Year: 2020
Type: conference-paper
Abstract: Materials programs have followed trends in cost reduction by closing foundries and other expensive facilities.They have also oriented curricula to popular topics such as composites and MEMS.When partnered with other disciplines, materials curricula are even further pressured to effectively match resources to that discipline's vision.At the Central Washington University, Cast Metals is part of the Industrial Technology Program, and has some shared courses with Mechanical Engineering Technology (MET).With support from the Foundry Educational Foundation, and a majority of students from the MET Program, the foundry is a small but viable resource.In an attempt to utilize this resource more, it was decided to use the foundry to support MET labs.On example is the use of SOLIDCast™ in a Heat Transfer lab.The MET Program has outcomes which stress conceptual and applied knowledge and skills.Experiments exist that guide students through predictions and experimental verification of simple transient heat conduction.Numerical analysis enables a greater depth and realism in this process.Instead of a prediction of temperature at a point, gradients can be discussed, illustrated and applied.At a cost of a few hundred dollars per year, a basic solidification tool can support a core MET course.Students showed great interest in the software, and the use of the software increased.This addressed specific program outcomes.Lab reports (the most relevant evidence) had greater scope as measured by a created metric.An added benefit was an increased use of the foundry and interaction between the programs.
DOI: 10.18260/1-2--550
Authors: Craig Johnson, Joe Fuerte, James Protzeller
Institution: Central Washington University
Language: English
Subfield: Education
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: bronze
Funder: Central Washington University
OpenAlex ID: W2624292131