Reliability sensitivity analysis of dynamical systems

Abstract

The reliability sensitivity analysis of systems subjected to stochastic loading is considered in this chapter. In particular, the change that the probability of failure undergoes due to changes in the distribution parameters of the uncertain model parameters is utilized as a sensitivity measure. A simulation-based approach that corresponds to a simple post-processing step of an advanced sampling-based reliability analysis is used to perform the sensitivity analysis. In particular, subset simulation, introduced in the previous chapter, is applied in the present formulation. The analysis does not require any additional system response evaluations. The feasibility and effectiveness of the approach is demonstrated on a finite element model of a bridge under stochastic ground excitation. The sensitivity analysis is carried out in a reduced space of generalized coordinates. The computational effort involved in the reliability sensitivity analysis of the reduced-order model is significantly decreased with respect to the corresponding analysis of the full finite element model. The reduction is accomplished without compromising the accuracy of the reliability sensitivity estimates. © 2019, Springer Nature Switzerland AG.