Three-dimensional automatic optimization method for turbomachinery blade design

In deriving automatic numerical optimization algorithms for aerodynamic app lications, it is quite important to choose a suitable cost function and a s uitable set of design parameters. The unknown airfoil/blade profiles are us ually chosen to be the design parameters. However, there are certain advant ages in using the pressure/velocity distribution as the design variable in some applications; the optimized distribution can be used in a three-dimens ional inverse design method to generate the actual profile shape. In this p aper this approach will be addressed. Two methods are used to parameterize the circulation distribution for compressor blades. The Dawes code is used to calculate the viscous effect. An automatic optimization algorithm is dev eloped, and two objective functions defined by the entropy loss or the aero dynamic blockage are examined.