The Implications of Tolerance Optimization on Compressor Blade Design

TL;DR

This paper introduces a new computational framework for optimizing manufacturing tolerances in compressor blades, aiming to reduce performance variability and improve robustness in turbomachinery design.

Contribution

It presents a novel tolerance optimization framework integrated with robust geometry design, enabling decoupled optimization and improved performance consistency.

Findings

Single-point optimal geometry depends on tolerances due to loss mechanism switch.

Multi-point optimization decouples geometry and tolerance optimization.

Framework enhances robustness in compressor blade design.

Abstract

Geometric variability increases performance variability and degrades the mean performance of turbomachinery compressor blades. These detrimental effects can be reduced by using robust optimization to design the blade geometry or by imposing stricter manufacturing tolerances. This paper presents a novel computational framework for optimizing compressor blade manufacturing tolerances, and incorporates this framework into existing robust geometry design frameworks. Optimizations of an exit guide vane geometry are conducted. The single-point optimal geometry is found to depend on the manufacturing tolerances due to a switch in the dominant loss mechanism. Multi-point geometry optimization avoids this switch so that the geometry and tolerance optimization problems are decoupled.