Course Schedule

2008-2009 Course Schedule, updated 12/05/08 (PDF)

Course Descriptions

Courses that overlap with Undergraduate Program
CHEM-ENG 312: Process Models by Statistical Methods
CHEM-ENG 345: Process Optimization
CHEM-ENG 349: Advanced Process Control
CHEM-ENG 361: Introduction to High Polymers
CHEM-ENG 364: Chemical Processing and the Environment
CHEM-ENG 371: Transport Phenomena in Living Systems
CHEM-ENG 375: Biochemical Engineering
CHEM-ENG 395: Selected Topics in Chemical Engineering
CHEM_ENG 475: Cell-Material Interactions
CHEM_ENG 478: Advances in Biotechnology

Graduate Level Courses
CHEM-ENG 404: Advanced Thermodynamics
CHEM-ENG 406: Selected Topics in Thermodynamics
CHEM-ENG 408: Chemical Engineering Kinetics and Reactor Design
CHEM-ENG 409: Advanced Reactor Design
CHEM-ENG 410: Applied Catalysis and Reaction Engineering
CHEM-ENG 414: Modern Analytical Techniques for Chemical Engineers
CHEM-ENG 424-1: Transport Phenomena I
CHEM-ENG 424-2: Transport Phenomena II
CHEM-ENG 437: Selected Topics in Fluid Mechanics
CHEM-ENG 451: Applied Molecular Modeling
CHEM-ENG 459: Selected Topics in Design or Simulation
CHEM-ENG 462: Viscoelasticity and Flow in Polymer Systems
CHEM-ENG 463: Polymerization Reaction Engineering
CHEM-ENG 469: Selected Topics in High Polymers
CHEM-ENG 477: Downstream Processing in Process Biotechnology
CHEM-ENG 479: Animal Cell and Tissue Culture
CHEM-ENG 489: Selected Topics in Chemical Engineering

CHEM ENG 312-0 Probability and Statistics for Chemical Engineering
Introduction to probability theory and statistical methods necessary for analyzing the behavior of processes and experiments. Statistical tests for detecting significant changes in process parameters.

CHEM ENG 345-0 Process Optimization
Modern techniques and application to the design and operation of chemical process systems. Steady-state and dynamic methods. Experimental search for the optimum. Prerequisite: senior standing.

CHEM ENG 361-0 Introduction to Polymers
Polymerization mechanisms and their relation to molecular structure, polymerization process, and the mechanical properties of polymers, especially flow behavior. Prerequisites: 211 and CHEM 210-1.

CHEM ENG 364-0 Chemical Processing and the Environment
Application of chemical engineering fundamentals to environmental problems. Chemistry and mechanisms, chemical reactions and rate, and transport emphasized. Risk assessment and analysis revealed through case studies. Prerequisites: 212 and 307.

CHEM ENG 371-0 Transport Phenomena in Living Systems
Application of transport theory, principally diffusion, to movement of molecules in biological systems, including blood, cornea, microcirculation, and lung. Prerequisites: 322 and GEN ENG 205-4 or consent of instructor: 321 and 323 recommended.

CHEM ENG 375-0 Biochemical Engineering
Modern biochemical engineering. Life sciences microbiology, biochemistry, and modern genetics. Metabolic stoichiometry, energetics, growth kinetics, transport phenomena in bioreactors, and product recovery. Prerequisites: 307, 323, or consent of instructor.

CHEM ENG 395-0 Special Topics in Chemical Engineering
Topics suggested by students or faculty and approved by the department. Recent topics include building individual and organizational effectiveness, creativity and problem solving, and molecular modeling.

CHEM ENG 475-0 Cell-Material Interactions
This course may be taken by undergraduate students if they are in the Biotechnology Certificate program or by permission. Materials are increasingly be applied for biomedical applications, such as prostheses, biosensors, and wound repair. The original idea that materials should be “inert” has been replaced with the idea that materials can have a defined cellular interaction that can promote specific cellular processes. Materials are being designed to provide several types of information to cells in their environment by regulating the mechanical properties, cell-cell interactions, cell-matrix interactions, and the release of soluble factors such as protein or DNA. This course presents the fundamental aspects of these cellular processes, and also the design of biomaterials to promote or block these processes. Critical issues in the field that will be discussed include biocompatibility, cell adhesion and signaling, drug delivery, stem cells, and mechanotransduction.

 
CHEM ENG 478-0 Advances in Biotechnology
This course may be taken by undergraduate students if they are in the Biotechnology Certificate program or by permission. Biotechnology is a burgeoning area of research worldwide, both industrially and academically, that combines the expertise of multiple disciplines such as engineering, life sciences, and medicine. The emergence of new tools and ideas in biotechnology continues to accelerate, and this course is an introduction to a range of topics at the forefront of this field. This objective of this class is to expose students to the multidisciplinary research, and provide technical and intellectual skills from fields such as biochemical engineering, biochemistry, bioengineering, biomaterials, metabolic engineering, molecular biology, nanobiotechnology, pharmacology, and tissue engineering.

CHEM-ENG 404 Advanced Thermodynamics
Quantitative study of the fundamental principles of thermodynamics. Application of the laws of thermodynamics, concepts of equilibrium, equations of state, and properties of solutions to problems of engineering significance, including phase and chemical reaction equilibria.

CHEM-ENG 406 Selected Topics in Thermodynamics
Selected topics from recent literature in thermodynamics.

CHEM-ENG 408 Chemical Engineering Kinetics and Reactor Design
Interpretation of chemical rate selectivity data in homogeneous and heterogeneous reaction systems. Development and application of the theory of chemical kinetics, including collision, transition state, and surface reactivity approaches. Theory and analysis of reaction in heterogeneous phases. Reactor design with applications to and extension of ideal and nonideal reactor models: gas-solid, gas-liquid, and three-phase reactor design.

CHEM-ENG 409 Advanced Reactor Design
Advanced engineering aspects of reactor design. Analysis of coupled transport processes and chemical reaction in application to realistic design and scale-up of various types of chemical reactors. Optimization problems in reactor design and operation. Extension of CHEM-ENG 408.

CHEM-ENG 410 Applied Catalysis and Reaction Engineering
Kinetics of heterogeneous catalytic reactions. Nature of active sites and surface intermediates and their characterization. Chemistry of catalysis of metals, oxides, acids and zeolitic, mesoporous and other materials.

CHEM-ENG 414 Modern Analytical Techniques for Chemical Engineers
Spectroscopic techniques for chemical engineering research, such as temperature-programmed methods, X-ray methods, Mossbauer spectroscopy, magnetic resonance spectroscopy, and vibrational spectroscopy.

CHEM-ENG 424-1 Transport Phenomena I
Critical analysis of the role of fluid mechanics in the fundamental processes of chemical engineering.

CHEM-ENG 424-2 Transport Phenomena II
Analysis of fluid flow, heat transfer, and mass transfer phenomena. Development of physical insight is emphasized. Continuation of CHEM-ENG 424-1.

CHEM-ENG 437 Selected Topics in Fluid Mechanics
Selected topics from the recent literature in fluid mechanics. A continuation of CHEM-ENG 424-1.

CHEM-ENG 451 Applied Molecular Modeling
Introduction to modern computational methods for calculating properties of reaction systems, as well as thermodynamics, transport, and structural properties of materials.

CHEM-ENG 459 Selected Topics in Design or Simulation and Monitoring
Topics on the construction and analysis of process models; classification of process behavior from measurements; development of black-box models; and statistical analysis of models and measurements.

CHEM-ENG 462 Viscoelasticity and Flow in Polymer Systems
Fundamental aspects of polymer rheology, including the theory of linear viscoelasticity, measurement of fundamental flow properties, constitutive equations, the kinetic- molecular theories of viscoelasticity, and polymer processing behavior.

CHEM-ENG 463 Polymerization Reaction Engineering
Polymerization reactions and resulting molecular weight distributions; modeling of polymerization kinetics; batch, continuous stirred tank and tubular flow reactor design for optimal polymerizations; emulsion and catalyzed polymerizations; photoresist technology.

CHEM-ENG 469 Selected Topics in High Polymers
Selected topics from recent literature.

CHEM-ENG 477 Downstream Processing in Process Biotechnology
Downstream processing in biotechnology. Separation and lysis of cells. Recovery of organelles and proteins. Protein separation and purification. Prerequisites: CHEM-ENG 321, CHEM-ENG 323 (or equivalent), CHEM-ENG 375.

CHEM-ENG 479 Cell Culture and Ex Vivo Tissue Engineering
Applications of cultured cells in biotechnology and medicine. Manipulation of culture environment to alter cell growth and protein production or quality. Cell production for cell therapies. In vitro models of in vivo response. Bioartificial organs.

CHEM-ENG 489 Selected Topics in Chemical Engineering
Selected topics from recent literature.