2023-2024 Undergraduate Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]
Mechanical Engineering
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Associate Professor Edmond Richer, Chair ad interim
Professors: Ali Beșkök, Xin-Lin Gao, Yildirim Hürmüzlü, MinJun Kim, Paul S. Krueger, Elizabeth G. Loboa, José L. Lage, M. Volkan Otugen, Peter E. Raad, Wei Tong, Nader Jalili
Associate Professors: Xu Nie, Edmond Richer, David A. Willis (Associate Chair)
Senior Lecturers: Elena V. Borzova
Professor of Practice: Steven Lerner, James R. Webb
Adjunct Faculty: Phillip Andrew, Antohe Bogdan, Eric B. Cluff, Christopher Colaw, Douglas Coldwell, DeeDee Conway, Levent Kaan, FanRong Kong, Michael Meaders, David J. Nowacki, Andrew Weaver, James C. Wilt
Mechanical engineering is a diverse, dynamic and exciting field. Mechanical engineers have wide-ranging technical backgrounds and a high potential for employment with mobility and professional growth. They apply creative knowledge to solve critical problems in many areas, including bioengineering (e.g., drug delivery and artificial organs), construction, design and manufacturing, electronics, energy (e.g., production, distribution and conservation), maintenance (individual machinery and complex installations), materials processing, medicine (diagnosis and therapy), national security and defense, packaging, pollution mitigation and control, robotics and automation, sensors, small-scale devices, and all aspects of transportation, (e.g., space travel and exploration).
The Mechanical Engineering Department at SMU has a long tradition of offering a superb engineering education within an environment fostering creativity and innovation. Small classes not only provide for strong mentoring but also help achieve academic excellence through cooperation and teamwork. Leading by example, through encouragement and dedication, the faculty is committed to the success of every student. In addition to offering introductory and advanced courses in their areas of specialization, faculty members teach courses that address the critical issues of technology and society.
The program prepares students by providing a solid background in fundamentals of science and engineering without compromising the practical aspects of mechanical engineering. Essential entrepreneurial know-how, interpersonal skills and the importance of lifelong learning complement the educational experience of students. The department stimulates professional and social leadership by providing, among others, opportunities for students to participate in the SMU Student Section of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers and in the SMU Tau-Sigma Chapter of Pi-Tau-Sigma, the National Honorary Mechanical Engineering Fraternity.
The curriculum allows for concentrated study in four major areas: thermofluids; dynamics and controls; solid mechanics, materials and manufacturing; and entrepreneurship. Practical mechanical engineering design is interlaced throughout the curriculum. Students may specialize in one of the three areas, which will provide them with more in-depth learning in one of the three areas while still completing a breadth of courses in mechanical engineering. In the senior year, students participate in a capstone design activity, one option for which involves complete product design from concept to construction to testing, with support from industries, foundations and volunteer professionals. State-of-the-art software, computers and laboratory equipment support the high-quality education provided to students. Undergraduate students are encouraged to participate in research projects conducted by faculty and to consider extending their studies to include graduate work in mechanical engineering at SMU or elsewhere.
In combination with a solid liberal arts foundation, the program prepares students for graduate studies not only in engineering but also in other professional fields such as business, medicine and law. SMU mechanical engineering graduates have found success in graduate school and in employment, and regularly attain graduate degrees in engineering, medicine, business and law. Graduates are employed as engineers or consulting engineers for major engineering, pharmaceutical, environmental, financial, banking and real estate companies.
The undergraduate program in mechanical engineering is accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET, https://www.abet.org.
The program’s mission is to provide a personalized mechanical engineering educational experience that couples personal growth, liberal arts, technical depth, and transformative research, enabling our graduates to become continual learners who are innovative and responsible problems solvers for society.
The Mechanical Engineering Undergraduate Program Outcomes and their relationships to the discipline-specific criteria are as follows:
- An ability to identify, formulate, and solve complex engineering problems by applying principles of engineering, science, and mathematics.
- An ability to apply engineering design to produce solutions that meet specified needs with consideration of public health, safety, and welfare, as well as global, cultural, social, environmental, and economic factors.
- An ability to communicate effectively with a range of audiences.
- An ability to recognize ethical and professional responsibilities in engineering situations and make informed judgments, which must consider the impact of engineering solutions in global, economic, environmental, and societal contexts.
- An ability to function effectively on a team whose members together provide leadership, create a collaborative and inclusive environment, establish goals, plan tasks, and meet objectives.
- An ability to develop and conduct appropriate experimentation, analyze and interpret data, and use engineering judgment to draw conclusions.
- An ability to acquire and apply new knowledge as needed, using appropriate learning strategies.
An outstanding cooperative education program is also available for students. For further information on the SMU Co-op Program, students should see Cooperative Education at the beginning of the Lyle School of Engineering section.
The Mechanical Engineering Department offers the following undergraduate degrees with three available options:
Bachelor of Science With a Major in Mechanical Engineering (with a distributed track; specialization in thermofluids; dynamics and controls, or solid mechanics, materials, and manufacturing; or Entrepreneurship track)
Bachelor of Science With a Major in Mechanical Engineering (with a premedical/biomedical specialization)
Students may pursue a second degree program in math or physics. Students wishing to obtain a second degree in mathematics or physics should contact the respective departments to discuss the requirements.
In addition, a minor in mechanical engineering is available to interested students.
In support of the teaching and research endeavors of the department, several research laboratories are available.
The Additive Manufacturing, Robotics and Automation Laboratory (LAMRA), established in 2013, is dedicated to the exploration and development of novel, advanced 3-D printing processes. LAMRA also pursues research in soft robotics and medical and service robotics/automation technologies.
The Biological Actuation, Sensing and Transport Laboratory research program can be broadly categorized into three core subject areas: micro/nanorobotics, single cell/single molecule biophysics, and transport phenomena. Although each core program consists of a distinct project, the research team emphasizes their synergistic nature ― advances in one core are expected to drive the development of the others. The unifying component of all the cores is “biologically inspired nano/micro engineering.”
The Biomedical Instrumentation and Robotics Laboratory research activities promote strong interdisciplinary collaboration between several branches of engineering and biomedical sciences. These activities touch upon fundamentals in analytical dynamics, nonlinear control of mechanical systems, computer-aided design and virtual prototyping, applied mathematics, data acquisition, signal processing and high-performance actuators.
The Bio-Microfluidics Laboratory is where researchers design, build and test Lab-on-a-Chip devices for biomedical, environmental monitoring, and food/water safety applications. The laboratory also performs numerical simulations of mass momentum and energy transport in micro and nano-scales, using continuum-based and atomistic methods.
The Experimental Fluid Mechanics Laboratory research areas include experimental quantification and evaluation of unsteady fluid flow processes, including vortex formation, vortex boundary interactions, and aquatic locomotion. A variety of two-dimensional and three-dimensional full-field flow measurement techniques are employed.
The Impact Mechanics Laboratory research focus areas include: experimental solid mechanics, impact mechanics, dynamic behavior of materials and structures, novel Kolsky bar-based high-strain rate characterization techniques, dynamic fracture and failure of brittle materials, soft materials and tissues, vehicle and body armors, non-destructive damage characterization in heterogeneous materials, and X-ray computed micro-tomography.
The Porous Media Systems Laboratory focuses on the design of morphing heat exchangers, heat transfer enhancement and transport in porous media.
The Laser Micromachining Laboratory studies thermal-based laser micro- and nano-processing, with an emphasis on heat transfer, phase change, and fluid flow occurring during these processes. Specific research areas include short pulse laser ablation and micromachining including explosive phase change, vaporization, and Marangoni flows; applications of laser micromachining to electronic and photonic device fabrication; laser-assisted fabrication of superhydrophobic surfaces, microfluidics, and biomedical devices; fabrication of nanoparticles using pulsed laser ablation in liquids (PLAL); laser-induced forward transfer (LIFT); and time-resolved studies of short-pulse laser-material interactions.
The Experimental and Computational Mechanics of Materials Laboratory research areas include solid mechanics and materials engineering with a focus on the combined experimental characterization, as well as computational analysis of mechanical properties, stress/strain, and microstructure of engineering and biological materials and their applications in advancing manufacturing and materials processing technologies, engineering design analyses, and biomedical sciences and engineering.
The Solid and Structural Mechanics Laboratory research activities include multi-scale materials modeling, micro- and nano-mechanics, higher-order continuum theories, traumatic brain injury prevention, biomechanics, mechanics of soft materials, 3-D printed materials, indentation/contact mechanics, impact mechanics, damage and fracture mechanics, nanocomposites, cellular and porous materials, textile and ballistic materials, modeling of manufacturing processes.
The MicroSensor Laboratory is dedicated to the development of novel micro-sensors for nano-scale measurement. Most of the research projects use “whispering gallery mode” (WGM) resonators for ultra-sensitive measurements with high resolution in time and space. The dielectric resonators used are high optical quality polymeric spheres. The measurement principle is based on the detection of extremely small sphere deformations by monitoring the corresponding optical mode (WGM) shifts. Several photonic sensors have been developed and demonstrated in the MicroSensor Laboratory, including force, strain, wall shear stress, temperature and pressure. Recent work has focused on the development of a micro-photonic seismometer as well as electric and magnetic field sensors. Because of the extreme sensitivity of the microsphere WGM to external conditions, a wide variety of applications exist, ranging from medicine to defense.
The Nanoscale Electro-Thermal Sciences Laboratory (NETSL) was founded in 1995 in recognition of local industry’s needs for noninvasive characterization of the thermal behavior of complex microelectronic devices. NETSL’s focus is on research and creative use of computational and metrological thermal sciences to enhance the design and reliability of microelectronics and explore new scientific frontiers. The laboratory features transient thermoreflectance-based metrology systems for measuring the properties of ultra-thin materials and their interfaces as well as temperature fields of devices with deep submicron resolution. In addition, NETSL contains a novel adaptive computational tool for ultra-fast thermal modeling of complex three-dimensional devices.
The Research Center for Advanced Manufacturing (RCAM) involves research that lies at the interface between science, engineering, and industrial practice. The mission of RCAM is to promote and apply university lead R&D in advanced manufacturing research and development work. RCAM supports research and development activities in areas of rapid prototyping and manufacturing (laser-based and welding-based deposition), laser materials processing (welding, forming, surface modification), welding (including electrical arc welding, variable polarity plasma arc welding, friction stir welding and micro plasma arc welding), water-jet/abrasive water-jet materials processing, sensing and control of manufacturing processes, and numerical modeling of manufacturing processes. The Center for Laser-Aided Manufacturing is housed in the RCAM facility, and it collaborates with RCAM. The Center includes the following laboratories: Laser-based Additive Manufacturing Laboratory, Laser Materials Processing Laboratory, and the Materials Characterization Laboratory.
The Systems Laboratory is engaged in research in robotics, biomechanics, and vibration suppression.
In support of the teaching and research endeavors of the department, several instructional laboratories are available. They include the following:
Mechanics of Materials (Structures) Laboratory. This laboratory is equipped for instruction and research on the behavior of materials under various loading conditions such as fatigue, impact, hardness, creep, tension, compression and flexure.
Systems, Measurement and Control Laboratory. This facility is equipped for instruction in the design and analysis of analog and digital instrumentation and control systems. Modern measurement and instrumentation equipment are used for experimental control engineering, system identification, harmonic analysis, simulation and real-time control applications. Additional equipment is also used in microprocessor interfacing for control and instrumentation.
Thermal and Fluids Laboratory. Equipment in this laboratory is used for instruction in experimental heat transfer, thermodynamics and fluid mechanics. Modern equipment is available for conducting experiments on energy conservation; aerodynamics; internal combustion engines; heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems; convective cooling of electronics; and heat exchangers. State-of-the-art systems support automatic control and data acquisition. A partial list of the equipment in this lab includes the following: heat exchanger flow bench, airflow bench, kinematic viscosity bath, forced convection heat transfer experiment bench, low-pressure board, dead weight tester, vortex tube, free and forced heat transfer unit, hydraulic trainer and pneumatic trainer.
Mechanical Engineering Machine Shop. This facility offers a state-of-the-art CNC machine, milling machines, lathes and 3D printers used for student instruction and research.
Mechanical Engineering Computer Laboratory. This laboratory is equipped with computer work stations supported by educational software including MATLAB, ANSYS, COMSOL, SOLIDWORKS and others. Access to SMU’s state of the art HPC facilities is also available.
Laboratories shared with the Civil and Environmental Engineering Department include the following:
Hydraulics/Hydrology, Thermal and Fluids Laboratory
CAD Computer Laboratory
Structural and Mechanics of Materials Laboratory
Project construction area
Mechanical engineering offers the broadest curriculum in engineering to reflect the wide range of mechanical engineering job opportunities in government and industry. The mechanical engineer is concerned with creation, research, design, analysis, production and marketing of devices for providing and using energy and materials. The major concentration areas of the program include the following:
Solid and Structural Mechanics. Concerned with the behavior of solid bodies under the action of applied forces. The solid body may be a simple mechanical linkage, an aerodynamic control surface, an airplane or space vehicle, or a component of a nuclear reactor. The applied forces may have a variety of origins, such as mechanical, aerodynamic, gravitational, electromotive and magnetic. Solid mechanics provides one element of the complete design process and interacts with all other subjects in the synthesis of a design.
Fluid Mechanics. Deals with the behavior of fluid under the action of forces applied to it. The subject proceeds from a study of basic fundamentals to a variety of applications, such as flow-through compressors, turbines and pumps, around an airplane or missile. Fluid mechanics interacts with solid mechanics in the practice of mechanical engineering because the fluid flow is generally bounded by solid surfaces. Fluid mechanics is also an element in the synthesis of a design.
Thermal Sciences. Concerned with the thermal behavior of all materials – solid, liquid and gaseous. The subject is divided into three important branches, namely, thermodynamics, energy conversion and heat transfer. Thermodynamics is the study of the interaction between a material and its environment when heat and/or work are involved. Energy conversion is a study of the transformation of one form of energy to another, such as the conversion of solar energy to electrical energy in a solar cell. Heat transfer is a study of the processes by which thermal energy is transferred from one body of material to another. Since energy is required to drive any apparatus and since some of the energy is thermal energy, the thermal sciences interact with all other areas of study as an integral part of the design process.
Materials Science and Engineering. Pertains to the properties of all materials – solid, liquid and gaseous. It deals with mechanical, fluid, thermal, electrical and other properties. Properties of interest include modulus of elasticity, compressibility, viscosity, thermal conductivity, electrical conductivity and many others. The study of materials proceeds from the characteristics of individual atoms of a material, through the cooperative behavior of small groups of atoms, up to the behavior and properties of the bulk material. Because all mechanical equipment is composed of materials, works in a material environment and is controlled by other material devices, it is clear that the materials sciences lie at the heart of the design synthesis process.
Control Systems. Provides necessary background for engineers in the dynamics of systems. In the study of controls, both the transient and steady-state behaviors of the system are of interest. The transient behavior is particularly important in the starting and stopping of propulsion systems and in maneuvering flight, whereas the steady-state behavior describes the normal operating state. Some familiar examples of control systems include the flight controls of an airplane or space vehicle and the thermostat on a heating or cooling system.
Design Synthesis. The process by which practical engineering solutions are created to satisfy needs of the society in an efficient, economical and practical way. This synthesis process is the culmination of the study of mechanical engineering and deals with all elements of science, mathematics and engineering.
Mechanical engineering is a diverse field and advanced major electives may be selected from a variety of advanced courses in mechanical engineering. In addition, specializations are offered in thermofluids; dynamics and controls; solid mechanics, materials and manufacturing; and premedical/biomedical studies. An entrepreneurship track is also available. This track includes required courses in innovation management, entrepreneurship, manufacturing strategy and organizational leadership. Students wishing to obtain a second degree in mathematics or physics should contact the respective departments to discuss the requirements.
ProgramsMajor(s)Minor(s)CoursesMechanical Engineering
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