Training specialists of steam-boilers and engines, railway locomotives and other thermotechnical equipments began since its formation and was carry out at the departments of Applied Mechanics and Mechanical Technology of Mechanical Department at the Kyiv Polytechnic Institute.
O.O. Radtsig was a distinguished scholar, a founder of heat power industry in Russian Federation, who led the Department of Applied Mechanics from 1898 to 1909. He set up the academic steam engine laboratory at the conventional thermal power station of KPI (1902), wrote educational accessories on thermodynamics and steam engines that kept up several editions (one of them – in Ukrainian) until 20 years of XX century. O.O. Radtsig held an appointment of the mechanical department.
Lectures on locomotives and locomobiles were delivered by Prof. Y. Lomonosov, who is known as a specialist in steam-locomotive building and one of the main creators of the first domestic diesel.
The first Dean of the mechanical department paid much attention to a thermotechnical training for students than, since 1904-1905, a rector of KPI Prof. KO Zworykin, who published the Tutorial of heat engineering. By that time well-known heating engineer O.Ya.Stupin, who created the department of boiler-plants and academic steam boilers laboratory based on boiler conventional thermal power station of KPI, was invited on his initiative to the KPI in 1899. Prof. O.Ya.Stupin ran his established department from 1903 to 1928. KO Zworykin ran an academic internal combustion engines laboratory that was also established on the conventional thermal power station of KPI. These laboratories and power stations, that have already mentioned, were the best among others of the higher educational technical institutions in Russia of that time.
The heat power industry was also taught in other departments KPI. Prof. K.H.Dementyev, who was the dean of the engineering department in 1907, delivered the lectures on commercial furnace in the chemical and engineering departments the rector of KPI in 1908-1911, the author of the monograph "Heat and commercial furnaces" (1911). Since 1901 lectures on heating and ventilation systems in the mechanical and engineering department was delivered by professor P.F.Yerchenko, rector of KPI from 1917 to 1919. His book " Heating & Ventilating Training Course " was published in 1909-1910.
One of the founders of training KPI specialists of engine building was prof. V.V.Farmakovskyy, who worked in the mechanical department since 1898 to 1918.
Political events in the country in the period from 1906 to 1914, after that the First World War, Revolution and civil war had impact on a development of the institute, educational process, teaching and scientific activities, and the instructional staff.
The gradual revival of the institute finally started after KPI transferring to a social security in early November 1920. The substantive commissions on substantive areas of training was even set up for faculties. Prof. O.Ya.Stupin headed the Council of the Faculty of Mechanics and Heat Engineering Substantive Commission. A great amount of restoration works, thanks to the joint efforts of the staff and students of the institute, was carried out and this allowed announcing the admission of students in Ukraine in the Soviet Power at first in spring of 1921.
Professor T.T.Usenko created Research Department of heat engineering in February 1922. In the same year three specialized departments for graduate students were set up on mechanical faculty and the specialization of heat engineering took place among them. Specialists in steam boilers, thermal power plants (with steam engines, turbines and internal combustion engines) and steam-locomotive building were prepared in heat engineering department.
In 1923 the new curricula and training programs for mechanical engineers, specialized in boilers, and engines were developed in the mechanical department at a level that suited conditions of a planned development of the government of Ukraine and advances in the area of steam engineering at that time.
Prof. GS Zhyrytskyy was a dean of mechanical faculty and a head of the department of steam engines (1919-1929), author of many textbooks, educational accessories and monographs on steam turbines, who made a significant contribution to the training of steam engineering. The graduation of engineers of steam power building of KPI was started on his initiative. Future academicians such as: S. Sørensen, IT Sweden, AD Kovalenko, A.M.Lyulka studied in this department.
In 1924 Separate Heat Engineering section was created in Research Department of mechanical technology which was headed by Head of thermodynamics and general heat engineering mechanical faculty prof. T.T.Usenko. The research department of Thermal Engineering under the leadership of T.T.Usenka based on that Section was set up in September 1926, based on which the scientific heat engineering branch office of Research Management Supreme Council of National Economy of UkSSR was created and headed by T.Usenkom in 1927.
The staff of the bureau consisted of teachers, engineers and graduate students of heat engineering. Many of these workers became well-known scientists of Heating Engineering in the future (M.O.Kichyhin, M.A.Kondak, I.T.Shvets, V.I.Tolubinskyy, E.I.Romm and others).
A problem of reengineering the power station of KPI in the late 20s, which equipment became out of date and physically worn out, arised. The development of the reconstruction of heat engineering power plant was charged to V.I.Tolubinskomu, a graduate of department of boilers of KPI (in the future – Academician of Sciences of the UkSSR). The project was approved and a reconstruction of the boiler started in 1930, for which the boiler has been specially designed (author - E.I.Romm) and produced in 1932. The import turbine was installed to a boiler in 1933. Turbine exhaust steam was used in order to heat buildings of the institute. It was one of the best power boiler turbine in the UkSSR using a steam values by that time.
In 1930 the KPI was divided into a number of branch institutes among those was Energy Institute (EI). Thermotechnical Faculty of two departments (thermal plants and general heat engineering) was set up just right here in TEES in May 1931, of which a prof. M.A.Kondak was the first dean Professor. I.T.Shvetsya was the dean of the heat engineering Faculty of TEES and also a head of the department of heat engineering in 1933.
In 1934 a number of branch institutes was combined into one Kyiv Industrial Institute (KII). At the same time Thermotechnical faculty was disbanded and its departments of heat and power engineering and boiler-plants became as a part of the Power Faculty of KII.
Thermotechnical Department KPI was restored in 1938. It was headed by a prof. I.T Shvets. The Department consists of four heat engineering departments: of steam engines (Head - prof. Shvets IT); thermal power plants (Head - Assoc. V.V.Tumasov); boilers (Head - Assoc. Tolubinskyy VI); theoretical and general heat engineering (Head - prof. Kichyhin MO) and Department of Physics (Head - prof. G.M Gubarev).
Simultaneously, an active research work was began in the departments.
Prof. MO Kichyhin was appointed as a dean of the faculty in 1940. Three more profiling departments with relevant teaching and research laboratories, classrooms, expanding the number of students were provided to the development plan of the faculty at the end of 1941. Faculty had become one of the largest departments KPI. But these plans were not destined to be realized –The World War II began in June 22, 1941.
In July-August 1941 the KPI was evacuated to the city Tashkent where it joined the faculty of Central Asian energy Industrial Institute (CAEII). Departments were merged with the departments of CAEII. Associate professors: V.I.Tolubinskoho, B.P.Taranova and prof. M.O.Kichyhina were appointed as heads of combined departments. Classes were usually held in the evening, during the day as students, academics and staff were working on the installation of evacuated to Uzbekistan enterprises, industrial buildings, harvesting. Almost the whole instructional staff of the Faculty participated in the design of the first iron and steel plant in Uzbekistan, which was first put into service before the war. In 1945 almost all teachers and faculty members were awarded with medals "For valorous work in the Great Patriotic War" and prof. I.T.Shvets was awarded with the Order "Badge of Honor".
Kyiv was liberated from the occupation in November 6, 1943 and the staff of KPI began return from the evacuation. Military actions during the defense of Kyiv in 194, its liberation in 1943, and the temporary German occupation of the city (lasted 777 days) caused a great destruction and losses of Institute, especially in the last days before liberation.
After returning the team of Institute from evacuation, a new academic year began in Oct. 1, 1944. By the first of November 1944, all departments of the faculty recreated the teaching process in its faculties and others where heat engineering disciplines were taught.
Teaching process was carried out under difficult conditions, with no power and heat supplies of buildings, dormitories, homes of teachers. It took nearly ten years until the dedication of teachers, staff and students of the Institute returned KPI look that it had before the war.
In the postwar years deans of the faculty were a prof. MO Kichyhin (1945-1951 gg.), an assistant of professor. AP Ornatskyy (1951-1955 gg.), an assistant of professor. OI Butuzov (1955-1962 gg.), an assistant of professor. JO Babenko (1962-1978 gg.), Prof. VA Khrystych (1978-1979 gg.), Prof. A. N Alabovskyy (1979-1989 gg.), an assistant of professor. V.V.Bosyy (1989-2001 gg.), a dean of TEF became prof. E.M Pysmennyi in 2001.
In 1946 power and heat supplies of the institute is restored and the work of teaching laboratories stirred up, particularly in the thermal power plant that was first started up in 1946. An academic work was also restored at the faculty.
A new specialty "The Industrial Heat Engineering" was initiated due to the decree of the Council of Ministers at the Department of Theoretical and general heat engineering in 1951. The department gets a new name - "The Department of Theoretical and Industrial Heat Engineering', which has been working up to this time. The department has become one of the largest faculty of KPI with the advent of a new specialty.
By the mid 1950s, the departments formed the main research areas that defined the future scientific activity of the Department staff, plans of scientific and pedagogical staff for many years.
The major expansion of the faculty occurred in connection with the reorganization of faculties and departments KPI in 1960. In 1962 it was renamed the Department of the Faculty of Heat Power Engineering (TEF). Six departments included to its store: steam and gas turbines (head - prof. B.P.Taranov), boilers (Head – corresponding Member of the UkSSR Academy of Sciences V.I.Tolubinskyy), thermal power plants power plants (head - prof. M.A.Kondak), pure and industrial heat (Head - Assoc. O.I.Butuzov), automation industrial thermal processes (head - prof. V.S.Kocho), of production and Industrial Economics (Head - Assoc. M.P.Lych).
In 1964 the department training engineers of the new specialty "Heat Engineering" was opened by the initiative of V.I.Tolubinskoho and A.P.Ornatskoho at the Department of boilers, also it received a new name - "Department of the steam generator building and engineering thermal physics" (PG and ITF) in 1965. Graduates specialized in thermal mass and thermal properties research of new structural and technological materials.
A new building TEF area of over 14 thousand sqm was commissioned in 1975. At its construction took part the entire team of TEF. Assoc. V.R.Shelyah made a great contribution to the timely completion of the construction.
In 1975 the specialty of "the turbine construction " was transferred to Kharkiv Polytechnic Institute and chair of steam turbines converted to the chair fuel and protection of air quality. The department began training specialists of gas turbines and heat and power engineering equipment of the compressor stations of main gas pipelines was led by professor. V.O.Hrystych, who was appointed first vice-rector of KPI in 1979. In 1978 The Department was renamed to the Department of Industrial thermal power plants and the protection of environment.
The educational process and research of computer technology began intensively implemented for TEF in the first half of 1980. In 1985 at the Faculty opened a new department of design automation systems and energy processes (APEPS) led by prof. V.H.Slipchenkom. In 1986, the department became graduating and began training engineers in the field "Information systems design", and specializing in "Software Engineering" since 1989.
For the first time at the Department APEPS opened new unique specialty - "Computer ecological and economic monitoring", on which the training of highly qualified programmers specialized in designing information systems, planning of environmental and economic analysis of the cost of their implementation, environmental optimization of production methods in Ukraine in 1998 .
Due to the need for expertise in nuclear power in the resolution of the Ministry of Education of UkSSR in KPI at TEF was stopped a dialing in " the Steam Generator Building" and open set of the specialty "Nuclear power plants and installations" in 1985, which was assigned to the department of the IGR and the ITP . After the first graduation of engineers in this specialty, department was renamed the Department of nuclear power plants and thermal physics engineering (NPP and BIRT) in 1991.
The boiler-building specialty was restored at the department in 1996, and extended to the nuclear reactor industry. Under the new range of specialties, it began to be called "Boilers and reactors."
The Department has developed scientific and industrial base in order to make the learning process. Such as: own research laboratories, branches of the department at the Institute of Nuclear Research, Institute of Technical Thermal Physics (both NAS of Ukraine), Rivne, Khmelnytsky, Zaporizhia nuclear power plant and uses scientific and technical base of the National Company "Energoatom" thermal power "Kyivenergo" and other organizations whose activities coincide with areas of training specialists of the department.
Today the TEF consists of five graduating department: NPP and ITF (head - prof. Ye.M.Pysmennyy, Teuta and AES (Head - Corresponding Member. NAS of Ukraine, prof. N.M.Fialko) TPT (head - prof. M.K.Bezrodnyy) ATEP (head - prof. Yu.M.Kovryho) APEPS (head - prof. S.O.Luk'yanenko). Training is all three educational levels carried out by the departments of 10- specialties highly qualified faculty and teaching and support staff, among whom more than 20 professors and 70 associate professors.
International connections are traditional for the faculty. The lectures of faculty worked in many countries in Europe, Asia, America, Africa, where they spent training activities at higher education institutions in these countries. TEF gained the departments and get higher education for foreign students, train graduate students and searchers from the whole world successfully defended their dissertations.
At the present stage of its existence TEF continues to work on the preservation and augmentation of the traditions of the past, constantly working hard to areas of training specialties faculty answered the priority, areas of scientific and technological progress in the world that introduced innovative learning technologies. It can produce modern professional’s creative thinking that is able to accurately articulate the problem and find its solution.
Today TEF - is well organized, technically equipped, operated by highly qualified teaching staff, rich traditions and scientific achievements the department of KPI. Marking the 80th anniversary of the faculty, its staff reveals a deep respect for their predecessors, summarizes the stages of development. They can proudly talk about a contribution to the restructuring of KPI on a modern university European standard. They should optimistically think about the future and hopes that it will provide a qualification level training for students and professionals. The level should meet the requirements of the modern labor market and continue to be a reliable supplier of a new class of technical and scientific experts in thermal and nuclear power, energy efficiency, their automation and computerization in the XXI century.