Aerospace Engineering

AE 202L - (1) (Y)
Introduction to Aeronautics Laboratory
Corequisite: AE 202
Analysis of the design features of general aviation airplanes and air travel/traffic-control systems, including a visit to the local airport. Introduction to low speed fluid mechanics and aerodynamics--via detailed examinations of (1) a nozzle and jet flow and (2) flow over and aerodynamic responses of a wing in a wind tunnel. Provides a comprehensive glider performance evaluation program, including building a glider, predicting its aerodynamic performance, observing its performance and the flow pattern over it in a wind tunnel, and flight tests. Students work in teams. Technical reports required.

AE 305 - (3) (Y)
Fluid Mechanics I
Prerequisite: ENGR 202, APMA 206
Introduction to fluid flow concepts and equations. Topics include derivation of the integral and differential forms of mass, momentum, and energy conservation using vector and tensor notation; reduction of the equations to special incompressible cases; fluid statics, Bernoulli's equation; viscous effects: Couette flow, Poiseuille flow, pipe flow; dimensional analysis: Buckingham Pi theorem; introduction to boundary layers; and applications.

AE 306 - (3) (Y)
Fluid Mechanics II
Prerequisites: AE 305 or ME 302 or equivalent; APMA 315
Analysis of ideal fluids; velocity potential; stream function; complex potential; Blasius theorem; boundary conditions; superposition; circulation; vorticity; conformal mapping; Joukowski transformation; thin airfoil theory; two-dimensional gas dynamics; acoustic waves; normal and oblique shock waves; shock reflections; Prandtl-Meyer expansion; quasi one-dimensional compressible flow; converging-diverging nozzles; diffusers; choked flows; flow with friction; flow with heat addition; isothermal flow; linearized flows; Prandtl- Glauert correction; and applications.

AE 310 - (3) (Y)
Structural Analysis
Prerequisite: ENGR 306
Analysis of the design of elements under combined stresses; bending and torsional stresses in thin-walled beams; energy and other methods applied to statically determinate and indeterminate aerospace structural elements; buckling of simple structural members; and matrix and finite element analysis.

AE 323 - (3) (Y)
Thermal Systems Analysis
Prerequisite: ENGR 202
Analysis of the thermodynamics of reactive and nonreactive, multi-component systems; energy cycles; and thermodynamic analysis of energy conversion systems. Cross-listed as ME 323.

AE 326 - (3) (Y)
Introduction to Astronautics
Discussion of the Keplerian two-body problem; elliptic, parabolic, hyperbolic orbits; solution of Kepler's equation and analogs; the classical orbital elements; orbit determination; prediction of future position and velocity; orbital perturbations; introduction to estimation theory; patched-conic analysis of interplanetary flight; Lambert's two-point boundary value problem; mission planning; chemical rocket propulsion; propellant requirements; staging; atmospheric reentry dynamics; the space environment; introduction to spacecraft attitude dynamics.

AE 329 - (3) (Y)
Elements of Heat and Mass Transfer
Prerequisites: ME 302 or AE 305, CS 182; corequisite: APMA 341
Analysis of steady state and transient heat conduction in solids with elementary analytical and numerical solution techniques; fundamentals of radiant heat transfer including considerations for black, gray and diffuse surfaces and the electrical analogy for network analysis; free and forced convective heat transfer with applications of boundary layer theory, Reynolds analogy, and dimensional analysis; and the introduction of mass transfer by diffusion using the heat-mass transfer analogy. Cross-listed as ME 329.

AE 370 - (3) (Y)
Introduction to Composite Mechanics
Prerequisite: ENGR 306 or equivalent
Introduction to engineering properties and advantages of advanced fibrous composites; anisotropic, thermo-mechanical constitutive theory for plane stress analysis; thermal-mechanical stress analysis of laminates subjected to inplane and bending loads; engineering properties of laminates; test methods and material response (in the laboratory); designing with composites; and computer implementation. Cross-listed as CE 370 and ME 370.

AE 383 - (2) (Y)
Experimental Methods Laboratory
Prerequisite: PHYS 241E, ENGR 202; corequisite: AE 305, ENGR 306
Basic concepts and methods in engineering measurements including systems, quantities, units, techniques, statistics, and uncertainties. Practical applications in the fields of fluid and solid mechanics, thermodynamics, heat transfer, electrical circuitry, and mechanical devices. Emphasis given to developing skills in experimentation and familiarity with instruments. One hour lecture, three hours laboratory, plus preparation of reports.

AE 384 - (2) (Y)
Applied Engineering Laboratory
Prerequisite: AE 383 or permission of instructor
Applications of solid and fluid mechanics and thermodynamics to practical machines, processes, and cycles. Studies include compressors, internal combustion engines, cooling devices, system dynamics, wind tunnels, propulsion principles, and gas processes. Experiment planning, data analysis, and report writing. One hour lecture, three hours laboratory per week.

AE 402 - (3) (E)
Planetary Atmospheres
Prerequisite: PHYS 242E or permission of instructor
Deduction of properties and behavior of planetary atmospheres by general arguments based on laws of physics and chemistry. Particular subjects include: The sun and the planets, solar radiation and chemical change, atmospheric temperatures, winds of a global scale, condensation and clouds, and the evolution of atmospheres.

AE 406 - (3) (Y)
Advanced Aerodynamics
Prerequisites: AE 306
Analysis of aerodynamic modeling of flows over wings and bodies; irrotational flow about two-dimensional bodies, superposition of flows, complex variable methods and conformal transformations; the Kutta-Joukowski Theorem; cambered airfoils; thin-airfoil theory; flapped airfoils; panel methods; twisted wings; Prandtl-Glauert and Ackeret scaling; transonic flow; wing-body combinations; flow separation and turbulence; and an introduction to computational fluid dynamics methods for viscous flow. Comparison of numerical results with experimental data.

AE 423 - (3) (Y)
Flight Vehicle Dynamics
Prerequisites: AE 202, ENGR 207
Introduction: definitions and concepts, review of longitudinal static stability. Rigid body dynamics: general equations of motion, rotating coordinate systems. Small disturbance theory. Atmospheric flight mechanics, stability derivatives. Motion analysis of aircraft. Static and dynamic stability. Aircraft handling qualities. Introduction to flight control systems and automatic stabilization.

AE 427 - (3) (Y)
Spacecraft Attitude Dynamics
Prerequisite: ENGR 207, permission of instructor
Introduction: definition and concepts; review of longitudinal statics stability; rigid-body rotational kinematics; orientation parameters; rigid-body rotational dynamics; Euler's equations; torque-free motion of axisymmetric and triaxial bodies; effects of internal energy dissipation; attitude determination; attitude perturbations; attitude control devices; coupled rigid bodies; computer simulation of attitude maneuvers.

AE 433 - (3) (Y)
Air Breathing Propulsion
Prerequisite: ME 302 or corequisite: AE 306,
Brief review of mechanics and thermodynamics of compressible fluids. Basic mechanisms for thrust generation in aerospace propulsion systems. The steady one-dimensional flow approximation. Performance and cycle analysis of air-breathing engines, emphasizing jet engines (turbojet, turbofan, turboprop) and ramjets. Aerothermodynamics of inlets, diffusers, combustors, and nozzles; performance of turbo-machinery: axial-flow and centrifugal compressors, turbines, matching of engine components. Cross-listed as ME 433.

AE 434 - (3) (O)
Spacecraft Propulsion
Prerequisite: ME 302 , CHEM 152 or permission of instructor; corequisite: AE 306
Analysis of combustion thermodynamics; performance of rocket vehicles; space mission requirements; idealized analysis of chemical rocket engine; properties and performance of chemical rocket propellants; rocket combustion chambers and exhaust nozzles; heat transfer effects; properties of ionized gases; electrical rocket propulsion; and nuclear rockets. Comparative performance of propulsion systems for space flight. Cross-listed as ME 434.

AE 439 - (3) (Y)
Aerospace Materials: Properties Processing and Applications
Prerequisite: CHEM 151; corequisite: ENGR 306
Introduction to the properties of aerospace materials (light metals/alloys, superalloys, polymers, ceramics, composites), and merit index based aerospace design with materials. Elastic constants, strength, toughness, creep, fatigue, oxidation, and corrosion resistance. A fundamental understanding of each property. Concepts for engineering the microstructure of these materials. Use of binary phase diagrams and transformation kinetics. Extensive use of computer-based material property data bases and a merit index approach to optimize materials selection during design.

AE 441, 442 - (3) (Y)
Aerospace Vehicle Design
Prerequisite: AE 202, Senior status or permission of instructor
Analysis of design requirements for aircraft or spacecraft. Synthesis of propulsion, materials, structures, loads and dynamics in conceptual and preliminary design of practical aerospace vehicles and systems. Trade studies and iterative solutions for specific design problems. Team projects, presentations and formal reports required.

AE 445 - (3) (Y)
Automatic Control of Aerospace Vehicles
Prerequisite: ENGR 207
Analysis of the mathematics of feedback control systems; transfer functions; basic servo theory; stability analysis; root locus techniques; Nyquist analysis; Bode plots; and the application to design and analysis of automatic control systems, including selected problems of interest in aircraft or spacecraft.

AE 453, 454 - (2-3) (Y)
Aerospace Projects Laboratory
Prerequisites: Fourth year standing and consent of a department faculty member to serve as technical advisor
Applied research on a year-long basis in areas pertinent to aerospace engineering conducted in close consultation with a departmental faculty advisor. Research may be related to ongoing faculty research. Includes the design and construction of experiments, computational analysis, or the investigation of physical phenomena. The research may be the topic of the senior thesis, but its scope must be significantly beyond that required for the thesis.

AE 461, 462 - (3) (SI)
Special Topics in Aerospace Engineering
Prerequisite: Fourth-year standing or permission of instructor
Application of basic engineering sciences, design methods, and systems analysis to developing areas and current problems in aerospace engineering. Topic depends on student and faculty interests and is announced at the time of preregistration.

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