Pediment Graduate Course In Transport Phenomena

The classical approach to teaching transport phenomena has been to develop the appropriate form of the equations-of-motion or conservation equations and then to explore various solutions to these equations. Transport phenomena textbooks typically focus on relatively straightforward problems that admit analytical or simple numerical solutions. However, with the rapid advance in packaged software for solving complex coupled nonlinear differential equations, there is a need to place more emphasis in a graduate-level transport course on model development rather than problem-solving techniques. This paper outlines the organization of a graduate-level course in fluid dynamics and heat transfer that addresses this need. Systematic scaling analysis is used to develop idealized models such as creeping, lubrication, and boundary-layer flows, quasisteady-state transport, film and penetration theory, etc. This pediment course also provides an introduction to advanced topics such as porous and permeable media flows, free surface flows, moving boundary problems, ‘jump’ boundary conditions, non-material surfaces, and interfacial flows. The ABET 2000 outcomes addressed in this course are identified and the assessment of student achievement towards these outcomes is summarized.