What is mechanical engineering?

Mechanical engineering is a discipline of engineering that uses principles of applied sciences to design, manufacture, and maintain mechanical systems. Humans have been mechanical engineers since the early discoveries of simple machines like the wheel or lever. The field truly emerged during the Industrial Revolution in Europe when production of goods shifted from being handmade to being manufactured by machines, and since then the world has exploded in technical innovations thanks to the ever-evolving field of mechanical engineering. Mechanical engineering tasks overlaps many other areas of engineering such as electrical, manufacturing, or aerospace engineers. The projects that mechanical engineers (of MEs for short) work on are very diverse and practically unlimited, a few common industries MEs work in are: transportation, robotics, HVAC, and medical devices.

Ferrari F136 FL V8 engine
(Image by: Ferrari http://auto.ferrari.com/)

Ferrari 458 speciale
(Image by: Ferrari http://auto.ferrari.com/)

Pictured above is a great example of a project that mechanical engineers would be heavily involved in, from the design and testing phase, to the designing the equipment and steps used in manufacturing the vehicle's components. In developing a car as complex as the Ferrari 458 speciale it takes a tremendous effort in coordinating between different types of engineers and designers. The Ferrari F136 FL engine is an example of mechanical engineering at its pinnacle, it produces 562 hp at 9000 rpm. To create this amount of power at such high rpm creates enormous amounts of stress on all components of the car from the transmission to the breaks, engineers must calculate these stresses and choose appropriate materials or alter the design of a specific assembly so it can function properly.

The Ferrari 458 is a modern engineering marvel and displays the incredible complexity of what mechanical engineers can create. The 458 is built with almost no compromise for cost. This is not usual, in most projects limitations and compromises are integral to the job. Common limitations in mechanical engineering projects include: budget, material properties, and government regulations. These limitations create many barriers to engineers, but these limitations drive innovations in design, manufacturing processes, and material science. There are examples of these innovations all around us, another car example to illustrate this point is the invention of the catalytic converter.

Cut away view of a catalytic converter
(Image by: http://www.chemhume.co.uk/)

In 1975 the United States EPA created stricter exhaust emissions regulations. To meet and exceed these new standards engineers came up with the catalytic converter. These work by catalyzing a redox reaction to convert toxic pollutants such as unburned hydrocarbons (HC), carbon monoxide (CO), and oxides of nitrogen (NOx) into less toxic exhaust gases like nitrogen, water, and carbon dioxide. Today the designs of catalytic converters have greatly improved and they eliminate a large portion of smog and greenhouse causing gases.

The catalytic converter is just one of the many innovations mechanical engineers have created to make a better world for everyone. Often time projects that mechanical engineers work on can seriously impact the public's health and safety. That is why it is vital for engineers to have a strong ethical commitment to the people they serve to help make safe designs for the environment and the people that interact with them.