Engineering is a practical discipline making the hands-on training a key element in the professional preparation of students. Instructional laboratories are an essential part of the Faculty of Engineering facilities and lab courses constitute a part of the undergraduate program curriculum. Clear learning objectives are designed for each lab course to create an efficient learning system and valuable support entity for theoretical courses. State of the art laboratories are not only a support facility for teaching but also used for senior project implementation and research. The existing equipment is continuously upgraded and new machinery and tools are being added on regular basis to complement the theoretical course development and follow technological progress.
Laboratories
Fluids Laboratory
The Fluids Laboratory is a learning environment that enables students to understand the basic flow mechanisms. In addition, by means of user-friendly equipment, students have access to comprehensive insights in fluid mechanics and hydraulics as well as the applications of thermo-fluid theories to the design and evaluation of turbo-machinery such as pumps, turbines, fans. In this lab, experiments address topics in fluid properties, flow regimes, flow measurement, energy and power, heat transfer modes, pressure and temperature measurement, data acquisition.
Energy Laboratory
The energy laboratory is dedicated to the study of energy related technology. The experiments are designed to train student characterize the performance parameters for common energy systems: measure, analyze, and report data from the operation of energy system equipment. The gained "hands-on" experience with various types of energy system focuses on the integration of concepts of thermodynamics, fluid dynamics, and heat transfer in the analysis of energy systems. The available equipment covers topics such as heating, ventilating, air-conditioning, refrigeration, combustion techniques, energy conversion, renewable energy namely various solar heaters and photo voltaic cells.
Design and Machinery Laboratory
The design and Machinery laboratory is a new addition to the existing labs and is still in its development phase. Current equipment is used to study various forms of vibrations namely natural, forced and damped vibrations. In addition, a series of experiments aiming at the investigation of vibrations resulting from the operation of different mechanism such as breaking system, shaft rotation and belt drive. Assembly and disassembly of a piston compressor is carried out and students are asked to produce technical drawings based on measurements taken of different components constituting the mechanism. Experiments also cover the applications of mechanical design techniques mechanisms such as linkages, springs, gears and gear trains and bearings.
Mechatronics and Control Laboratory
The mechatronics and control laboratory aims at introducing the students with ‘hands-on’ applications of control theory to mechanical systems and evaluation of their performance. This course allows the student to further develop their knowledge in Matlab and LabVIEW. The experiments are designed to develop skills in designing and implementing a control system and covers topics such as feedback systems, PLC control systems and mechatronics systems. An ABB robotic arm was recently installed to provide an opportunity for the students to learn direct industrial applications related to manipulators.
Manufacturing Laboratory
The manufacturing laboratory is designed to provide the students with hands-on experience in fundamentals of manufacturing processes. The experiments are related to topics such as properties of materials, metrology, foundry processes, cold and hot working of metals, machining processes and machines tools, welding and joining processes and heat treating techniques. This facility is equipped with state of the art machine tools such as CNC machine, lathe, milling and drilling machines, cold rolling, hydraulic press, welding and sand casting. This lab oratory is also used for the manufacturing of parts and assemblies of student design for various courses specifically the senior study.
Workshops
3d Printing Workshop
The 3d printing workshop is a support facility for the students and faculty to 3D scan and produce models and needed parts for various applications such as senior projects, competitions and research.
Manufacturing Workshop
This facility is reserved for the technician to assist the faculty members and students in preparing needed parts for various projects. It consists of a lathe, milling and drilling machine, an electric saw and CNC.
Computer & Software
The CAD lab is a facility operated under the governance of the division of computer services and includes state of the art computer units with a variety of software. The mechanical engineering program offers courses with the aim of introducing students to the application of CAD software to engineering problems, namely Auto CAD and Solidworks. Students learn basic concepts of engineering graphics, the representation of engineering objects in 2D and 3D, CAD standards, proper representation of mechanical components such as shafts, bearings, fasteners, keys, springs, gears, and cams. Assembly drawings, dimensioning and tolerancing is also covered. Revit will be newly added as a major required laboratory.
The computer labs are accessible to the mechanical engineering students where they can use the following software: LabVIEW, MATLAB, Ansys, and Aspen Plus.
Wind Tunnel
The wind tunnel is a powerful tool used both for advanced lab experiments and research. It is equipped with a three component balance used to study the lift, drag and pitching moment generated by various standard airfoils available in that facility and customized models manufactured in house. A smoke machine can also be used for flow visualization. The latest addition to this laboratory is a PIV system equipped with high speed camera and a seeder.
Water Tunnel
The water tunnel is currently under construction and will be complementing the wind tunnel facility to be used with the PIV system. It is the result of student senior project supervised by Dr. Habchi.
Climatic Chamber
The climatic chamber allows for testing in a controlled environment with respect to temperature and humidity. The inter chamber dimensions are 2.5 m x 2.7 m x 3 m and it is equipped with data acquisition system and user friendly controller to set patterns for the cycles used.
Dynamometer
The dynamometer is made of a heavy-duty docking station, rolling engine cart, a water-brake absorber, driveshaft, load cell, data-acquisition with 28-channel data harness, mounting hardware, stainless braided hoses with aircraft fittings, High-Flow Auto-Load Servo, engine temperature thermistor. It is mainly used for engine testing and research. A series of lab experiments are being developed to be added later to MEN 571 Design and Machinery Lab pool of experiments.