I apologize in advance if this is not relevant or is already familiar, but there is work in using categorical methods for software synthesis to synthesize optimization algorithms and codes. One reference for this is D. R. Smith and M. R. Lowry (1990). Algorithm Theories and Design Tactics, Science of Computer Programming 14, North-Holland, pp. 305-321. Regards, Mike Healy ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++