Aerospace Computational Design Laboratory (ACDL)

The mission of the Aerospace Computational Design Laboratory (ACDL) is to o lead the advancement and application of computational engineering for design and optimization of aerospace systems. ACDL research addresses a comprehensive range of topics including advanced computational fluid dynamics, methods for uncertainty quantification and control, and simulation-based design techniques.

There are 3 research thrusts:

(1) Advanced computational methods for fluid dynamics -- The goal is to improve the design process for complex 3D configurations by significantly reducing the time from geometry-to-solution at engineering-required accuracy using higher-order adaptive methods;

(2) Uncertainty quantification and control -- The goal is to improve the reliability of simulation-based analysis by quantifying and controlling sources of uncertainty in computational models; and

(3) Simulation-based design methodology -- The creation of computational decision-aiding tools in support of the design process is the objective of a number of methodologies currently pursued in the lab. These include PDE-constrained optimization, real-time simulation and optimization of systems governed by PDEs, multiscale optimization, model order reduction, geometry management, and fidelity management. ACDL is applying these methodologies to aircraft design and to the development of tools for assessing aviation environmental impact.