Course Contents This course is an introduction to the most common characterization tools to gather crucial structural and property information of
materials and components. The focus is on knowing about several possible characterisation methods and their underlying
principles of measurement as well as the strategies to extract the most relevant information from the tests for the purpose in
mind. The characterisation techniques will be taught by various experts in each field. The methods to covered in this course are
classified as follows:
1. Imaging of material structures and surfaces (microscopy, confocal, SEM, EDS)
2. Chemical analysis of polymers (FTIR, Raman spectroscopy, contact angle)
3. Structural characterisation (XRD, NMR)
4. Surface analysis of materials (XPS, AES, AFM)
5. Electrical and electrochemical characterisation of metals and ceramics (Electrochemical Impedance Spectroscopy, dielectrics)
6. Thermomechanical analysis of polymers (DSC, TGA, DMA/Rheology)
7. Mechanical characterization
Study Goals Aim of the course is to provide (aerospace, mechanical, maritime) engineering students with adequate skills and knowledge such
that later in their technical careers they can handle materials performance issue in which it is important to clarify the material
characteristics such as to link actual material performance to its microstructure. Such knowledge and skills are important in case
of premature failure or degradation or in sub-or above standard material performance.
To this aim:
- Students will get familiar with the underlying principles of measurement of principal materials characterisation techniques.
- Students will be able to analyse and interpret data from each characterisation technique.
- Students will be able to select the right characterisation techniques to correlate structure and property relationships over a wide
range of engineering materials.
