Hello everyone. My name is Steve Fuentes and I am a Junior from Hanszen majoring in Mechanical Engineering with minors in Physics and Engineering Design. In taking this course, I hope to create physical objects I am proud of and learn how to use every machine that is taught in the course. At Rice, I have done research at the PI Lab with Dr. Preston in thermofluids to develop 3D-printed wicking structures for thermal management of electronic components.
A picture of me
One thing I have made that I am proud of is a working experimental setup for heat transfer. It involves 3D printed clamps that hold a 3D printed wick in a horizontal position to keep it contacting the heat source. This was necessary due to the bending of the wick caused by thermal expansion since the wick often reached temperatures of over 150 °C.
My experimental setup
In the short-term, something I would like to learn how to make is bicycle parts. It would be fascinating to create a working system of gears that can shift using a lever mechanism. The other parts of the bicycle don’t have to be made of metal. They could even be made of wood as a proof-of-concept, and they could be miniaturized. Following a similar idea, I could also make a miniature model of a car, crafting each part one at a time, hopefully with moving components.
Through this class, I want to develop the ability to design and build complex experimental setups — integrating fabrication, instrumentation, and analysis — so that I can both create and test new devices. My vision is to come full-circle by connecting theoretical insight with practical execution, gaining the skills to move fluidly between the two. Many systems and devices consist of multiple components, so a specific technique I would like to develop is being able to put things together.
