MECHANICAL ENGINEERING JOB INTERVIEW QUESTIONS:1.)What do you understand by center of buoyancy ?

Ans: Center of buoyancy is the center of gravity of the displaced liquid and buoyant force acts
through it.
2.)What is meant by precision ?
Ans.-Precision is defined as the ability of instrument to reproduce a certain set of readings within
a given accuracy.
3.)What is Torricellis theorem ?
Ans: According to it velocity of jet flowing out of a small opening is proportional to the square
root of head of liquid above it.
4.)Distinguish between creep and fatigue.
Ans: Creep is low and progressive deformation of a material with time under a constant stress at
high temperature applications. Fatigue is the reduced tendency of material to offer resistance to
applied stress under repeated or fluctuating loading condition.
1.). What is anisotropy ?
Ans: The phenomenon of different properties in different directions is called anisotropy.
2.)What is vapour pressure and when it becomes important ?
Ans: Vapour pressure is the partial pressure created by the vapour molecules when evaporation
takes place within an enclosed space. It becomes important when negative
pressures are involved.
3.)Explain absolute viscosity ?
Ans: It is the ratio of shear stress and the gradient of velocity with distance between a fixed plate
and moving plate (Its unit is Pa . s).
4.)What do you understand by acoustic velocity ?
Ans: Acoustic velocity is the speed of a small pressure (sound) wave in a fluid.
1.)What is the difference between shaper and planner ?
Ans.->Shaper has one tool head wherear planner has more than one tool head.
>In shaper, workpiece is stationary and tool reciprocates with ram. Whereas in planner
,workpiece rotate and tool stationary.

>Shaper is used for light work whereas planner is used for heavy work.
2.)What is Curie point ?
Ans: Curie point is the temperature at which ferromagnetic materials can no longer be
magnetized by outside forces.
3.)When Coriolis component is encountered ?
Ans: When a point moves along a path that has rotational motion.
4.)Define hydraulically efficient channel cross section.
Ans: The shape of such section is that which produces minimum wetted perimeter for a given
area of flow and carries maximum
flow.
1.)What is the difference between shaper and planner ?
Ans.->Shaper has one tool head wherear planner has more than one tool head.
>In shaper, workpiece is stationary and tool reciprocates with ram. Whereas in planner
,workpiece rotate and tool stationary.
>Shaper is used for light work whereas planner is used for heavy work.
2.)What is Curie point ?
Ans: Curie point is the temperature at which ferromagnetic materials can no longer be
magnetized by outside forces.
3.)When Coriolis component is encountered ?
Ans: When a point moves along a path that has rotational motion.
4.)Define hydraulically efficient channel cross section.
Ans: The shape of such section is that which produces minimum wetted perimeter for a given
area of flow and carries maximum
flow.
1.)What is critical temperature in metals ?
Ans: It is the temperature at which the phase change occurs in metals.
2.)Define buckling factor.
Ans: It is the ratio of the equivalent length of column to the minimum radius of gyration.

3.)What do you understand by catenary cable ?

Ans: A cable attached to the supports and carrying its own weight.
4.)What is coaxing ?
Ans: It is the process of improving fatigue properties by first under-stressing and then increasing
the stress in small increments.
1)What is Sentinel Relief Valve?
Ans. Its a special type valve system. The valve will open when exhaust casing pressure is
excessive (high). The valve warns the operator only; it is not intended to relieve the casing
pressure.
2)What is the difference between Specification,Codes, Standards?
Ans. Specification is describing properties of any type of materials. Code is procedure of
acceptance and rejection criteria.
Standard is accepted values and compare
other with it.
3.) What is difference between Welding and Brazing?
Ans. In Welding concentrated heat (high temperature) is applied at the joint of metal and fuse
together. In Brazing involves significantly lower temperatures and does not entail the melting of
base metals. Instead, a filler metal is melted and forced to flow into the joint through capillary
action.
1. What is Difference between Hardness and Toughness?
Ans. Toughness is the ability of a material to absorb energy.
Hardness is the ability of a material to withstand wear.
2.What does F.O.F Stand for Piping Design?
Ans.Face of Flange, The F.O.F (Raised face and Flat face) is used to know the accurate
dimension of the flange in order to avoid the minute errors in measurement in case of vertical or
horizontal pipe lines.
3.Difference between Performance and Efficiency?
Ans.The accomplishment of a given task measured against preset known standards of accuracy,
completeness, cost, and speed is called as Performance.
Efficiency is defined as the input given and the work obtained from that input like money, time,
labour etc. Its the main factor of productivity.

1. What is the difference between scavenging and supercharging ?

Ans: Scavenging is process of flushing out burnt gases from engine cylinder by introducing fresh
air in the cylinder before exhaust stroke ends. Supercharging is the process of supplying higher
mass of air by compressing the atmospheric air.
2.What is pitting ? How it is caused ?
Ans: Non uniform corrosion over the entire metal surface, but occuring only in small pits is
called pitting. It is caused by lack of uniformity in metal.
3.Why large boilers are water tube type ?
Ans: Water tube boilers raise steam fast because of large heat transfer area and positive water
circulation. Thus they respond faster to fluctuations in demand. Further single tube failure does
not lead to catastrophy.

1.)What is the difference between mechanical advantage and velocity ratio ?

Ans: Mechanical advantage is the ratio of load lifted and the effort applied. Velocity ratio is the
ratio between the distance moved by the effort applied and the distance moved by the load lifted.
2.)Give example of rigid link and flexible link ?
Ans: Connecting rod and belt respectively.
3.)What is the damping ratio for non-oscillating system and under-damped system ?
Ans: More than unity and less than unity respectively.
4.)State D' Alembert's principle and write down its importance.
Ans: D' Alembert's principle enables us to replace a given system by a massless rigid body so
that forces acting on it are equivalent to those on real body and then enables to determine the
forces transmitted to other paired rigid body. This way the problem of kinetics gets reduced to
equivalent problem on statics.

1.)What do you understand by forced convection ?

Ans: When convection heat transfer occurs between a solid body and a fluid and where
circulation of fluid is caused and controlled by some mechanical.

2.)What for water/steam is injected in combustion zones of a gas turbine ?

Ans: Water/steam is injected to limit the amount of NOx formed by lowering the flame and gas
temperatures.
3.)Why steam is in open space and water inside tube in condensers used in power plants ?
Ans: Overall heat transfer coefficient can be increased by increasing velocity of water in tube.
Further steam needs more space due to higher specific volume.
4.)Which refrigerant is used for ice plant and transport refrigeration ?
Ans: Ammonia and CO2 respectively.
1.)What is the difference between higher pair and lower pair ?
Ans: Higher pair has point or line contact between two links and lower pair has surface contact
between two links while in motion.
2.). For what purpose the bifiler suspension system used ?
Ans: It is used to determine moment of inertia.
3.)How helical gears are capable of transmitting heavy load at high speed compared to spur gears
Ans: Helical gears have smooth engagement and two pairs of teeth are always in contact.
4.). What is the effect of inertia of reciprocating parts on the engine frame ?
Ans: Inertia of reciprocating parts subjects engine frame to the force required to accelerate the
reciprocating mass and thus subject them to primary disturbing force and secondary disturbing
force. Secondary disturbing force comes into play due to obliquity of connecting rod and has
twice the frequency of the primary force
1.) What are the principal constituents of brass?
Ans: Principal constituents of brass are copper and zinc.

2.) What is Curie point ?

Ans: Curie point is the temperature at which ferromagnetic materials can no longer be
magnetised by outside forces.

3). Which element is added in steel to increase resistance to corrosion ?

Ans: Chromium.
4.) Whether individual components in composite materials retain their characteristics or not?
Ans: yes.

1.)What is endurance limit and what is its value for steel ?

Ans: Endurance limit is the maximum level of fluctuating stress which can be tolerated
indefinitely. In most steels this stress is approximately 50% of the ultimate tensile strength and
it is defined as the stress which can be endured for ten million reversals of stress.
2.)What do you understand by sulphur print ?
Ans: Sulphides, when attached with dilute acid, evolve hydrogen sulphide gas which stains
bromide paper and therefore can be readily detected in ordinary steels and cast irons . While
sulphur is not always as harmful as is sometimes supposed, a sulphur print is a ready guide to
the distribution of segregated impurities in general.
3.) What is the different between brass and bronze ?
Ans: Brass is an alloy of copper with zinc; and bronze is alloy of copper with tin.
4.) What is the effect of addition of zinc in copper? What is the use of 70/30 brass ?
Ans: By addition of zinc in copper, both tensile strength and elongation increases. The 70/30
brass has excellent deep drawing property and is used for making radiator fins.

1.)What is the difference between Technology and Engineering?

Ans.Engineering is application of science. Technology shows various methods of Engineering. A
bridge can be made by using
beams to bear the load,by an arc or by hanging in a cable; all shows different technology but
comes under civil engineering and
science applied is laws of force/load distribution.

2.) What is Powder Technology?

Ans. Powder technology is one of the ways of making bearing material. In this method metals
like bronze, Al, Fe are mixed and
compressed to make an alloy.

3.)What are the principal constituents of brass?

Ans: Principal constituents of brass are copper and zinc.
8. What is Curie point ?
Ans: Curie point is the temperature at which ferromagnetic materials can no longer be
magnetised by outside forces.
1.)Definition of Octane Number and Cetane Number?
Ans.Octane No.- Octane number is defined as the percentage, by volume, of iso octane in the
mixture of iso octane and hheptane. It is the measure of rating of SI engine.
Cetane No.- Cetane number is defined as the percentage, by volume, of n-cetane in the mixture
of n-cetane and alpha methyl
naphthalene. It is the measure of rating of CI engine.
2.)Which Pump is more Efficient Centrifugal Pump or Reciprocating Pump?
Ans. Centrifugal pump. Because flow rate is higher compared to reciprocating pump. Flow is
smooth and it requires less space to
install. Lower initial cost and lower maintenance cost.
3.)How a Diesel Engine Works as Generator?
Ans.Diesel engine is a prime mover, for a generator, pump,and for vehicles etc. generator is
connected to engine by shaft.
mostly in thermal power plat ,there is an engine is used to drive generator to generate power.
4.)Compare Brayton Cycle and Otto Cycle?
Ans. The heat addition and rejection processes in Otto cycle are of constant volume, whereas in
Brayton cycle, they are of
constant pressure.
-Otto cycle is the ideal cycle for spark ignition engines.
-Brayton cycle is the ideal cycle for gas power turbines.

1.) On what account the friction drag is experienced ?

Ans: Friction drag is experienced on separation of boundary layer.
2.) What do you understand by choking in pipe line ?
Ans: When specified mass flow is not able to take place in a pipe line.

3.) What is the difference between streamline body and bluff body?
Ans: In streamline body the shape is such that separation in flow occurs past the near most part
of the body so that wake formed is small and thus friction drag is much greater than pressure
drag. In bluff body the flow gets separated much ahead of its rear resulting in large wake and
thus pressure drag is much greater than the friction drag.
4.)Define hydraulically efficient channel cross section.
Ans: The shape of such section is that which produces minimum wetted perimeter for a given
area of flow and carries maximum flow.

1.)What is the meaning of the term sensitive drill press ?

Ans: A sensitive drilling press is a light, simple, bench type machine for light duty working with
infinite speed ratio.
2.) Why carburised machine components have high endurance limit?
Ans: In carburised machine components, the process of carburisation introduces a compressive
layer on the surface and thus endurance limit is increased.
3.) What is the difference between perfect and real fluids ?
Ans: Perfect fluids are treated as if all tangential forces created by friction can be ignored. Real
fluids refer to the cases in which friction must properly be taken into account.
4.) What is bulk modulus of elasticity ?
Ans: It represents the compressibility of a fluid. It is the ratio of the change in unit pressure to the
corresponding volume change per unit of volume.
1.) What is the direction of tangential acceleration ?
Ans:The direction of tangential acceleration may be same or opposite to that of angular velocity.
2.)Why excess air is required to burn a fuel completely ?
Ans: Excess air is required to ensure adequate mixing of fuel and air, avoid smoke, minimize
slagging in coal burning, and to ensure maximum steam output.
3.)Which type of plant will you recommend for remote location if power is required in six to
twelve months time ?
Ans: Diesel engine power plant.

4.)What do you understand by forced convection ?

Ans: When convection heat transfer occurs between a solid body and a fluid and where
circulation of fluid is caused and controlled by some mechanical
1.) By which instruments the shear stress in fluids can be measured directly ?
Ans: By Stanton tube or Preston tube.
2.) On what factors does the pressure at a point as a static mass of liquid depends upon?
Ans: Specific weight of liquid and the depth below the free liquid surface
3.) State Archimedes principle.
Ans: Any weight, floating or immersed in a liquid, is acted upon by a buoyant force equal to the
weight of the liquid displaced. This force acts through the center of buoyancy, i.e. the e.g. of the
displaced liquid.
4.)What do you understand by center of buoyancy ?
Ans: Center of buoyancy is the center of gravity of the displaced liquid and buoyant force acts
through it.
1.What is an isobaric process?
Ans.-An isobaric process is a thermodynamic process in which the pressure stays constant: P =
0
2.What is Factor of safety?
Ans.-Factor of safety (FoS),safety factor (SF), is a term describing the structural capacity of a
system beyond the expected loads or actual loads. Essentially, how much stronger the system is
than it usually needs to be for an intended load.
3.Which one is more efficient? A four stroke engine or a two stroke and why?
Ans.-This depends on what type of efficiency you are referring to. As far as power generation,
two-stroke by far. Simply because it accomplishes in two strokes, what a four stroke motor takes
twice as long to accomplish. Fuel consumption is a different story. Four strokes are more
efficient because there is separation of fuel and engine oil, as well as intake and exhaust gases,
leading to less pollution, and better mileage.
4.What is bending moment?
Ans.-A bending moment is a measure of the average internal stress induced in a structural
element when an external force or moment is applied to the element causing the element to bend.