Establishing of Mechanical Scientific School is directly connected with the creation in Kiev Polytechnic the Department of strength of materials. An outstanding scientist and organizer of Mechanical Engineering Education, the first rector of KPI Distinguished Professor Victor L. Kirpichev first substantiated the need for fundamental reform of higher engineering education in accordance with the actual needs of the industry and transition mechanics science (as the basis of technology) in new "Physics and Technology" during his development.
V.L.Kyrpychov believed that the future engineer theoretical knowledge must to be harmoniously combined with practical skills. Thus it was proposed systematic teaching of experimental methods for studying materials and machines. In a short time one of the first specialized laboratories of mechanical testing of structural materials (metals and alloys, wood and building materials) with modern equipment at that time was created at the mechanical department KPI.
Many talented scientists were invited in KPI, including from different universities of the former Russian Empire. Among them there were mechanics - a specialist in building bridges Prof. Evgeny Oskarovich Paton and expert in mechanics of materials and structures Professor Stephen Prokopovich Timoshenko. They have implemented in practice the idea of V.L Kyrpychov and laid the foundations of scientific school operators in Ukraine.
After the departure V.L.Kyrpychova in 1903 in St. Petersburg it was started the bright stage of development of the solid body mechanics in the KPI during the years of management department of strength of materials by Professor S.P. Tymoshenko (1906-1908). He later became a world-renowned scientist, engineer, academician of the science academies of many countries, including the USSR and the Soviet Union. He was working at the Department of the strength of materials KPI, as a professor from 1906 to 1920 with a break of 1911-1917's. In 1911 S.P.Tymoshenko published a textbook on strength of materials, later reprinted many times in our country and abroad on many languages (stand 11 editions). At present there is no technical university in the world, in libraries which would not be relocated Timoshenko’s textbooks on mechanics of materials, elasticity theory and the theory of vibrations. Their number (with re-issue) is 92.
S.P.Tymoshenko performed great organizational work. From 1909 to 1911 he was dean of the mechanical and engineering departments. In 1918, he actively participated in the commission of Vernadsky in development of law to establish the Ukrainian Academy of Sciences. In 1919, Stephen Prokopovych was one of the first member of the Ukrainian Academy of Sciences and the first director created on his initiative the Institute of Engineering Mechanics (now the Institute of Mechanics named after S.Timoshenko NAS of Ukraine).
Noteworthy great scientific and educational cooperation S. Tymoshenko with the founder and head of the department of bridges E.Paton. All the certification testing of metal and wood structural elements of bridges that were designed under the direction of Paton, were carried out in the laboratory of mechanical strength of materials.
From 1911 to 1913 the department of strength of materials KPI was headed by Professor
M. Nikolaev, who was the first in the world who held various research fatigue iron. The results of these studies have not lost their scientific significance today.
From 1914 to 1932 the department of strength of materials KPI was headed by Professor, Academician USSR (1926) K. Syminsky. During this time an important step in the development of research strength of the main problems in the KPI (static and dynamic structures of buildings) as well as in the preparation of engineering and scientific personnel in the field of solid mechanics was made. In addition to teaching and research activities K.Syminsky conducted the great organizational work.In 1920-1921 being the Dean of the Faculty of Civil Engineering, Vice-Rector for Academic (1924-1926) KPI and member of the State Committee for Scientific and Methodological USSR, he was actively involved in the reorganization of Higher Education, the overall reform institute.
Relationships with industry and research organizations were established and expanded with participation of K.Syminsky and professors, prominent scientists in the field of mechanics of materials and engineering designs M. Davidenkov (Academician of the USSR Academy of Sciences in 1939) and F. Byelyankin (Academician of the USSR Academy of Sciences in 1948). Mechanical Laboratory of Strength of Materials Department has become a central station for Testing materials and served Ukraine and some other Soviet republics. Since 1921, in connection with the appointment K.K.Syminsky as director of the Institute of Technical Mechanics, USSR (1921-1932), research work at the department started to be closely linked to the research activities of the Institute.
The founder of the world-renowned scientific direction of cyclic and thermocyclic strength of modern engineering, including Aviation Motors, destruction and durability of engineering structures, S.V.Serensen was the graduate of the department in 1926. He rose from the laboratory assistant to the Professor, Head of Department (1931). From 1932 to 1940 he worked as director of the Institute of structural mechanics USSR Academy of Sciences and head of the Department of aircraft in Kiev Aviation Institute (1933-1941). In 1939 S.V.Serensen was elected Academician of the USSR.
In the early 40-ies led by Professor F. Byelyankin (the graduate 1922 Mechanical Faculty KPI) in the laboratory of strength of materials studies were continued on strength of wooden structures, stone and granite rocks of Ukraine that were started at the time by K. Syminsky. It was greatly expanded work in assisting industry and field-testing of materials, parts and engineering structures. In the prewar years, KPI conducted research strength in power, the results of which were protected in a number of master's theses, including graduate A. Kovalenko "Study stresses in turbomachinery Wheels" (1938) and H. Pisarenko "Determination of deflections and stresses in steam turbines detachable elements" (February 1941). Both of them later became academicians USSR.
In connection with the occupation of Kyiv many teachers of the department were evacuated with AS of Ukraine to Ufa. After returning from evacuation the department strength of materials of KPI was led the corresponding member of USSR Academy of Sciences F. Byelyankin (Academician of the USSR since 1948). Along with the leadership of the department (1944-1952 ), he was the director of the Institute of Mechanics, USSR Academy of Sciences (1944-1958), gave lectures "Strength of Materials" and "Theory of elasticity."
Since the early days of the department in its post-war period, the collective of the department began to carry out together with educational the active scientific work. By the end of 1945 A. Kovalenko defended his doctorate "Tension and bend symmetric and asymmetric disk profiles." The same year thesis M.Afanasyev defended the dissertation "Statistical theory of strength."
In 1952-1959 and 1961-1984 the Department was headed by Professor H. Pisarenko. During 26 years of total 32 of his management the Department he worked part-time, with the main work in the USSR Academy of Sciences - as director of the Institute for Problems of Strength (1966-1988), Chief Scientific Secretary of the Presidium (1962-1966), the first vice-president of the Academy of Sciences USSR (1970 -1978). From 1959 to 1961 the Department of Strength of Materials KPI was headed by prof. V. Khilchevsky.
H.Pysarenko greatly expanded scientific research department of the urgent problems that were of great scientific and practical importance because of the development of new technology and the related theory of vibrations of elastic systems taking into account the energy dissipation in the material strength of a wide range of construction materials and machine parts at high temperatures.
Leading the department prof. H.Pysarenko did much to develop the creative cooperation with scientific institutes USSR Academy of Sciences. He was attracting leading scientists of the USSR Academy of Sciences to work on a department concurrently conducting scientific seminars involving scholars from other universities and the Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, using experimental basis not only department, but the Academy of Sciences in the preparation of scientific personnel.
H.Pysarenko thought the most important task to train highly trained scientific personnel. He cared about improving the teaching of the strength of materials; preparation of textbooks on strength of materials and textbooks, especially in laboratory studies as a prerequisite for raising student learning; made efforts to attract to work at the Department of talented youth. With its 175 trained PhDs graduate studies in the Department of Strength of Materials KPI 69 were successfully completed.
In the sixties there were at the Department researches of strength and durability of heat-resistant materials, the results of which were implemented in the design development of a number of companies and organizations aerospace complex of the former USSR. These studies were led by the student of academic H.Pysarenko, prof. Nikolai Stepanovich Mozharovskyi, who in 1984 headed the department.
Feature of the school, which developed from the beginning of strength of materials department KPI is a close connection with life, the desire to solve urgent tasks specific to practice. All dissertations always were performed according to the thematic plan of work, subordinated to solving urgent problems of machine-building complex of the former USSR.
The resistance of materials research in the study of the strength of materials and structural elements under extreme conditions thermal load on the real state of highly strengthened structural elements of new technology acquired the particular importance in the last 50 years. The results are reflected in 12 monographs and 5 references, including noteworthy monograph "The strength of the material at high temperatures", published in 1966, edited by Academician H.Pysarenko, that in 1969 was reprinted in English in the United States. The group of its authors in 1969 received the State Prize of the USSR.
In 1980, edited H.Pysarenko a second generalized two-volume monograph "The strength of materials and structural elements under extreme conditions"was prepared by a group of authors from the Institute for Problems of Strength USSR Academy of Sciences and the Department of Strength of Materials. This monograph, which is unique in world literature, in 1982 was awarded the State Prize of the USSR.
Employees of the Department H.Pysarenko, V.A.Aharyev, O.L.Kvitkoy, V.H.Popkov and E.S.Umansky have written several books, including a complete course for mechanical specialties, first published in 1963 , entitled "Strength of Materials" and admitted Ukraine Ministry of Education as a textbook for students of mechanical engineering and universities. This guide is reprinted in 1967, 1973, 1979, 1986 and 1993. The last three editions were considered by USSR Ministry of Education as a textbook for students of engineering education in the former Soviet Union.
School of Mechanical Kyiv Polytechnic Institute has been recognized not only in our country but also abroad, as, in particular, is shown by a number of translations of works department staff in English, Polish, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Romanian and Czech.
An important step in the development of school mechanics CPI was the opening in 1970 at the Department of Strength of Materials specialty "Dynamics and Strength of Machines". A need for such a profession was caused by the needs of both institutions USSR (such as the Institute for Problems of Strength, Institute of Mechanics, Institute for Super hard Materials, Institute for Materials Science, Institute of Electric of Paton) and large machinery, aircraft and shipbuilding enterprises of Ukraine. The new problems at the design stage of new technology products led to the urgent need to solve problems of strength.
This requires from the experts the use of special sophisticated mathematical tools and skills to conduct experimental research strength of machine parts and structural elements operating in extreme conditions. Therefore, the basis for the preparation of such specialists was the deep mathematical training as at the Mechanics and Mathematics traditional universities, but with the applied bias.
Graduates with this specialty should be able to prove the results of mathematical calculations on the engineering applications, to develop appropriate mathematical models and to have modern computing systems. At the same time, they must have a deep professional background in experimental studies.
There were prepared about 1000 such specialists, 15 of them defended doctoral and 110 – candidate theses.
Strengthening the position of the Kyiv School of Mechanical contributed as scientific seminars and conferences on various aspects of durability, held in conjunction with the Department of IPM of H.Pysarenko NAS of Ukraine.
Note that a great galaxy of scientists and engineers grew and worked at the Department of Mechanics and Mathematics KPI. Each of them was with his own original research. Everyone has left his mark in the relevant field of solid mechanics of deformable bodies. The scientific community noted their achievements. This is evidenced by the election many of them as members of the Academies of Sciences.
The list of these scientists includes: academicians of the USSR, USSR Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine, Russian Academy of Sciences: A. Dynnyk, S.P.Tymoshenko; Ukraine academicians F.Byelyankin, M. Davidenkov, A. Kovalenko, M.Kornoukhov, K. Syminskyy, A. Lebedev, E. Paton, S. Serensen, G. Suhomel, V. Troshchenko, M..Novikov; corresponding members of the Academy of Sciences of Ukraine: V. Gorbunov, I.Shtayerman, V. Matveev, V. Stryzhalo and A. Krasovskii.
Today, the department has 5 winners of the State Prize in Science and Technology of the USSR, USSR and Ukraine - Professor M. Bobyr, A. Lebedev, B. Kovalchuk, V. Stryzhalo and Assoc. V.Lamashevskyy.
In 1989 Professor E.Antipow was elected as the head of the department of dynamics and strength machines and strength of materials. Throughout his time in office chair the scientific work in their traditional academic areas continued.
Since 1994 new areas of scientific research were introduced, enabling a modern complex environment to maintain the high scientific potential that has been accumulated by his predecessors.
The department renewed certification testing in a wide range of construction materials and structural elements of new technology products accredited by Ukraine Research Center "Reliability". This made it possible to update the material and technical base of the department and attract students to perform real scientific research.
Recently, new research areas are developed at the department. One of them is the biomechanical direction of development of computer models and computational methods for calculating the stress-strain state (based on the study of mechanical properties of bone tissue) human biomedical structures to improve diagnostic efficiency and damage osteosynthesis in surgical treatment complex fractures. The research is conducted in cooperation with the National Medical University. O.Bogomolets and Ukrainian Military Medical Academy.
The development of detection and parameter optimization field destruction axisymmetrical structures that are loaded with internal pressure pulse is another promising research direction. These operations are conducted jointly with the Association "Southern Machine-Building Plant named after O. Makarov "and the National Defense Academy of Ukraine.
Today graduating department of dynamics and strength machines and strength of materials has become a leading department with the strength and reliability of machines and structures, while providing general engineering courses teaching support materials to students of many faculties and institutes NTUU "KPI".
At the end one need to make an important conclusion to be drawn from all age history of the Kyiv School of Mechanical. This school has always tackled topical scientific issues to improve the strength and reliability of operational parameters of new technology products engineering complex, including: aviation, rocket and space, nuclear and others industries, working in difficult conditions. This training highly qualified specialists of Mechanical international level in the Kiev Polytechnic was always a highly priority task.
M.Bobyr. Head of the Department of Dynamics and Resistibility of Materials, prof.