Aspiring Aerospace Engineer
Project Portfolio
Project Wyvern
Project Objectives
Project Wyvern was as apart of Monash High Powered Rocketry’s 2024 entry into the Australian University Rocketry Competition. The rocket must achieve an apogee as close to 5000 ft as possible whilst carrying a CanSat payload.
Leading the Team
From April to October, I was the main Project Lead of Wyvern. Here I overlooked the operations 4 technical sections of MHPR, being in-charge of the Systems Engineering and Operations of the teams’ tasks in relation to Wyvern.
Using my experience with hobby rocketry and applying my engineering education, I had a very fulfilling experience on this project. Timelines were short and the technical requirements were tight, but in the end, we managed to have a completely spotless launch!
The rocket reached an apogee of 4987 ft which only varied 2 ft from our on the day simulation results. The deployment system actuated perfectly, landing safely at just a 2-minute walk from the launch rail.
Landing Legs Research
My Honors Project at Monash University was to investigate the feasibility of using composite materials as Landing Legs for a Reusable Landing Vehicle. To do so, a model of the conditions the landing legs would be subject to was required.
Thus, the landing legs needed to be constructed in Solid Works. The CAD would be used in a CFD model to determine the effects of the rocket plume on the legs, ultimately determining the temperature experienced during landing. Finally, the temperature distribution would be used in an FEA of the landing legs during landing to determine the strength required from the composite material.
Project Objectives
CFD Modelling
I was primarily in charge of the CFD process. I modeled the air around the legs and applied a proven model of the hybrid engine that would be used for this vehicle.
After validating the mesh, it was determined that the legs, on average, experience temperatures ranging from 1000 K to 1200 K along its body.
The KALKI CubeSat
Project Objectives
As a Payload Engineer at Monash High Powered Rocketry, I mainly designed and manufactured the structural chassis of the CubeSat payloads. After experiencing some issues with our 2023 competition chassis, I decided to rework the structure to not only improve it structurally but also give it modularity that will make it a viable chassis for future competition payloads.
The proposed design allowed for the base plates to be moved and secured vertically. These plates would also be easily removable without having to reposition the plate into the stand. This is done by sliding out the main component while level brackets keep its position in the stand (as shown above in 3d printed prototype).
Design and Validation
I used ANSYS to simulate stresses from the rocket both during launch and potential forces from safe and unsafe landings. From these FEA results it was determined that the structure would be able to withstand impacts of up to 1.2 kN in force during impact and 1.8 kN of thrust during launch.
Manufacturing
After going through a Partial Design Review and a Complete Design Review, the chassis was allowed to be manufactured and used for our 2025 competition rocket. Using my experience from a TAFE Cert 3 Equivalency Machining Course, I, with the help of my team, started manually machining the components of the chassis. With only a minor design change, we successfully machined a functioning chassis that is ready to fly!
