Numerical instabilities and convergence control for convex approximation methods

Convex approximation methods could produce iterative oscillation of solutions for solving some problems in structural optimization. This paper firstly analyzes the reason for numerical instabilities of iterative oscillation of the popular convex approximation methods, such as CONLIN (Convex Linearization), MMA (Method of Moving Asymptotes), GCMMA (Global Convergence of MMA) and SQP (Sequential Quadratic Programming), from the perspective of chaotic dynamics of a discrete dynamical system. Then, the usual four methods to improve the convergence of optimization algorithms are reviewed, namely, the relaxation method, move limits, moving asymptotes and trust region management. Furthermore, the stability transformation method (STM) based on the chaos control principle is suggested, which is a general, simple and effective method for convergence control of iterative algorithms. Moreover, the relationships among the former four methods and STM are exposed. The connection between convergence control of iterative algorithms and chaotic dynamics is established. Finally, the STM is applied to the convergence control of convex approximation methods for optimizing several highly nonlinear examples. Numerical tests of convergence comparison and control of convex approximation methods illustrate that STM can stabilize the oscillating solutions for CONLIN and accelerate the slow convergence for MMA and SQP.