Incorporation of Data Analysis Throughout the ChE Curriculum Made Easy with DataFit

Authors

  • James R. Brenner Florida Institute of Technology

Abstract

At Florida Tech, we have incorporated DataFit from Oakdale Engineering[1] throughout the entire curriculum, beginning with ChE 1102, an eight-week, one-day-per-week, two-hour, one-credit-hour, second-semester Introduction to Chemical Engineering course in a hands-on computer classroom.[2] Our experience is that students retain data analysis concepts when such concepts are formally taught to them in ChE 1102 and then periodically reinforced throughout their academic careers. This paper outlines examples of several problems that have been included in my senior and graduate courses, including heat of absorption of hydrogen into a metal hydride, particle size distributions, and reaction rate law analysis. All Excel and DataFit files are available at http://my.fit.edu/~jbrenner/datafitanalysispaper2.zip.

Author Biography

James R. Brenner, Florida Institute of Technology

James R. Brenner received his B.S. degree from the University of Delaware and M.S. and Ph.D. degrees from the University of Michigan. Dr. Brenner is an assistant professor at the Florida Institute of Technology, where he teaches an Intro to ChE course, materials science and engineering lecture and lab, petroleum processing, materials characterization, and nanotechnology. His research interests are in hydrogen purification and sensing, electronic noses, and nanoporous materials.

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Published

2007-09-01

Issue

Vol. 41 No. 4 (2007): Fall 2007

Section

Class and Home Problems