Transonic Airfoils and Wings Design Using Inverse and Direct Methods

A hybrid inverse/direct-optimization method for subsonic/transonic airfoil and wing shape design is presentedwith application to a range of airfoil and wing cases, in preparation for the test cases defined for the Special Sessionof SciTech 2015. The method is hybrid in the sense that it combines the traditional inverse design technique witha gradient-based procedure to approach the optimum aerodynamic surface. This paper emphasizes the first part, thedevelopment of SCID, the Surface Curvature Inverse Design method, the theory upon which it is based, includingmany of the details involved with shocks, smoothing and cross flow. The application of SCID to wing design posesmany challenges, and how they are met is discussed in the context of a number of inverse design test cases for airfoilsand wings. But it also includes results from the adjoint optimization and compares them. The procedure workswell for airfoils and the twist optimization for wings. The real benchmarks for our hybrid approach are the threeOptimization Discussion Group design problems. Solutions are presented for the drag minimization of the airfoil testcases along with the wing twist optimization problem, and conclusions are drawn from the results obtained. A swept-back transonic wing is designed by SCID with encouraging results, showing that SCID works fine with wings. Workhas started on the drag minimization of the CRM wing in transonic flight, and final results will be presented in a futurepaper.

QC 20150527

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