Inicio  /  Computation  /  Vol: 6 Par: 1 (2018)  /  Artículo
ARTÍCULO
TITULO

Optimization of Airfoils Using the Adjoint Approach and the Influence of Adjoint Turbulent Viscosity

Matthias Schramm    
Bernhard Stoevesandt and Joachim Peinke    

Resumen

The adjoint approach in gradient-based optimization combined with computational fluid dynamics is commonly applied in various engineering fields. In this work, the gradients are used for the design of a two-dimensional airfoil shape, where the aim is a change in lift and drag coefficient, respectively, to a given target value. The optimizations use the unconstrained quasi-Newton method with an approximation of the Hessian. The flow field is computed with a finite-volume solver where the continuous adjoint approach is implemented. A common assumption in this approach is the use of the same turbulent viscosity in the adjoint diffusion term as for the primal flow field. The effect of this so-called ?frozen turbulence? assumption is compared to the results using adjoints to the Spalart?Allmaras turbulence model. The comparison is done at a Reynolds number of ????=2×106 R e = 2 × 10 6 for two different airfoils at different angles of attack.