Labs and Facilities

Heat Transmission Laboratory – Anderson 142

This laboratory provides hands-on experience with heat-transfer phenomena encountered in real-life applications, correlating theory with engineering applications.Measurements using state-of-the-art data acquisition equipment allows students to study heat transfer by conduction, convection, radiation, film condensation and boiling, as well as the study and analysis of heat exchangers.

Faculty in charge: George Nnanna

Finite Element Analysis Computer Laboratory – Anderson 143

This teaching laboratory contains 12 individual computing stations for instruction of finite element analysis, computer numerical control G and H codes, stereo lithographic files, rapid prototyping, and computer aided design as they apply to machine design. Additionally, the study of fracture mechanics, crack propagation, fatigue and lifetime calculations by software modeling are compared to results received from information developed in the fatigue laboratory and testing equipment laboratory.

Faculty in charge: Harvey Abramowitz

Materials Heat Treatment Laboratory – Anderson 144

This laboratory contains heat-treating furnaces used to process a variety of metallic materials, allowing students to look at the physical properties and microstructures of materials after treatment, helping them to discover the processing structure and properties.

Materials Polishing Laboratory – Anderson 146

Polishing equipment enable the proper preparation of samples for microscopic examination.

Engineering Microscopy and X-Ray Diffraction Laboratory – Anderson 147

Microscopic analysis is performed in this room. Samples are imaged by optical and scanning electron microscopy. An energy dispersive system is available to pinpoint the locations of specific elements, and the room also houses an x-ray diffraction unit.

Faculty in charge: Hansung Kim and Harvey Abramowitz

Mechanical & Civil Engineering Characterization Laboratory – Anderson 149

This laboratory contains mechanical testers and nondestructive testing equipment, including tensile, creep and impact-test machines are maintained here. Nondestructive testers include dye penetrant, magnetic particle, eddy current and ultrasonics.

Mechanical & Civil Engineering Multidisciplinary Laboratory – Anderson 150

This multidisciplinary lab space houses a concrete compression unit, anaerobic digester, universal vibration apparatus and gyratory compactor unit.

Fluid Mechanics & Computational Fluid Analysis Laboratory – Anderson 152

This laboratory provides tools to analyze and solve fluid-flow problems in different engineering applications, including laminar and turbulent flow, providing a link between theory with real-life applications. State-of-the-art computational fluid dynamics software offers an important tool for studying complex flow problems encountered in most industrial applications.

Fatigue and Fracture Research Laboratory – Anderson 164

This laboratory includes rotating beam machines used for conventional and accelerated fatigue tests of specimens from different materials. It also contains a hydraulically operated MTS fatigue machine with an environmental chamber; this is used to test actual parts in conventional, accelerated and programmed fatigue testing. Additional equipment includes a cross-cylinder wear tester and optical capture and analysis systems.

Manufacturing & Robotics Laboratory – Anderson 245

This laboratory introduces students to programming languages for robots, CNC machines and automated manufacturing system via an industrial robot, two educational robots, a manufacturing cell consisting of several cutting machines, conveyer belts, a vision system, a rapid prototyping machine and a coordinate-measuring machine.

Mechanical Engineering Experimentation Laboratory – ANDR-246

This laboratory includes precision measurement equipment, such as use-gage blocks, micrometers, vernier calipers, adjustable parallels, and sine bars. Students conduct experiments involving torsion of bars and study the effect of combined bending and torsion. The laboratory also includes the determination of time constant of a thermometer, pressure-calibration techniques using a dead-weight pressure tester and analysis of the natural frequencies of beams subjected to vibrations.

Surveying Laboratory – Anderson 246

This laboratory contains six sets of tapes, dumpy levels, optical theodolites, total stations and Global Positioning Systems to lead students in conducting field-survey experiments.

Faculty in-charge: Antony Gregory

GIS Laboratory – Anderson 245 and 246

Students can gain hands-on training in GIS software (ARC GIS version 9) as well as geospatial analysis for the field design.

Soil Engineering Laboratory – Anderson 159

This laboratory provides hands-on experience for finding essential soil properties, facilitating correlating theory for field-engineering applications. Equipment includes sieves and sieve-shaking machines, moisture cans, ASTM 152 H hydrometer, constant temperature bath, Casagrande liquid-limit device with grooving tool, ground glass plates for plastic limit test, Standard Proctor hammer with weight 5.5 lb., compaction mold, Modified Proctor hammer with 10 lb weight, constant head and variable head parameter, direct shear test machine (strain controlled), unconfined and confined compression-test facility and consolidation test facility.

Faculty in-charge: Jose Pena

Concrete Laboratory – Anderson 161

This laboratory is equipped with a Gyratory compactor, concrete-mixture machine and accessories to handle concrete mixing, different molds, a slump cone test facility, curing tank facilities and a concrete crushing test facility. It stocks admixtures, plasticizers, fly ash, coarse and fine aggregates, and different types of cements, and the high-bay facility helps in handling large beam castings.

Faculty in-charge: Jose Pena

Hydrology & Hydraulics Laboratory – Anderson 152

For hydrology and hydraulics, the laboratory has a 10-foot flow channel with V notch, sharp-crested and broad-crested weirs, spillways, energy dissipaters, infiltrometer, bubble-type flow meter with a sonde to measure dissolved oxygen (DO), temperature, turbidity and pH, current meter, GPS handset with software for field flood plain analysis. Computers with software such as HEC HMS, HEC RAS and ARC GIS are used for software-related labs.