Mechanical Engineering Department

Contact Information

Dr. Pierre Larochelle
Head, Department of Mechanical Engineering
Civil Mechanical 133
(605) 394-2477
E-mail: Pierre.Larochelle@sdsmt.edu

Dr. Karim Muci
Professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering
ECML 171
(605) 394-2430
E-mail: Karim.Muci@sdsmt.edu

Leslee Moore
Senior Secretary
Civil Mechanical 129
(605) 394-2401
E-mail: Leslee.Moore@sdsmt.edu

Faculty

Professors Abata, Larochelle,and Muci-Kuchler; Associate Professors Ash, Shahbazi, and Widener; Assistant Professors Bruno, Degen, Fekrmandi, Huang, Lessani, and Romkes; Professors Emeritus Buck, Chiang, Dolan, Gnirk, Kjerengtroen, Krause, Langerman, and Pendleton.

Mechanical Engineering

The Department of Mechanical Engineering offers two graduate degrees: the master of science and the doctor of philosophy degree. The primary goals of the graduate program are to develop the scholastic ability, independent creativity, and professional competence of an individual to a higher level than is possible in an undergraduate program.

The graduate program offers opportunities for higher education and research in manufacturing, solid mechanics, transport phenomena, computational mechanics, vibrations, controls and robotics, experimental mechanics, fracture mechanics, composite materials, and advanced materials processing. The graduate program features courses in continuum mechanics, computational methods in transport phenomena, advanced heat transfer, advanced fluid mechanics, engineering analysis, advanced solid mechanics, finite element analysis, integrated manufacturing systems, applied intelligent control, theory of materials behavior, and advanced mechanical system control.

The mechanical engineering department is the largest program on campus and has well-equipped laboratories. Several faculty members within the department are associated with the Experimental Computational Mechanics Laboratory (ECML), where high-end workstations are available for pursuing research and design using numerical simulations. Several faculty members are associated with the Center for Advanced Manufacturing and Production (CAMP), where research in advanced manufacturing, advanced composites, and advanced design methodologies is conducted. The department has a strong collaborative relationship with the Arbegast Advanced Materials Processing (AAMP) center and the Additive Manufacturing Laboratory (AML).

Other labs include the Fluid Mechanics and Heat Transfer Lab, which houses a Mach 3 supersonic wind tunnel, Vibrations Lab, Neural Networks and Controls Lab, Micromechanics Lab, Advanced Dynamics Lab, and a small Ballistics Lab. The campus fosters interdisciplinary research, and state-of-the-art equipment such as an electron microscope, atomic force microscope, x-ray diffractometer, Raman spectrometer, laser Vibration Pattern Imager, FADAL VMC40 Vertical Machining Center, Bridgeport Romi CNC lathe, Coordinate Measuring Machine, Injection Molding Machine, IBM 7540 Industrial Robot, and Universal Testing Machines are available in the department or on campus. Graduate research laboratories also include equipment for modern digital controls and machine vision, thermal image analysis, high-speed imaging and experimental mechanics.