UC Davis – EMS 2 MATERIALS MARVELS – Prof. Ricardo Castro
UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, DAVIS
Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science
EMS 2: Materials Marvels – The Science of Superheroes
COURSE OUTLINE
Instructor :
Professor Ricardo Castro
Email : Use SMARTSITE (Message tool) to communicate, ask questions, etc.
Lecture:
(1:50h) M 12:10-2:00 at 230 Wellman Hall
Description: Combining the creativity with solid engineering can enable unprecedented
technological achievements in our society. This class brings these two concepts together
by inspiring the students with the fantastic world of Superheroes. This brings their
imaginarium which is then linked to Materials Engineering concepts that could enable
that magic world or, more importantly, provide the tools to solve real societal and
technological problems that need solutions. Introductory (and some advanced) concepts
of Materials Engineering are presented, but always in the context of a creativity
exercise. The class is project based, and students need to present an innovative material
concept in the end of the program, demonstrating creation and engineering aspects.
Grading:
Evaluation is based on presence and project consisting of three
parts; (S) hand written paragraph summary of previous class
brought to classroom within 5 min of its start; (P1) presenting a
hand written 1 page summary of an idea of material and/or
innovation regarding materials’ applications delivered by Friday,
May 6th . (P2) A 5 min video and an elaborated project description
(up to 5pgs) delivered in the Project showcase Final, June 6th.
Final  0.25P1  0.45P2  0.3S
Office Hours:
Textbook:
Course Notes:
M 2pm-3pm at 2021 Kemper Hall
Stuff Matters: Exploring the Marvelous Materials That Shape Our
Man-Made World, Book by Mark Miodownik, and online notes.
Available online at Smartsite EMS2 001 WQ 2016.
UC Davis – EMS 2 MATERIALS MARVELS – Prof. Ricardo Castro
TENTATIVE SCHEDULE
Date
28-Mar
04-Apr
11-Apr
Deliveries
Summary of 04-Apr class
18-Apr
Summary of 11-Apr class
25-Apr
Summary of 18-Apr class
02-May
Summary of 25-Apr class
09-May
-
16-May
Summary of 09-May class
23-May
Summary of 16-May class
30-May
14-Mar
Summary of 23-May class
Topic
Opening class – Introduction to the class and cool materials’ facts
Evolution of humanity with Materials
Engineering Captain American Shield I – thermal coatings; light
materials; concept of alloys; memory shape.
Engineering Captain American Shield II – composite materials;
diversity of mechanical properties; ceramics and glasses; chemical
tempering.
Engineering Captain American Shield III – impact resistance;
piezoelectric materials; energy harvesting; nanocrystalline materials.
Project discussion and P1 submission online by end of week
(06/May).
Iron Man’s Arc Reaction I – energy needs; energy solutions; atomic
batteries; semiconductors; solar cell materials.
Iron Man’s Arc Reaction II – nuclear power; radiation tolerance of
materials; lithium batteries; fuel cells
Magneto – electro-magnetic materials; supermagnets;
superconductors; magneto fluids science and technology
Memorial Day
Final (Project Show Case) @ 3:30pm
P2 submitted online
This course is designed to address the following ABET accreditation criteria:
Outcome A: an ability to apply knowledge of mathematics, science and engineering;
This is achieved by requiring the project to have solid scientific fundaments. The
midterm (pre-project) serves as point of interaction to discuss problems.
Outcome G: An ability to communicate effectively;
This is achieved by the final presentation which is a video and a written report. One of
the classes is used to describe how to do this effectively.
Outcome J. A knowledge of contemporary issues
Contemporary issues in terms of energy requirements and technological needs are
discussed in several classes. The final project must address a contemporary issue.
The course addresses GE requirement SciEng | SE: Provides students with knowledge
of major scientific ideas and applications by communicating the scope, power,
limitations and appeal of science. Effectiveness is evaluated in final project where levels
of scientific and engineering maturity are considered.