Materials Sciences, Materials Engineering, Plastics and Paper Technology, Metal Science

Study Field Outline

Materials have been decisive to the devel- opment of human civilisation since its very beginnings and still are today. This is why the periods of prehistory and early history were named after their character- istic materials: stone age, bronze age, iron age.

The availability of modern materials is today one of the key areas of modern industry, since without the appropri- ate materials is will hardly be possible to bring new technologies into practical application. A driving force in the devel- opment of materials is provided by the call for improved functionality along with reduced weight and volume and resource- friendly production methods. And so tailor-made materials are revolutionising

the fields of lightweight engineering and construction, reducing energy consump- tion, are biocompatible, recyclable and react intelligently to changing operating conditions. Modern technology today has a wealth of materials at its disposal, of which the most important groups are: Metals, such as ferrous and non-ferrous metals, semi-conductors, non-metal-inor- ganic materials, such as ceramic materi- als, glasses and inorganic bonding agents, plus organic materials, such as plastics and rubber. The composite materials which are gaining greatly in significance are made up of a stable mixture of (at least two) of the above-mentioned materi- als groups.

A completely new key technology is also to be found in the field of materials engi- neering, among others: Nano(structure) engineering. “Nannos” means dwarf. And so the name already refers to world which offers space for just a millionth of a metre (nanometre). This means that materials are already being manipulated and reassembled at atomic or molecular level. Specific nanostructure designs makes it possible to provide materials with optimised properties for a wide range of technologies.: For example, surfaces can be given an extremely smooth surface. Adhesives can be produced by a layering process to permanently bond other materi- als together, or optics can be produced to repel dangerous rays.

The study of material sciences calls for an interest in mathematics, science and engi- neering. The training of a materials engi- neers includes teaching in the contexts and interconnections of raw materials, production/process engineering, material structure/properties and on the applica- tions. The course provides knowledge on the physical and chemical principles of material properties and on their impor- tance for technical applications: it is phys- ics and chemistry, process engineering, mechanical engineering, electrical engi- neering, energy and power engineering as well as metallurgy which provide the framework for the degree course here.

Materials engineering deals with the engineering aspects of the production, structure, application and technological (manufacturing engineering) properties of known materials and their further develop- ment and adaptation to new applications.

The field of materials science is more strongly based on the physical and chemi- cal principles for the development of new materials (metals, polymers, ceramics, semiconductors, composites) with new properties for future applications. This also includes the development of com- pletely new production processes.

Metal science is concerned with research- ing, developing and applying metals from science and engineering perspectives. The field deals with pure metals, such as aluminium, with alloys such as steel and frequently also with metal-like materials and with composites made of metals and non-metals.

The starting point for glass materials (sheet glass, hollow glass, special glass), ceramics (high-performance ceramics such as piezoceramics, silicate ceramics such as porcelain) and bonding agents (cement, lime, plaster) is formed by non- metal, inorganic raw materials. Their respective production, processing and application has thus developed in a wide variety of directions as a consequence of the very special requirements which the electrical industry, for example, demand from ceramic materials, or the optical industry calls for from special glasses.

Plastics technology deals with the produc- tion, processing and application of plastics (including the raw material for rubber – India Rubber) and the machines and equipment involved. The production-ori- ented training is more closely focused on mechanical engineering.

Paper technology covers the fields of cellu- lose and paper manufacturing plus paper processing and the production of packing

materials, involving the monitoring and control of complex chemical-physical proc- esses.

Studies at Universities

Standard period of study: 9 or 10 semes- ters; 6 or 7 semesters for a Bachelor’s degree.

Practical experience/internships:6 months to be completed by the time the pre-Dip- lom exam is taken and 6 months before the final Diplom exam is taken.

Materials Science

Basic study stage: Mathematics, phys- ics, chemistry, physical chemistry, theory of crystal structures, theory of technical design, engineering mechanics and gen- eral materials sciences.

Main study stage: Theoretical, experi- mental and technological aspects of the individual material groups, engineering mechanics, data processing, business administration and management, theory of patent law as well as extension courses in the chosen core study area, such as: General materials engineering and sci- ence, materials science and technology of metals, glass and ceramics, corrosion and surface engineering, plastics and India rubber, paper, electrical engineering, mod- elling and simulation materials.

Studies in stone and earth (non-metallic minerals) materials primarily deal with process engineering and rock and stone metallurgy. Core study areas are solid building materials, bonding agents and ceramics, glass and enamel, refractory building materials. Studies in materials science offer in-depth study in chemical and crystallographic fields.

Degrees:Diplom, Bachelor’s, Master’s.

Metals Science

Basic study stage: Mathematics, physics, chemistry, physical chemistry, crystal- lography, materials science and, in some cases, mechanical engineering and electri- cal engineering.

Main study stage: (The intensity of the studies is weighted take account of the relevant subject focus); Metals science, metals physics, material testing, texture and structure studies/examination, corro- sion, special materials, metallurgy, casting studies, moulding and ductility studies, processing and application of materials, business administration and management.

Programmes in this field

Aachen TH • Augsburg U • Bayreuth U • Berlin FU • Berlin HU • Berlin TU • Bielefeld U • Chemnitz TU • Clausthal TU • Darmstadt TU • Dresden TU • Duisburg-Essen U (Duisburg) • Erlangen-Nürnberg U (Erlangen) • Freiberg TUBergAk • Gießen U • Halle-Wittenberg U • Hamburg-Harburg TU • Ilmenau TU • Jena U • Kaiserslautern TU • Kassel U • Kiel U • Leipzig U • München TU • Saarbrücken U • Stuttgart U • Weimar U • Würzburg U

Studies at Universities of Applied Sciences

Standard period of study: 8 semesters incl. 1 or 2 practical semesters; 6 or 7 semesters for a Bachelor’s degree.

Practical experience/internships: Several weeks of pre-study practical training, depending on previous educational/pro- fessional qualification. During the degree course, practical internships of varying lengths.

Materials Engineering

Basic study stage: Mathematics, physics, chemistry, physical chemistry, materials studies, material testing, metals science, mechanics, material strength and stability studies, electrical engineering, theory of technical design, as well as general educa- tion subjects.

Main study stage: Lectures and practical courses from the following areas: Metals science, metallography, material testing, solid-state physics, fracture mechanics, corrosion, welding technology, plastics chemistry and plastics technology; glass, ceramics and special materials; plus law,

business administration and management, plus other electives; choice of in-depth study in selected fields.

Surface Technology

Basic study stage: as for materials engi- neering.

Main study stage: Corrosion and anti- corrosion measures, electrochemistry, galvanising and electroplating technology, enamelling and coating technology, opera- tional and process engineering, surface technology, sewage technology.

Ceramic and Bonding Agents

Basic study stage: Basic science sub- jects including mineralogy and physical chemistry plus principles of engineering (mechanics, electrical engineering, engi- neering thermodynamics).

Main study stage: Mechanical and ther- mal process engineering plus, in particu- lar, electrical engineering, measurement and (automatic) control engineering, spe- cial ceramics and bonding agent technolo- gies, plus business administration and management.

Glass

Basic study stage: as for ceramics.

Main study stage: Special glass surfaces (silicate chemistry, refractory materials, glass production processes and glass processing machines and systems), plus structural steel engineering and materials handling engineering, work and opera- tions theory (ergonomics), electrical engi- neering and (automatic) control engineer- ing as well as business administration and management subjects.

Paper Technology

Basic study stage: Mathematics, physics, engineering mechanics, technical draw- ing, electrical engineering and chemistry.

Main study stage(divided into two core study areas):

Paper production engineering: Chem- istry for the production of paper and cellulose, analytical chemistry, material testing and measurement engineering, power generating and powered processing machines, paper testing and paper finish- ing/refinement, disposal, data processing and industrial organisation.

Paper processing engineering: Elec- trical engineering, analytical chemistry, plastics chemistry, methods of processing paper and cardboard, material testing and measurement engineering, paper finish- ing/refinement, plastics processing, adhe- sion technology, packaging technology and business administration and management subjects.

Metals Science

Basic study stage: Basic subjects such as mathematics, physics, chemistry, ther- modynamics, materials science, material testing, mechanics, theory of material strength, electrical engineering, produc- tion engineering.

Main study stage: Metals science metallography, material testing, physical chemistry, solid-state physics, corrosion, welding technology and special materials, business administration and management.

Plastics Technology

Basic study stage: Study of mathema tics and scientific foundations, including subjects such as mathematics, physics, chemistry and plastics chemistry, plus machine theory, engineering mechan- ics, theory of material strength, theory of technical design, electrical engineering, process engineering, materials technology and plastics processing technology, pro- gramming and data processing, business administration/management and general education subjects.

Main study stage: Material and plastic testing, structure, properties and chem- istry of polymer materials, modelling polymer properties, plastic recycling, com- pound materials, rheology, electronics, measurement, control and automatic con- trol engineering, electronic data process- ing and computer-aided technical design, power and drive technology, plastics processing and tool-making, process auto- mation, engineering calculus, theory of

design and technical design, electives for in-depth study of individual fields.

Degrees:Diplom, Bachelor’s, Master’s.

Programmes in this field

Aalen FH • Bonn-Rhein-Sieg FH (Rheinbach) • Braunschweig/Wolfenbüttel FH (Wolfsburg) • Darmstadt FH • Frankfurt am Main FH • Gelsenkirchen FH (Recklinghausen) • Gießen-Friedberg FH (Friedberg) • Hof FH • Jena FH • Kaiserslautern FH (Pirmasens) • Koblenz FH

(Höhr-Grenzhausen) • München FH • Nürnberg FH • Osnabrück FH • Reutlingen HS • Rosenheim FH • Südwestfalen FH (Iserlohn) • Würzb.-Schweinf. FH (Würzburg)