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Mechanical Engineering Home > Education: Courses > me4331

Courses: ME4331 - Syllabus

Lectures:

Tu Th 12:20 - 1:10
Room: ME 321

Labs:

W 1:25 PM - 5:30 PM

Tu 8:00 AM - 12:05 PM

Room: ME 252

Prerequisites: ME4031, ME3331, ME3332 and ME3333

Reference Text:

H. W. Coleman & W.G. Steele;
Experimentation and Uncertainty Analysis for Engineers, 2^nd Ed., Wiley

Holman, J. P.
Heat Transfer, 9^th Ed., McGraw-Hill

Young, D.F., Munson, B.R., and Okiishi, T.H.;
A Brief Introduction to Fluid Mechanics, 3^rd Ed., Wiley

Moran, M. J., Shapiro, H. N.;
Fundamentals of Engineering Thermodynamics, 5^th Ed., Wiley

Course Format:

The course consists of lectures and laboratories. The lectures will present the background for the experiments which will be performed in the laboratories. The lectures will also present information on experimental techniques and error analyses. Attendance at lectures is essential. However, lectures may not always present all the information required to perform a lab. Students are responsible for acquiring additional information in the reference textbooks.

In general, it will not be possible to attend make-up laboratories for missed labs.

Students are expected to be well prepared for every laboratory. This preparation has to be documented in the laboratory notebook. Participation in the pre-lab discussion and written lab preparation, as documented in your lab notebook, will be an important part of the final grade. Students who are obviously unprepared for the lab may be excluded from conducting the experiment and will not receive credit for the lab.

!!Important!! Notes on Reports:

Students are expected to judge their results to determine if they are reasonable, both during the lab and during the analysis.
1) Data points should include uncertainty bars, and your reports should discuss the uncertainties and their propagation
2) Experimental points in graphs should generally not be connected by lines since the suggested dependencies are usually not physically motivated.
3) Experimental data are rarely perfect and you need to be able to give plausible explanations for what you observe. Hence, during the lab, you should be on the lookout for variations in parameters or inapplicability of assumptions which may cause the collection of poor data. Likewise, if your calculations lead to an unreasonable result and you cannot determine the cause, contact the lecturer or the TA for assistance, or at least indicate that you think the values are unrealistic.
4) You are required to carry units and keep a table of unit conversion factors. Be mindful of the appropriate number of significant figures when you present results.
5) Sample calculations must be shown in all written reports and might be requested during or after oral presentations.

Handouts:

Lab handouts and manuals will be posted on the course homepage. Also, announcements will be posted at the course web page, so check the web page often. You are responsible for knowing the information contained in it.

Due Dates:

Lab report due dates are posted on the schedule. Reports are to be handed in during the lab session. All late material will be assessed a penalty of 10% (of the full grade) for each working day (or fraction thereof) that the material is late. See additional discussion (attached) on grading policy.

Laboratory Components:

Grading Policy:

• Reports are due during your lab time on the day as indicated on course schedule webpage. Refer to the course webpage for late submission rules and penalty.
• Each report has some components labeled as mandatory. Your submission is considered complete only when you complete the mandatory sections. If you submit the report without any one or more of these mandatory sections, you get two chances (1 week additional for each submission) to resubmit and complete your submission. Your score on that report however is based entirely on the basis of your first submission. If your first submission is after the due date, you'll be charged with penalty for late submission.
• Each report has some components labeled as extra credit. Your efforts in these sections can take your score potentially above 100 %. You don't earn extra credit for your resubmission (as discussed in part b).
• Any late or incomplete submissions due to excruciating circumstances will be handled on a case by case basis.

• Oral presentation - Individual or group will be decided at appropriate time.
• Poster presentation - group presentation. Group sizes will be decided later.
• No resubmissions for gas turbine oral and interferometer poster presentations due to logistical inconveniences.

General Instructions:

• All laboratory groups are encouraged to discuss their pre-lab preparation and to work out a laboratory plan together. However, this discussion is not absolutely necessary. The best strategy for the laboratory work will be coordinated within the lab group during the pre-lab discussion.
   
• We encourage teamwork in taking and processing data. To this end, we encourage you to stay with your team beyond the data taking period to discuss the data you have taken and to process the results, including making tables, spread sheets, figures, and other results that come from direct processing of the data. We expect that those who have participatein this processing would have those items in common in their reports. When you submit your report, which will have the results of your data processing, list with each item in your report (that you expect may be similar to another's) those who have directly participated in the creation of that item. Then, in the report copy you hand in, SIGN the statement (which will accompany each item of this nature in your report): "The following persons directly participated in the preparation of this [figure, table, program, spread sheet, etc.]" Signed ___________. We expect that only those students may have common copies of those results. We expect that all the discussion in the report; the discussion of the objectives, the results, the experimental procedure, etc. are your own contributions, and, though some of the thoughts will come from your group discussions, the words and responsibility for understanding the concepts behind the words, are your own. We also expect that the presentation of the sample calculations will be yours.
   
• All lab reports (Formal, Informal, Poster and Oral) are expected to be neat, complete and prepared for an engineering audience. In particular, all reports must be typed. We expect all reports to be grammatically correct and free of spelling errors. Please refer to the guidelines for the various forms of lab reports on the course homepage for details. You are responsible for knowing the information provided. If you have any questions as to what is expected, it is your responsibility to find out before the reports are due.
   
• All lab reports must be submitted to receive a passing letter grade. This includes reports which may have no scoring value due to late penalties. An "I" grade will be given to only those students who have done the majority of the work in the course and are not able to complete some part due to illness or other unforeseen circumstances and who make arrangements with the TA or instructor for the completion of work prior to the end of the course. According to I.T. rules, one semester will be allowed for incomplete work to be completed and for the "I" to be converted to a letter grade. All other late or incomplete work will result in an "F".
   
• Each student will be required to comply to safety practices when in the laboratory and to safety instructions by the TA. Failure to comply with these rules may result in your being asked to leave the lab. On the first occurrence, your score will be reduced by 50% for that lab. In the event of a second occurrence, you will be expelled from the class.
   
• Please also take a look at the Standard Statement on Course Requirements for information on grading policies, grading disputes and scholastic misconduct.