Multi-disciplinary applications in an introductory thermo-fluids course

In the fall of 2003, ENG3200, thermo-fluids was developed at Michigan Technological University to introduce biomedical engineering students to thermodynamics and fluid mechanics. Since then, the course has evolved into a course for a diverse group of majors: biomedical engineering, civil and environmental engineering, geological engineering. Additionally, other engineering undergraduate and graduate students have elected to take the course. This diverse group has presented challenges in presenting the material such that the students see how thermodynamics and fluid mechanics relate to their fields. As material is introduced, students learn conceptually about different applications or data. Additionally, materials and examples have been developed and/or modified to illustrate how the course concepts can be applied and used in real world applications. This paper will describe examples and problems that students learn to solve in class that are different from traditional thermo-fluids problems. Student reactions and comments regarding these problems will be presented. As part of the course assessment, students complete a pre- and post-test containing many thermo-fluids definitions. The paper will contain data to show that as the course material relating to the various majors increases, the post- assessment scores improve.