Instrumentation for an Integrated Laboratory Course on PhaseAnalysis in Materials Engineering

材料科学与工程系正在引入一个新的综合实验室课程序列材料中的相分析。为了实施这门课程，项目负责人正在获得一个能量色散X射线光谱系统，与现有的台式学生扫描电子显微镜相关的NIST台式光谱分析仪软件，以及用于本科生飞利浦X射线粉末衍射仪的自动化和分析软件包。 这些仪器可与自动机械测试（Instron）和热分析（DTA/DSC/TGA）系统结合使用，以提供同样适用于金属，陶瓷，聚合物和复合材料的集成程序。该仪器使该部门能够创新和具有成本效益地利用现有资源进行更新和更广泛的实验，对实验数据进行更精细的分析，提高该部门的能力，为学生提供使用最先进的方法的实践相分析经验，并更好地为现代工业环境做好准备。它还可以扩大正在进行的外展计划与地区高中教师，学生和代表性不足的少数民族。 材料问题解决的综合方法是材料工程教育的一种新的、重要的方法。通过这种方法，学生可以很容易地理解材料现象和微观结构差异方面的易加工性和性能之间的权衡，这对材料程序的设计组件有很大的贡献。相位分析的拟议实验室序列增加了一个重要的新维度的课程，并大大影响学生/研究生工程师在合作社/工作环境中的表现，这将导致工业产出的整体提高。该课程可以作为全国其他材料工程项目的典范。

The Department of Materials Science and Engineering is introducing a new integrated laboratory course sequence on Phase Analysis in Materials. To implement this course, project leaders are obtaining an energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy system, with the associated NIST desktop spectrum analyzer software for an existing desktop student scanning electron microscope, and an automation and analysis package for the undergraduate Philips x-ray powder diffractometer. These instruments can be used in conjunction with automated mechanical testing (Instron) and thermal analysis (DTA/DSC/TGA) systems in a number of experiments to provide an integrated program that applies equally to metals, ceramics, polymers, and composites. The instrumentation enables the department to make innovative and cost-effective use of existing resources to perform newer and more extensive experiments, conduct more refined analysis of experimental data, enhance the department's capacity to provide students hands-on phase analysis experience using state-of-the-art methods, and better prepare those students for the modern industrial environment. It can also augment the ongoing outreach program with area high school teachers, students, and underrepresented minorities. The integrated approach to materials problem solving is both novel and crucial to materials engineering education. With this approach, students can readily understand the trade-offs between ease of processing and performance in terms of materials phenomena and differences in microstructure, which contributes substantially to the design component of a materials program. The proposed laboratory sequence on phase analysis adds a significant new dimension to the curriculum and substantially affects student/graduate engineer performance in the co-op/work environment, which should lead to overall enhancement in industrial output. The course may serve as a model for other materials engineering programs in the Nation.