A Smooth Curvature-Defined Meanline Section Option for a General Turbomachinery Geometry Generator

The blade geometry design process is integral to the development and advancement of compressors and turbines in gas turbines or aeroengines. An airfoil section design feature has been added to a previously developed open source parametric 3D blade design tool. The second derivative of the mean-line (related to the curvature) is controlled using B-splines to create the airfoils. This is analytically integrated twice to obtain the mean-line. A smooth thickness distribution is then added to the airfoil with two options either the Wennerstrom distribution or a quartic B-spline thickness distribution. B-splines have also been implemented to achieve customized airfoil leading and trailing edges. Geometry for a turbine, compressor, and transonic fan are presented along with a demonstration of the importance of airfoil smoothness.