Simulate radiation impact on underhood components at extreme operating conditions of truck.
Interact cross functionally across chassis, electrical, cab and powertrain teams to develop extreme case vehicle model for simulations.
Decide on appropriate boundary conditions for underhood CFD simulations based on engine flow parameters.
Perform component level meshing using ANSA.
Perform localised simulations to understand impact of individual sources following minor design changes.
Develop empirical relations for combined effect of convection and radiation to study thermal impact of minor design changes to parts.
Create thermal links to understand conduction phenomena in parts in contact.
Working on a script to automatically feed h and T data from CFD results into RadTherm.
Perform hot spot measurements in first-off-tool prototype truck with over 200 sensors simulating the worst operating conditions.
Perform sensitivity analysis for components to study the risk of operating at high ambient temperatures. Also provide impact on cooling performance.
Suggest solutions or recommend use of correct heat shields / thermal sleeves to counter radiation effects.
Perform histogram analysis to statistically weigh risks of attaining critical temperatures in hotter geographies, thus arriving at optimal derating strategies.
Responsible for cooling performance and associated testing.
Release detailed engineering reports on simulations and tests performed.
Senior Design Engineer- Fuel tanks and installation
Design responsible for fuel system- fuel tanks, installation and routing for HD and MD truck platforms.
Performed 2D CFD simulation for slosh analysis for development of a new plastic fuel tank using multiphase solver in OpenFOAM.
Responsible to ensure design compliance to IS:12056, AIS:095, ECER 34.2
Part, drawing and CAD release and update responsible for fuel system components in PDM.
Project Management as per Advanced Product Quality Planning procedure.
Reviewing technical & manufacturing feasibility of suppliers & participation in CFT for supplier selection.
General Motors SFO India Headquarters, Bangalore. Aug 07 - Aug 09
Supplier Quality Engineer- Chassis Systems.
Project Management as per Advanced Product Quality Planning procedures.
Continuous Improvement and problem solving for parts in current production.
Auditing for capacity, quality and continuous improvement.
Key role in initiation and sustaining the GM-GP8, Continuous Improvement procedure, at local supplier base.
Systems to track PPMs and timely closure of quality issues.
Dell - Perot Systems Corporation, Bangalore. Jun 06 - Aug 07
Programmer
Worked on COBOL, CICS and Assembler on mainframes for Experian UK and Northern Trust.
Education
Chalmers University of Technology, Gothenburg. Aug 09 - Jun 11
Master of Science in Mechanical Engineering- Fluid Mechanics
Master thesis: 'Conceptual Modelling of Civil and Military Aero-engines' under Dr. Tomas Gronstedt, Chalmers University and Volvo Aero.
Developed solvers for Navier-Stokes equations and 2-equation turbulence models.
- Modelling of turbulent quantities in fully developed flow between plates.
Numerical solution of steady and unsteady subsonic and supersonic flows around aerofoils for varied angle of attack using ICEMCFD and FLUENT.
Numerical solution of temperature distribution of flow around a bank of tubes in a heat exchanger using ICEMCFD and FLUENT.
Analysis of design and off-design characteristics of aero engines.
Visvesvaraya Technological University. Sep 02 - Jun 06
Bachelor of Engineering in Mechanical Engineering, Dr Ambedkar Institute of Technology, Bangalore
Workshop on aero-engines, design, manufacturing and testing at Zaporizhzhya National Technical University and Motor-Sich, Zaporizhzhya, Ukraine, Jul 2010.
Apprentice certification, RED-X, Jul 09.
Advanced GD&T per ASME Y14.5M-1994 from Effective Training Inc., Westland, MI, Nov 2008.
Managing Risk -Overview, from General Motors University, Finance College, Nov 07.
Process Failure Modes & Effects Analysis from Eastern Michigan University, Centre for Quality, Oct 07.
Project Experience
Conceptual Modelling of Civil and Military Aero-engines- Master thesis work. Jan 11 - Jun 11
Development of mathematical models for Polytropic efficiencies of engine fan, compressor and turbine stages based on statistical research.
Development of an Optimiser algorithm to work in tandem with in-house gas turbine analysis software- EVA and aero-engine dimensions software- Weico, to optimize running conditions at take-off, top-of-climb and mid-cruise points minimizing the installed SFC.
Outputs running parameters and a 2D scaled model representing the overall dimesnsions of the engine based on Entry Into Service up to year 2020 of Rolls Royce Trent Series engines.
Shell Eco-Marathon, Eurospeedway Lausitz, -ICE Urban concept category. May 10 & May 11
Carbon fibre monocoque body, custom mapped Honda GS35 engine and an in-house made super-capacitor.
Responsibilities: Design and fabrication of the front suspension, uprights, brake mounts, steering mechanism, aerodynamic analysis of the body and driving the car at the event.
Result: Swedish record of 197 km/l of 95-Gasoline.
Numerical Study of cracks in glass-fibre wind turbine blades. Apr 10 - Jun 10
Carried out in parallel with a Solid Mechanics team.
Development of blade profile using NACA 2D profiles and 3D mesh of the domain in ANSYS workbench.
Solved in CFX, to obtain the pressure distribution and wind tunnel verification using pressure probes.
Concept Hovercraft, as Bachelor of Engineering project. Jan 05 - Jun 06
Styrofoam & plywood hull, handcrafted pine wood & epoxy propeller and an innovative mechanism to bleed air at high speeds, thus reducing the lift and increasing stability of single-rotor hovercrafts.
Responsibilities: Flow calculations involving lift and thrust, fabrication of propeller, design and fabrication of hull, support frames, lift duct, thrust duct, design of skirt and overhauling of IC engines.
Result: Won the first place in the state level inter-university projects exhibition.
Mentoring 3rd and 4th year BE students at Dr Ambedkar Institute Of Technology for the formula green event in 2016. Overall project mentor and technical advisor on aerodynamics. Apr 15 - Present.
Master thesis mentor, 'Simulation of Solid Bodies by Lattice Boltzmann Method', Manipal University, 2014.
Publications & Talks
Natarajan, S., 'Conceptual Modelling of Civil and Military Aero Engines', Chalmers Reposervice, 2013
Gave a talk at Dr Ambedkar Institute of Technology on numerical simulations in the industry with a focus on heat transfer simulations, Jun 2015.
Recognitions
First Place in State Level Engineering Projects Exhibition Shrishti 06, Davanagere, Karnataka. May 06.
Second Place in National Level Technical Paper Presentation at BMS college of Engineering. Apr 06.
First Place in National Level Technical Paper Presentation at Madras Institute of Technology and in ISAMPE-students wing at Dr. Ambedkar Institute of Technology. Feb 06.
First place in a Hands-On event, Project-X, at Indian Institute of Technology, Madras. Oct 05.
Other Interests
Android application development. Developed 'Statistical Process Control' application to calculate process control parameters for a production process on-the-go. Available here.
Interested in data analysis. Developed algorithms to identify undervalued stocks in the stock market.
Simulated free-flow exhausts and their tuned lengths based on compressible flow models using OpenFOAM.
Hobbies include reading, biking, photography, programming and a hobby mechanic.