Teaching Thermofluids Sciences from an Interdisciplinary Perspective

Abstract

Thermal and fluid sciences, as taught in Mechanical Engineering undergraduate programs, have traditionally followed an intrinsic separation. Typically, thermodynamics, heat transfer, and fluid mechanics are delivered as separate courses. The leap from the fundamental thermofluids subjects to the application courses, in which the aforementioned subjects must be involved to obtain optimal thermal systems, demands significant effort from the students to combine all of them together. In this framework, this work presents an innovative approach that combines these subjects following a different learning path, adopting a Challenge-Based Learning (CBL) approach by solving a real and relevant challenge in partnership with both industry and NGO partners. The results, observations, and conclusions of implementing this novel approach for teaching thermal sciences are presented.