Purpose:
· To provide experience in studying a technical subject in depth and in the absence of strict guidelines.
· To develop skills in technical writing beyond routine lab reports.
· To learn more about the selection, processing, structure, properties, performance and cost of materials of interest for a specific application.
Topics:
· Students will choose a topic based on their own interests.
· The topic will have to be approved by the instructor. Students will submit a brief description of the topic and brief outline of the paper to the instructor by Friday Feb. 3, 2005.
Format:
· The report will be written from the perspective of a MSCI 301 student who, a few years after graduation from Rice, is employed in industry or other institution involved in research, design or manufacturing.
· The report is written (for example to one’s supervisor or customer) to address difficulties with an existing material application or a need to develop or select material for a new application or new product.
· Although the paper’s introduction may include some background information, the paper should not be mainly historical.
· Length will be approximately 12 pages, double spaced, 12 point font.
· The paper is not to be written in the form of a laboratory report (hypothesis, procedure, observations, etc.)
· The use of graphs, tables and diagrams is encouraged, however these should not be any larger than necessary for clarity and readability. These should not constitute a majority of the paper’s length.
Content:
Each paper needs to include the five key areas of materials engineering listed below. If you can give a compelling reason, maybe one of these can be left out:
· Processing: such as casting, rolling, extruding, punching, machining, drawing, forging, grinding, sandblasting, plating, painting, sputtering, anodizing, etching, annealing, carburizing, quenching and tempering, etc. Include processing done at your supplier's facility as well as processing done at your facility on that purchased material.
· Structure: such as the crystal lattice type, presence of alloying atoms in substitutional or interstitial sites, grain structure, dislocation structure, vacancy concentrations, structure and composition of precipitate particles (coherent, semi-coherent, non-coherent), porosity, molecular structure, cross-linking of molecules, etc.
· Properties: This refers to results of simple lab tests on small samples used to qualify the material. Material properties fall into six categories. Mechanical: density, ductility, residual stress, elastic constants, yield strength, hardness, fracture resistance, surface roughness, etc.; Electrical: conductivity (or resistivity), dielectric constant, etc.; Thermal: heat capacity, conductivity, melting point, thermal expansion; Magnetic: permeability, susceptibility, coercivity; Optical: color, reflectivity, refractive index; Chemical: purity, composition, and rate of corrosion (or oxidation) at a given temperature and pH in a given chemical environment.
· Performance: This refers to full-sized parts under realistic use conditions, such things as stiffness, maximum load, maximum speed, maximum operating frequency, maximum operating temperature, median time to failure, storage density, etc.
· Cost: Includes raw materials and processing.
The best papers will include a discussion of the relationship between structure and properties.
Obviously, every property listed above doesn't have to be included in every paper. For example, if your particular material is an organic polymer then you probably won't be able to say much about atoms in substitutional & interstitial sites in a crystal lattice or dislocation structure or reflectivity. If your particular material and application are never subject to any electric currents or any magnetic fields (except Earth's) or any illumination then you may not need to mention anything about the material's electrical or magnetic or optical properties. On the other hand, if some of those properties are commonly measured in the lab as an indirect indicator of material purity or something which is important to your application then please do mention it.
Due Date:
· The completed paper must be turned in by Fri. April 14 (two weeks before the last day of class).
· If any student completes their paper and emails it to the Instructor by Fri. March 24 , the instructor will review the paper, make some limited suggestions and corrections, and return the paper to the student ungraded, giving the student a few weeks to make improvements before the final due date. These drafts will be reviewed on a first in, first out basis.
References:
· A majority of references should come from technical journals and library books. A smaller, limited number of references from the textbooks, internet, and encyclopedias is OK.
· References must be connected with specific statements or specific data in the paper, rather than being of a general nature.
· Any phrases, sentences or other information used verbatim from any source must be in quotation marks and a proper reference must be given.
Honor Code:
· Students must do their own work. The paper must be original, not previously written for another class.
· The Rice Honor Code must be included on the first page and must be either signed by the student’s own hand or emailed from the student’s own @rice.edu email address.
· If any individuals are consulted, their names must be listed as references. Library personnel and faculty members may be consulted. Other students may be consulted, but only graduate students and only in areas closely related to research which they are currently doing.
· Any use of unpublished papers by other students or use of unreferenced papers found on the internet is expressly forbidden.
Grading:
· As shown in the class syllabus, this paper amounts to 25% of the semester grade.
· The grade on this paper will be based on: (a) completeness, (b) correctness, (c) organization and clarity of expression, (d) style, spelling & grammar, (e) general appearance of the paper.
revised P.J.L. Jan.12, 2006