5 ECTS credits
125 h study time
Offer 1 with catalog number 1009382BNR for all students in the 2nd semester at a (B) Bachelor - advanced level.
In every industrial business there are machines that produce products. Every engineer, irrespective of his specialisation, is confronted by the operation of machinery. It is therefore essential that every civil engineer masters the basic concepts of (mechanical) engineering, to the extent that he/she is at least able to communicate about these machines with his fellow mechanical engineer. In many businesses one expects a civil engineer to be able to assess whether machinery works well or not and the level of maintenance of the machinery.
The contents of the training part 'Mechanics' (for non-mechanics) have been compiled with a view to familiarise non-specialists with the basic components of a machine together with the issues associated with these.
The composition of the training part 'Mechanics' starts with a study of the core element of any machine: the rotating shaft. In this module we focus our attention specifically on bend-critical speed, imbalance and the issue of balancing and support (bearing) of the shafts.
In the second module a complete mechanical construction is studied as an artefact that transfers power from a driving machine, via a transmission, to a machine that is driven. The basic concepts relate to stable operation, the most common transmissions and the issue of torsion-critical speeds is studied.
Modules three and four deal with two important issues associated with moving machines. Module three covers vibration insulation and vibration isolation of machines. Module four deals with friction and lubrication.
The final module deals with the basic operation of several important machines. Pumps and combustion engines have been opted for here.
Introduction to mechanical engineering
1. Objective
2. Composition of the training part
3. Examples
Module I : Rotating shafts
1. bend-critical speeds
What are bend-critical speeds?
2. Balancing of rigid rotors
Modelling of a shaft with 1 disc - Balancing machine of Leblanc
Imbalance - principle of balancing
Source of imbalance
Basic principles of balancing rigid rotors
Choice of balancing technique
Balancing in situ
2. Support of the axles
Arrangement of the bearings: ball bearings, slide bearings, dry bearings
Material and manufacturing
Several types of bearings and their application
Advantages and disadvantages of specific types of bearings
Examples from machine building
Module II : Transmission of power
1. Basic concepts
Introduction
Concepts of force, torque - speed characteristics
Operational point of systems driving machine driven machine
Adaptation of machines -speed reduction - torque converters - use of a gearbox
2. Transfer of power
Gear transmission
Layout of gear transmission
Transmission ratio - choice of gear unit
Single or compounded gear units - reducers
Planetary gear unit - Applications in automatic transmissions differential -
Belt transmissions
Chain transmission
3. Torsional-critical speeds and the Campbell diagram
Module III : Vibrations in machines
1. Modelling of a vibrating system
2. Free vibrations and forced vibrations
3. Measurement of vibrations
4. Isolation of vibrations
5. Dynamic vibration dampener
Module IV : Tribology
1. The phenomenon of friction
2. Types of friction
3. Dry friction
4. Viscose friction
5. Lubrication limit
Module V : Operation of machines
1. Pumps
Basic principles
Capacity pumps
Flow pumps
Characteristics of pumps
Special phenomena (hammer blow, cavitation)
Calculation of a pump circuit
Construction
2. Combustion engines
Basic principles
Internal and external combustion engines
Two-stroke, four-stroke, Otto and Diesel
Cycles
Characteristics
Construction
Study material in Dutch
Werktuigkunde deel 1: Rotoren en hun ondersteuning, VUB uitgaven 2004
Werktuigkunde deel 2: Transmissie van vermogen, VUB uitgaven 2004
Werktuigkunde deel 3: Trillingen, VUB uitgaven 2004
Werktuigkunde deel 4: Verbrandingsmotoren, VUB uitgaven 2004
Werktuigkunde deel 5: Transparanten, VUB uitgaven 2004
Complementary study material:
"Fundamentals of Machine Elements", Hamrock, B.J., Jacobson, B., Schmid, S.R., Mc-Graw-Hill, 1999 ISBN 0-07-116374-3
"Engines: An Introduction", Lumley, J.L., Cambridge, 1999 ISBN 0-521-644489-5
Objective is to give an overview of a number of machine components such as shafts, gears, bearings and belts and to illustrate their dynamical behaviour in machines. This is illustrated for combustion engines and pumps.
The final grade is composed based on the following categories:
Oral Exam determines 90% of the final mark.
PRAC Practical Assignment determines 10% of the final mark.
Within the Oral Exam category, the following assignments need to be completed:
Within the PRAC Practical Assignment category, the following assignments need to be completed:
More information is available on Canvas.
This offer is part of the following study plans:
Bachelor of Engineering: Civil Engineering (only offered in Dutch)
Bachelor of Engineering: Chemistry and Materials (only offered in Dutch)
Bachelor of Engineering: verkort traject chemie en materialen na vooropleiding chemie (only offered in Dutch)
Bachelor of Engineering: verkort traject chemie en materialen na vooropleiding bio-ingenieur (only offered in Dutch)