Full-time study

4 years

prof. Ing. Jiří Burša, Ph.D.

Chairman :
prof. Ing. Jiří Burša, Ph.D.
Councillor internal :
prof. RNDr. Michal Kotoul, DrSc.
prof. Ing. Ivo Dlouhý, CSc.
prof. Ing. Jindřich Petruška, CSc.
doc. Ing. Robert Grepl, Ph.D.
prof. Ing. Miroslav Raudenský, CSc.
doc. Ing. Jaroslav Katolický, Ph.D.
Councillor external :
prof. Ing. Luboš Náhlík, Ph.D.

The study programme in Applied Mechanics is focused on the preparation of highly qualified experts with the prerequisites for scientific work, mastering modern computational and experimental methods in the field of body mechanics, including specific areas of mechatronics and biomechanics. The aim of the study is to provide students with the necessary theoretical knowledge and practical experience in the field of mechanics corresponding to the topic of doctoral studies. To achieve the set goals and profile, students complete the subjects prescribed by their Individual Study Plan, which creates a theoretical basis for mastering the topic at the highest level. They then prove their practical mastery of the topic by passing the State Doctoral Examination and preparing and defending the Doctoral Dissertation.

Graduates of the doctoral program Applied Mechanics have highly specialized professional knowledge and competencies, especially in modern computational and experimental methods in the field of applied mechanics, or mechatronics or biomechanics, and their use in research and development in technical and medical. At the same time, it has professional adaptability, which gives great chances for employment in research and development, as well as in the field of technical calculations and managerial positions. This is evidenced by graduates working not only in academia and private research, but also in small computer and software companies, including leadership and management positions in design, computing and development departments or sales offices of international companies. With the penetration of computer modelling and support into the field of medicine, the application of biomechanics can be expected not only in this interdisciplinary sphere of research and development, but also in newly emerging positions of computer support in hospitals and clinical workplaces.

The graduate of the doctoral programme in Applied Mechanics has highly specialized professional knowledge, but also professional adaptability, which gives great opportunities for employment in research and development, as well as in the field of technical calculations and managerial positions. This is evidenced by graduates working not only in academia and private research, but also in small computer and software companies, including leadership and management positions in design, computing and development departments or sales offices of international companies. With the penetration of computer modelling and support into the field of medicine, the application of biomechanics can be expected not only in this interdisciplinary sphere of research and development, but also in newly emerging positions of computer support in hospitals and clinical workplaces.

See applicable regulations, DEAN’S GUIDELINE Rules for the organization of studies at FME (supplement to BUT Study and Examination Rules)

The rules and conditions of study programmes are determined by:
BUT STUDY AND EXAMINATION RULES
BUT STUDY PROGRAMME STANDARDS,
STUDY AND EXAMINATION RULES of Brno University of Technology (USING "ECTS"),
DEAN’S GUIDELINE Rules for the organization of studies at FME (supplement to BUT Study and Examination Rules)
DEAN´S GUIDELINE Rules of Procedure of Doctoral Board of FME Study Programmes
Students in doctoral programmes do not follow the credit system. The grades “Passed” and “Failed” are used to grade examinations, doctoral state examination is graded “Passed” or “Failed”.

Brno University of Technology acknowledges the need for equal access to higher education. There is no direct or indirect discrimination during the admission procedure or the study period. Students with specific educational needs (learning disabilities, physical and sensory handicap, chronic somatic diseases, autism spectrum disorders, impaired communication abilities, mental illness) can find help and counselling at Lifelong Learning Institute of Brno University of Technology. This issue is dealt with in detail in Rector's Guideline No. 11/2017 "Applicants and Students with Specific Needs at BUT". Furthermore, in Rector's Guideline No 71/2017 "Accommodation and Social Scholarship“ students can find information on a system of social scholarships.

The doctoral study programme in Applied Mechanics is a continuation of the currently accredited follow-up master's study programme in Applied Mechanics and Biomechanics. However, it focuses more generally on graduates of subsequent master's degree programmes in various fields of mechanics and mechatronics, or mathematical, physical or materials engineering, the graduates of which are able to continue in the third stage of study and obtain the scientific degree of Ph.D. demonstrate the ability of scientific work.

1. Adaptive control and state estimation of dynamic systems using local linear models

   The thesis will deal with research in the field of control and identification of nonlinear dynamic systems using methods based on the idea of local linear models (Lazy Learning, LWR, RFWR). The identificated inverse dynamic model will be used as a feedforward compensator in the structure of a composite regulator. The results of the research will be verified experimentally with real systems available in the Mechatronics laboratory (education models, automotive actuators, etc.) using the Matlab/Simulink computational environment and available hardware resources. Implementation in the form of an electronic control unit with a microcontroller is expected.

   Tutor: Grepl Robert, doc. Ing., Ph.D.

2. Advancement of FE models of mechanical behaviour of living cells

   This actual topic aims at computational modelling of mechanical behaviour of living cells, both in vitro and in vivo, under physiological as well as pathological conditions. The created computational model represents the inner structure of the cell (nucleus, cytoplasm, membrane, cytoskeleton) and should be enhanced with mitochodrial network. The advanced model will then be used in simulations of influence of changes of mitochondrial network arrangement in different pathological states on the cell mechanical response.

   Tutor: Burša Jiří, prof. Ing., Ph.D.

3. Analysis of stress field at tip of crack in bone tissue

   A presence of the crack in the bone tissue can cause the traumatic or pathological bone fracture due to the application of the mechanical loadings or the disease of the bone. However, the bone like one of the few human tissues can attain as the same anatomical and functional state as before its breach of the integrity. An objective of the dissertation thesis is the study of the stress field at the crack tip and its effect on the growing of the preexisting microcrack in the bone tissue, the capability of the remodelling of the bone tissue and the elimination of the following fatal bone damage. It is supposed the multilevel analysis of the crack model, macroscopic and microscopic. The linear elastic fracture mechanics theory will be applied to the macroscopic crack model. In the case of the microscopic crack, the stress filed at the crack tip is qualitatively different because of the microarchitecture of the bone. The domination of the stress intensity factor inhibits, the components of the stress field at the crack tip acquire finite values and the fracture toughness depends on the length material characteristic deduced from the bone density. This fact can describe the so-called gradient elasticity theory applied to the simplified model of the microcrack, which allows one to express the corresponding critical values of the energy flux at the tip of the microcrack. The calculations will be provided with the support of the finite element calculations and the available numerical libraries written in the programming languages Python and C. 

   Tutor: Profant Tomáš, doc. Ing., Ph.D.

4. Computational analysis of shape memory alloy-based hybrid structures with changeable mechanical and physical properties

   Shape memory alloys (SMAs) pose unique functional properties like shape memory effect and superelasticity. These two effects are linked to the reversible diffusionless martensitic transformation of SMA. The high energy density makes SMA highly attractive for nanotechnology applications. Since majority of SMA actuators is set into a periodic motion by a heat induced phase transformation, they can achieve a relatively low actuating speed of a few kHz caused by the necessity of cooling the SMA components. Recently, the hybrid SMA-based nanomechanical resonators made of an elastic substrate and SMA in a form of the thin film were proposed. These hybrid resonators were proven to operate at high resonant frequency ranges (i.e., up to tens of MHz) that can be significantly tuned up / downward. The frequency tuning has been realized by intentionally changing of the Young`s modulus and interlayer stress of SMA during its martensitic transformation, while the elastic substrate guarantees high frequency actuation. The SMA resonators are capable being used in applications that cannot be achieved by conventional nanotechnology materials. For large values of generated interlayer stress, the SMA resonator can easily exhibit either a non-linear response or buckling. For instance, buckling of mechanical structure yields two different bi-stable states that may be of great value in many sensing applications. The network of weakly nonlinear resonators enables to achieve a complex response and to study interaction between individual resonators. It can be expected that similar responses can be achieved by resonator consisting of several independently controlled SMA elements. The combination of non-linear and linear responses of individual SMA elements in a complex system can open a way for further studies of actuators, dynamical systems, including chaos dynamics as well as for design of engineering materials not feasible in nature (i.e., metamaterials). The main objective of this thesis is to develop models capable to predict behavior of the hybrid structures utilizing several SMA elements. We suppose that each element can easily exhibit weak / strong nonlinearities. Models would be primarily developed using numerical simulations and, afterwards, the experimental verification at the Institute of Physics, Czech Academy of Sciences would be realized. This thesis may be a part of the GACR-MOST bilateral project realized with collaboration of the Department of Functional Materials (OFM), Institute of Physics of the Czech Academy of Sciences. To a student might be offered a part-time contract of OFM (participation on the bilateral project) as well as oversea research stay in Taiwan.

   Tutor: Kotoul Michal, prof. RNDr., DrSc.

5. Crack initiation and propagation at notches in the gigacycle fatigue region

   Modern ultrasonic loading devices open up the possibility of studying the fatigue processes of materials in the order of billions of loading cycles, in a relatively short time. At the same time, the effect of stress concentrators is a problem that has not yet been sufficiently studied in the context of gigacycle fatigue of materials. The process of crack initiation and propagation from notches under high-frequency loading will be investigated during the PhD study. The study will use experimental ultrasonic equipment for gigacycle fatigue of materials, the tools of electron microscopy and theoretical approaches of finite fracture mechanics for the description of general stress concentrators.

   Tutor: Klusák Jan, doc. Ing., Ph.D.

6. Design of new spraying bars for hydraulic descaling

   Hydraulic descaling is a technological process used to remove oxides layers from the surface of the steel. This process is energy-intensive and optimization can achieve maximum effect with minimal energy consumption. The properties of the hydraulic headers are affected by a variety of parameters. The role of the PhD student will be based on numerical modeling and experimental research to clarify the mechanism of removing the surface layer from the surface and to optimize spray parameters with regard to surface quality and energy intensity of the process.

   Tutor: Kotrbáček Petr, doc. Ing., Ph.D.

7. Development and experimental verification of deformation model of steel strip during continuous heat treatment

   Nowadays it is trend to produce high-grade steels without the need for a large percentage of expensive admixtures such as nickel, chromium, titanium, copper, aluminum, etc. This is achieved by appropriate heat treatment in continuous steel production. During the heat treatment, there is a significant but undesirable deformation of the steel, in which the phase changes (changes in the metallographic grid) occur during this process. The steel deforms during the heat treatment and the resulting product often does not reach the required geometry - most often flatness. Poor flatness causes, among other things, major problems in post-processing such as surface treatment, or causes problems in passing through the conveyor system. The aim of this work is to create a complex model that will describe in detail the processes that occur during continuous heat treatment of steel sheets. This model will allow to better understand the processes that occur here and will help optimize cooling to achieve better flatness of the final sheets. During the work, the measurement and simulation of the heat transfer coefficient during cooling of hot plates, measurement of the impact forces from the cooling nozzles, the study of the coolant flow on the curved surface and its effect on the cooling change are expected.

   Tutor: Pohanka Michal, doc. Ing., Ph.D.

8. Development of auxetic structure with integrated piezoelectric elements

   Metamaterials are currently being developed mainly for the aerospace industry as autonomous monitoring structures with wide potential for future applications. An interesting solution of such metamaterial is the patented auxetic structure with piezoelectric elements. The main goal of this PhD study is to develop this structure as a smart engineering component that has the potential to monitor itself and provide information for industry 4.0 applications.

   Tutor: Hadaš Zdeněk, doc. Ing., Ph.D.

9. Development of kinematic hardening model with rate and temperature dependency

   Machine parts of combustion sections often operate with repeated plastic deformation under elevated temperatures. It carries the risks of failure, which though can be prevented using numerical simulations. The thesis will focus on development and validation of cyclic plasticity models with kinematic hardening, while rate and temperature dependency will be taken into account. The option of multiscale modelling will be considered as well with including the structural influence of dislocation glide on the cyclic plasticity.

   Tutor: Petruška Jindřich, prof. Ing., CSc.

10. Development of multiscale modelling of cyclic plasticity with the use of artificial intelligence

    Multiscale modelling gains together with the artificial intelligence a high importance. Its applicability may be found in the simulations of cyclic plasticity of metals under various strain rates and temperatures. The thesis will focus on the kinematic hardening and its calibration using micro and macro experiments with the use of machine or deep learning. In the scope of solution, the cooperation will be strengthened with professor Tasnim Hassan, with whom a mutual project will probably be submitted. Hence, student can eventually participate on internship at North Carolina State University.

    Tutor: Petruška Jindřich, prof. Ing., CSc.

11. Development of new mathematical models for preheating furnaces

    Heating of semi-finished product in preheating furnaces is a very energy-intensive process. This process can be optimized using mathematical models based on operational measurements. The PhD student will participate in the operational measurements and of a mathematical model used to optimize the heating of semi-finished products.

    Tutor: Kotrbáček Petr, doc. Ing., Ph.D.

12. Fault detection and isolation for nonlinear systems

    Application of poweful microcontrollers allows implementation of advanced supplementary functions. One of an important areas of recent development are algorithms for detection, isolation and management of faults in mechatronic systems. This work will deal with the development of new algorithms based on local linear models and soft computing methods. Theoretical and simulation results will be verified on real systems available at Mechatronics laboratory (edu models, automotive actuators etc.). The modelling in Matlab+ is expected as well as the experimental use of Real-Time Rapid Prototyping dSPACE.

    Tutor: Grepl Robert, doc. Ing., Ph.D.

13. Fuel nozzles of small turbine engines

    Fuel systems of small turbine engines use various methods of fuel supply to the combustion chamber, so there are different fuel nozzle designs, such as pressure swirl nozzles (simplex / duplex), evaporator tubes, spraying rings or airblast nozzles. Fuel nozzles are a very important part of the whole system, their proper function is a must to ensure sufficient engine efficiency and the fuel nozzle requirements are very high. The fuel system must deliver the exact and actually needed fuel amount to the combustion chamber. It is important to ensure good atomization and evaporation of the fuel and its mixing with the air in the entire speed range (engine control range) and especially at start-up. The work aims to classify the fuel nozzles used in turbine engines with a maximum thrust of up to 5000 N (or take-off power up to 600 kW) and to focus on a detailed description of the evaporator system and its modifications. The main subject of the work is the development and testing of the existing evaporator nozzle. The doctoral student will prepare a test stand for nozzle operation, equip it with the necessary sensors and will examine the characteristics of these systems in a given range of operating conditions (eg temperature mapping, determining the control range), assess their suitability for specific purposes and further develop the system with a focus on its problematic aspects. The tasks include: technical research and analysis of published technical solutions, their systematic comparison, evaluation of advantages and disadvantages, range of control parameters and energy requirements, description of design solutions and individual parts, analysis and physical description of their function, design and preparation of test stand for nozzle operation , functional analysis and approximate calculation of energy (heat) balance of the evaporator nozzle The topic has full technical and material support, especially laboratory equipment, technology and material for experiments. Partial financial support of the student from the project is expected. The topic is related to an existing or submitted project. The possibility of a several-month internship abroad, participation in technical seminars and presentations at conferences is expected. The work will be solved within the project and in cooperation with the company PBS Velká Bíteš. The practical part of the work will be carried out in PBS testing laboratories and in BUT laboratories.

    Tutor: Jedelský Jan, prof. Ing., Ph.D.

14. Characteristics of dynamic vapor layer development during the cooling of hot steel surfaces

    This project deals with the experimental study of vapor layer development during the interaction of water flows on moving hot surface. Laminar cooling is tricky due to the existence of various boiling regimes. The lowest cooling intensity is in film boiling, where the water is isolated from the surface by a layer of steam. Layer thickness decreases as the surface temperature decreases until the layer is broken and rapid increase in cooling intensity follows (transient boiling). The rewetting temperature is dependent on the dynamics of the water flow on the surface. It is higher in the region under the water stream than between. This leads to local overcooling and undesirable heterogeneity in material properties. The water streams from the surrounding jets interact in the areas between the streams and influence the heat transfer mechanism. Articles deal with laminar cooling, mainly for cooling on a stationary surface, which is different to real-life applications. The heat transfer and fluid flow laboratory is equipped to study steam layers on surfaces through experimental research and simulations.

    Tutor: Hnízdil Milan, doc. Ing., Ph.D.

15. Influence of mechanical properties of arterial wall on its stress-strain response

    This very actual biomechanical topic is included in a starting grant project, dealing with rupture risk of atheroma in carotid artery. For a credible computational modelling of stresses in a fibrous cap of the atheroma we need to know mechanical properties of all components of the atherosclerotic artery. The topic aims at mechanical testing of atheroma specimens from both surgeries and autopsies, their evaluation and identification of suitable constitutive models.

    Tutor: Burša Jiří, prof. Ing., Ph.D.

16. In-line heat treatment of steel semi-finished products

    The aim is to develop new methods of in-line heat treatment of rolled materials to achieve a new structure and new mechanical properties of steels. The theme combines experimental research of cooling of hot moving surfaces with the research of material properties of steels. Research will be focused on explaining the influence of heat treatment dynamics on the structure of materials.

    Tutor: Kotrbáček Petr, doc. Ing., Ph.D.

17. Multi-scale modelling of functional MEMS/NEMS exhibiting non-linear behavior

    The current trend in nanotechnology is to design hybrid multilayered MEMS / NEMS (Micro-/Nano Electro-Mechanical System) devices that in order to either enhance the sensor performance or obtain multifunctional measuring properties combine multiple solid and polymer material layers with piezoelectric, electrostatic or functional properties. The multilayered MEMS / NEMS devices are mainly connected with a very complex physics that have not yet been systematically investigated, particularly, in sensor levels. It can be easily expected that the multilayered structures can exhibit not only a global but also local (weak and strong) nonlinearities as well as the various forms of damping mechanisms that are originating from different material layers, interfaces, micro-cracks, etc. Correspondingly, it is of emergence importance for i) further design of MEMS / NEMS devices, and ii) understanding of complex physics in nanoscale to develop methodology(ies) for nonlinear qualification, i.e. the identification of the linear and nonlinear regimes and estimation of the degree of nonlinearity for multilayered micro-/nanomechanical structures with global and local nonlinearities. The main objective of this thesis is to develop methodologies for nonlinear qualification of the multilayered structures with global and local nonlinearities using analytical and numerical computational approaches. The work will be done also in a close cooperation with Institute of Physics ASR Prague and it is planned to employ the Ph.D. student on the grant project which will be related to the similar topic. There is also possibility of the internship on the Taiwanese university during Ph.D. studies.

    Tutor: Ševeček Oldřich, Ing., Ph.D.

18. New generation of cooling nozzle: variable orifice

    Spraying nozzles are commonly used in metallurgical and steel industry for cooling purposes. Cooling intensity depends mainly on the flow density, the coolant temperature, the distribution of droplet sizes, the impact pressure, and the temperature of the surface being cooled. The most commonly used nozzles are those working with a single phase i.e. only one fluid is considered and often it is water. Such nozzles must be however operated in a relatively narrow range of flow rates. Pressure losses become unacceptable at high flow rates due to growing pumping costs. At low flow rates the jet atomization is poor and the jet footprint deforms. To overcome the issue of having a narrow window of usable flow rates, so-called twin-fluid nozzles are often employed, in which high speed air facilitates breakup of a liquid phase into fine droplets. Expenses for working with compressed air are however high. Assuming a single liquid phase this work should seek new designs and alternatives to twin-fluid nozzles. It is further assumed that the internal nozzle geometry will have to be variable. A prototype of the most promising design will be manufactured. The flow distribution and the impact pressure in the footprint of the jet will be examined.

    Tutor: Boháček Jan, doc. Ing., Ph.D.

19. Polymeric hollow fiber HX for chemical industy

    Development of special heat exchangers with heat transfer surface form hollow polymeric fibers. HX should be used in special applications especially in aggressive environment and in chemical engineering. The new developed HX should be competitive to the existing metal HX. Study covers both theoretical and laboratory part including design and testing of the new HX.

    Tutor: Raudenský Miroslav, prof. Ing., CSc.

20. Predictive maintenance for custom production machines

    Predictive maintenance combines the processing of large quantities of measured data with machine and plant process models to obtain accurate wear data for machine parts and potentially achieve significant economic savings. Currently, it is an intensively used, applied and researched topic of science and research. The topic of the thesis is related to a specific MPO project.

    Tutor: Grepl Robert, doc. Ing., Ph.D.

21. Research of high-speed hydrodynamic axial bearings for low-viscosity mediums

    Axial hydrodynamic bearings are the most critical subsystem in high-speed applications and the limiting factor for power output, durability and lifespan of rotary machines. Research of load capacity and other parameters shall be the subject of the proposed thesis, different types of bearings with respect to different mediums of low viscosity, their computational modelling and experimental validation in order to improve their parameters.

    Tutor: Návrat Tomáš, doc. Ing., Ph.D.

22. Sensitivity analysis of factors influencing secondary cooling in continuous casting

    This theme is focused on the secondary cooling in continuous casting applications. Cooling of hot surfaces by water or air-water nozzles is often used in technical practice. Mathematical models of monitored processes need to use realistic boundary conditions, which depend on many parameters. Clarification and generalization of the influence of the most important parameters on the heat transfer intensity would be the aim of the doctoral study.

    Tutor: Kotrbáček Petr, doc. Ing., Ph.D.

23. Size influence of bodies in computational modelling of ductile fracture

    The topic is concerned with ductile fracture of ductile metallic materials and examination of size influence of bodies. The topic follows the broad set of experiments conducted on standard specimens made from aluminium alloy. The design and realization of experiments on a miniature uniaxial testing machine is assumed, while the design and construction of new biaxial machine is not excluded. Next, a newly purchased material, which is a nickel alloy used for high temperature applications, may be utilized.

    Tutor: Petruška Jindřich, prof. Ing., CSc.

24. Stochastic resonance in energy harvesting

    Vibrations as a source of electricity have been studied in the scientific world for the last 20 years. The limitation of this source is still in its low energy yield. One way to harvest more energy is to use stochastic resonance operation. The aim of this work will be an analysis of this phenomenon in energy harvesting, its practical use and design of an energy harvesting device.

    Tutor: Hadaš Zdeněk, doc. Ing., Ph.D.

25. Theory development and experimental verification of hydraulic descaling

    During the steel production and hot processing the surface of steel is exposed to an oxidizing atmosphere and surface oxide layer (called scales) is formed. These scales are usualy removed using high-pressure flat jet nozzles. During this process surface quality (amount of remaining scales) is monitored and the amount of heat dissipated from the steel is measured. The quality of the surface depends not only on the configuration of the hydraulic spray, but also on the quality of steel (chemical composition), thermal treatment and coating. Water spray causes a sharp drop in temperature and thus significant change of material properties of scales. Moreover, they are usually not formed by homogeneous layer. It is a layer composed of several types of scales: wüstit, magnetite and hematite; whereby their ratio depends on the oxidation temperature. Oxide scales are usually porous, which allows water to penetrate into the cracks which may lead to steam explosion due to very high temperatures (above 1000°C) of scales. Hydraulic descaling is very complicated process, which consists of the mechanical effect of the water jet, thermal contraction of the surface layers, shear stresses at the interface of scales / steel, bending of scales due to temperature gradient and steam explosions in the cracks. The aim is to create theory and verification model of hydraulic descaling and describe the principles in this combined thermo-mechanical stresses. Computational model based on the theory will be used for verification of developed theory. Results from the model will be compared with results obtained from real descaling measurements in laboratory. Model should serve also for optimization of the hydraulic descaling for hard to descale materials (e.g. steel with increased content of silicon for the automotive industry).

    Tutor: Pohanka Michal, doc. Ing., Ph.D.