Civil and environmental engineering students at the University of Delaware conduct the Vessel Project as a new design-based Fluid Mechanics Laboratory. Students are required to design/build/test an apparatus to transport two teammates across the university dive pool and back. The laboratory course focuses on the concepts of buoyancy and stability, while enhancing communication and team work skills. Students are allowed to spend no more than $100 on materials, and are encouraged to use donated items or items free of charge that are located in various laboratories across campus. Students overwhelmingly supported the new course layout relative to a more traditional laboratory course with prescribed testing on multiple devices. Positive comments were largely focused around the ability to be creative, actually build/test a vessel after the design process, and the ability to work as a team. Some comments for improvement were related to apprehension in the use of shop tools and more checkpoints throughout the build process to help teams maintain progress.
