MASA thrust transfer structure

Overview

MASA was upgrading to a higher-thrust engine and the existing thrust transfer structure wasn't going to cut it. My job was to redesign it to handle 15% more thrust while also bringing the mass down. Both at the same time, with hard interface constraints from the propulsion and fuel tank teams on either side of it.

What I did

I started from first principles before touching any software. Worked out the load paths analytically, calculated stresses at the fastener interfaces, and checked for shear failure. Buckling was the governing failure mode under the combined axial and bending loads, so that got the most attention.

Once I had the analytical baseline I built the CAD in Siemens NX and ran it through ANSYS Mechanical to verify. The FEA lined up well with the hand calculations and flagged a couple of stress concentrations that I iterated on. All machined interfaces were toleranced to GD&T per ASME Y14.5. I managed versions in Teamcenter and coordinated with the propulsion and fuel tank subteam leads to make sure nothing broke at the interfaces.

Tools

ANSYS Mechanical for static structural FEA and linear buckling analysis. Siemens NX for CAD. Teamcenter for version control. GD&T per ASME Y14.5. Mill and lathe for fabrication.

Results

Hit both targets: 15% more thrust capacity, 3% lighter. Buckling margins were confirmed under worst-case axial and bending load combinations. Hardware came out to specified tolerances.