This book focuses on metaheuristic methods and its applications to real-world problems in Engineering. The first part describes some key metaheuristic methods, such as Bat Algorithms, Particle Swarm Optimization, Differential Evolution, and Particle Collision Algorithms. Improved versions of these methods and strategies for parameter tuning are also presented, both of which are essential for the practical use of these important computational tools. The second part then applies metaheuristics to problems, mainly in Civil, Mechanical, Chemical, Electrical, and Nuclear Engineering. Other methods, such as the Flower Pollination Algorithm, Symbiotic Organisms Search, Cross-Entropy Algorithm, Artificial Bee Colonies, Population-Based Incremental Learning, Cuckoo Search, and Genetic Algorithms, are also presented. The book is rounded out by recently developed strategies, or hybrid improved versions of existing methods, such as the Lightning Optimization Algorithm, Differential Evolution with Particle Collisions, and Ant Colony Optimization with Dispersion – state-of-the-art approaches for the application of computational intelligence to engineering problems. The wide variety of methods and applications, as well as the original results to problems of practical engineering interest, represent the primary differentiation and distinctive quality of this book. Furthermore, it gathers contributions by authors from four countries – some of which are the original proponents of the methods presented – and 18 research centers around the globe.

This book offers a careful selection of studies in optimization techniques based on artificial intelligence, applied to inverse problems in radiative transfer. In this book, the reader will find an in-depth exploration of heuristic optimization methods, each meticulously described and accompanied by historical context and natural process analogies. From simulated annealing and genetic algorithms to artificial neural networks, ant colony optimization, and particle swarms, this volume presents a wide range of heuristic methods. Additional approaches such as generalized extreme optimization, particle collision, differential evolution, Luus-Jaakola, and firefly algorithms are also discussed, providing a rich repertoire of tools for tackling challenging problems. While the applications showcased primarily focus on radiative transfer, their potential extends to various domains, particularly nonlinear and large-scale problems where traditional deterministic methods fall short. With clear and comprehensive presentations, this book empowers readers to adapt each method to their specific needs. Furthermore, practical examples of classical optimization problems and application suggestions are included to enhance your understanding. This book is suitable to any researcher or practitioner whose interests lie on optimization techniques based in artificial intelligence and bio-inspired algorithms, in fields like Applied Mathematics, Engineering, Computing, and cross-disciplinary areas.

This book explores applications of computational intelligence in key and emerging fields of engineering, especially with regard to condition monitoring and fault diagnosis, inverse problems, decision support systems and optimization. These applications can be beneficial in a broad range of contexts, including: water distribution networks, manufacturing systems, production and storage of electrical energy, heat transfer, acoustic levitation, uncertainty and robustness of infinite-dimensional objects, fatigue failure prediction, autonomous navigation, nanotechnology, and the analysis of technological development indexes. All applications, mathematical and computational tools, and original results are presented using rigorous mathematical procedures. Further, the book gathers contributions by respected experts from 22 different research centers and eight countries: Brazil, Cuba, France, Hungary, India, Japan, Romania and Spain. The book is intended for use in graduate courses on applied computation, applied mathematics, and engineering, where tools like computational intelligence and numerical methods are applied to the solution of real-world problems in emerging areas of engineering.

New Materials in Civil Engineering provides engineers and scientists with the tools and methods needed to meet the challenge of designing and constructing more resilient and sustainable infrastructures. This book is a valuable guide to the properties, selection criteria, products, applications, lifecycle and recyclability of advanced materials. It presents an A-to-Z approach to all types of materials, highlighting their key performance properties, principal characteristics and applications. Traditional materials covered include concrete, soil, steel, timber, fly ash, geosynthetic, fiber-reinforced concrete, smart materials, carbon fiber and reinforced polymers. In addition, the book covers nanotechnology and biotechnology in the development of new materials. - Covers a variety of materials, including fly ash, geosynthetic, fiber-reinforced concrete, smart materials, carbon fiber reinforced polymer and waste materials - Provides a "one-stop resource of information for the latest materials and practical applications - Includes a variety of different use case studies

Mathematical optimization is the selection of the best element in a set with respect to a given criterion. Optimization has become one of the most used tools in control theory to compute control laws, adjust parameters (tuning), estimate states, fit model parameters, find conditions in order to fulfill a given closed-loop property, among others. Optimization also plays an important role in the design of fault detection and isolation systems to prevent safety hazards and production losses that require the detection and identification of faults, as early as possible to minimize their impacts by implementing real-time fault detection and fault-tolerant systems. Recently, it has been proven that many optimization problems with convex objective functions and linear matrix inequality (LMI) constraints can be solved easily and efficiently using existing software, which increases the flexibility and applicability of the control algorithms. Therefore, real-world control systems need to comply with several conditions and constraints that have to be taken into account in the problem formulation, which represents a challenge in the application of the optimization algorithms. This book offers an overview of the state-of-the-art of the most advanced optimization techniques and their applications in control engineering.

Special topic volume with invited peer reviewed papers only