The Department of Internal Combustion Engines was established in 1961 at the Automotive and Tractor Faculty of the Belarusian Polytechnic Institute to train mechanical engineers specializing in internal combustion engines. The initiative to create the department and its first head was Georgiy Mikhailovich Kokin, a laureate of the State Prize of the USSR and distinguished educator, formerly the chief designer at Yaroslavl and Minsk automobile plants. Georgiy Mikhailovich led the department from 1961 to 1977, establishing the educational and material base and shaping the faculty.
In 1977, the department was headed by Candidate of Technical Sciences, Associate Professor Boris Yefimovich Zhelezko, who, along with faculty and engineers, continued to enhance the educational process and conducted research on creating automated brake test stands for engines.
From 1988 to 1993, the department was led by Candidate of Technical Sciences, Associate Professor Mikhail Petrovich Brench, honored worker of transport of the BSSR. His main scientific interests were in the automation of functional systems of automotive and tractor engines. During this period, methods were introduced to develop the intellectual and creative potential of students based on a research approach within a multi-level education system.
In 1994, the Power Plant Research Laboratory was established, where faculty and students conducted research to improve the operating processes and systems of engines. In 1995, the department introduced the specialty "Technical Operation of Aircraft and Engines," which trained engineers until 2002.
The department focuses heavily on updating teaching methods for students, ensuring the practical significance of student work, strengthening the department's material base, and developing scientific research. Key scientific achievements of the department are associated with the development of theory and the improvement of working processes and systems of automotive and tractor engines. This work is carried out within State Scientific Programs and commissioned by enterprises.
Over the years, the department has trained more than 1700 mechanical engineers specializing in Internal Combustion Engines and Technical Operation of Aircraft and Engines. Two doctoral and thirteen candidate dissertations have been defended, including five by foreign students. The faculty has developed over 700 educational and methodological documents, including four textbooks, six teaching aids, and seven methodological complexes.
Since 1993, the department has been headed by Candidate of Technical Sciences, Associate Professor Georgiy Mikhailovich Kukharyonok. In 2000, he was awarded the title of professor and later that year defended his doctoral dissertation in "Thermal Engines," earning a Doctor of Technical Sciences degree. He has published 250 works, including two textbooks, three monographs, and 27 inventions and patents, seven of which have been implemented in production with significant economic impact. He established a scientific school for developing methods to improve the operating processes of diesel engines. He has been honored with the USSR Ministry of Higher Education medals "For Excellent Achievements in Work" and "Inventor of the USSR," and by the Decree of the President of the Republic of Belarus No. 58 of February 21, 2011, he was awarded the Medal "For Labor Merits." Kukharyonok makes a significant contribution to the creation of new automotive and tractor technology and the integration of science and education.
