Mechanical Sciences

The origin of the mechanical sciences can be traced to the studies of Aristotle and Archimedes, who set forth the principles that are the basis of mechanics. However, development in successive centuries advanced but slowly, with notable progress made during the Middle Ages, and would find its complete formal development and linguistic expression only in the Renaissance.The use of elementary static systems followed different courses, tied more to empiricism and constructive technologies than to theoretical science, resolving the problems that were mentioned from time to time by the architects and builders of antiquity. Such problems, formulated from the constructive practices of architecture and by the machines for building, were resolved using those very mechanical devices that are at the basis of the discipline, without a precise knowledge of their general semantic value, but rather with a awareness of statics and constructive empiricism that validated the choices made on the building site.

The aim of the book is to develop methodology for reliablity analysis which is particularly suited to the types of partial information characteristic of mechanical systems and structures. The book is designed as an upper-level undergraduate or first-year graduate text on robust reliability of mechanical systems. It will give the student or engineer a working knowledge of robust reliability which will enable him to analyse the reliability of mechanical systems. Each chapter is introduced with a brief conceptual survey of the main ideas, which are then developed through examples. Problems at the end of each chapter give the student the opportunity to strengthen and extend his or her understanding.

Primarily intended for the first-year undergraduate students of various engineering disciplines, this comprehensive and up-to-date text also serves the needs of second-year undergraduate students (Mechanical, Civil, Aeronautical, Chemical, Production and Marine Engineering) studying Engineering Thermodynamics and Fluid Mechanics. The whole text is divided into two parts and gives a detailed description of the theory along with the systematic applications of laws of Thermodynamics and Fluid Mechanics to engineering problems. Part I (Chapters 1-6) deals with the energy interaction between system and surroundings, while Part II (Chapters 7-15) covers the fluid flow phenomena. This accessible and comprehensive text is designed to take the student from an elementary level to a level of sophistication required for the analysis of practical problems.

This book consists of review articles by experts on recent developments in mechanical engineering sciences. The book has been composed to commemorate the Silver Jubilee of the Mechanical Engineering Department, Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati. It includes articles on modern mechanical sciences subjects of advanced simulation techniques and molecular dynamics, microfluidics and microfluidic devices, energy systems, intelligent fabrication, microscale manufacturing, smart materials, computational techniques, robotics and their allied fields. It presents the upcoming and emerging areas in mechanical sciences which will help in formulation of new courses and updating existing curricula. This book will help the academicians and policy makers in the field of engineering education to chart out the desired path for the development of technical education.