ENSC 20161

Course Assignment 02
ATOMS AND IONS

1. Why is it important to consider the structure of a material while designing and fabricating
engineering components?
2. What is the type of bonding in diamond? Are the properties of diamond commensurate with the
nature of bonding?
3. The periodic table of elements can help us better rationalize trends in properties of elements
and compounds based on elements from different groups. Search the literature and obtain the
coefficients of thermal expansion of elements from Group 4B. Establish a trend and see if it
correlates with the melting temperatures and other properties (e.g., bandgap) of these
elements.
4. Turbine blades used in jet engines can be made from such materials as nickel-based superalloys.
We can, in principle, even use ceramic materials such as zirconia or other alloys based on steels.
In some cases, the blades also may have to be coated with a thermal barrier coating (TBC) to
minimize exposure of the blade material to high temperatures. What design parameters would
you consider in selecting a material for the turbine blade and for the coating that would work
successfully in a turbine engine? Note that different parts of the engine are exposed to different
temperatures, and not all blades are exposed to relatively high operating temperatures. What
problems might occur? Consider the factors such as temperature and humidity in the
environment in which the turbine blades must function.
5. You want to design a material for making kitchen utensils for cooking. The material should be
transparent and withstand repeated heating and cooling. What kind of materials could be used
to design such transparent and durable kitchenware?
6. You wish to attach aluminum sheets to the frame of the twenty fourth floor of a skyscraper. You
plan to use rivets made of an age hardenable aluminum, but the rivets must be soft and ductile
to close. After the sheets are attached, the rivets must be very strong. Design a method for
producing, using, and strengthening the rivets.
7. A good classification looks simple—think, for instance, of the Periodic Table of the elements.
Creating it in the first place, however, is another matter. This lecture introduced classification
schemes that work, meaning that every member of the scheme has a unique place in it, and any
new member can be inserted into its proper position without disrupting the whole. Try one for
yourself. Here are some scenarios. Make sure that each level of the hierarchy properly contains
all those below it. There may be more than one way to do this, but one is usually better than the
others. Test it by thinking how you would use it to find the information you want.
a. You run a bike shop that stocks bikes of many types, prices, and sizes. You need a
classification system to allow customers to look up your bikes on the internet. How
would you do it?
b. You are asked to organize the inventory of fasteners in your company. There are several
types (snap, screw, rivet) and, within each, a range of materials and sizes. Devise a
classification scheme to store information about them.
8. (a) Can fully cured Bakelite be ground up and reused? Explain. (b) Can polyethylene be ground
up and reused? Explain.
9. Fick’s Second Law of Diffusion relates the change in concentration of a diffusing species with
time to the diffusion coefficient and the concentration gradient for non-steady-state diffusion:

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ENSC 20161
Course Assignment 02
ATOMS AND IONS

𝜕𝑐𝐴 𝜕 2 𝑐𝐴
=𝐷
𝜕𝑡 𝜕𝑥 2
The solution to this partial differential equation depends upon geometry, which imposes certain
boundary conditions. Look up the solution to this equation for a semi-infinite solid in which the
surface concentration is held constant, and the diffusion coefficient is assumed to be constant.
The solution should contain the error function. Report the following: the boundary conditions,
the resulting equation, and a table of the error function.
10. (a) Describe the problems associated with metal impurities in silicon devices. (b) What are the
processes involved in the removal of metal impurities from silicon devices by gettering?

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