Thermal Sciences may be used in some curricula with two required courses, and in others with only one thermal science course. This text is written so it can be used in either the two-semester sequence of Thermodynamics and Fluid Mechanics or in the course that also introduces Heat Transfer. Thermodynamics and Fluid Mechanics texts have increased in length over the years so that now they each may contain 1000 pages. Much of that material is never used in the classroom and much of it tends to confuse the students with material that is not significant to the subject at hand. We have attempted to elimi-nate much of that material, especially the material that is most often reserved for an advanced course.
The Thermodynamics Part includes more material than can be covered in a one-semester course; this allows for selected mate-rial on power and refrigeration cy-cles, psychrometrics, and combustion. The Fluid Mechanics Part also contains more material than can be covered in aone-semester course allowing potential flows, boundary layers, or compressible flow to be included. The heat transfer material that is included in various chapters can be in-serted, if desired, as it is encountered in the text. A one-semester service course for non-mechanical engineers may be organized with selected sections from both the Thermodynamics Part and the Fluid Mechanics Part.
Thermodynamics is presented in chapters 1 through 9, fluid mechanics in Chapters 10 through 17, and the introductory material of heat transfer is included in Sections 3.6, 4.11, and 16.6.6. All the material is presented so that students can follow the derivations with relative ease; reference is made to figures and previous equations using an easy-to-follow style of presentation. Numerous examples then illustrate all the basic principles of the text. Problems at the end of each chapter then allow for application of those principles to numerous situations encountered in real life.
The problems at the end of each chapter begin with a set of multiple-choice-type questions that are typical of the questions encountered on the Fundamentals of Engineering Exam (the exam usually taken at the end of the senior year to begin the process of licensure) and the Graduate Record Exam/Engineering. Those questions are fol-lowed with problems, often grouped according to topics and ordered by level of difficulty, which illustrate the principles presented in the text material. Answers to selected problems are included at the end of the text.
Dr. Merle Potter joined Michigan State University in 1965 after earning his Ph.D. in Engineering Mechanics from the University of Michigan; he also earned degrees in Mechanical Engineering and Aerospace Engineering. He spent two summers at each of the following research facilities: Stanford University, the NASA Glenn Research Center, and DOE's Oak Ridge National Lab. He conducted research in fluid mechanics and energy analysis of buildings. He has received research grants that supported both MS and PhD theses. He developed both undergraduate and graduate courses in fluid mechanics, thermodynamics, and applied mathematics. As chairman of the college's curriculum committee, he led the college to develop a new undergraduate program in Applied Engineering Sciences. He authored or co-authored over 35 books including 7 textbooks, 5 Schaum's Outlines, and numerous exam review books for engineers. He is a recipient of numerous awards including the James Harry Potter Gold Medal.
Dr. Elaine Scott joined the School of Engineering in August 2019, becoming the first female dean in the history of the School. She also holds the John M. Sobrato Endowed Professorship. She comes to Santa Clara University from the University of Washington in Bothell, where she was the founding dean of the School of STEM. Prior to that, she led the growth of the engineering programs at Seattle Pacific University and helped establish the Virginia Tech-Wake Forest School of Biomedical Engineering and Sciences and its related graduate degree programs. She earned her bachelor's and master's degrees in agricultural engineering from the University of California, Davis, and doctoral degrees in mechanical engineering and agricultural engineering from Michigan State University. She has served as a professor of Mechanical Engineering at Virginia Tech, Seattle Pacific University, and the University of Washington, Bothell. Dr. Scott is a Fellow of the American Society ofMechanical Engineers, was named the Academic Engineer of the Year by the Puget Sound Engineering Council and received Distinguished Engineering Alumni Awards from Michigan State University and from the University of California, Davis.
