on Rules for The Classification of Trimarans. Variable density topology optimization method is applied to calculate the bulkhead structure of trimaran before and after optimization under different working conditions. The results of calculation and optimization show that: the stress distribution on the optimized bulkhead and the maximum stress of the optimized bulkhead with different volume constraint condition in special cases are different. The maximum stress of the trimaran bulkhead before and after the bulkhead being optimized are most close in a specific case when the volume reduction rate is 50%. By comparing with the design of the actual ship bulkhead, the distribution of the connecting material of the optimized bulkhead is consistent with the distribution of the stiffeners of the trimaran bulkhead design, and the optimization result has a high similarity with the actual ship bulkhead design. •In this paper, the non-watertight bulkhead of trimaran is optimized by topology optimization, which makes up for the vacancy in this respect to a certain extent.•Compared with a real ship bulkhead abroad, the model of this paper has a strong similarity in structure.•Good agreement of optimization result and actual reinforcement proves the feasibility of topology method in ship.