Mechanical Engineering Facilities

Heat Transmission Laboratory (ANDR 142)

The Heat Transfer Laboratory serves to provide hands-on experience with various heat transfer phenomena encountered in real life applications and correlates theory with engineering applications.  The laboratory introduces the students to fundamental modes of heat transfer.  The experiments allow students to investigate and understand the physics of different heat transfer mechanisms and to verify the fundamental laws governing the transport of heat.  Measurements using state of the art data acquisition equipment allow the students to identify the important parameters affecting the heat transfer phenomena and correlate them using the governing equations.  The experiments involve the study of heat transfer by conduction, convection, radiation, film condensation and boiling, as well as the study and analysis of heat exchangers.

(Heat transmission laboratory with measurements of temperature and flows.  Experiments include temperature profiles in solids, thermal conductivity, radiation, and the determination of various heat and mass transfer coefficients.)

M E 417, Senior Design, Undergraduate Research, Graduate Research

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Finite Element Analysis Computer Laboratory (ANDR 143)

This teaching laboratory contains 12 individual computing stations for instruction of finite element analysis (FEA), computer numerical control (CNC) G and H codes, Stereo lithographic (STL) files, rapid prototyping, and computer aided design (CAD) as they apply to machine design.  Additionally, the study of fracture mechanics, crack propagation, fatigue, and lifetime calculations by software modeling are compared to results received from information developed in the Fatigue Laboratory and Testing Equipment Laboratory.

M E 461, 466, Senior Design, Undergraduate Research, Graduate Research

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Materials Heat Treatment Laboratory (ANDR 144)

Mainly upper level mechanical engineering students who either are taking a materials engineering course or are working on their senior project use the Heat Treating Laboratory.  This laboratory contains the heat-treating furnaces that are used to process a variety of metallic materials.  Students then look at the physical properties and microstructures of the materials after treatment. Thus, the processing -- structure ? properties, interactions are discovered. The laboratory contains a variety of furnaces with the highest temperature attainable being 1500^o C. Freshman engineering students and junior high/high school age students also conduct an experiment in this room to introduce them to materials science.

Materials Science Laboratory containing various ovens, furnaces, baths, and quenching equipment used for heat treatment of metals and other materials.

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Engineering Metrology Laboratory (ANDR 145)

M E 461, 466

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Materials Polishing Laboratory (ANDR 146)

Polishing equipment is available in this room to enable the proper preparation of samples for microscopic examination.  This room is used for a variety of upper undergraduate and graduate courses.

MSE 344

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Scanning Electron X-ray Diffraction Laboratory (ANDR 147)

Microscopic analysis performed in this room.  Samples are imaged by optical and scanning electron microscopy (SEM).  An energy dispersive system (EDS) is available which can pinpoint the locations of specific elements.  The room also houses an x-ray diffraction unit.

MSE 344

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Materials Characterization Laboratory (ANDR 149)

The testing equipment room contains mainly mechanical testers and nondestructive testing equipment.  Tensile, creep and impact test machines are maintained here.  Nondestructive testers include dye penetrant, magnetic particle, eddy current, and ultrasonics.  Such equipment has use in a variety of courses.

MSE 344

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Nanotechnology Research Laboratory (ANDR 150)

Additionally, the corrosion laboratory is housed here. 

M E 4XX, Senior Design, Undergraduate Research, Graduate Research

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Fluids Mechanics & Computational Fluids Analysis Laboratories (ANDR 152)

The Fluid Engineering Laboratory serves to provide the tools needed to analyze and solve fluid flow problems in different engineering applications and to provide the link between theory with real life applications.  The laboratory introduces the students to the fundamentals of laminar and turbulent flow as well as state of the art flow measurement techniques and equipment.  The laboratory also includes state of the art computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software as an important and effective tool in studying complex flow problems encountered in most industrial applications.  The experiments involve the study of viscous flow applications, boundary layers, and lift and drag on immersed bodies. 

(Introduction to fluid mechanics laboratory, experiments on flow patters, velocity profile in an air pipe, wind tunnel calibration, draining of a tank, pipe friction, boundary layer studies, falling ball experiments, and viscosity measurements.)

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Fatigue Dynamics Research Laboratory (ANDR 164)

The Fatigue Testing Laboratory includes rotating beam machines and hydraulically operated MTS fatigue machine with an environmental chamber.  Additional equipment would include a cross-cylinder wear tester and optical capture and analysis systems.

The rotating beam machines are used in machine design and material science courses for the conventional and accelerated fatigue tests of specimens from different materials.  From the statistical treatment of test results, the students are able to determine endurance limits for different life spans and verify reliability of the accelerated testing.

The MTS machine is used for testing actual parts in conventional, accelerated and programmed fatigue testing in different environmental conditions.  The machine is also used in fracture mechanics laboratory experiments to observe crack propagation and determination of stress intensity factors and J-integrals.  From the results of the experiments, the students are asked to determine parameters for Paris formulation and develop the expression for the prediction of life after crack initiation.

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Manufacturing and Robotics Laboratory (ANDR 245)

The Manufacturing/Robotics Laboratory is designed to provide higher level students hands-on experience with modern manufacturing equipment and methods.  The laboratory includes an industrial robot, two educational robots, a manufacturing cell consisting of several cutting machines, conveyer belts, a vision system, a rapid prototyping machine, and a coordinate-measuring machine.  The laboratory introduces students to programming languages for robots, CNC machines, and automated manufacturing systems.

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Mechanical Engineering Experimentation Laboratory (ANDR 246)

The Mechanical Engineering Experimentation Laboratory includes the use of precision measurement equipment such as use gage blocks, micrometers, vernier calipers, adjustable parallels, and sine bars.  It also includes measurements of strains encountered by bending of beams, which the students use to calculate Poisson's Ratio, principal stresses, and stress concentration factors around holes.  The laboratory also teaches students how to apply strain gages on aluminum beams and test those beams.  Students also conduct experiments involving torsion of bars, and study the effect of combined bending and torsion.  The laboratory also includes the determination of time constant of a thermometer, pressure calibration techniques using a dead-weight pressure tester, and analysis of the natural frequencies of beams subjected to vibrations.  The students are also exposed to photo-elastic methods.

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Mechatronics Laboratory (POTT 113)

M E 485

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