Adjoint Sensitivity Analysis of a Fluid-Structure Interaction Problem

A fluid-structure mathematical model usually includes parameters whose actual values are known only approximately or can vary around some reference values. The objective of the sensitivity analysis is to determine quantitatively the behavior of the responses of a fluid-structure system locally around a chosen point of the trajectory in the phase-space of parameters and dependent variables. In this work, the response considered is the total mechanical energy of the structure. The sensitivities with respect to all the parameters the fluid-structure system depends on are useful in many situations as well as for optimization purposes. We present the theoretical developments necessary for the application of the adjoint sensitivity analysis methods (ASAM) for the fully coupled governing equations of an aeroelastic system. The algorithm is general and can be applied for any kind of fluid-structure interaction problems. Illustrative numerical examples are presented for the case of typical section with two degrees of freedom. (© 2010 Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)