Simulations were used in lecture-based courses, Thermodynamics I and Thermodynamics II, for demonstration purposes and as digital assignments. Digital assignments were separate from the customary pencil & paper homework given once a week. The primary objective was to model the flow and heat transfer in a system, reinforce theoretical concepts, and allow study of more complex two- and three-dimensional problems. Students encounter fluid flow and heat transfer in the sophomore course, Thermodynamics I, for the first time. Velocity, pressure and temperature fields are quite complicated even for simple geometries, hard to visualize, and difficult to understand. Digital assignments go beyond basic theoretical concepts and relatively simple pencil & paper problems. Initially, there were 6 digital assignments in each course. After the first offerings and assessments, the number of assignments is expected to grow to 8–10. Scaffolding of digital assignments ensured that simulations gain in complexity as students become more familiar with both the theoretical underpinnings and the software interface. Our Mechanical Engineering program, has a freshmen graphic communication course incorporating AutoCAD and a junior CAD course with SolidWorks and Ansys. This provided both a challenge and an opportunity for lecture-based thermo-fluids courses positioned ‘in between.’ Modern computational skills were obtained outside the classroom, and that was accomplished with effective use of an on-line environment. Ansys Fluent was chosen to present and reinforce thermo-fluids fundamentals. Each digital assignment had a mesh, detailed grading criteria, and supplementary documentation. Students worked on the: (1) problem set up in the preprocessor-stage, (2) solver, and (3) postprocessor. This approach helped students (1) understand the flow and heat transfer inside the system as well as the application of conservation of mass and energy, (2) understand and interpret results by comparing them with theoretical and experimental data, (3) develop modern technical skills relevant to the demands of Industry 4.0, and (4) develop research capabilities. Simulations in the classroom and as digital assignments are a representation of the real world, and provide an egalitarian and unrestricted way for students to interact with it, acquiring skills and an appreciation for subject matter as well as the engineering profession. Semester long discussions on various aspects of digital assignments help develop a mentor-mentee bond. This approach to teaching, research and mentoring does not depend on access to laboratory facilities and funding that can reach only a limited number of students. It encourages students’ spirit of inquiry, and ultimately leads to a professional development opportunities beyond the classroom setting.

The undergraduate engineering curriculum at our institution is replete with both problem-based and project-based learning components. This paper focuses on the third and most complex methodology needed to prepare students for a successful career in engineering: inquiry-based learning (IBL). With IBL, students learn with the aid of mentoring how to develop and answer a research question. However, IBL requires a significant time-investment, both in and outside the classroom. This is one of the teaching challenges within lecture-based thermo-fluids courses, where the coverage of required material does not allow much time for both IBL and development of field-specific simulation skills. Additional challenges include the reliance on mathematical tools that often hamper student understanding of the underlying phenomena and difficulty in providing immersive and exciting visuals that support in-depth learning. An IBL component was incorporated into a simulation-based design in two successive junior year courses: fluid mechanics and heat transfer. Both courses were modified to contain scaffolded and contextualized simulations with application building that develop: (a) technical competency by developing modeling skills, (b) deeper understanding of thermofluids by solving realistic technological problems, and (c) writing skills by producing technical reports for each simulation. Companies are increasingly using simulation applications to extend the benefits of product and process models beyond engineering to other internal business functions such as manufacturing, product development, and sales technical support. Applications involve creating a simplified interface that still contains the full efficacy of the underlying model without having to expose the end user to its complexity. An ‘Application’ building component adds a new skillset that further strengthens our program graduates. Consequently, supported by mentoring, students now integrate prior skills into an independent research initiative. They propose, plan and execute a design that is of their interest, relevant to the course topics, and suitable in rigor. In parallel with skillset and technical knowledge building, strategies and resources are introduced to engage students in a research topic of their choosing. This process includes preparing a statement of work, reviewing relevant literature, completing a technical study, and documenting the results. The results to date are presented along with some examples of student projects.

We document the four-year long experience aimed at improving student readiness to engage in research. A key ingredient has been the development of a multidisciplinary modeling course that integrates four teaching and learning strategies. Preceded by two sets of scaffolded projects, the course culminates with an inquiry-based learning (IBL) assignment on a topic that is relevant and supported by mentoring. Benefits include the development of modeling skills marketable to external entities, presentations at the University colloquia and symposia, peer-reviewed conference or journal papers, and application software releases. This paper describes the course structure, its evolution over time to meet various challenges, and provides examples of student work.

A computational study of sonic jet injection into a supersonic crossflow with and without combustion was performed. The gaseous injector was 3.226 mm in diameter and was injected 30 degrees to the horizontal. Simulated conditions involved sonic injection of hydrogen into a Mach 4 air cross-stream with a jet to freestream momentum flux ratio of 2.1. The numerical flow solver used was GASP v. 4.2. The inviscid fluxes were computed in three dimensions using third-order Roe Flux in the streamwise and lateral directions and third-order Van Leer flux in the vertical direction. The algorithms were chosen because of their robustness, shock resolution capabilities and efficiency. The Mentor Supersonic Transport (SST) turbulence model was used since the algorithm has good capability of solving both wall-bounded and free-shear flows. The reaction model used for hydrogen and air was a 9 species, 18 reactions model created by Drummond. The main results of this work can be summarized as: 1) modeling of combustion does not significantly alter the mixing behavior of the solution, 2) the size of the fuel plume is larger for the analysis which includes reacting flow, 3) the difference in size and shape of the plume between the reacting and non-reacting cases increases with downstream distance from injection.