A higher order surface singularity method for the axisymmetric inverse problem

The hydrodynamic design of the axisymmetric body with certain performance characteristics requires the solution to the inverse problem wherein the pressure distribution on the body is specified and the corresponding body profile must be determined. This paper presents an efficient inverse method for incompressible, axisymmetric potential flows employing a higher order surface singularity technique with parabolic surface elements and linearly varying sources. The body shape is obtained through an iterative scheme using the stream function to predict the body profile. The method is rapidly convergent and shows excellent agreement in cases where solutions are known.