Shape morphing and topology optimization of fluid channels by explicit boundary tracking

An integrated shape morphing and topology optimization approach based on the Deformable Simplicial Complex (DSC) methodology is developed to address Stokes and Navier‐Stokes flow problems. The optimized geometry is interpreted by a set of piecewise linear curves embedded in a well‐formed triangular mesh, resulting in a physically well‐defined interface between fluid and impermeable regions. The shape evolution is realized by deforming the curves while maintaining a high‐quality mesh through adaption of the mesh near the structural boundary, rather than performing a global remeshing. Topological changes are allowed through hole merging or splitting of islands. The finite element discretization used, provides smooth and stable optimized boundaries for simple energy dissipation objectives. However, for more advanced problems boundary oscillations are observed due to conflicts between objective function and minimum length‐scale imposed by the meshing algorithm. A surface regularization scheme is introduced to circumvent this issue, which is specifically tailored for the DSC approach. In contrast to other filter‐based regularization techniques, the scheme does not introduce additional control variables and at the same time it is based on rigorous sensitivity analysis. Several numerical examples are presented to demonstrate the applicability of the approach.