MENG 4208: Selection of Materials and Processes for Engineering Design

Syllabus for Fall 2023

Instructor: Dr. Mahmoud Farag
email: mmfarag@aucegypt.edu

Catalog Course Description:

Effect of material properties on design. Effect of manufacturing processes on design. Failure and reliability of
components in service. Economics of materials and manufacturing processes. Decision making and the
selection process. Integration of design and economic analysis with materials and process selection. Case
studies. (3 Cr. Hrs.)
Prerequisites: MENG 3209 and 3506

Context for the Course:

Introducing a new engineering product or changing an existing model involves making designs, reaching
economic decisions, selecting materials, and choosing manufacturing processes. These activities are
interdependent and should not be performed in isolation from each other. This is because the materials and
processes used in making the product can have a large influence on its design, cost, and performance in
service. For example, making a part from injection-molded plastics instead of pressed sheet-metal is expected
to involve large changes in design, new production facilities and widely different economic analysis. With the
greater number of engineering materials that are now available and with the increasing pressure to produce
more economic and yet reliable products, there is a growing need for an integrated approach to economic
analysis, design and materials and process selection. The integrated approach makes it easier to achieve the
optimum product that combines the functional requirements with reliability at a competitive cost.

Textbook and References:

Textbook: Materials and Process Selection for Engineering Design, M. Farag, CRC Press, Taylor & Francis Group, FL,
USA, 4rd edition 2021. This book is also available as e-textbook, which you are entitled to download for free.

PP presentation slides: Available on the course Blackboard

Software: The ANSYS-Granta materials selector software is available in the CAD lab and is described briefly in
Sections 9.4.3 and 9.4.5 of the course textbook. Please use it to locate possible materials for your application.

References: Cambridge Materials Selector software is available in the MENG lab.

The AUC library contains many "Source Books" and other specialized texts for use in gaining in-depth
knowledge about a given topic and for supplementary reading. Of special interest is "ASM Handbook Volume 20:
Materials Selection and Design, American Soc. for Metals, 1997".

Course Goal and Objectives:

The goal of this course is to illustrate how the diverse activities involved in product development fit together
in an industrial setting and what sort of tradeoffs can be made in order to arrive at the optimum solution for a
given application.
The main objectives for this course are for the students to have better understanding of:
1. the different activities and considerations involved in product development in industry,
2. causes of failure of products in service and how to avoid, or reduce the probability, of such failures,
3. how material properties and manufacturing processes affect the design,
4. how the cost and environmental considerations affect the product’s design, materials and manufacturing
processes, and
 5. various methods for selecting or substituting materials and processes to achieve a given product goals.

Course Outcomes:
After completing the course, students will be able to:
1. determine the causes of failure of products under common service condition and suggest design,
materials, and process changes to resist such failure,
2. suggest ways of modifying the design of a component to make it more suitable for the material and
manufacturing processes out of which it is made,
3. select the optimum material and manufacturing process for a given component under a set of given
working condition, and
4. recommend a substitute material and/or a process for making a component in order to improve its
performance, cost or other attributes under a given set of service conditions.
5. find relevant information for problem solving from multiple sources (ABET KPI 7.1)
6. find and integrate information from various areas and various sources relevant to the problem solution
with minimum guidance (ABET KPI 7.2)

Course relationship to program objectives:

This senior-year capstone course contributes to the mechanical engineering program objectives as follows:
 explaining how engineering materials, manufacturing processes and economics relate to engineering
design,
 explaining how products are developed in industry starting from the conceptual design and ending with
the finished product,
 training the students to work in teams, and
 training the students to write engineering reflection papers and communicate effectively.

Main Topics to be covered in the course:

1. Introduction: Product design and development in the industrial enterprise, (Chapter 1)
2. Module I: Performance of products in service and suggesting design, materials, and process
changes to resist such failure, (Chapters 2, 3, 4)
3. Module II: Relationship between design, materials, and manufacturing processes, (Chapters 6, 7)
4. Module III: Selection and substitution of materials in industry, (Chapter 8, 9, 10)

Main Features of the Course

MENG 4208 is a capstone course which draws on knowledge acquired in earlier courses, especially, ENGR
2209 and 345/3222, MENG 3207, 3209 and 3506.
In performing the various activities of the course, we will try to get as close as we can to actual industrial
practices. As an engineer, you will be expected to:
1. Writ reports/ reflection papers. Such activity normally includes consulting multiple references to learn
about the issue under discussion, analyzing and diagnosing the problem, critically reading the opinions of
others, expressing your own opinion and thoughts and coming up with solutions and recommendations for
future action.
2. Work in groups. This is emphasized during the group assignments.
3. Use freehand sketching to communicate and illustrate various ideas and concepts to others. This is
emphasized in classwork and assignments.
4. Take decisions under ambiguous circumstances and make reasonable assumptions to compensate
for missing information and data. This is emphasized in course assignments and final group project.
5. Select a course of action or a solution taking into account social, environmental and ethical
considerations. This is emphasized in reflection papers and group assignments.
6. Communicate your ideas and inform others about a product or an issue of mutual concern. This is
emphasized in infographics that are part of many of assignments in the course.

Course Delivery
Active learning approach is adopted in this course, thus allowing students to actively engage with the
course material during class time through discussions, problem solving, group projects and case studies. To
be able to fully participate in these activities, students need to complete the assigned readings before
coming to class. This will be measured occasionally by short quizzes.
Grading System

A 83 and above A- 80 and above

B+ 77 and above B 73 and above B- 70 and above
C+ 67 and above C 63 and above C- 60 and above
D+ 57 and above D 53 and above D- 50 and above
F Below 50

Grade Distribution

Grade I: Attendance, preparedness and participation in class discussions and quizzes 20%
Grade II: Three Group Assignments, follow the guidelines for group assignments. 15%
Grade III: Three Individual Assignments 15%
Grade IV: Three Reflection Papers, refer to the guidelines for writing reflections papers 30%
Grade V: Final Group Project 20%

Course Policies
1. Class Participation: Participation is an important aspect of this course. To be able to effectively
participate in class discussion, you need to have read the required material as described in the
course schedule and announced in the class. In view of the nature of this course, you need come
to class with the necessary writing material.
2. Attendance, absences, and being late: Students are highly encouraged to attend all classes, as
regular class attendance can significantly help them do better in the course. A student is not
allowed to miss more than six classes without severe consequences, up to and including, failing
the course. Also, missing more than 10 minutes of a class counts as half of an absence and
missing more than 30 minutes of a class counts as a full absence.
3. Electronic devices and smart phones: Unless required by an assignment, the use of electronic
devices and smart phones is not permitted in class.
4. Submission of assignments: An electronic copy of assignments must be submitted on Turnitin
with a maximum similarity of less than 20% on the assignment due date. Persistent late
submission of assignments, projects, and reflection papers could result in reduced grades.
5. Use of AI tools:
AUC’s Statement on the Use of Artificial Intelligence Tools
https://www.aucegypt.edu/about/leadership/provost/use-of-artificial-intelligence-tools

Use of AI tools
• If you use any of the AI tools to help with your assignments, you must clearly acknowledge their use and
state how you used them. You could follow the MLA Style, as shown by the examples in:
https://style.mla.org/citing-generative-ai/
• You must also check and check again everything that AI says.
• No AI-generated text should be used verbatim to avoid the risk of plagiarism, and it is your responsibility
to check the correctness of the submission and verify all sources.

6. Plagiarism: Use your own words and create your own infographic. Copying ready-made
infographic is plagiarizing.
7. Academic integrity: The University's Code of Academic Integrity outlined herein will be
enforced: http://in.aucegypt.edu/auc-academics/academic-integrity/codeacademic-integrity.
8. Disability accommodation: Student with a proven special need should submit official
documents to that effect from the Student Well-being Department at the earliest possible
opportunity.