AEROSPACE ENGINEERING

Abstract

Aerospace engineering tools are well-suited to a variety of problems. Complimentary applications suited to aerospace tools consider complex flow environments, structures adapted to meet conflicting requirements, and/or dynamic systems. Despite this, the overwhelming perception of the aerospace field to those outside of it is limited to select applications: airplanes, rockets, and spacecraft. Challenging the perceptions of
the next generation of engineers is paramount to the future direction of aerospace research. In this talk, we first explore instructional methods designed to enable students to apply aerospace tools and knowledge to non-aerospace applications. Additionally, we will introduce emerging research efforts that reflect this ideal, especially as it pertains to biomedical device design. Important synergies exist between aerospace engineering and biomedical device development. Intravenous devices in particular are exposed to an external flow field, are subject to strict performance requirements, and are extremely space-constrained. A multifunctional class of devices known as bioabsorbables adds an additional layer of complexity, as they must degrade uniformly in the body without fracture or premature failure. A framework leveraging aerospace advances in material loss modeling and fluid-structure interaction modeling for structures undergoing large deformations is proposed.

Speaker

Hannah Stroud

Third-year Ph.D. student and NSF GRFP Fellow at Texas A&M advised by Dr. Darren Hartl. Her research focuses on multiphysical computational modeling of degrading structures under flow, e.g. coupling fluid-structure interactions with corrosion/erosion material models. Hannah specializes in unconventional applications of aerospace engineering tools and skills, and she is seeking to apply her current work to biomedical devices. She received her BS in aerospace engineering in 2018 and her MS in 2020 from Texas A&M University. She has published on bioinspired design, and shape memory alloy actuators, and has publications pending on active knit structures. She is passionate about education and STEM outreach. She recently developed and taught an undergraduate-level course she designed to instruct students on methods for developing outreach activities to bring aerospace engineering to K-12 students; her class has partnered with the Girl Scouts of Central Texas to test the activities they develop. She has also previously designed a curriculum for a senior design elective on unconventional applications of aerospace.