Course Schedule

2009-2010 Course Schedule, updated 8/28/2009 (PDF)

Course Descriptions

CHEM_ENG 190: Engineering of Chemical and Biological Processes
CHEM_ENG 210: Analysis of Chemical Process Systems
CHEM_ENG 211: Thermodynamics
CHEM_ENG 212: Phase Equilibrium and Staged Separations
CHEM_ENG 275: Molecular and Cell Biology for Engineers
CHEM_ENG 307: Kinetics and Reactor Engineering
CHEM_ENG 312: Probability and Statistics for Chemical Engineering
CHEM_ENG 321: Fluid Mechanics
CHEM_ENG 322: Heat Transfer
CHEM_ENG 323: Mass Transfer
CHEM_ENG 341: Process Dynamics and Control
CHEM_ENG 342: Chemical Engineering Laboratory
CHEM_ENG 345: Process Optimization
CHEM_ENG 351: Process Economics, Design, and Evaluation
CHEM_ENG 352: Chemical Engineering Design Projects
CHEM_ENG 361: Introduction to Polymers
CHEM_ENG 364: Chemical Engineering Process and the Environment
CHEM_ENG 365: Sustainability, Technology, and Society
CHEM_ENG 371: Transport Phenomena in Living Systems
CHEM_ENG 372: Interfacial Phenomena and Bionanotechnology
CHEM_ENG 375: Biochemical Engineering
CHEM_ENG 377: Bioseparations
CHEM_ENG 379: Computational Biology: Principles and Applications
CHEM_ENG 390: Personal and Organizational Effectiveness
CHEM_ENG 395: Special Topics in Chemical Engineering
CHEM_ENG 396: Focused Topics in Chemical Engineering
CHEM_ENG 399: Projects
CHEM_ENG 475: Cell-Material Interactions
CHEM_ENG 478: Advances in Biotechnology

CHEM ENG 190-0: Engineering of Chemical and Biological Processes
Survey of engineering principles as they are applied to processes involving chemical and biological transformations. Examples from the chemical, pharmaceutical, biotechnology, food processing, electronics, and other industries. Impact of economics, ethics and other nontechnical constraints.

CHEM ENG 210-0: Analysis of Chemical Process Systems
Introduction to process systems. Material balances and stoichiometry. Analysis of process system flow sheets. Introduction to departmental computing facilities. Basic numerical analysis. Prerequisites: CHEM 103 and GEN ENG 205-4 (may be taken concurrently).

CHEM ENG 211-0 Thermodynamics
The first and second laws of thermodynamics. Entropy and equilibrium. Material and energy balances. Equations of state and properties of fluids. Solutions, phase equilibria, and chemical reaction. Prerequisite: 210

CHEM ENG 212-0 Phase Equilibrium and Staged Separations
Thermodynamic models of mixtures and phase equilibrium. Analysis and design of staged separation processes such as distillation, absorption, stripping, and extraction. Prerequisite: 211.

CHEM ENG 275-0 Molecular and Cell Biology for Engineers
Introduction to cell and molecular biology concepts that provide the foundation for modern biotechnology and bioengineering. Prerequisite: CHEM 103.

CHEM ENG 307-0 Kinetics and Reactor Engineering
Chemical reaction kinetics with application to the design of chemical reactors. Prerequisites: 210 (C- or better).

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 321-0 Fluid Mechanics
Derivation and applications of continuity and Navier-Stokes equations. Macroscopic mass, momentum and energy balances. Dimensional analysis: friction in pipes and packed beds; drag coefficients. Prerequisite: Completion of mathematics requirements with no grades of D; GEN ENG 205-4.

CHEM ENG 322-0 Heat Transfer
The differential equations of energy transport. Solutions for various applications. Prerequisite: Completion of mathematics requirements with no grades of D.

CHEM ENG 323-0 Mass Transfer
Diffusion and convective mass transfer; application to chemical and biological processes and systems. Prerequisites: 321 and 322.

CHEM ENG 341-0 Process Dynamics and Control
Dynamic behavior of chemical process components. Feedback control principles. Prerequisite: senior standing; 307 recommended.

CHEM ENG 342-0 Chemical Engineering Laboratory
Operations and control of process equipment for the determination of operating data. Analysis and written presentation of results. Prerequisites: 307 and 323.

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 351-0 Process Economics, Design and Evaluation
Preliminary design of industrial processes for the production of chemical and allied products by the application of the engineering sciences and economics. Prerequisites: 212, 307, and 323.

CHEM ENG 352-0 Chemical Engineering Design Projects
Design of chemical and process plants applying the principles of unit operations, thermodynamics, reaction kinetics and economics. Mechanical design and selection of chemical process equipment. Prerequisite: 351.

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 365-0 Sustainability, Technology, and Society
Technical discussion of sustainability, sustainable development, global warming, natural and renewal resources and utilization, industrial ecology, eco-efficiency, technology related to sustainability, and risk assessment. Prerequisites: junior standing in science or engineering.

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 372-0 Interfacial Phenomena and Bionanotechnology
The physical chemistry of systems of large interfacial area, with specific examples of their unusual behavior and useful properties for applications in bionanotechnology. Prerequisites: senior standings or consent of instructor.

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 377-0 Bioseparations
Downstream processes in biotechnology. Separation and lysis of cells. Recovery of organelles and protein separation and purification. Prerequisite: Chem Eng 275 or Biol Sci 210-2; Chem Eng 323 (may be taken concurrently).

CHEM ENG 379-0 Computational Biology: Principles and Applications
Introduction to the development and application of data-analytical and theoretical methods, mathematical modeling, and computational simulation techniques to the study of biological systems.

CHEM ENG 390-0 Personal and Organizational Effectiveness
Introduction to nontechnical skills required in a business environment with the goal of increasing personal effectiveness (and marketability) of seniors and graduate students. Prerequisite: senior standing.

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 396-0 Focused Topics in Chemical Engineering (.5 unit)
Emerging topics suggested by students or faculty and approved by the department.

CHEM ENG 399-0 Projects
Supervised investigation of a chemical engineering problem with submission of a final report.

 
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 of the instructor. 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 of the instructor. 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.