An interval robust design optimization method and its application in heat transfer problems

ABSTRACT

An interval robust optimization method is suggested to improve the robustness and performance of the process or product in design. A general uncertain robust optimization problem is considered in which the objective function and constraints are both nonlinear and uncertain, and the uncertainties of design variables and uncertain parameters are all included and depicted by the interval model. A nonlinear interval number programming method is introduced to solve the robust optimization model, in which the uncertain objective function is described by a pair of deterministic functions, and the uncertain constraints are converted to deterministic constraints on the basis of the reliability-based possibility degree of interval. The method is then applied to several heat transfer problems for performance optimization of the heat transfer processes while guaranteeing the robustness of the optimal design.

KEYWORDS:

• Interval robust optimization
• reliability-based possibility degree of interval
• heat transfer

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work is supported by the Natural Science Foundation of Hunan Province [grant number 2020JJ4200], the National Natural Science Foundation of China [grant number 11802089], the State Key Laboratory of Process Automation in Mining & Metallurgy, Beijing Key Laboratory of Process Automation in Mining & Metallurgy [grant number BGRIMM-KZSKL-2018-05].