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Below are the factors that explain who could apply to the program and how to complete it.
Mechanical Engineering embraces the generation, conversion, transmission, and operation of mechanical and thermal devices and systems. The program is suited for students with a keen interest in science and mathematics. The curriculum in Mechanical Engineering covers the fundamental aspects of the field, stresses on basic principles and educates students in the use of these principles to solve engineering problems.
In the freshman and sophomore years, emphasis is on humanities, mathematics, physics, and computer aided drafting and design with an introduction to design, conventional manufacturing, automation and mechatronics. The junior and senior years are devoted to solid mechanics, applied mechanics, materials, thermodynamics, heat transfer, fluid mechanics, dynamic systems and controls, thermal and mechanical design, manufacturing, finite element analysis, computer aided engineering, and the application of the fundamentals to the solution of the vast variety of problems encountered in mechanical engineering.
The curriculum stresses on Laboratory work and design projects in a teamwork setting as well as on the acquisition of superior computer skills. It is designed to prepare students to face with success the new challenges of the industry and for the benefit of our society. It also includes free and mechanical engineering elective courses in order that the student best fits his/her interest in areas of specialization that includes the classical areas of air conditioning, power plants, turbo machinery, manufacturing, robotics, vibrations and new areas such as aerospace, biomedical, and plastics engineering.
Mechanical Engineering students may decide to earn a concentration in aerospace engineering with emphasis in aeronautics including the areas of aerodynamics, flight dynamics, aircraft design, and airplane propulsion. Finally, a sequence of courses in management has been added to the curriculum to strengthen managerial skills and self-employment.
The demand for mechanical engineers is growing at a steady rate. Mechanical engineers apply physical principals such as heat, force, the conservation of mass and energy to design composite products such as vehicles (automobiles, aircraft, others), weapon systems, heating and cooling systems, industrial equipment and machinery, and household appliances. Mechanical engineers need to be well trained in the physical, mechanical, analytical, computational, and experimental practices used in this industry.
The aerospace and manufacturing sectors are considered the most in-demand areas of the industry for mechanical engineers, but emerging technologies such as biotechnology, materials science, and nanotechnology have also created job opportunities. Additional opportunities of employment outside of the discipline also arise for mechanical engineers because the skills and knowledge acquired through earning a degree can be applied to other engineering specialties.
Mechanical engineers research, design, develops, manufacture, and test tools, engines, machines, and other mechanical devices. They work on power-producing machines such as electric generators, internal combustion engines, and steam and gas turbines; and power-using machines such as refrigeration and air conditioning equipment, machine tools, material handling systems, elevators and escalators, industrial production equipment, and robotics used in manufacturing. They also design tools that other engineers use. They usually work in the manufacturing or agricultural production, maintenance, or technical sales. Many acquire the skills and knowledge to become managers or administrators.
A growing demand in the aerospace industry has opened a vast gamma of opportunities for graduate mechanical engineers that posses the technical and administrative skills to embrace state-of-the-art research and innovative technology projects in the most important enterprises located in the U.S., Puerto Rico, and the world. This industry is establishing itself in Puerto Rico and promises to grow at a significant rate in the next five to ten years. Many aerospace engineers have training in mechanical engineering. They design, develop, and test aircraft, spacecraft, and missiles. They supervise and manufacture these products. They develop the technologies for use in aviation, defense systems, and space exploration. Our specialization in aerospace will give students the skills and know-how needed to commence a career in aerospace engineering in Puerto Rico or the mainland.
Aerospace and mechanical engineers are expected to have a fourteen percent growth from 2006 to 2016. In 2006, twenty-two percent of the mechanical engineering specialties were concentrated in the architectural, engineering, and related services industries; fourteen percent were in the transportation equipment manufacturing industry. In that year forty-nine percent of the aerospace engineers were in the aerospace product and parts manufacturing industry. An increase in the number and scope of military aerospace projects and new technologies to be used in commercial aircraft should spur this demand for the present and next decade.
Students with Bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from an accredited institution can apply directly with the only requirement of a minimum general Grade Point Average (GPA) of 2.80/4.00. Students with a GPA lower than 2.8 can apply and the graduate committee analyzes the case to determine if the student can be admitted.
Students with Bachelor’s degree from other engineering programs can apply for admission. Additional undergraduate pre-requisites may apply after the evaluation of the application by the program coordinator. The number of undergraduate credits must not exceed 12 credit hours, if it exceeds this amount the student must enroll as a special student in the bachelors program to be able to take the necessary pre-requisites. After the completion of these credithours the student may apply to the master’s program.
Students in the Graduate Program in Mechanical Engineering earn a Master’s in Engineering with Specialization in Aerospace. Students are required to prepare a design project that result in a technical paper.
The structure and sequence of the curriculum include blocks of courses classified as Core, Area of Specialization, Elective and Design Project.
Mechanical Engineering Flowchart· Alvarado Díaz, Carlos A. – Professor, Ph.D. Bio-Medical Engineering, University of Connecticut 2005, M.S. Mechanical Engineering, Ohio State University, 1997, B.S. Mechanical Engineering, University of Puerto Rico, Mayagüez Campus, 1995.
· Cecchini Brigi, Andrés – Associate Professor, Ph.D. Civil Engineering, University of Puerto Rico, Mayagüez, 2014, M.S. Mechanical Engineering, University of Puerto Rico, Mayagüez, 2005, B.S. Mechanical Engineering, Universidad Nacional de Río Cuarto, Córdoba, Argentina, 2001.
· González Lizardo, Ángel – Associate Professor, Ph.D. Electric Engineering University of Dayton, Ohio, 2003, M.S. Electrical Engineering 1994, B.S. Universidad del Zulia, Venezuela, 1984.
· Noriega Motta, Julio A. – Associate Professor; Mechanical Engineering Department Head; Ph.D., West Virginia University, 2006; M.S. Mechanical Engineering, University of Puerto Rico, Mayagüez, 1993; B.S. Mechanical Engineering, University of San Carlos, Ciudad de Guatemala, Guatemala, 1983.
· Peláez Carpio, Hugo M. – Assistant Professor, Ph.D., University of Puerto Rico, Mayagüez, 2001; M.S. Chemical Engineering, University of Puerto Rico, Mayagüez, 1995; B.S. Chemical Engineering, University of San Marcos, Lima-Perú, 1987.
· Salgado Mangual, Rafael – Professor, Ph.D., Mechanical Engineering and Industrial Organization, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, Spain, 2008; M.S., Mechanical Engineering and Industrial Organization, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, Spain, 2005; B.S. Mechanical Engineering, University of Puerto Rico, Mayagüez Campus, 2003.
· Santapuri, Sushma – Associate Professor, Ph.D., Mechanical Engineering, The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio, 2012; B.S. Mechanical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology – Madras, Chennai, India, 2007.
· Skrzypinski Romanow, Antoni E. – Professor, D.Sc. Mechanical Engineering, 1980, Ph.D. Mechanical Engineering, 1970, B.S. Mechanical Engineering, Universidad de Minería y Metalurgia de Cracow, Polonia, 1961.
Office of Graduate Affairs
Email: escuelagraduada@pupr.edu
Phone: 787-622-8000 x. 686
These are several laboratories in the Mechanical Engineering Department that can be used either for teaching or research purposes to support the master’s program:
Students receive hands on experience in the use of equipments dedicated to the determination of material properties such as the stress-strain diagrams, hardness testing, and microstructure observation and material identification, and material treatment. Laboratory equipments include tension testing machines, brinnel hardness machine, Vickers hardness machine, Rockwell hardness testing machine, microscopes, ovens, etching chemicals, polishing equipment, etc.
The students have the opportunity of applying knowledge of convection, radiation and conduction, laws of thermodynamics, and property relations to different thermal equipments.
The laboratory is provided along with a variety of equipment for teaching lab-based for thermal, fluid science courses and turbomachinery. The facility also includes features computer controlled heating and cooling systems that mimic the types of equipment found in industry. Equipments include a wind tunnel, compressible fluid flow, convective heat transfer, thermal radiation, air conditioning, steam boiler, cross flow heat exchanger, Tube and tube, shell and tube, and plate heat exchangers, series and parallel pumping systems, axial and centrifugal fans, hydraulics turbines, and centrifugal compressors.
Hands on experiences on the fundamentals of fluid mechanics is provided in this lab. Students perform and conduct simple experiments for incompresible fluids. Besides, students develop the ability to measure, analyze and interpret data.
This lab is equipped with four work benches, set of different accessories and devices to measure flow, hydrostatic forces, stability of floating bodies, friction in pipes and forces of impact of jets. Other experiments included are ventury meters, weirs and orifices where students determine loss coefficient and learn some characteristics and application of them.
Hands on experience in Fluid Power and Hydraulic Motion Control Systems; Pneumatic Power and Pneumatic Motion Control Systems; equipment for Controls and Instrumentation for Automation and mechanical actuation systems is available.
This laboratory includes electronic data acquisition cards, PID Controllers, Programmable Logic Controllers (Allan-Bradley and DirectLogic), microprocessors, sensors, transducers, actuators, and power supplies. At the same time, it is provided with computer machine and the different necessary software to accomplish this task.
This room is specifically reserved for mechanical engineering students of the graduate program where numerical experiments can be performed. The uses include design and analysis of thermal, fluid, and structural numerical experiments. Ten Sun Microsystem workstations and software licenses that include ProEngineering, Ansys, Fluent and VX are available.
This lab provides hands on experiences on a variety of techniques and process for the manufacturing of engineering components including, operation of machine tools and welding machines. Prototypes are designed and manufactured by teams by the guidance of the instructor. This lab is equipped with CNC lathes and millings, conventional lathes, milling machines, grinder surfaces, bandsaws, drills, cuttingsaw, welding machines, oxyacetylene, and tube bender. In addition, reverse engineering equipment is available such as a Stratasys rapid prototyping machine and a 3-D scanner, and computer machine and software for the state-of-art manufacturing technology.
There are other centers available that were created from grants that our university has developed over the years that can be used in this effort. These centers are:
In this Plasma Laboratory it is possible to create plasmas with a very wide range of plasma densities and plasma temperatures, and consequently many different plasma applications can be performed in this Laboratory. The Plasma Engineering Laboratory provides an interdisciplinary research experience for graduate students interested in the development and modification of materials for aerospace applications via plasma treatments. The plasma treatments are performed using the ECRH device existing in the laboratory, which allows for performing Plasma Assisted Gas Deposition as well as Nitriding processes. The Plasma Engineering Laboratory is equipped with a set of tools for plasma diagnostics which allows the accurate measurement of the plasma parameters while the treatments are being performed, and is working in collaboration with University of Missouri-Columbia, who provides for the material analysis techniques that are not available at PUPR. The laboratory is also affiliate of NASA Puerto Rico Space Grant Consortium, which expose the graduate students to a number of initiatives and resources for their research work. This laboratory is funded by U.S. Department of Energy and NASA Puerto Rico Space Grant Consortium. The Plasma Engineering Laboratory has produced 18 publications in the recent past, 8 of them at international conferences.
Supported by the Department of Defense (DoD), the High Performance Computing Laboratory is designed to provide for the needs of high computing power for multi-disciplinary research as required. The laboratory is equipped with three Beowulf PC Clusters (two 64 processor and one 256 processor) and an Altix 350 supercomputer. The laboratory also provides for the development of joint research projects and software development between university-industry partnerships to enable PUPR to assist in the scientific, technological, and economic transformation of Puerto Rico and in meeting national unmet needs in scientific high performance computing.
