Base Knowledge
Basic curricular units, necessary for the application of an integrative approach.
Teaching Methodologies
Students develop their work divided into groups of 3, although some projects may be completed individually or in groups of 2, if the situation warrants it and after review by the instructors. The formation of groups and assignment of work topics will be done by the assignment regulations available on the Nónio platform.
Each group will be accompanied and guided by a teacher from the curricular unit. Taking into account the more or less comprehensive nature of the UC, in terms of engineering areas, students may be guided by more than one UC professor, with there always being one person in charge.
Groups should preferably use classes to carry out their projects and analyse and discuss problems with teachers. Teachers will be able to use some classes to present topics familiar to the various groups, such as, for example, the methodology for preparing the project, the structure of the report, rules and regulations, and manipulation of calculation tools, among others.
Students are encouraged to carry out bibliographical research that allows them to discover and acquire the necessary scientific knowledge within the scope of the work to be developed and substantiate it.
Learning Results
The Project course aims to provide students with the integrated application of knowledge acquired throughout the Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, through the development of an engineering project. It intends to promote analytical and problem-solving skills, critical thinking, autonomy, as well as organisational, technical communication, and teamwork competencies, preparing students for professional practice and multidisciplinary challenges.
By the end of this course, students should be able to:
Apply the scientific and technical knowledge acquired throughout the course in an integrated way to solve mechanical engineering problems;
Identify, analyse, and formulate engineering problems, proposing technically sound and duly justified solutions;
Collect, select, and interpret relevant technical and scientific information, supporting engineering decisions and judgments;
Plan and manage project activities in space and time, identifying the human, material, and technological resources necessary for their execution;
Integrate recent technological innovations and good engineering practices in the development of design solutions;
Communicate information, ideas, problems, and solutions clearly, in a structured and precise manner, using appropriate technical language and different communication tools;
Develop teamwork skills, taking on responsibilities, collaborating effectively, and managing conflicts constructively.
Program
Elaboration of a project work, privileging themes that encompass several areas of Mechanical Engineering and correspond to specific cases, involving the study, calculation and dimensioning of devices, mechanisms, equipment, mechanical systems or installations. Students are familiarized with the design, development and implementation phases of a project, also taking into account its economic cost.
Curricular Unit Teachers
Luís Manuel Ferreira RoseiroGrading Methods
The assessment methodology is continuous, with the objective of developing the curricular unit exclusively throughout the semester. The assessment of knowledge is based on a set of factors considered necessary in the context of the skills to be acquired during the curricular unit, namely:
• Student motivation, innovation, critical thinking and participation in the development of the work;
• The quality of the work report;
• Intermediate presentation of the work;
• Final presentation and discussion of the work.
The UC involves three assessment components:
1. Motivation and Participation
2. Intermediate Presentation
3. Project Report, Presentation and Discussion of the Work
1. Motivation and Participation (1,5/20)
The teacher responsible for guidance will assess students' commitment, motivation, assiduity and punctuality and participation during classes by completing a grid.
This component weighs 1,5/20 in the final evaluation.
2. Intermediate Presentation (1,5/20)
In the middle of the semester, in class 8, the students will give an intermediate presentation. The presentation will last 3 minutes and will be made in front of all UC teachers and students. This presentation aims to establish each group's current status in relation to the objectives to be achieved and to increase a set of skills, including presentation quality and communication, among others. All teachers will evaluate this presentation by completing a grid with a weight of 1,5/20.
3. Project Report, Presentation and Discussion of the Work (17/20)
Each group will deliver a final project report according to the discipline's template. The project report (in PDF format) will be submitted through the teaching platform and cumulatively by email addressed to the work supervisor.
The deadline for submission of the work is 29/05/2026.
The presentation and discussion of the work will take place in the last week of class, at a time and place previously defined. The presentation of the work will last 6 minutes and will be done in front of all the teachers and students of the UC. The discussion of the work will be held later, at a time defined and before the teachers of the UC.
Although all students in the group must know the entirety of the project, each student can be responsible for different parts of it, presenting and defending their component in the final discussion. The final grade is therefore individual. This component has a weight of 17/20 in the final evaluation.
Notice:
Students with student-worker status or who demonstrably and with a valid reason accepted by the Course Coordinator demonstrate by the end of the second school week that they are unable to participate in classes may be assigned an individual assignment. However, these students will be required to participate in the presentations and discussions scheduled.
Internship(s)
NAO
Bibliography
The bibliography to support the development of the work depends on the assigned topic. Below is a list of bibliography from which elements to monitor the development of the work can be selected.
Livros/Books
Ashby, M. F. (1999). Materials Selection in Mechanical Design (2nd. Ed.). Ed. Butterworth Heinemann.
Antunes, F. (2012). Mecânica Aplicada– uma Abordagem Prática. Ed. Lidel.
ASHRAE (2000). HVAC Systems and Equipment Handbook. ASHRAE.
Backhurst, J. R. & Harker, J. H. (1983). Process Plant Design. Heinemann Educational Books.
Beer, F., Johston, E. & DeWolf, J. (2006). Resistência dos Materiais (4a edição). McGraw Hill.
Boehm, R. F. (1987). Design Analysis of Thermal Systems. John Wiley & Sons.
Branco, M., Fernandes, A. & Castro, P. (1999). Fadiga de estruturas soldadas (2a ed.). Fundação Calouste Gulbenkian.
Coulson, J., Richardson, J., & Sinnot, R. (1993). Chemical Engineering. (Vol. 6) – Design (3rd ed.). Pergamon Press.
Duffie, J. A. & Beckman, W. A. (2013). Solar Engineering of Thermal Processes. (4th ed.). John Wiley.
Filho, A. A. (2005). Elementos Finitos: A Base da Tecnologia CAE – Análise Dinâmica. Editora Erica.
Ganapathy, V. (2002). Industrial Boilers and Heat Recovery Steam Generators: Design, Applications and Calculations. CRC Press.
Gmur, T. (1997). Dynamique des Structures: Analyse Modale Numérique. Presses Polytechniques et Universitaires Romandes. Lausanne.
Guyer, E. C. & Brownell, D. L. (1999). Handbook of Applied Thermal Design. Taylor & Francis Group.
Hibbeler, R. C. (1998). Mecânica: Dinâmica. (8a ed). LTC Editora.
Hibbeler, R. C. (2006). Resistência dos Materiais. (5a edição). Pearson Prentice Hall.
Incropera, F. P. & Dewitt, D. P. (2011). Fundamentals of Heat and Mass Transfer. (7th ed.). Ed. Wiley.
Jaluria, Y. (2007). Design and Optimization of Thermal Systems. (2nd ed.). CRC Press.
Juanico, J. F. (1993). Geradores de Calor. ICEMEI.
Jutglar, L. (2004). Energia solar. Ceac.
Kakac, S., Liu, H. & Pramuanjaroenkij, A. (2012). Heat Exchangers: Selection, Rating and Thermal Design. (3th ed.). CRC Press.
Kitto, J. B., Rahn, C. H. & Stultz, S.C. (1992). Steam, Its Generation and Use. (40th ed.). Babcock & Wilcox Co.
Kutz, M. (1998). Mechanical Engineer’s Handbook. (2nd ed.). John Wiley, New York.
Meriam, J. L.; Kraige, L. G. (1998). Engineering Mechanics. (4th ed.). John Wiley, New York.
Nayyar, M. (1999). Piping Handbook. (7th ed.). McGraw-Hill Handbooks.
Neto, M., Amaro, A., Roseiro, L., Cirne, J. & leal, R. (2015). Engineering Computation of Structures: The Finite Element Method. Springer.
Raznjevic, K. (1995). Handbook of Thermodynamic Tables. (2nd ed.). Begell House, Inc.
Recknagel & Sprenger (1972). Manual de Calefacción y Climatización. Editorial Blume.
Riley, W., Sturges, L. & Morris, D. (1996). Statics and Mechanics of Materials. John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Shah, R. K. & Sekulic, D. P. (2003). Fundamentals of Heat Exchanger Design. Wiley.
Shigley, J. E. & Mischke, C. R. (1999). Mechanical Engineering Design. (5th Edition) McGraw-Hill.
Silva, V. D. (1995). Mecânica e Resistência dos Materiais. (2a ed.). Zuari – Edição de Livros Técnicos, Lda.
Singer, J. G. (1993). Combustion Fossil Power: A Reference Book on Fuel Burning and Steam Generation. (4th ed.). Combustion Engineering, Inc.
Stoecker, W. F. (1989). Design of Thermal Systems. (3th ed.). McGraw-Hill.
Teixeira-Dias, F., Sousa, R., Valente, R. & Pinho-da-Cruz, J. (2010). Método dos Elementos Finitos – Técnicas de Simulação Numérica em Engenharia. ETEP – Edições Técnicas e Profissionais.
Telles, P. C. (2001). Tubulações Industriais. (10th ed.). Livros Técnicos e Científicos Editora S.A.
Normas/Standards
European Committee for Standardization. (1996). EN 1333: Pipework components. CEN
European Committee for Standardization. (2000). EN 12975-1: Thermal solar systems and components—Solar collectors—Part 1: General requirements. CEN
European Committee for Standardization. (2002). EN 13445: Unfired pressure vessels. CEN
CEN (2002). EN 13480 – Metallic Industrial Piping. CEN.
European Committee for Standardization. (2002). EN 13480: Metallic industrial piping. CEN.
EN ISO 2631 1/2 – Mechanical vibration and shock – Evaluation of human exposure to wholebody vibration.
International Organization for Standardization. (1997). ISO 2631-1/2: Mechanical vibration and shock—Evaluation of human exposure to whole-body vibration. ISO.
ISO. (2001). EN ISO 5349-1:2001 – Mechanical vibration – Measurement and evaluation of human exposure to hand-transmitted vibration, Part 1: General requirements. International Organization for Standardization.
ISO. (2001). EN ISO 5349-2:2001 – Mechanical vibration – Measurement and evaluation of human exposure to hand-transmitted vibration, Part 2: Practical guidance for measurement at the workplace. International Organization for Standardization.
CEN – Comité Européen de Normalisation. (2005). Eurocódigo 3: Projeto de estruturas de aço (EN 1993). Brussels: CEN.
International Organization for Standardization. (2017). EN ISO 6412: Technical drawings – Simplified representation of pipelines. CEN.
Webography
Dassault Systèmes. (2025). SOLIDWORKS user guide (Version 2025). [Computer software]. https://help.solidworks.com
3D Systems. (2025). Geomagic for SOLIDWORKS (Version 2025). [Computer software]. https://www.geomagic.com
3D Slicer. (2025). 3D Slicer (Version 2025) [Computer software]. https://www.slicer.org