MecE Exchange Program Brochure

STUDENT RESEARCH EXCHANGE PROGRAM MOVE YOUR LIFE FORWARD CONTACT US TODAY Mechanical Engineering University of Alberta 4-9 Mechanical Engineering Building Edmonton, Alberta, Canada T6G 2G8

Telephone: 1.780.492.3598 Facsimile: 1.780.492.2200 Email: mechanicalengineering@ualberta.ca Website: www.engineering.ualberta.ca/mece

AN OPPORTUNITY TO (EX)CHANGE For over a decade, students have come from around the globe to participate in leadingedge research opportunities through the student research exchange program offered at the University of Alberta’s Department of Mechanical Engineering. In addition to gaining a wealth of new knowledge in their academic field, many students also leave with new friendships and an appreciation for our diverse culture and lifestyle.

CHAIR’S MESSAGE (EX)CHANGE YOUR IMAGE OF THE WORLD While growing up in Canada – from a small boy to a young adult – I admit, I took a lot for granted… wide open spaces, majestic mountain ranges, four amazing changes of seasons, abundant natural resources awaiting discovery and development, and people from all over the world.

It wasn’t until I began travelling the world and getting to know people with different backgrounds that I realized how much Canada had to offer. But, I also learned that to truly understand and appreciate different parts of the world and the incredible diversity out there, you must extend yourself and seek the opportunity to visit other places and get to know the people that live there.

As Chair of the Mechanical Engineering Department at the University of Alberta, I have seen first-hand how students from our Department who have returned from visits oversees, and students visiting our institution from other countries, have grown as individuals – both in their studies and on a personal level – much more than what could have been accomplished through textbooks or course work.

It is my belief that exchange programs between countries, educational institutions and simply between different cultures, enhance the research environment at both the home and host institutions through collaborative research work, trading of information, the experience of a new research environment, and of course, just making new friends.

As I invite you to consider a student exchange in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Alberta, in the heart of beautiful Western Canada, I sincerely hope to provide you with the vast and diverse opportunities that I, and many others, have experienced through the exchange opportunities available to you. My colleagues and I are looking forward to hearing from you.

Sincerely,

Dr. Larry Kostiuk, P.Eng. Professor and Chair Department of Mechanical Engineering University of Alberta, Canada

MECHANICAL ENGINEERING MOVING LIFE FORWARD The Department of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Alberta is one of the leading research-intensive institutions in the world, whose reputation for highest quality research continues to grow. Confidence in our stature arises from our proactive approach to seek regular external reviews from the best engineering academics in the world to gauge our performance in terms of quality of students, infrastructure and facilities, funding, publication rates and quality of publications.

Through these compare-and-contrast activities we are leaders in the strategic areas of energy, micro- and nano-technologies, reliability and asset management, biomedical and bio-mechanics, advanced materials, robotics and autonomous vehicles, and engineering management.

BIO-MEDICAL & BIO-MECHANICS In recent years Mechanical Engineering has been making a substantial impact on bio-inspired problems relating to human health-care by the application of our classical engineering skills to this new class of problems. Within our Department there are several research programs in this area, including the fluid mechanics of the respiratory system as a means to deliver dose-specific drugs for vaccination, cancer treatment, asthma control, knee and hip replacements, development of sensors for health monitoring, the kinematics of sports, robotics for rehabilitation medicine, dental appliances and dental implants, and modification of the rheology of mucus to avoid the spread of infectious diseases.

ENERGY

ADVANCED MATERIALS

The field of energy studies is highly diverse and profoundly important in our modern world. Our program embraces the study of energy across the spectrum of understanding its various sources, conversion processes and end use, as well as considering the environmental impact, conservation and efficiency strategies, and economic factors. Energy sources considered include conventional, sustainable and renewable systems. Work in this area invariably involves developing an advanced understanding of heat and mass transfer, fluid mechanics and thermodynamics.

Some of the major advancements that have occurred in engineering over the last few decades have resulted from access to new advanced materials that have customized functionality for specific applications. Within the Department, advanced materials research groups are well known for their breadth of work from theoretical mechanics to highly applied contributions to industry. Work is being done on smart materials, shape-memory alloys, polymers, nano-composites, thermal spray coatings, and composite structures.

MICRO- & NANO-TECHNOLOGIES

ENGINEERING MANAGEMENT

The topic of micro- and nano-technology is highly interdisciplinary and the Department of Mechanical Engineering has strong affiliations with Canada’s premier facilities. For these small scale problems, we have access through connected walkways to the National Institute for Nanotechnologies and the University of Alberta’s Nanofabrication facility. The problems being worked on include functionalizing surfaces and interfaces at the molecular scale to create unique properties for hardness or chemical reactivity, sensor development, power generation and storage, environmental management of colloids, as well as advancing our basic understanding of physics.

The Department of Mechanical Engineering is unique in having a program that recognizes the importance of fully integrating the technical, economical and managerial aspects of engineering in order to effectively solve problems. Specializations within this area include renewable and alternative energy commercialization, quality management, supply chain management and project management.

ROBOTICS & AUTONOMOUS VEHICLES

RELIABILITY & ASSET MANAGEMENT

The use of robotics has become common in most industrialized societies; however, it is just being introduced in other fields such as health-care. Similar technology is also applied to autonomous systems where the tasks being undertaken require local decisions to be made and acted upon. Within the Department of Mechanical Engineering there are research groups working in clinical situations to introduce robots to rehabilitation medicine to aid physical therapists. Other groups use autonomous helicopters for inspection and data collection from structural systems while additional projects involve a multitude of autonomous vehicles working together to achieve a desired goal.

Once an engineered system is commissioned and working effectively, the major engineering challenge is to focus on keeping the system operating reliably, producing quality products with little downtime, and maintaining the value of the facility. Research in this area is focused on condition monitoring and fault diagnostics, prognostics to predict the remaining life of components and systems, and providing managers with decision support models and software to optimize maintenance of the complex systems.

STUDENT RESEARCH EXCHANGE PROGRAM This initiative chiefly targets young researchers at the graduate student (Master of Science, Doctoral, or equivalent) and post-doctoral levels in Mechanical Engineering and related disciplines.

An exchange visit will entail having a visiting researcher join a senior researcher at the host institution for a three-month to half-year time period. It is imperative that during the exchange period, visitors retain their principal supervisor and registration at their home institution.

A senior researcher at the host institution will provide co-supervision and guidance.

At the host institution the visitor shall be engaged in research work that will enhance or contribute to curricular requirements of the home faculty (e.g. project work).

HOW TO APPLY Students interested in a student exchange in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Alberta should consult the Department’s website at www.engineering. ualberta.ca/mece/. After having identified a potential area of research they should contact the host researcher or their supervisor at their home institution who will assist in organizing the exchange.

FUNDING To cover expenses associated with the exchange visit, potential visiting researchers are encouraged to seek funding from agencies in their respective home countries.

Depending on the visitor’s funding situation, it is suggested that host researchers consider providing a housing stipend and/or living allowance.

TUITION AND FEES Visiting researcher should enrol in Research 900 (RSCH 900). This is a course registration for students registered at another academic institution who will be conducting research only at the UofA under the supervision of a UofA faculty member, but will not be taking UofA courses. Registration cost depends on the time and duration of the research visit (about $500 to $600 for a 4-month term).

MECHANICAL ENGINEERING STUDENT RESEARCH EXCHANGE PROGRAM – DETAILS

Registering in Research 900 provides visiting student researchers with a UofA ONECard and access to resources and services such as: athletic and recreation facilities, health services, workers compensation and liability coverage, U-Pass (Fall & Winter Terms only), official UofA transcript certifying attendance, and a UofA Health Insurance Plan.

VISA REQUIREMENTS Visiting students will have to inquire with the Canadian Embassy in their respective home country. In many cases special visa arrangements exist for temporary student study and research visits in Canada.

MORE ABOUT US...

CANADA - www.canada.travel As the second largest country in the world (10 million sq. km.) that spans six time zones and has a population of only 33 million, Canada has the room to grow in many ways. Canada offers opportunity: economic, educational, professional and lifestyle.

PROVINCE OF ALBERTA - www.travelalberta.com As a province within Canada, Alberta boasts some of the world’s most beautiful natural surroundings. Bordered by the Rocky Mountains, Alberta is abundant in its stores of energy including significant conventional crude oil and natural gas reserves, coal, and oil sands. In fact, the hydrocarbons in the northern oil reserves in oil sands rival those of Saudi Arabia. At a production rate of 3 million barrels per day these reserves will last 400 years.

CITY OF EDMONTON - www.edmonton.ca Alberta’s capital is the City of Edmonton – home to one of the largest stretches of urban parkland in North America. With over 30 different festivals yearly we are known as Canada’s Festival City! From our historic galleries, huge shopping malls, and over 1600 restaurants, we always have something for everyone.

UNIVERSITY OF ALBERTA - www.ualberta.ca Within Edmonton and located on the shores of the Northern Saskatchewan River, which flows out of the Eastern slopes of the Rocky Mountains, is the University of Alberta. Our University is one of the largest and most research intensive institutions in Canada. Celebrating 100 years of academic achievements, this year’s enrolment is over 36,000 students that come from over 100 different countries and participate in one of our 200 undergraduate or 170 graduate programs.

FACULTY OF ENGINEERING - www.engineering.ualberta.ca The Faculty of Engineering at the University of Alberta has some of the newest and finest facilities to be found anywhere, and its enrolment places it in the top 5% of engineering schools on the North American continent. In addition, the Faculty has over 45 research and endowed chair positions including 12 esteemed NSERC Industrial Research Chairs - more than any other Canadian university.

DEPARTMENT OF MECHANICAL ENGINEERING The Department of Mechanical Engineering is home to over 600 undergraduate students, 200 graduate students and 40 professors. Within our walls, we boast a modern, well equipped Applied Learning Laboratory (machine shop), state of the art laboratories, and facilities in computing, thermosciences and applied mechanics.