2006–2007 - Florida Institute of Technology

complete an approved program of study beyond that required for
a master’s degree, pass the comprehensive written/oral examination,
complete a program of significant original research, and
prepare and defend a dissertation concerning the research work.
The purpose of the comprehensive examination is to cover the
student’s major field of study and related fields important to the
major field. The examination is given when, in the judgment of
the student’s advisory committee, the student has had sufficient
preparation in his/her field of study by completing significant
course work in at least three areas of specialization and by initiating
doctoral research. The examination must normally be taken
before the end of the student’s fourth academic semester, as
counted from admission into the doctoral program. The written
portion of the examination consists of individual examinations
given by each member of the advisory committee. These written
examinations are intended to cover each of the student’s areas of
specialization. The written portion of the comprehensive examination
is followed by an oral component administered by the
student’s advisory committee. The oral examination provides the
advisory committee an opportunity to complete the examinations
in each of the student’s specialty areas. Subsequent to completion
of both written and oral components of the examination, a
dissertation proposal must be submitted to the student’s advisory
committee for evaluation. Upon determining that the proposed
research is of doctoral quality and that completion is feasible, the
student is advanced to candidacy for the doctoral degree.
COURSE WORK AND THESIS SUMMARY CREDITS
Doctoral course work minimum beyond master’s degree ........................24
Doctoral research and dissertation .........................................................24
TOTAL MINIMUM BEYOND THE MASTER’S DEGREE 48
General degree requirements are presented in the Graduate
Information and Regulations section of this catalog.
Curriculum
The student’s master’s and doctoral course work combined should
include a minimum of 24 credit hours in mechanical engineering
and 12 credit hours in mathematics. The doctoral program of
study must be approved by the student’s adviser and the department
head. The distribution of these courses should include
courses in each of the three optional fields of specialization, and
as a minimum should have the credit distribution given below:
Major Field (including master’s courses) .................................................18
Minor Fields (including master’s courses) .....................................9 (each)
Mathematics (including master’s courses) ..............................................12
Research Activities and Facilities
Mechanical and aerospace engineering shared facilities include
laboratories for energy research, fluid mechanics and aerodynamics,
combustion and propulsion, metallurgy and solid mechanics,
system dynamics and control, instrumentation and applied laser
research, computer-aided design and computational research.
Other laboratories around the campus can also be used by
mechanical engineering graduate students performing advanced
research.
Funded research activities of the mechanical and aerospace
engineering faculty have recently included studies of efficient
heat transfer/insulation mechanisms in building environments,
advanced HVAC and fuel cell systems, integration of renewable
energy sources into residential and utility applications,
computation of radiative transport, computational mechanics
with emphasis on damage mechanisms in laminated composite
structures, development of experimental techniques for mechanical
behavior of advanced materials systems, thermomechanical
behavior of microelectronics packages/devices, design/manufacture
of smart human hip prostheses, turbulent boundary-layer
structure, study of leaks in cryogenic seals, condition monitoring
and fault diagnosis in rotating machinery and turbulent transport
of moisture contained in air streams. Other studies have involved
convection and diffusion of radon gas in porous media, design
of a PD controller for robot manipulators, response of occupants
in automobile collisions, thermal management of electronic
equipment, smart composite structures with embedded sensors
and optimization of composites. Research projects have
been variously supported through grants from NASA, National
Science Foundation, Defense Nuclear Agency, Air Force Office
of Scientific Research, Edith Bush Charitable Foundation,
Florida Solar Energy Center, Florida Space Grant Consortium,
Department of Energy and a number of industrial affiliations.
See the Research: Institutes, Centers and Major Laboratories
section of this catalog for further information regarding the
Dynamic Systems and Controls Laboratory; the Laser, Optics
and Instrumentation Laboratory; and the Robotics and Spatial
Systems Laboratory.
Ocean Engineering
DEPARTMENT OF MARINE AND ENVIRONMENTAL SYSTEMS
G.A. Maul, Ph.D., Head
Bachelor of Science
Master of Science
Areas of Specialization:
Coastal Processes and Engineering
Hydrographic Engineering
Materials and Structures
Naval Architecture and Ocean Systems
Doctor of Philosophy
(For related degree programs see Environmental Sciences and Oceanography)
Program Chair
George A. Maul, Ph.D. (Acting)
Professor
Geoffrey W.J. Swain, Ph.D., materials, corrosion, biofouling, offshore
technology, ship operations.
Doherty Visiting Professor
In-young Gong, Ph.D., ship maneuverability, ship handling simulator
system development, maritime traffic safety assessment.
Associate Professor
Lee E. Harris, Ph.D., P.E., coastal engineering, coastal structures, beach
erosion and control, physical oceanography.
Assistant Professors
Christopher P. Kent, Ph.D., theoretical fluid mechanics of free-surface,
ballast water issues.
Eric D. Thosteson, Ph.D., P.E., coastal engineering, wave mechanics,
sediment transport, and ocean instrumentation.
Stephen L. Wood, Ph.D., P.E., underwater robotics, underwater vehicles,
advanced navigation and control systems.
Professor Emeritus
J.C. Sainsbury, Ph.D.; Andrew Zborowski, Ph.D.
College of Engineering–Mechanical Engineering, Ocean Engineering 79