Interdisciplinary Study of Numerical Methods and Power Plants Engineering

The development of technology, electronics and computing opened the way for a cross-disciplinary research that brings benefits by combining the achievements of different fields. To prepare the students for their future interdisciplinary approach,aninterdisciplinary teaching is adopted. This ensures their progress in knowledge, understanding and ability to navigate through different fields. Aiming these results, the Universities introduce new interdisciplinary courses which explore complex problems by studying subjects from different domains. The paper presents a problem encountered in designingpower plants. The method of solvingthe problem isused to explain the numerical methods and to exercise programming.The goal of understanding a numerical algorithm that solves a linear system of equations is achieved by using the knowledge of heat transfer to design the regenerative circuit of a thermal power plant. In this way, the outcomes from the prior courses (mathematics and physics) are used to explain a new subject (numerical methods) and to advance future ones (power plants).