Introduction to the Foundations of Chemical Engineering: Synthesis, Modeling, Analysis of Products and Processes

Massachusetts Institute Of Technology, Cambridge MA

Investigators

Abstract

Engineering - Chemical (53) The traditional focus of instruction in the core undergraduate chemical engineering curriculum has been analysis, i.e. the deduction of the behavior of a given process. In associated exercises, few decisions are required of the student other than selection of which predefined model equations and analytical solution techniques are to be used. As a result, students are left unprepared to face the inherent freedom of decision-making and do not have the opportunity to cultivate creativity as required in their professional careers. The objective of this project is to develop and disseminate the educational material necessary to revamp and update the pedagogical approach of the introductory course, and with this initiative, set the stage for subsequent revamping of the scope of the entire core chemical engineering curriculum. To meet this objective, the project is developing the following educational material: (a) A textbook that introduces the fundamental chemical engineering concepts, contextually, through a series of process and product design case studies, which helps students develop the necessary skills (i.e., synthesis, modeling and analysis) for solving engineering problems, and (b) A software system, which is integrated with the educational material of the textbook, and which broadens the range of the students' synthetic-modeling-analytic abilities by providing to them: a virtual laboratory to gain intuition regarding microscopic phenomena and observed macroscopic behavior, a collaborative problem-solving environment, and help in coordinating the vast resources of data available for engineering design. Evaluation is being carried out at MIT and at several test sites, including the University of Delaware, the University of Houston, the University of Oklahoma, Ohio State University, and Rowan University. National dissemination of these materials, which integrate technology into undergraduate chemical engineering education, is maintained through faculty development workshops that train educators in the appropriate pedagogical use of these materials.