Skip to main content
Log in

A Modified Barrier-Augmented Lagrangian Method for Constrained Minimization

  • Published:
Computational Optimization and Applications Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

We present and analyze an interior-exterior augmented Lagrangian method for solving constrained optimization problems with both inequality and equality constraints. This method, the modified barrier—augmented Lagrangian (MBAL) method, is a combination of the modified barrier and the augmented Lagrangian methods. It is based on the MBAL function, which treats inequality constraints with a modified barrier term and equalities with an augmented Lagrangian term. The MBAL method alternatively minimizes the MBAL function in the primal space and updates the Lagrange multipliers. For a large enough fixed barrier-penalty parameter the MBAL method is shown to converge Q-linearly under the standard second-order optimality conditions. Q-superlinear convergence can be achieved by increasing the barrier-penalty parameter after each Lagrange multiplier update. We consider a dual problem that is based on the MBAL function. We prove a basic duality theorem for it and show that it has several important properties that fail to hold for the dual based on the classical Lagrangian.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. A. Ben-Tal and A. Nemirovskii, “Optimal design of engineering structure optima,” Mathematical Programming Society Newsletter, vol. 47 (1995).

  2. A. Ben-Tal, I. Yuzefovich, and M. Zibulevsky, “Penalty/Barrier multiplier methods for minimax and constrained smooth convex programs,” Research Report 9/92, Optimization Laboratory, Technion, Haifa, Israel, 1992.

    Google Scholar 

  3. D.P. Bertsekas, Constrained Minimization and Lagrange Multiplier Methods, Academic Press: London, 1982.

    Google Scholar 

  4. M.G. Breitfeld and D.F. Shanno “Preliminary computational experience with modified log-barrier functions for large-scale nonlinear programming,” in Large Scale Optimization, State of the Art, W.W. Hager, D.W. Hearn, and P.M. Parlados (Eds.), Kluwer Academic Publishers, 1994, pp. 45–66.

  5. A.R. Conn, N.I. Could, and P.L. Toint, “A globally convergent Lagrangian barrier algorithm for optimization with general inequality constraints and simple bounds,” Mathematics of Computation, vol. 66, pp. 261–288, 1997.

    Google Scholar 

  6. G. Debreu, “Definite and semidefinite quadratic forms,” Econometrica, vol. 20, pp. 295–300, 1952.

    Google Scholar 

  7. A.L. Dontchev and W.W. Hager, “Lipschitzian stability for state constrainted nonlinear optimal control,” SIAM J. on Control and Optimization, 1998 (in press).

  8. A.V. Fiacco and G.P. McCormick, Nonlinear Programming: Sequential Unconstrained Minimization Techniques, John Wiley & Sons: New York, 1968.

    Google Scholar 

  9. W.W. Hager, “Stabilized sequential quadratic programming,” Computational Optimization and Applications, 1997 (in press).

  10. M.R. Hestenes, “Multiplier and gradient methods,” Journal of Optimization Theory and Applications, vol. 4, pp. 303–320, 1969.

    Google Scholar 

  11. S.G. Nash, R. Polyak, and A. Sofer, “A numerical comparison of barrier and modified barrier methods for large scale bound constrained optimization,” in Large Scale Optimization: State of the Art, W.W. Hager, D.W. Hearn, and P.M. Pardalos (Eds.), Kluwer Academic Publishers, B.V., 1994, pp. 319–338.

    Google Scholar 

  12. R. Polyak, “Modified barrier functions (theory and methods),” Mathematical Programming, vol. 54, pp. 177–222, 1992.

    Google Scholar 

  13. B.T. Polyak and N.V. Tret'yakov, “The method of penalty estimates for conditional extremum problems,” Zhurnal Vycheslitel'noi Matematiki i Matematicheskoi Fiziki, vol. 13,no. 1, pp. 34–46, 1973 (in Russian).

    Google Scholar 

  14. M.J.D. Powell, “A method for nonlinear constraints in minimization problems,” in Optimization, R. Fletcher (Ed.), Academic Press: London, New York, 1969, pp. 283–298.

    Google Scholar 

  15. R.T. Rockafellar, “The multiplier method of Hestenes and Powell applied to convex programming,” JOTA, vol. 12, pp. 555–562, 1973.

    Google Scholar 

  16. R.T. Rockafellar, “Augmented Lagrange multiplier functions and duality in nonconvex programming,” SIAM J. Control, vol. 12, pp. 268–285, 1974.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Goldfarb, D., Polyak, R., Scheinberg, K. et al. A Modified Barrier-Augmented Lagrangian Method for Constrained Minimization. Computational Optimization and Applications 14, 55–74 (1999). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1008705028512

Download citation

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1008705028512

Keywords

Navigation