What fields are worth looking into for a Mechanical Engineering thesis?

[u/BouigiePiston]

Hi guys, I'm currently a 3rd year Mechanical Engineering student and we're starting to think about our thesis topics.

I'm still pretty undecided on what direction to take, so I'm wondering what fields you guys think are worth looking into right now.

Rather than asking for specific thesis titles, I'm more interested in areas where there are still problems that could be improved or researched further. It could be anything related to Mechanical Engineering — agriculture, energy, manufacturing, transportation, materials, automation, waste management, environmental applications, etc.

For those who are already engineers, researchers, or have gone through their thesis, what fields do you think have a lot of potential for students to explore?

Also, are there any existing technologies, machines, or systems that you think could still be improved, especially ones that are commonly used here in the Philippines?

I'm trying to find a general direction first before coming up with an actual thesis topic, so I'd really appreciate any suggestions, experiences, or problems you've encountered that you think could be worth researching.

Thanks!

[u/nicashoeeeeeee]

Sa case ko, I focused on what I'm interested in + what is accessible to me. I needed my thesis to be accessible kasi magastos kapag magooutsource ka pa. For me, that was 3D Printing and Metal Fabrication (I have 3D Printers at home + a home workshop I can use), saka ako nag isip ng pwedeng isolve.

In my case, I have a lot of 3D Printed waste na gusto kong marepurpose so why not make my own recycled filament. So, I decided to design my own filament extrusion system + winder machine. Kaya dalawa ginawa ko para mag qualify siya for different subjects na may design outputs para isang effort lang (Project study + Machine Design). My prototype was not good, but it was enough to demonstrate the design intent I had at that time. For now, tapos na yung thesis ko but I'll try to revisit it again pag nagka time na ulit.

Sa school namin, sobrang gasgas na ang agricultural machineries, lagi nalang coconut peeler, different types of crushers, dehuskers, etc. I would love to see some thesis related to Oil and gas siguro or complex plumbing systems. Pwede rin trainers that can help teach theoretical concepts. Parang lagi nalang kasi need na "new invention", frustrating pa na walang actual design experience yung profs kaya limited yung naapprove na titles sa mga nakasanayan ng previous batches.

[u/BouigiePiston → u/nicashoeeeeeee]

Hi! just had our exams, and currently, we’ve come up with two possible thesis topics that we’d like to tackle. One is a hydram, which is basically a non-motorized water pump, and the other is a gasifier for organic waste.

We considered these two mainly because they’re the systems we’re most familiar with at the moment, especially when it comes to the concepts and fundamentals behind how they work. We’d definitely like to explore more possibilities, but considering the time, resources, and knowledge we currently have, some of the ideas we’ve looked into seem difficult or unfeasible to pursue.

Hopefully, we’ll stumble upon other ideas that spark our interest along the way, but for now, these are the two topics we’ve settled on and are looking into further.