NUSTARS Propulsion

This year I am excited to continue working on the newest NUSTARS project, only formed last summer! This year, I will be the Analysis Subteam Lead. The aim is to design a liquid-fuel rocket engine from scratch. We are targeting a late 2026 test firing.

The analysis team aids the design teams with sub- and supersonic flow CFD, isostatic pressure testing, heat transfer and thermal creep, combustion analysis, as well as anything else needed to verify and validate design choices. From simulating simple static loads on single components, to performing complex assembly-wide fluid/thermal/structural simulations, over the past year, our responsibilities have truly run the gamut!

With our help, the team has already completely several successful (and not-so-successful) test firings of the igniter assembly. When initial tests were unsuccessful, the analysis team played a vital role in determining why the component failed, as well as providing our suggestions for design improvements to mitigate these and similar problems in the future.