ANSYS Mechanical FEA Structural Analyst 8-Week Path

Core Topics Covered:

• Importing STEP AP242 / Parasolid assemblies into ANSYS SpaceClaim / DesignModeler
• Removing cosmetic fillets, embossed logos, and micro-sliver faces that ruin mesh quality
• Extracting shell mid-surfaces for thin-walled sheet metal and weldments
• Shared Topology (conformal meshing across multi-body parts) vs Contact pairs

Core Topics Covered:

• 1D Beam/Link, 2D Shell, and 3D Solid elements (SOLID186 quadratic 20-node hex vs SOLID187 10-node tet)
• Sweep meshing, MultiZone hex-dominant decomposition, and local Body/Face/Edge sizing
• Inflation layers and local sphere-of-influence refinement around stress risers
• Evaluating Element Quality, Aspect Ratio (<5), Jacobian Ratio, and Skewness (<0.6)

Core Topics Covered:

• Applying realistic supports (Compression Only, Cylindrical, Elastic, Remote Displacement)
• Understanding St. Venant's Principle and avoiding over-constrained rigid boundary artifacts
• Conducting systematic h-refinement Mesh Convergence Studies (1%, 2%, 5% stress delta)
• Distinguishing true physical peak stresses from mathematical re-entrant corner singularities

Core Topics Covered:

• Linear contacts (Bonded, No Separation) vs Nonlinear contacts (Frictionless, Rough, Frictional)
• Contact formulations: Pure Penalty, Augmented Lagrange, and Normal Lagrange
• Contact Pinball Radius, Initial Contact Status tool, and Chattering/Penetration control
• Modeling structural Bolt Pretension (Load vs Adjustment lock steps) across multi-step analyses

Core Topics Covered:

• Bilinear and Multilinear Isotropic/Kinematic Hardening (von Mises yield criterion)
• Hyperelastic elastomer modeling (Mooney-Rivlin, Ogden, Neo-Hookean)
• Geometric nonlinearity (`Large Deflection = On`) and Newton-Raphson force convergence plots
• Linear Eigenvalue Buckling vs Nonlinear Riks Arc-Length post-buckling analysis

Core Topics Covered:

• Free and pre-stressed Modal Analysis (extracting natural frequencies and participation factors)
• Mode-superposition vs Full Harmonic Response under sinusoidal rotating unbalance loads
• Random Vibration (PSD - Power Spectral Density) per MIL-STD-810 / aerospace standards
• Response Spectrum Analysis for seismic earthquake excitation

Core Topics Covered:

• Conduction, Convection film coefficients, and Thermal Radiation view factors
• Transient thermal heat-up and cool-down duty cycles
• One-way coupled Thermal-Structural stress analysis (importing body temperature fields)
• Thermal expansion mismatch stresses in multi-material assemblies

Core Topics Covered:

• Stress-Life (S-N High-Cycle) and Strain-Life (e-N Low-Cycle) fatigue evaluation
• Mean stress corrections (Goodman, Soderberg, Gerber) and Rainflow cycle counting
• Defining Stress Classification Lines (SCL) through pressure vessel wall thicknesses
• Decomposing Primary Membrane ($P_m$), Primary Bending ($P_b$), and Secondary ($Q$) stresses per ASME Section VIII

Pressure Vessel & Crane Boom Nonlinear FEA Verification Report: Perform a mesh-converged nonlinear elasto-plastic and bolted-contact simulation in ANSYS Mechanical, execute stress linearization along critical weld paths per ASME BPVC Section VIII Div 2, and validate buckling load multipliers.

Training Sprint	Core Technical Competencies	Essential Commands & System Variables	Mandatory Capstone Deliverable
Weeks 1–4 Foundation	Precision coordinate geometry, ISO 13567 layer hierarchies, annotative scaling, and template (.dwt) governance.	LAYER, LTSCALE, PSLTSCALE=1, MSLTSCALE=1, DIMASSOC=2, OSNAP, PEDIT, OVERKILL	Produce a multi-viewport A1 production sheet set with 100% associative dimensions and monochrome CTB/STB plot compliance.
Weeks 5–8 Production	Parametric block authoring, external reference (Xref) federation, associative BOM data extraction, and 3D solid/BIM coordination.	BEDIT, XREF (Overlay), XCLIP, INDEXCTL=3, VISRETAIN=1, DATAEXTRACTION, IFCIMPORT	Deliver a federated multi-discipline assembly/building package with live Excel BOM sync and zero unresolved Xrefs.
Weeks 9–12 Mastery & Automation	Unattended batch publishing, AutoLISP / .NET / GRX workflow automation, QA/QC database auditing, and ISO/ASME tolerance verification.	PUBLISH, SHEETSET, APPLOAD, AUDIT, RECOVER, -PURGE (Regapps), ETRANSMIT	Write an automated QA/QC script that audits 50+ drawings and pass the official GstarCAD Skill Certification Exam.