Finite's Hub

Description:  In this blog post, I will walk you through an in-depth analysis of the bolted flange joint that connects the mid and lower parts of the F1 engine nozzle, a critical component of the Saturn V's first stage, powered by five F1 engines. This analysis was part of my learning experience in the CornellX course on ‘A Hands-on Introduction to Engineering Simulation’ via edX, under the guidance of Andy Sadhwani. Introduction to the Project The primary objective of this project was to build a non-linear finite element model in ANSYS to assess the margin of safety of the flange bolts and to determine the gaps that develop between the jointed parts when the assembly is loaded. The focus was on a specific part of the F1 engine nozzle, as depicted in the accompanying images. Left : The actual F1 engine on display at the National Air and Space Museum. (Photograph by Mike Peel www.mikepeel.net ) Right : The ANSYS model of the mid and lower parts of the nozzle, showing the 100 bolt...

Problem Statement: When you pedal a bicycle, you exert a variable force on the bike crank. For simplicity, let's ignore the variation of this force overtime and focus on the crank's response to a static force. Imagine this as taking a snapshot of the bike crank and analyzing that single frame. By doing so, we can better understand how the crank responds to the force applied by the rider. In this module, we will analyze a crank model with the following specifics: Material: Aluminum 6061-T6 alloy Young's Modulus: 10,000,000 psi Poisson's Ratio: 0.33 Constraints: The left three hole surfaces are fixed. Load: A load of 100 lbf is applied to the right hole surface in an upward direction. This is a simplified approximation of the actual loads and constraints experienced by the bike crank during pedaling. Why Analyze the Bike Crank? Understanding the forces and stress on the bike crank is essential for several reasons: Safety : Ensuring the crank can withst...