Career & education

Experience.

The roles, education, research, and simulation methods behind my portfolio.

Explore related demos, publications, and intellectual property within each company or university.

WiskBoeing

Boeing / Wisk

Senior Fluid & Thermal Analysis Engineer

Mar 2026 — Present · Mountain View, California

Battery thermal management

Lead thermal-fluid analysis across battery cells, modules, packs, propulsion, and aircraft systems. Combine hand calculations, 0D/1D system models, and 3D CFD/FEA to evaluate heat generation, coolant distribution, pressure drop, and cooling architecture.

Hardware and safety

Analyze cold plates, heat exchangers, pumps, valves, venting paths, and thermal runaway behavior. Define test requirements and instrumentation plans, correlate simulations with hardware data, and investigate thermal bottlenecks.

View demosHide demos4 videos for Boeing / Wisk

Independent portfolio demos illustrating related methods; not employer hardware or project results. The aerodynamics and plume use public Midnight-inspired geometry, not a Wisk aircraft. The steady angle sweep is unconverged; the transient wake is exploratory and lacks grid/time-step independence.

Transient wake: persistence and load fluctuations

A full-aircraft, fixed-20° URANS follow-up to the steady angle sweep. Inspect physical-time wake evolution and the corresponding loads.

Fixed 20° · 100 mph · 75 native snapshots · 7.5-second slowed playback. The aircraft and camera stay stationary; the flow evolves in physical time.

Independent public-reference reconstruction; unpowered and exploratory. No grid/time-step independence or validated shedding frequency.

Aircraft angle-of-attack sweep: 0°–20°

Inspect native flow paths and local lift/drag contributions while comparing every sampled angle.

0° · increasing

Select an angle to pause and inspect. Use the video’s play control to resume the 0° → 20° → 0° loop. All eleven calculated angles remain on the plots; the highlighted point follows the displayed field. Use fullscreen for detailed plots on small screens.

Independent public-reference Archer Midnight approximation, presented with the Wisk methods demos. All eleven cases missed full convergence targets. This is an unpowered, symmetric screening study, not Wisk/Boeing/Archer engineering data or a validated stall envelope.

Aircraft exhaust plume

External hot-gas flow around an approximate aircraft center section.

Case study →

Battery cooling

Transient module temperatures with two liquid cold plates in series.

Case study →
All analysis & modeling →
Amazon LEO

Amazon LEO

Mechanical Engineer III

Oct 2025 — Mar 2026 · Seattle, Washington

Spacecraft impact analysis

Led meshing and finite-element modeling of Kuiper spacecraft hardware to evaluate micrometeoroid and orbital debris impact response using Siemens NX/FEMAP.

Automation and verification

Built Python workflows for geometry cleanup, simulation setup, and post-processing. Worked with design and systems teams to define boundary conditions and document model fidelity and structural risks.

Blue Origin

Blue Origin

Fluid & Thermal System Analysis Engineer III

Aug 2024 — Oct 2025 · Seattle, Washington

Cryogenic tank pressurization

Modeled LH₂ and LOX tank multiphase flow and conjugate heat transfer in ANSYS Fluent, resolving stratification, ullage condensation, and gas collapse during pressurization. Evaluated diffuser geometry and its effect on ullage response.

Mission thermal-fluid systems

Developed mission gas budgets and transient subsystem analyses in Thermal Desktop, FloCAD, and SINDA/FLUINT. Investigated tank chilldown, insulation, line heat leaks, fuel transfer, and venting.

View demosHide demos4 videos for Blue Origin

Independent portfolio demos illustrating related methods; not employer hardware or project results. The lunar tank is an independent generic 2D CFD demonstration with separate 0D pressure and schematic mission context. The earlier Falcon 9-inspired CAD study retains its planned external CFD scope. Neither is Blue Origin geometry or operating data.

Propellant in motion: filling, settling & restart

Ground filling, engine cutoff, slosh, settling and restart: native 2D OpenFOAM liquid fields inside transparent 3D CAD, with fixed-scale plots and a schematic mission map.

Video, numerical results & technical case study →

Independent generic LOX study · Coarse 2D VOF + separate 0D pressure · Public references and assumed inputs.

Public-data rocket CAD & connected CFD plan

Editable rocket assembly with solid component close-ups. The case study connects the completed CAD to planned external aerodynamics, cryogenic tank pressurization, diffuser flow and system gas budgets.

Full technical case study →

Independent Falcon 9-inspired concept · CAD complete; rocket CFD planned.

Nonlinear waves in cryogenic tanks

A Stokes V wave model explores nonlinear free-surface motion in cryogenic propellant tanks, with interface tracking and damping at the boundaries.

Watch on LinkedIn ↗

Cryogenic tank slosh and ullage response

A three-dimensional tank model examines liquid slosh under six-degree-of-freedom motion and its interaction with ullage pressure and thermal behavior.

Watch on LinkedIn ↗
All analysis & modeling →
Alcyone Therapeutics

Alcyone Therapeutics

Principal Engineer

Sep 2022 — Aug 2024 · Boston, Massachusetts

CNS digital twins

Led patient-specific modeling from MRI segmentation of the brain, spinal cord, and nerve roots through meshing and CFD. Integrated cardiac and respiratory wall motion, dynamic mesh, Lagrangian tracking, and multiphase transport for ASO/AAV delivery.

Partner studies and HPC

Directed simulation collaborations with Biogen, Ultragenyx, and Minnetronix on infusion protocols and catheter design. Configured AMD Threadripper PRO and Intel Xeon systems for parallel CFD and in-house computing.

Senior Engineer

Dec 2020 — Sep 2022 · Boston, Massachusetts

Custom OpenFOAM physics

Developed a thermophoretic force model for size-dependent nanoparticle separation across 30–300 nm particles. Used the model to optimize heater geometry and thermal fields for an air-quality sensor.

Experimental comparison

Verified and validated CSF transport models with 3D-printed flow phantoms and tracer dispersion experiments. Compared spatial and temporal concentration predictions with measured data.

View demosHide demos1 video for Alcyone Therapeutics

Independent portfolio demos illustrating related methods; not employer hardware or project results. This video demonstrates particle focusing in an idealized tube; it is not a CSF or thermophoresis result.

Particle focusing through geometry

A converging and diverging tube explores how carrier-flow geometry changes particle trajectories and concentrates an aerosol stream.

Watch on LinkedIn ↗
All analysis & modeling →
View publicationsHide publications4 papers for Alcyone Therapeutics

Drug-delivery and CSF research connected to this work, including later publications. Publication years can follow the period when the research was carried out.

All publications →
View conference abstractsHide conference abstracts3 abstracts for Alcyone Therapeutics

Conference abstracts listed separately from full journal articles; linked to their original Scholar records.

2025 · Conference abstract

A novel approach for treatment of rett syndrome and other x-linked disorders through miREX gene regulation combined with FalconTM precision CSF delivery

C. N. Dennys et al., including M. Khani

Human Gene Therapy 36 (3–4), E280 · Conference abstract

2024 · Conference abstract

The miREX Platform Technology Allows for Highly Efficacious X-Reactivation for Treatment of X-linked Disorders

C. Dennys et al., including M. Khani

Molecular Therapy 32 (4), 317–318 · Conference abstract

2024 · Conference abstract

Leveraging In Silico and In Vitro Modeling for Optimization of Intrathecal AAV9 Delivery to the Brain: Validation in Nonhuman Primates and Translation to Human Rett Syndrome Patient Anatomy

B. Martin et al., including M. Khani

Molecular Therapy 32 (4), 746–747 · Conference abstract

View patent applicationsHide patent applications3 applications for Alcyone Therapeutics

Co-invented fluid-delivery patent applications, with public records linked below.

University of Idaho

University of Idaho

Postdoctoral Fellow

Nov 2019 — Dec 2020 · Moscow, Idaho

MRI-based drug delivery

Developed high-fidelity drug-delivery models in ANSYS Fluent using MRI-derived anatomy, craniospinal compliance, dynamic mesh, injection locations, dispersion, and clearance.

PhD in Biological Engineering

Jan 2016 — Nov 2019 · Moscow, Idaho

Doctoral research

Developed MRI-based numerical models of cerebrospinal fluid dynamics for filtration and intrathecal drug delivery. Connected subject-specific anatomy, spinal nerve-root geometry, and physiological flow measurements to computational models.

Methods and publications

Investigated nonuniform moving boundaries, steady-streaming, catheter-induced flow changes, and blood clearance. Published this work with collaborators and documented the research in my doctoral dissertation.

View publicationsHide publications8 papers + dissertation for University of Idaho

Publications from my doctoral and postdoctoral research in MRI-based CSF modeling, moving boundaries, anatomy, filtration, and intrathecal drug delivery.

All publications →
View patents & disclosuresHide patents & disclosures1 application + 2 disclosures for University of Idaho

Co-invented catheter patent application and submitted invention disclosures. Disclosure titles and submission dates are listed in my résumé.

Published patent application · 2022

US20220143373A1

Systems, catheters, and methods for treating along the central nervous system

US Patent App. 17/583,814

Co-inventor with Bryn Martin and collaborators.

Submitted invention disclosure

Dual-lumen neurapheresis catheter for equal flow at aspiration and return ports.

Martin BA, Khani M

Submitted October 24, 2018 · University of Idaho

Submitted invention disclosure

Subject-specific prediction and optimization of intrathecal (IT) drug therapy based on medical imaging and computational modeling.

Martin BA, Khani M

Submitted March 2020 · University of Idaho

National Iranian Oil Company

National Iranian Oil Company

Iranian Oil Terminals Company · NIOC subsidiary

Mechanical Engineer

May 2012 — Jan 2016 · Sari, Iran

Mechanical systems and field work

Maintained and repaired pumps, valves, piping, safety valves, and motor-operated valves. Supported preventive maintenance, welding, fabrication, and troubleshooting.

Tank overhaul projects

Defined scope and materials, coordinated technicians and cross-functional teams, and worked with quality and safety groups on inspection findings, surface preparation, coating, and tank modifications.

Iran University of Science & Technology

Iran University of Science & Technology

MS in Mechanical Engineering

Aug 2010 — May 2012 · Tehran, Iran

Combustion research

Studied the response of conical premixed flames to upstream velocity disturbances and the effects of flame-speed development. This master’s research led to a co-authored paper in Propulsion and Power Research, published in 2017.

Related propulsion research

Co-authored a three-dimensional CFD study of a novel rotary-piston engine in motoring mode, examining internal flow and thermal behavior. The related publication is linked below.

View publicationsHide publications2 papers for Iran University of Science & Technology

My master’s combustion research led to the premixed-flame paper published in 2017. The rotary-piston engine study is included as related propulsion research.

All publications →
University of Mazandaran

University of Mazandaran

BS in Mechanical Engineering

Aug 2006 — May 2010 · Babol, Iran

Additional technical focus

01 / Biomedical simulation

MRI to CFD drug-delivery models

Built workflows that connect anatomical segmentation, meshing, physiological flow conditions, and solute transport. Studied how infusion location, protocol, anatomy, and posture affect intrathecal distribution.

MRI segmentationDynamic meshASO / AAV
Explore the research

02 / Aerospace thermal fluids

Cryogenic pressurization and propellant systems

Combined detailed tank CFD with mission-level system analysis to study condensation, ullage response, gas consumption, thermal stratification, and diffuser performance.

ANSYS FluentThermal DesktopSINDA/FLUINT
View public simulations

03 / Thermal engineering

Battery cooling architecture

Develop multi-fidelity tools to compare coolant networks, pressure drop, cold-plate performance, heat-exchanger sizing, pumping power, and thermal safety across battery systems.

0D / 1D / 3DCFD / FEATest correlation
Discuss thermal analysis

04 / Custom CFD development

Nanoparticle thermophoresis solver

Added thermophoretic physics to OpenFOAM to resolve particle-size-dependent motion under thermal gradients and support heater design for a microfluidic sensing device.

OpenFOAMC++Particle transport
Discuss solver development

05 / Propulsion research

Rotary-piston engine simulation

Used dynamic mesh to represent semi-sinusoidal chamber motion and study internal flow, motoring cycles, and wall thermal fields. Extended modeling to species transport and fuel spray dynamics.

Dynamic meshANSYS FluentSpray modeling
Read the engine paper

06 / Engineering software

Simulation workflow automation and HPC

Build repeatable geometry, meshing, solver, and post-processing workflows. Configure parallel computing systems to support large CFD studies and frequent engineering iteration.

PythonHPCWorkflow automation
Discuss a workflow