Course Outline
You are taught primarily through lectures, which are supported by projects, laboratory classes, supervisions and coursework.
In a typical week students attend 10 lectures and have two supervisions. In the first two years there is significant laboratory work, while the amount of project work increases each year.
Assessment is by a combination of written examinations and coursework.
Year 1 (Part IA)
You study:
- Fundamental scientific topics such as cell biology, materials science and engineering principles.
- Introductory chemical engineering and biotechnology principles such as sustainability, process calculations, fluid mechanics, and chemical and biochemical product design.
- Chemistry from Part IA of the Natural Sciences Tripos.
- Mathematics from Part IA of the Natural Sciences Tripos.
You also undertake an engineering design and manufacturing workshop and do the chemistry practical laboratory class from Part IA of the Natural Sciences Tripos.
Year 2 (Part IB)
You study:
- Fundamental principles such as biotechnology, process thermodynamics, fluid mechanics and heat and mass transfer.
- Introductory applications such as reaction engineering, separations and solids processing.
- Supporting topics such as engineering mathematics, data science, and safety principles.
You also take laboratory classes in chemical engineering and biotechnology, undertake assessed exercises, and have classes in computing skills including process simulation.
Year 3 (Part II)
In the first term, you study further applications such as advanced biotechnology, equilibrium thermodynamics, reaction engineering, separation technology and process dynamics and control.
In the second and third terms, you study process design and undertake a design project. This involves working in a team to design a plant making a particular chemical or biological product. You consider all aspects of engineering design including specification of equipment, control procedures, safety, environmental impact and economic assessment.
Year 4 (Part III)
You study some compulsory topics; these are currently energy technology, sustainability and advanced design.
You study research skills and undertake a research project. This might involve experimental, theoretical and/or computational work. Some projects support ongoing Department research, while others are ‘blue sky’ investigations leading to new research programmes.
You choose further topics from a list of optional papers, which changes every year to reflect the research interests of academic staff. Past examples include pharmaceutical engineering, adsorption and nanoporous materials, fluid mechanics and the environment, interface engineering, optical microscopy, biophysics, bionanotechnology, biosensors and bioelectronics, and healthcare biotechnology.
For further information, see the Department of Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology website.
