An important consideration in higher education is that graduates meet or exceed the program outcomes (POs). While there exists anecdotal evidence that the use of modern tools i.e. computer modelling and simulation, improve attainment of these outcomes, there is little empirical research available. Where empirical evidence is available, the variables considered would almost certainly have a bearing on the outcomes. In this work, the attainment of the POs by undergraduate engineering students in courses with and without the use of modern tools, based on quantitative data, were compared. It was hypothesized that courses using modern tools would lead to better overall attainment of POs, compared to courses not using these tools. As a case study, the PO attainment of students in the Mechanical Engineering undergraduate program at Universiti Teknologi PETRONAS (UTP) was considered. Quantitative data obtained through UTP's outcomebased education (OBE) software was used to assess the overall attainment of the POs for all courses for a cohort of 126 Mechanical Engineering undergraduate students class of 2017. It was found that, for the case study considered, the usage of modern tools has led to slightly better attainment of some POs, with slightly poorer attainment in other POs. Specifically, attainment in POs where the cognitive or the knowledge domain is more dominant improved, as the usage of modern tools helped students to understand theoretical concepts better. Attainment in POs were the affective domain is more dominant recorded a slight decrease, and the incorporation of modern tools did not aid in the attainment of these POs. The study is at a preliminary stage and a more detailed study, involving more cohorts, is planned to establish a correlation (if any) between the use of modern tools in higher education and attainment of POs.
This study focuses the combined effects of halloysite nanotubes and zinc borate in siloxane epoxy base intumescent formulation when used with traditional intumescent ingredients e. g. ammonium polyphosphate, melamine and expandable graphite. Zinc borate was substituted in halloysite nanotube reinforced siloxane epoxy base intumesce fire retardant coatings and their effects on char morphology, char expansion, fire performance and thermal stability were characterized through field emission scanning electron microscopy, bunsen burner fire test and thermogravimetric analysis. During intumescent reaction, polydimethylsiloxane form char residue containing silica on the material surface and zinc borate, an inorganic flame retardant, releases boron oxide (B 2 O 3 ) which effectively contribute to the char formation. Present study suggests that the existing synergism between polydimethylsiloxane and zinc borate is the result of chemical reaction via forming cross-linking B-O-Si structure. At the same time, alumina-siloxane film develops over the external layer of char due to release of alumina from halloysite nanotubes. Consequently, silicon, aluminum and boron elements together contribute to the integrity of char residue layer with better quality, achieving obviously improved flame retardancy compared to previous fire retardant systems.Keywords: Intumescent fire retardant coatings / polydimethylsiloxane / zinc borate / halloysite nanotubes / synergism Schlü sselwö rter: Intumeszente feuerfeste Beschichtungen / Polydimethylsiloxan / Zinkborat / Halloysit-Nanorö hren / Synergie
Metal injection molding (MIM) is a well‐known technique capable to produce micro size electromagnetic components with intricate shape features. Powder loading is a crucial parameter in the metal injection molding process which controls the densification and microstructure of the sintered parts. The lower powder loading leads to various defects and lower densification whereas higher loading results in failure of parts during injection molding. Therefore, it is important to engineer an appropriate powder loading to achieve defect‐free parts along with higher densification and improved microstructure. In this contest, three feedstocks of Fe‐50Ni alloys are prepared with powder loadings of 52 vol.%, 54 vol.% and 57 vol.% and injection molded. After debinding, the parts are sintered at 1325 °C for 2 h. The main objective of this study is to investigate the effect of powder loading on injection molding, densification, and microstructure. In addition, scanning electron microscopy and x‐ray diffraction analysis are performed during the study. The defect‐free green parts are produced successfully from the 52 % and 54 % loading. It has been found that the optimal powder loading of 54 % is the best from the perspective of enhanced densification and improved microstructure to assure the quality parts of Fe‐50Ni alloys via metal injection molding.
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