PE Mechanical study guide
PE Mechanical · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
The PE Mechanical is the licensure examination mechanical engineers take as the final exam step toward a professional engineer (PE) license in the United States. NCEES develops and administers it, and the state licensing board in your jurisdiction sets eligibility rules, reviews your education and experience, and issues the license. The PE Mechanical study guide has 7 sections and about 2,039 words.
01Basic Engineering Practice
This domain is the catch-all: units and dimensional consistency, engineering economics, project delivery, codes and standards, safety, and professional ethics. Questions are usually short and hinge on one conversion or definition, so precision matters more than depth.
324 words, about 2 min02Psychrometrics
Psychrometrics relates dry-bulb temperature (DB), humidity ratio (W), relative humidity (RH), dew point (DP), wet-bulb (WB), enthalpy (h), and specific volume (v). Any two independent properties fix the state; the rest are read from the chart.
295 words, about 1 min03Heating and Cooling Loads
Cooling load is the sum of envelope conduction, solar gain, internal gain, and latent load, each peaking at a different hour. Conduction uses U × A × ΔT with the outdoor design dry-bulb.
288 words, about 1 min04Energy Recovery
Energy recovery transfers energy between exhaust and incoming outdoor air. Sensible-only devices include plate exchangers, heat pipes, and runaround coils; total (enthalpy) wheels and desiccant-coated cores also transfer moisture.
279 words, about 1 min05HVAC Systems and Equipment
Know the categories: constant-volume versus VAV, single-zone versus terminal reheat, chilled water versus DX, water-cooled versus air-cooled condensers, central plant versus packaged rooftop. Each has a part-load story; VAV saves fan energy but must maintain minimum airflow for ventilation.
295 words, about 1 min06Refrigeration
The vapor-compression cycle has four processes: compression (1-2), condensation (2-3), expansion (3-4), and evaporation (4-1). On a pressure-enthalpy diagram, refrigeration effect is h1 − h4, compressor work is h2 − h1, and COP = (h1 − h4)/(h2 − h1).
281 words, about 1 min07Controls and Instrumentation
Every loop has a sensor, transmitter, controller, and final element. Error is setpoint minus measured value.
277 words, about 1 min