Doctoral program in Mechanical Engineering, Fluids and Aeronautics

The doctoral programme in Mechanical, Fluids and Aerospace Engineering at the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC) emerged from the collaboration of the Department of Mechanical Engineering, the Department of Fluid Mechanics and the Aeronautics School of the Terrassa School of Industrial, Aerospace and Audiovisual Engineering (ESEIAAT). Doctoral degree courses in Mechanical Engineering and in Fluids (previously called Fluids, Turbomachinery and Fluid Power) have been taught for over ten years. Both the Departments have extensive experience in third-cycle studies. The School of Aeronautics was created more recently. It first offered a doctoral programme at the UPC in 2004 and joined the two Departments to create quality third-cycle studies.Several research groups are involved in the programme; some are members of TECNIO, an initiative of ACC10, which is the Government of Catalonia’s Technology Innovation Agency.• Centre for Industrial Diagnostics and Fluid Dynamics (CDIF): Expert research centre in the dynamic behaviour of hydraulic turbomachines, diagnosis of vibration problems, fluid dynamic studies and fluid-structure interaction phenomena. Its main research lines are: structural analysis, diagnosis, simulation and cavitation.• Biomechanical Engineering Lab (BIOMEC): The group focuses on the development of theoretical, numerical and experimental methods for biomechanical analysis of human movement and the design of robotic devices for rehabilitation. The group has a Biomechanics Laboratory for the experimental analysis of walking and collaborates with various prestigious international groups.• Research Group on Vibrations and Theory and Analysis of Machines (GREVTAM): An UPC research group whose work is focused on the development of analytical and experimental methods relating to machine theory, the design of machines, mechanical vibrations and transport.• Fluid Power Systems Laboratory (LABSON): This is mainly an applied research laboratory where theoretical and simulation studies are carried out with strong experimental support.• Turbulence and Aerodynamics in Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering Research Group (TUAREG): This laboratory’s work is focused on the development of numerical methods for fluid dynamics studies, mainly in external flow and aerodynamics.• Acoustic and Mechanical Engineering Laboratory (LEAM): Research centre dedicated to the development and application of noise and vibration reduction techniques, from the technical and management perspective.• Manufacturing Technologies Research Group (TECNOFAB): UPC research group dedicated to the development of projects relating to product production processes. Its research is focused on processes, methodologies and the integration of manufacturing technologies.It also studies of computer-assisted manufacturing systems.• Microtechnology for Industry (Microtech Lab): A UPC research group that is dedicated to the application of miniaturisation to create innovative micro- and nanofluidmechanics systems to improve on their larger predecessors in engineering fields (e.g. biomedicine, energy, automotive engineering and communications).• Continuum and Computational Mechanics ([MC]2-UPC): A research group that works in the areas of structures and mechanics of continuous and computational media.The result is a multidisciplinary programme to train students who want to deepen and develop their research in mechanical, fluid or aeronautical engineering.The doctoral programme is associated with the area of industrial engineering at the UPC. The academic activity is organised as follows:• Basic technical and scientific research activity based on mathematical formulation, numerical resolution and experimental validation of mechanical and fluid dynamics phenomena.• More applied research activity, built on the basic research, that is associated with the design and optimisation of mechanical systems, turbomachines and fluid power systems, and has led to significant technology transfer.• The research contributes to the teaching of bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees in industrial engineering subjects that are related to the basic and applied research lines.This context promotes feedback between teaching, research and technology transfer activities, which has led to their continuous improvement. Professional opportunities have been evenly distributed between academia and private companies.