Been busy...

Back stateside again. Still very limited on room, though, so hobby progress has been limited.

Got the 3D printer recalibrated and set up on a shelf in the garage.

Wanhao i3 V2.1

Moved the filament spool off the top to the side. Bought a 16x16" tile for it to sit on, perfect size. Smoke alarm taped to the underside of the next shelf up (top left of picture). The filament dryer is the same one I had in England, so I have a 110V-220V power adapter sitting behind it. I found the same one in the US but for 110V power on eBay for $39 ("Rosewill" brand here), and I bought it so I can ditch the giant power adapter. The clear plastic cylinder parts should be the same, so I can extend it to hold 3-4 spools, which is nice. Printed an XYZ calibration cube and benchy first, then a new spool holder since the green one was on its last legs. Currently printing some wall mount holders for remotes for new ceiling fans we bought my mother in law for Christmas (guess who gets to install them...). 3D printer to-do: replace X belt and add belt tensioner.

I've been mentoring FloridaTech's Base11 space challenge team (Florida Tech Rocketry, FTR). The goal is to be the first university team to launch a liquid bipropellant rocket to space. I've been teaching them fluid systems analysis, fluid systems component selection, CFD, structural analysis, thermal analysis, basic design process, etc etc etc. They have a pretty solid preliminary rocket design and detailed engine and test stand design now. FIT promised to fund the whole thing, but you know how that goes...so currently looking at other funding options.

I've also been spending a lot of time over the past couple years working research contracts for various aerospace companies, most of them slosh CFD or slosh testing related. FIT has a large linear stage capable of shaking full scale spacecraft tanks, and we've designed and are fabricating a second one now. We got about half way through a NASA spacecraft tank test program before realizing we'd need a linear stage capable of much higher frequency excitation than the current one , or anyone has as far as I know...I mean, I guess there are vibration tables, but the excitation amplitude on those is tiny. The new linear stage should be capable of shaking 8000lb tanks at 6 Hz over ~4mm, which is kinda terrifying. Currently finishing fabrication on 1/5 scale upper stage propellant tank simulators. Slosh testing will start in about a month on those. My advisor and I wrote (so basically I wrote...) a proposal for another NASA slosh research project that got approved, so that's probably coming March-ish. I'm leading about 3 grad students and 4 undergrads working on these and some other aerospace/propulsion related projects.

Busy busy. So even though most of this blog is about my hobbies and not-rocket stuff, I am doing a lot of "rocket science", though I should have foreseen I wouldn't be at "MIT" for ever. Kinda dumb naming the blog that, oh well...live and learn.

As I tell the FTR team: "Skip all your classes, build rockets".