A Review of Certain Inverse Methods for the Design of Ducts With 2- or 3-Dimensional Potential Flow

Abstract

This article reviews the author’s work on inverse methods of flow-field design with prescribed velocity distributions on the boundaries. Such design methods are of some importance, because these velocity distributions, on the boundaries of fluid-handling equipment, determine the boundary-layer behavior and thereby affect the equipment efficiency. The work is limited to design methods for stationary channels with incompressible or subsonic compressible flow. Both two- and three-dimensional design methods are reviewed. The two-dimensional work was done in the early 1950’s and the three-dimensional work in the 1980’s.