Aerodynamic shape optimization
Starting with an initial guess and an objective such as minimizing drag or maximizing lift, optimal shapes can be generated that meets the specific objective. Micro aerial vehicles (MAV) and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) operate in low. Reynolds number regime. It is well known that airfoils designed for operation at high Reynolds number do not perform well in low Re. We solve PDE constrained optimization problem to design airfoils that has good performance at low Re.
Multi-objective optimization: Inverse design for a desired pitching moment coefficient and drag coefficient
The objective was to obtain a zero pitching moment about 40 percent chord and drag coefficient of 0.2.
Starting with LA 2573 as the initial guess (figure in left), the optimal airfoil (figure in right) attained the desired objective for steady calculations done at low Re.