Structural and System Reliability

Description

Based on material taught at the University of California, Berkeley, this textbook offers a modern, rigorous and comprehensive treatment of the methods of structural and system reliability analysis. It covers the first- and second-order reliability methods for components and systems, simulation methods, time- and space-variant reliability, and Bayesian parameter estimation and reliability updating. It also presents more advanced, state-of-the-art topics such as finite-element reliability methods, stochastic structural dynamics, reliability-based optimal design, and Bayesian networks. A wealth of well-designed examples connect theory with practice, with simple examples demonstrating mathematical concepts and larger examples demonstrating their applications. End-of-chapter homework problems are included throughout. Including all necessary background material from probability theory, and accompanied online by a solutions manual and PowerPoint slides for instructors, this is the ideal text for senior undergraduate and graduate students taking courses on structural and system reliability in departments of civil, environmental and mechanical engineering.

Armen Der Kiureghian is the Taisei Professor of Civil Engineering Emeritus at the University of California, Berkeley, and a co-founder and President Emeritus of the American University of Armenia. He is also a Distinguished Alumnus of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and an elected member of the US National Academy of Engineering.

'This textbook is invaluable to all concerned with structural and system reliability analysis. Providing a modern, rigorous, and comprehensive treatment of the theory and practice, it is a must-read for students, scholars, and practitioners learning, researching, or practicing in this field.' Dan M. Frangopol, Lehigh University 'This book is a welcome addition to the literature on structural reliability, which in recent decades has become essential to structural engineering practice. Authored by a leading international contributor to the mathematical foundations of structural reliability, much of the coverage has been informed by his own research and teaching. Readers wanting a comprehensive overview of the field, with its diverse problems, applications, and challenges, will find this volume indispensable for their technical libraries.' Bruce R. Ellingwood, Colorado State University 'This monograph is a manifest of the impressive contributions of the author and his students to the philosophy and the computationally practicable methods of first- and second-order structural reliability evaluation, necessarily resting on a Bayesian interpretation of probability applied to any type of uncertainty. The history of the field is fairly described, along with the step-by-step unfolding of the theory. The large number of examples and problems makes the book well suited for self-study.' Ove Ditlevsen, Technical University of Denmark 'The long-awaited textbook from one of the great teachers of structural reliability and stochastic mechanics! Professor Der Kiureghian wrote a book that is comprehensive and thorough, but also easily accessible to those new to the field. It is already a classic and an invaluable source for all students, researchers, and practitioners of structural reliability methods.' Daniel Straub, Technical University of Munich 'Professor Der Kiureghian has been one of the fathers of structural and system reliability analysis since the early 1980s and has devoted his entire career to research and education on this topic. No need to say that this book has been expected for a long time by the community! In this textbook, the reader will find elements of probability theory and the basics on structural reliability analysis (FORM/SORM, simulation methods, reliability updating, systems analysis), as well as state-of-the-art methods in stochastic structural dynamics, reliability-based design optimization and more, making it a must-have both for graduate students in engineering, researchers, and practitioners in the field. The crystal-clear writing style and the numerous exercises provided in each chapter make it the perfect reference for teaching.' Bruno Sudret, ETH Zurich