Flaw detection in concrete media using XFEM and an improved artificial fish swarm algorithm

A novel strategy is proposed in this paper for identifying and characterizing the irregular flaws in heterogeneous media. The optimization iterations are implemented by using the improved AFS algorithm and the corresponding forward analyses are solved by XFEM. A series of candidate sub-defects are employed to describe each flaw jointly. Each candidate is devised as a square void with the boundaries matched the XFEM meshes to avoid subdividing...