First I want to tell you that I am a mechanical engineer. I choose to write about mechanical engineering branch because there is lack of authorised article written about this topic.
Let's start by defining Engineering-
Engineering is the profession in which the knowledge of mathematics and natural science candid by study experience and practice is applied with judgement to develop ways to utilise economically the materials and the force of nature for the benefit of mankind.
In simple words,the application of science and mathematics by which the properties of matter and the source of energy in nature and made useful to people is called engineering.
Also the application of science and technology to solve the problems that society faces or to provide products which society desire comes under engineering definition.
Mechanical engineering is part of engineering. It is divided into a number of subjects.They are engineering mechanics, strength of materials, hydraulics and fluid mechanics and hydraulic machines, thermodynamics,stream boiler and engine, steam nozzle and turbine, IC engine and nuclear power plants, compressor ,gas dynamic and gas turbines, heat transfer ,refrigeration and air conditioning ,theory of machine ,machine design ,engineering material ,workshop technology, production engineering, industrial engineering and product management ,automobile engineering.
Basically ,above subjects are divided into three broad categories, namely Thermal engineering , Design engineering and Production engineering.
The basic of most of the subjects are taught in class 12th, that's why student prefer mechanical engineering for further study. But that is not a wise decision, you must be aware of what you are going to study in mechanical engineering.
Let's look at the subjects topics that you are going to study in mechanical engineering. Let us first discuss the engineering mechanics, you would be quite aware of mechanics in class 12th. In engineering also mechanics is same as you study in your class 12th but in a broader sense.The engineering mechanics in the branch of engineering science which deals with the principles of mechanics along with their application to engineering problems. It is further divided into two main groups, namely statics and dynamics.
The statics is the branch of engineering mechanics which deals with the forces and their effects while acting upon the body is at rest while the Dynamics is that branch of engineering mechanics which deals with the forces and their effects, while acting upon the bodies is in motion.
It is further subdivided into the two branches, namely kinetics and kinematics.
The kinetics is that branch of dynamics which deals with the bodies in motion due to the application of forces while the kinematics is that branch of dynamics which deals with the bodies is in motion without taking into account the forces which are responsible for the motion.
Further in engineering mechanics, you will study forces, couples, moment, moment of inertia, centre of gravity, friction, lifting machine, frame, Newton's laws of motion, projectile, simple harmonic motion, collision of two bodies, work, power, energy. Most of these things you have already studied in class 12th.
Let's move onto another subject that is the strength of materials.
The strength of materials is that branch of engineering which deals with the ability of various type of materials to resist its failure and their behaviour under the action of forces.
In strength of material, you will study stress, strain, modulus of elasticity, bulk modulus, mohr circle, resilience, different type of beams, different type of loadings, shear force and bending moment diagram, theory of bending, deflection of beams, shafts, springs, joints, thin cylindrical and spherical shells, thick cylindrical and spherical shells, eccentricity, columns and struts, dams and retaining walls.
Now let's talk about the hydraulics and fluid mechanics, the word hydraulic means water. The subject hydraulics deals with water at rest or in motion.
The subject fluid mechanics deals with the behaviour of load under the condition of rest and motion.
In this you will study about the viscosity, compressibility, surface tension, capillary actions, pressure, Pascal's law, buoyancy, floating bodies, fluid kinematics, equation of continuity, types of flows in a pipe, dynamics of fluid, Bernoulli's equation, Euler's equation, Venturi metre, orifice metre, pitot tube, momentum equation, different type of hydraulic of coefficients, notches and weirs, pipes and channels, syphon, nozzle, vortex flow, viscous flow, Newton's law of viscosity, Mach number, and different type of dimensionless numbers like Reynolds number, weber's number, Mach number ect.
In hydraulic machines ,you will study impact of jets, hydraulic turbines, impulse turbines, reaction turbines, draft tube, specific speed, cavitation, centrifugal pumps, multistage centrifugal pumps, net positive suction head, reciprocating pump and different miscellaneous hydraulic machines.
Now you would be familiar with the subject thermodynamics.
Thermodynamics deals with the energies possessed by gases and vapours. It includes the conversion of these energies in terms of heat and mechanical work and their relationship with properties of the system.
In thermodynamics you will study thermodynamics systems, properties of system, thermodynamic equilibrium, different laws of thermodynamics, laws of perfect gases, general gas equation, characteristics of gas equation, Avogadro's law, universal gas constant, specific heat at constant volume and constant pressure, perfect gases, different thermodynamic processes like isochoric process, isobaric process, isothermal process, adiabatic process and Polytropic process, free expansion of gases, general laws of expansion and compression, entropy, thermodynamic cycle, carnot cycle, Stirling cycle, Ericsson cycle, joule cycle, Otto cycle, diesel cycle, gas turbines, fuels and combustion. In steam boiler and engines, you will get familiar with different types of boilers, different type of circulations natural and forced, draught,chimney, indicator diagram, indicated power, brake power, condensers, Dalton's law of partial pressure. Steam, velocity of steam flowing through a nozzle, condition of maximum discharge and in steam turbine you will study different types of turbines, velocity triangle for different type of turbines.
You must be familiar with IC engine,the engines in which combustion of fuel takes place inside the engine cylinder are called internal combustion engine. In IC engine you will study petrol engine, diesel engine, ignition system, supercharging, lubrication, governing, carborator, spark plugs, detonation.
The nuclear energy is the large amount of energy that can be released from a small mass of active material. Nuclear energy you will study nuclear reactors.
An air compressor is a machine used to compress the air and to raise its pressure.the compressed air is used for many purposes such as four operating pneumatic drills, riveters,road drills, paint spraying.
In heat transfer, you will be familiar with conduction, convection and radiation.
In conduction, you will study fourier law of heat conduction.In convection you will study Newton's law of cooling. In radiation, you will study Stefan boltzmann law.
Along with this topics you will study heat exchanger, forced convection, Kirchoff's law,wein's law, emissivity, grey body.
The term refrigeration may be defined as the process of removing heat from a substance under control condition.
In refrigeration you will study Bell Coleman cycle, vapour compression refrigeration system, vapour compression cycle, undercooling, vapour absorption refrigeration system, domestic electrolux refrigerator, lithium bromide absorption refrigeration, different type of refrigerants.
The air conditioning deals with the study of conditioning of air therefore supplying and maintaining desired internal temperature condition for human comfort irrespective of external conditions.
The psychometry is the branch of engineering science which deals with the study of moist air.
In RAC, you will study Dalton's law of partial pressure, psychrometric relations, psychrometric chart, psychrometric processes.
Now come to theory of machines, the theory of machines may be defined as the branch of engineering which deals with the study of relative motion between the various parts of machine and the force which act on them.
In theory of machines, you will study about links ,kinematics pairs, kinematics chain, mechanism and inversion, instantaneous centre, coriolis component of acceleration, universal joint, steering gear mechanism, collar bearing, different type of belt drives, tooth gearing, and of course gears. In Gears,you will study law of gearing, gear train.further you will study scope couple and precision motion. Governors, brakes and dynamometer, cams and vibrations are studied in theories of machine.
Now come to engineering design,Engineering design is a process of devising a system,component or a process to meet desire needs. It is a decision making process in which the basic science and mathematics and engineering science are applied to convert resources optimally to meet a stated objective.Design is an innovative and highly iterative process and it is also a decision making process.
In machine design, you will get familiar with materials and their properties. Elasticity, plasticity, ductility, brittleness, malleability and toughness are the properties of materials.further you will study about the heat treatment of steels, alloys, tolerance, fits, theories of failure under static load, theories of failure under dynamic load, fatigue and endurance limit, stress concentration, pressure vessels, pipe and pipe joints, design of boiler joints, welded joints, rivet joints, forms of screw threads, locking devices, keys and couplings, cotter and knuckle joints, shaft coupling, levers and different types of bearings.
The knowledge of materials and their properties of great importance for design engineer design engineer.so you must be familiar with the effects which the manufacturing process and the heat treatment have on the property of material that's why for a machine designing you have to know the properties of different Engineering materials.
The subject of workshop technology has become increasingly important to the engineer supervisor for work engaged in the production of various types of machines or tools. The study of workshop technology has been made compulsory this day for engineer.
In workshop technology, you will get familiar with hot working and cold working processes, Pattern making, moulding, casting and defects in casting,and welding.
The production engineering deals with the metal cutting or machining, cutting tools ,measurement of cutting forces ,grinding ,boring, gear manufacturing ,jigs,fixtures etc.
In production engineering study metal cutting, tool wear, tool life, tool material, lathe machine, different types of operation like drilling, grinding, milling and broaching.
The industrial engineering is an engineering approach to the detailed analysis of the use and the cost of resources of an organisation. In industrial engineering, you will study about the work study, work management, Time study, micro motion study, break even analysis, wage incentive plans, program evaluation and review technique, critical path method, organisation, inventory control, plant layout, routing ,scheduling and dispatching and linear programming.
an automobile is a self propelled vehicle which is used for the transportation of passenger and goods. An automobile is a combination of large number of parts. In automobiles you will study about the fuel system, cooling system, chassis, lubrication system, transmission, clutch, automatic transmission, starting system, ignition system, charging system, battery, steering system, suspension, tyres, wheel alignment, wheel balance, braking system, disc and drum brake and painting of automobiles.
If you want to become a mechanical engineer you have to to study all topics listed above.
For any query feel free to ask in comment.
Great one brother
ReplyDelete