Overview
ENEG11008: Materials for Engineers introduces you to the essential knowledge of materials science and the ways in which engineers understand, select and use materials and processes for engineering applications. In this unit, you will gain knowledge of engineering materials, microstructure and its effect on the material properties. You will learn how to identify and explain the properties of engineering materials and processes and how to classify these materials. You will also learn how to select engineering materials and processes for engineering applications, as well as to conduct material tests and report on their results. Throughout this unit, you will develop teamwork, research and communication skills. In this unit, you must complete compulsory practical activities. Refer to the Engineering Undergraduate Course Moodle site for proposed dates.
Details
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites
There are no requisites for this unit.
Important note: Students enrolled in a subsequent unit who failed their pre-requisite unit, should drop the subsequent unit before the census date or within 10 working days of Fail grade notification. Students who do not drop the unit in this timeframe cannot later drop the unit without academic and financial liability. See details in the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).
Offerings For Term 1 - 2025
Attendance Requirements
All on-campus students are expected to attend scheduled classes - in some units, these classes are identified as a mandatory (pass/fail) component and attendance is compulsory. International students, on a student visa, must maintain a full time study load and meet both attendance and academic progress requirements in each study period (satisfactory attendance for International students is defined as maintaining at least an 80% attendance record).
Recommended Student Time Commitment
Each 6-credit Undergraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 12.5 hours of study per week, making a total of 150 hours for the unit.
Class Timetable
Assessment Overview
Assessment Grading
This is a graded unit: your overall grade will be calculated from the marks or grades for each assessment task, based on the relative weightings shown in the table above. You must obtain an overall mark for the unit of at least 50%, or an overall grade of 'pass' in order to pass the unit. If any 'pass/fail' tasks are shown in the table above they must also be completed successfully ('pass' grade). You must also meet any minimum mark requirements specified for a particular assessment task, as detailed in the 'assessment task' section (note that in some instances, the minimum mark for a task may be greater than 50%). Consult the University's Grades and Results Policy for more details of interim results and final grades.
All University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
You may wish to view these policies:
- Grades and Results Policy
- Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework)
- Review of Grade Procedure
- Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure - Domestic Students
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure - International Students
- Student Refund and Credit Balance Policy and Procedure
- Student Feedback - Compliments and Complaints Policy and Procedure
- Information and Communications Technology Acceptable Use Policy and Procedure
This list is not an exhaustive list of all University policies. The full list of University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
Feedback, Recommendations and Responses
Every unit is reviewed for enhancement each year. At the most recent review, the following staff and student feedback items were identified and recommendations were made.
Feedback from SUTE unit comments report and self-observation
Technical issues associated with ISL arose early weeks of the term.
The unit coordinator should arrange testing sessions with Teaching Technology Support before the term starts. Each local lecturer should be assigned as a co-host to address issues without disrupting the central delivery.
Feedback from SUTE unit comments report and self-observation
The delivery of its residential school component was inconsistent across campuses due to staffing and equipment.
Students should be provided with more flexible options. Residential school activities will be arranged based on local specialties.
Feedback from SUTE unit comments report
Students commented on calculation questions which were pushed to tutorial classes, instead of discussing them in detail during lectures.
The unit coordinator should provide one sample calculation question while ensuring local lecturers cover multiple examples for a firm understanding.
- Define the atomic and microstructure of engineering materials and their relationship to physical behaviour
- Classify engineering materials into metals, ceramics, polymers and composites
- Characterise materials for mechanical properties based on Australian Standards and ASTM methods
- Explain the role of mechanical, electrical, optical and thermal properties of materials in engineering
- Apply the frameworks used to select materials for engineering applications.
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
| Assessment Tasks | Learning Outcomes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
| 1 - Online Quiz(zes) - 20% | |||||
| 2 - Written Assessment - 25% | |||||
| 3 - Practical and Written Assessment - 20% | |||||
| 4 - Online Test - 35% | |||||
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
| Graduate Attributes | Learning Outcomes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
| 1 - Communication | |||||
| 2 - Problem Solving | |||||
| 3 - Critical Thinking | |||||
| 4 - Information Literacy | |||||
| 5 - Team Work | |||||
| 6 - Information Technology Competence | |||||
| 7 - Cross Cultural Competence | |||||
| 8 - Ethical practice | |||||
| 9 - Social Innovation | |||||
| 10 - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultures | |||||
Textbooks
Callister Materials Science and Engineering: An Introduction
1st ANZ Edition (2019)
Authors: Blicblau, Bruggeman, etc.
John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 9780730382836
Binding: Paperback
IT Resources
- CQUniversity Student Email
- Internet
- Unit Website (Moodle)
All submissions for this unit must use the referencing style: Harvard (author-date)
For further information, see the Assessment Tasks.
j.sul@cqu.edu.au
Module/Topic
Week 1: Introduction to the Unit & Introduction to Materials Science and Engineering
Chapter
Callister's Chapter 1: 1.2-1.6 & Chapter 6: 6.1-6.2
Events and Submissions/Topic
1. Review lecture slides
2. Review lecture slides and read recommended chapters (1.2 ~ 1.6 & 6.1~6.2)
3. On-campus students: Don’t forget to attend the tutorial with a laptop or tablet PC
4. Mix students: Attempt each tutorial before the ZOOM tutorial session through the link in Moodle.
5. Choose your preferred group for the residential school by 21 March 2025.
Module/Topic
Week 2: Mechanical Properties of Engineering Materials
Chapter
Chapter 6: 6.3, 6.5-6.7 & 6.10
Events and Submissions/Topic
1. Review lecture slides
2. Read the recommended chapters (Chapter 6: 6.3, 6.5-6.7 & 6.10).
3. On-campus students: Don’t forget to attend the tutorial with a laptop or tablet PC
4. Mix students: Attempt each tutorial before the ZOOM tutorial session through the link in Moodle.
Module/Topic
Week 3: Failure of Engineering Materials
Chapter
Chapters 8: 8.1-8.6
Events and Submissions/Topic
1. Review lecture slides
2. Read the recommended chapters (Chapters 8: 8.1-8.6)
3. Review lab documents and other related materials.
4. On-campus students: Don’t forget to attend the tutorial with a laptop or tablet PC
5. Mix students: Attempt each tutorial before the ZOOM tutorial session through the link in Moodle.
6. Select your residential school group
Module/Topic
Week 4: Principles of Material Selection, Material Selection
Process
Chapter
Chapter 5 of Materials Selection in Mechanical Design by M. Ashby
Events and Submissions/Topic
1. Review lecture slides
2. Read the recommended chapters (Chapter 5 of Materials Selection in Mechanical Design by M. Ashby)
3. Review the lab documents and the materials selection assignment document.
4. No tutorial classes due to the residential school.
Residential School and Presentation Due: Week 4 Friday (4 Apr 2025) 11:59 pm AEST
Module/Topic
Week 5: Microstructure of Materials
Chapter
Chapters 3: 3.1 - 3.5, 3.7 & 3.13 - 3.15
Events and Submissions/Topic
1. Review lecture slides
2. Read recommended chapters (Chapters 3: 3.1 - 3.5, 3.7 & 3.13 - 3.15)
3. On-campus students: Don’t forget to attend the tutorial with a laptop or tablet PC
4. Mix students: Attempt each tutorial before the ZOOM tutorial session through the link in Moodle.
5. Review Week 4 tutorial (consult your lecturer about your idea / topic for the materials selection process assessment if needed).
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Week 6: Imperfection and Dislocations of Metals
Chapter
Chapters 4: 4.1 - 4.5 & 7: 7.1 - 7.6
Events and Submissions/Topic
1. Review lecture slides
2. Read recommended chapters (Chapters 4: 4.1 - 4.5 & 7: 7.1 - 7.6)
3. On-campus students: Don’t forget to attend the tutorial with a laptop or tablet PC
4. Mix students: Attempt each tutorial before the ZOOM tutorial session through the link in Moodle.
Module/Topic
Week 7: Strengthening Mechanism of Metals and Diffusion in Solids
Chapter
Chapter 5: 5.1 - 5.3 & 5.5 and Chapter 7: 7.8 - 7.13
Events and Submissions/Topic
1. Review lecture slides
2. Read recommended chapters (Chapter 5: 5.1 - 5.3 & 5.5 and Chapter 7: 7.8 - 7.13)
3. On-campus students: Don’t forget to attend the tutorial with a laptop or tablet PC
4. Mix students: Attempt each tutorial before the ZOOM tutorial session through the link in Moodle.
Module/Topic
Week 8: Phase Diagram, Phase Transformation and Metal Alloys
Chapter
Chapter 9: 9.1 - 9.13 & 9.18, Chapter 10: 10.5 & 10.7 & Chapter 11: 11.1 - 11.3
Events and Submissions/Topic
1. Review lecture slides
2. Read recommended chapters (Chapter 9: 9.1 - 9.13 & 9.18, Chapter 10: 10.5 & 10.7 & Chapter 11: 11.1 - 11.3)
3. On-campus students: Don’t forget to attend the tutorial with a laptop or tablet PC
4. Mix students: Attempt each tutorial before the ZOOM tutorial session through the link in Moodle.
Module/Topic
Week 9: Thermal and Electrical Properties of Engineering
Materials
Chapter
Chapters 18: 18.2, 18.3, 18.7, 18.8, 18.11, 18.13, 18.15, 18.18 & 19.1 - 19.5
Events and Submissions/Topic
1. Review lecture slides
2. Read recommended chapters (Chapters 18: 18.2, 18.3, 18.7, 18.8, 18.11, 18.13, 18.15, 18.18 & Chapters 19: 19.1 - 19.5)
3. On-campus students: Don’t forget to attend the tutorial with a laptop or tablet PC
4. Mix students: Attempt each tutorial before the ZOOM tutorial session through the link in Moodle.
Material Selection Process Assignment Due: Week 9 Monday (12 May 2025) 11:59 pm AEST
Module/Topic
Week 10: Non-metallic Materials – Ceramics, Polymers and Composites
Chapter
Chapters 12: 12.1, 12..2, 12.4, 12.5 & 14.1, 14.2, 14.3, 14.6, 14.7, 14.9, & 15.2, 15.12, 15.13 & 16.1, 16.5
Events and Submissions/Topic
1. Review lecture slides
2. Read recommended chapters (Chapters 12: 12.1, 12.2, 12.4, 12.5 & 14.1, 14.2, 14.3, 14.6, 14.7, 14.9, & 15.2, 15.12, 15.13 & 16.1, 16.5)
3. On-campus students: Don’t forget to attend the tutorial with a laptop or tablet PC
4. Mix students: Attempt each tutorial before the ZOOM tutorial session through the link in Moodle.
Module/Topic
Week 11: Guest lecture
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
1. On-campus students: Don’t forget to attend the tutorial with a laptop or tablet PC
2. Mix students: Attempt each tutorial before the ZOOM tutorial session through the link in Moodle.
Module/Topic
Revision for the End-of-term Online Test
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
1. Read recommended chapters (Chapters 17: 17.2-17.10).
2. On-campus students: Don’t forget to attend the tutorial with a laptop or tablet PC
3. Mix students: Attempt each tutorial before the ZOOM tutorial session through the link in Moodle.
Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Module/Topic
Exam week
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Attempt the end-of-term online test (Duration 3h) as scheduled (TBA). Only one attempt is allowed.
1 Online Quiz(zes)
1. Tri-weekly online quizzes - You will be given a set of questions in Weeks 3, 6, 9 and 12 (Weighting: 20%)
2. You will be able to check your marks immediately after the deadline has passed.
3. The total marks of each online quiz will be scaled to out of 5 marks for the unit total.
4. A 50% minimum mark is applied to this section to pass the unit.
Quiz 1 contains the lecture materials in Weeks 1, 2 and 3 (Tutorial#1-3).
Quiz 2 contains the lecture materials in Weeks 3-6 (Tutorial#3-5).
Quiz 3 contains the lecture materials in Weeks 7-9 (Tutorial#6-8).
Quiz 4 contains the lecture materials in Weeks 10~11 (Tutorial#9~12).
4
Other
The due date of each quiz is the Wednesday week after. Quiz #1 (Week 4), Quiz #2 (Week 7), Quiz 3 (Week 10). Quiz (Review Week)
-
Numerical answers must be entered to 3 significant figures, and there is no harm in entering answers to 4 significant figures. An answer of 0.1467 has 4 significant figures.
-
Choose your answer and select 'NEXT PAGE' to move to the next question or use the 'QUIZ NAVIGATION' block on the left to navigate the questions.
-
For a drag-and-drop question, make sure you place a target icon ( ) in the intended area.
-
Use '^' when you present an exponent for units. For example, when presenting 'g/cm3', you can type 'g/cm^3'.
-
Use 'E-notation' when you present an exponent for numbers. For example, when presenting 10-7, you can type '1E-7'.
- Define the atomic and microstructure of engineering materials and their relationship to physical behaviour
- Classify engineering materials into metals, ceramics, polymers and composites
2 Practical and Written Assessment
Residential school and presentation (20% weighting) - During the residential school
You will form a group of 5, conduct labs, prepare for presentation, and give a presentation as a group during the residential school. It is a two-day residential school to be held on 1-2 April 2025, Week 4. By the end of the residential school, you should have completed the following items:
a. Conduct a minimum of two labs (group)
b. Analysis of raw data from the laboratory activities (group)
c. Presentation of your lab, data, and findings in relation to the real-life applications (group)
Week 4 Friday (4 Apr 2025) 11:59 pm AEST
Students are required to upload their presentation slides.
Week 5 Friday (11 Apr 2025)
Students can see feedback from the submission link.
| Assessed item | Excellent (100%) | Good (75%) | Satisfactory (50%) | Poor (25%) |
| Visual aids – Legibility of text, quality and relevance of figures, visual impact (30%) |
Information is clear and concise on each slide. No error in spelling. Highly visually appealing and engaging. |
There are minor errors in spelling, grammar, and punctuation. Too much information on one or more slides. Visually appealing |
No use of visual aids. There are errors in spelling, grammar, and punctuation. Too much information on many slides. |
Not visually appealing. Slides are difficult to read and understand or contained with too much information that is simply copied. There are many errors in spelling, grammar, and punctuation. |
| Presentation skills / Preparation / Group dynamics (30%) |
All presenters participated equally and assisted each other as needed. Very well prepared and rehearsed. Appropriate speaking volume, eye contact and body language. Pace and time management |
A high level of imbalance in participation of all presenters while all contributed. Well prepared. Audience engagement is not at the high level. |
Obvious domination or minimal contribution by no more than one team member. Presentation is inconsistently formatted. Prepared but with some dependence on reading off slides/notes. |
Unbalanced presentation or tension within the team. Not all team members participating. Clear lack of preparation / rehearsal. The audience not engaged at all. Most presenters speak too quickly and/or quietly. Bad pace and time management. |
| Content, comprehension, and depth of coverage (40%) |
Topic summarised well with all aspects addressed. Extensive knowledge of topic. Members show a good understanding of the assessment. Questions asked are handled well by all members. |
A good summary of the activity, analysis, and findings is given but with a certain degree of irrelevance. | The presentation is informative but mostly superficial in its coverage. Only two of three components (labs, analysis, and findings) are presented. |
The team did not understand the aim of the work. Only one of three components (labs, analysis, and findings) is presented. Irrelevant and incorrect information is provided. |
- Define the atomic and microstructure of engineering materials and their relationship to physical behaviour
- Characterise materials for mechanical properties based on Australian Standards and ASTM methods
3 Written Assessment
Material Selection Process Assignment (25%)
With the completion of this assignment, you are expected to achieve the following learning outcomes.
1. Research and apply engineering standards, practices and materials optimization and constraints
2. Work individually to produce quality outputs
Your task is to analyse an engineering product/application of your interest and suggest alternative material(s) to improve its design for any purpose (e.g. process and/or manufacturing cost, performance, better user and environmental friendliness, improved safety, improved operating conditions, etc.).
Week 9 Monday (12 May 2025) 11:59 pm AEST
Week 11 Friday (30 May 2025)
Students can see feedback from the submission link via Turnitin Feedback studio and annotated PDF.
| Bad – 0 % | Average – 33 % | Good – 67% | Excellent – 100% | |
| Part A: Task 1 (5%) – Title of the project | No title given | The title of the project is given, but there is no clue about what it is. | Its title is given but it is very brief about what the product / application itself. | Its title indicates the product / application and what to have improved. |
| Part A: Task 2 (5%) – What does this product do? What is the issue with it, and is this issue solvable by changing its material? | Poorly answered these three questions. | Two of three questions are not answered clearly. e.g. what it does is clear, but its issue doesn't seem relevant to its role / function and/or its issue doesn't seem explained in a way that it can be solved by changing its material. | One of three questions are not answered clearly and doesn't link these three answered cohesively. | All three questions are answered well. Its role / function is well defined, its issue is well defined in a way that it interrupts its function / role. It explains that its material change can solve its issue defined. |
| Part A: Task 3 (7%) – What is the current material? Which properties make it current material most suitable for this product? | Only its current material is answered. | Its current material is well defined but only secondary properties are discussed. (e.g. only good Young's modulus and tensile strength of steel are discussed for a toecap shoe when key properties required are impact strength and compressive strength). | Its current material is well defined and its key (primary) properties are discussed. However, secondary properties are not discussed. (e.g. good impact and compressive strength of steel are discussed for a toecap material while other good aspects are not discussed.) | All three aspects are well defined, including its current material, primary and secondary properties. |
| Part A: Task 4 (5%) – Is the current material environmentally friendly? What is the cost of the current material? | Only one of two questions is answered. | All two questions are answered, but the environmental aspects are discussed from only one angle (e.g. only its recyclability is discussed.) | All two questions are answered, but only two environmental aspects are discussed. | All two questions are answered and various environmental and cost aspects are discussed, including recyclability, production cost, production energy, natural sources, etc.) |
| Part B: Task 3 (10%) – Ranking stage | No attempt | Unclear what processes / procedures were taken to rank the short-listed materials. | Attempts are shown to rank the shortlisted materials based on the answer in Task 7 in Part A, but not fully utilised. | Attempts are shown to rank the shortlisted materials based on the answer in Task 7 in Part A with proper demonstrations. |
| Part B: Task 4 (10%) – Supporting information | No attempt | Further research is given to justify the result from Part B: Task 3 but irrelevant. | Further research is given to justify the result from Part B: Task 3 but not all aspects are discussed properly. | Further research is given to justify the result from Part B: Task 3 and all aspects are discussed properly with information on typical uses, environment aspects, sources, reviews on the top ranked materials. |
| Part B: Task 5 (5%) – What could be the major obstacles in improving this product? How would you avoid it? | No attempt | Obstacles are defined after implementing the change, but no justification. | Obstacles are defined after implementing the change, but with irrelevant justifications and/or descriptions. | Obstacles are well defined after implementing the change with relevant justifications and/or descriptions. |
| Part B: Task 6 (10%) – Final check | No attempt | Few questions are answered, but not related to what have been discussed or justification. | All questions are answered but only some of them are based on what have been defined and discussed. | All six questions are answered well based on what have been discussed and with evidence if not discussed earlier. |
- Explain the role of mechanical, electrical, optical and thermal properties of materials in engineering
- Apply the frameworks used to select materials for engineering applications.
4 Online Test
End of Term Online Test
1. The total marks of this online test will be scaled to out of 35 marks for the unit total.
2. Attend the online test (Duration 3h) as scheduled (TBA). Only 1 attempt is allowed.
TBA
TBA
- Numerical answers must be entered to 3 significant figures, and there is no harm in entering answers to 4 significant figures. An answer of 0.1467 has 4 significant figures.
- Choose your answer and select 'NEXT PAGE' to move to the next question or use the 'QUIZ NAVIGATION' block on the right to navigate the questions.
- Use '^' when you present an exponent for units. For example, when presenting 'g/cm3', you can type 'g/cm^3'.
- Use 'E-notation' when you present an exponent for numbers. For example, when presenting 10-7, you can type '1E-7'.
- Classify engineering materials into metals, ceramics, polymers and composites
- Characterise materials for mechanical properties based on Australian Standards and ASTM methods
- Explain the role of mechanical, electrical, optical and thermal properties of materials in engineering
- Apply the frameworks used to select materials for engineering applications.
As a CQUniversity student you are expected to act honestly in all aspects of your academic work.
Any assessable work undertaken or submitted for review or assessment must be your own work. Assessable work is any type of work you do to meet the assessment requirements in the unit, including draft work submitted for review and feedback and final work to be assessed.
When you use the ideas, words or data of others in your assessment, you must thoroughly and clearly acknowledge the source of this information by using the correct referencing style for your unit. Using others’ work without proper acknowledgement may be considered a form of intellectual dishonesty.
Participating honestly, respectfully, responsibly, and fairly in your university study ensures the CQUniversity qualification you earn will be valued as a true indication of your individual academic achievement and will continue to receive the respect and recognition it deserves.
As a student, you are responsible for reading and following CQUniversity’s policies, including the Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure. This policy sets out CQUniversity’s expectations of you to act with integrity, examples of academic integrity breaches to avoid, the processes used to address alleged breaches of academic integrity, and potential penalties.
What is a breach of academic integrity?
A breach of academic integrity includes but is not limited to plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion, cheating, contract cheating, and academic misconduct. The Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure defines what these terms mean and gives examples.
Why is academic integrity important?
A breach of academic integrity may result in one or more penalties, including suspension or even expulsion from the University. It can also have negative implications for student visas and future enrolment at CQUniversity or elsewhere. Students who engage in contract cheating also risk being blackmailed by contract cheating services.
Where can I get assistance?
For academic advice and guidance, the Academic Learning Centre (ALC) can support you in becoming confident in completing assessments with integrity and of high standard.
What can you do to act with integrity?
