Topic outline

  • Home page

    Welcome to the home page of the MSE course. The entire course will be performed onsite while the exercise will be performed in a hybrid mode.

    Learning Outcomes

    After the course, the student shall be able:

    • to distinguish and explain terms in materials science
    • to relate material structures to properties
    • to understand the influence of processes on structures
    • to analyze deformation, strengthening, and failure mechanisms
    • to relate diffusion, precipitation, and phase transformation mechanisms to microstructural changes in materials
    • to understand and use the computational-materials concepts and tools
    • to read materials science literature and journals. 

    Content

    • Material microstructures, properties, processes, and terminology
    • The behavior of materials under the influence of mechanical loading and environment
    • Deformation and failure mechanisms
    • Determination of material properties, their correlation with microstructure, and the correlation of microstructure with processes
    • Sustainability development of materials science and engineering.

    Details on the course content

    This course introduces the fundamentals of materials science and engineering (MSE) to students. The lectures cover the core knowledge and concepts of MSE, which will serve as a starting point for students with various follow-up advanced studies in different study paths. Specific attention, especially in exercise sessions, is paid to the training of using computational software and algorithms in the field of MSE with focuses tailored to the concepts introduced during the course. These topics are carefully chosen for the best interest of the students in this major towards the potential impact on either their further curriculum or career developments in the field of MSE or any related majors. Both conceptional and computational weekly assignments are designed for students to master the knowledge and the skills demonstrated during the lecture and exercise sessions. Additional seminars and lab visits are also arranged during the course, focusing on extending the knowledge out of books and understanding the research and development in MSE-related industries.

    Workload

    • Lectures: 12 x 2h = 24h
    • Exercises: 6 x 2h = 12h
    • Examination: 3 h
    • Independent work: 96 h (roughly evenly distributed to six weeks)
    • Total: 135 h

    Resources 

    William D. Callister, Jr. and David G. Rethwisch, Materials science and engineering: an introduction (editions greater than 7th recommended)

    Further reading:

    • R. E. Smallman and A. H. W. Ngan, Physical Metallurgy and Advanced Materials (7th Edition), 2007.
    • R. E. Smallman and A. H. W. Ngan, Modern Physical Metallurgy (8th edition), 2013.

    Software toolkit:

    Schedule 

    • Week 1 (Oct 23 – 29)              Introduction and material structures
    • Week 2 (Oct 30 – Nov 5)        Mechanical properties of metals
    • Week 3 (Nov 6 – 12)               Failure of metals and Computational modeling
    • Week 4 (Nov 13 – 19)             Diffusion, phase diagram, and phase transformation 
    • Week 5 (Nov 20 – 26)             Material processing and ceramics  
    • Week 6 (Nov 27 – Dec 3)        Physical properties of materials and sustainability 
    • Week 7 (Dec 5)                       Exam

    Optional learning activities