INVERSE DESIGN OF INTERNALLY COOLED TURBINE BLADES BASED ON THE HEAT ADJOINT EQUATION

A method of solution of the inverse problem in heat conduction is presented. The method, based on an adjoint optimization procedure, is applied to the design of the pattern of circular cooling passages inside coated turbine blades. The general case of a non-homogeneous solid material is considered. The numerical solution of both the temperature field and of the adjoint problem is based on a finite element method. The mathematical method is explained and the procedure is validated against theoretical and experimental data available in open literature.