Turbine Airfoil Design Optimization

Abstract

A new blade design methodology, which allows designers to react rapidly to changes in functional requirements of turbines and transition quickly from concept to design, has been discussed in this paper. This methodology reduces the design cycle time by creating a three-dimensional model of the blade, through concurrent design of multiple two-dimensional blade sections. An efficient direct design procedure has been developed by coupling direct optimization techniques with two-dimensional aerodynamic analysis codes. A method for interpreting the flowfield solution to compute the airfoil quality has been developed and is used to compute the objective function during optimization. Aerodynamic, mechanical and geometry constraints are imposed on the design to ensure that the optimized design meets feasibility requirements of all engineering disciplines. During the design optimization process, the designers’ interactions are simulated through use of rules that are based on designer heuristics. This procedure is used for the design of a high pressure, steam turbine blade; the results are discussed in this paper.