Mine blast algorithm for optimization of truss structures with discrete variables

► A novel optimization algorithm inspired from explosion of mine bombs. ► Mine blast algorithm (MBA) outperforms other metaheuristic methods. ► MBA offers better and faster solutions for structural truss optimization. ► MBA may be applied to other optimization problems. In this study a novel optimization method is presented, the so called mine blast algorithm (MBA). The fundamental concepts and ideas of MBA are derived from the explosion of mine bombs in real world. The efficiency of the proposed optimizer is tested via the optimization of several truss structures with discrete variables and its performance is compared with several well-known metaheuristic algorithms. The results show that MBA is able to provide faster convergence rate and also manages to achieve better optimal solutions compared to other efficient optimizers.