Teaching Chemical Engineering Thermodynamics at Three Levels— Experience From The Technical University Of Denmark (DTU)

Abstract

According to so-called “Bologna model,” many technical universities in Europe have divided their educations into separate 3-year Bachelor and 2-year Master programs (followed by an optional Ph.D. study). Following the “Bologna model,” DTU has recently transformed its 5-year engineering education into a 3-year Bachelor (B.Sc.) and a two-year Master (M.Sc.) program. Master graduates, who are interested and have achieved a good average grade, are in principle qualified for a 3-year PhD. In addition to the above, DTU has a 3.5-year industrial Bachelor education (“diplom” or B.Eng.), which directly qualifies its graduates for an industrial career. In all of these educations there are studies in Applied Chemistry and Chemical Engineering. Four different courses on chemical engineering thermodynamics are provided at the four levels mentioned above, thus satisfying the different needs of these educations. This manuscript discusses the different roles, context, teaching objectives, and educational methods used in the various courses. Examples are provided for all courses, with emphasis on the different types of exercises used. Finally, the suitability of textbooks in thermodynamics for these courses is also discussed.