Mechanical & Fluids Diagnose a problem
Why a pump is cavitating and what NPSH margin it needs
Working out the net positive suction head available at the pump eye, and why a few centimetres of margin matter.
Also: Environmental
Engineering discipline
Mechanical & Fluid Engineering
Pumps, piping, pressure drop, heat transfer and the fluid behaviour that decides equipment duty.
10 topics in this discipline
Mechanical & Fluids Calculate a value
Where the pressure in a pipe line actually goes
Separating frictional loss from fitting loss, and why small bore runs lose far more than intuition suggests.
Mechanical & Fluids Calculate a value
Sizing a heat exchanger from the log mean temperature difference
Why the arithmetic temperature difference gives the wrong area, and how the log mean fixes it.
Also: Chemical & Process
Mechanical & Fluids Calculate a value
Long pipe runs, thermal expansion and the movement you must allow
How far a run grows, why plastics move far more than steel, and when expansion loops stop being optional.
Also: Construction & QS
Mechanical & Fluids Calculate a value
Measuring flow over a weir, and knowing when the reading is wrong
Converting head over a crest to discharge for common weir shapes, and the conditions that invalidate the reading.
Also: Environmental
Mechanical & Fluids Choose between alternatives
Finding the duty point instead of guessing a pump size
Reading a pump curve as a system curve, and matching the two to find where the system will actually operate.
HVAC & Services Calculate a value
Working out the static pressure a fan has to overcome
Velocity, friction factor and pressure drop per 100 ft, and what that means for the fan duty to specify.
Also: Mechanical & Fluids
Chemical & Process Calculate a value
Tank and storage volume calculations that account for actual shape
Vertical, horizontal and rectangular storage, with working freeboard and the resulting usable volume.
Also: Mechanical & Fluids
Civil & Structural Understand a concept
Knowing when a calculation is not a design
The difference between a screening number and a compliant design, and where professional review genuinely has to enter.
Also: Geotechnical Electrical HVAC & Services Mechanical & Fluids Plumbing & Fire
Civil & Structural Understand a concept
The unit mistakes that ruin engineering calculations
The conversions and dimension slips that produce plausible-looking but wrong answers, and how to catch them.
Also: Geotechnical Electrical Mechanical & Fluids HVAC & Services Plumbing & Fire Water & Desalination Environmental Renewable Energy Chemical & Process