Use the Tab and Up, Down arrow keys to select menu items.
Introduction to engineering materials. Materials science. Metals, granular materials, asphalt, concrete, masonry, timber, plastics/ceramics. Sustainability issues and material selection.
This course provides an introduction to the fundamental nature of civil engineering materials, including: composition, physical properties, the relationship between microstructure characteristics and macrostructure performance, their manufacture and utilization.
At the conclusion of this course you should be able to:- Understand the primary components of materials (wood, concrete, steel aggregates, asphalt) and the methods and implications of materials production. (Washington Accord WA1, WA4) (UC EIE3, GA2)- Describe how the micro structure of the material affects the macro structural behaviour. (Washington Accord WA1), (UC EIE3)- Explain and compare when and how the various individual materials are used in civil engineering applications, including historical, cultural, durability and environmental aspects. (Washington Accord WA7), (UC EIE 2, BCC 3), (UC EIE 2, BCC 3)- Design a concrete mixture suitable for various applications considering both durability and loading requirements. (Washington Accord WA2), (UC EIE 3).- Design an asphalt mix by Marshall Method: Mix design objectives and optimum bitumen content determination. (Washington Accord WA2), (UC EIE 3))
Subject to approval of the Dean of Engineering and Forestry
Students must attend one activity from each section.
Allan Scott
Derek Warner , Mofreh Saleh , Frances Charters and Alison Griffith
Module quizzes: The course is divided into 7 different modules covering various aspects of materials commonly used in civil engineering. The understanding from each module will be evaluated through a series of short questions such as multiple-choice, which covers the information considered to be essential in each module. The quizzes will be typically offered in online mode which must be taken on the day assigned by the lecturer. Details and timing of the quizzes will be provided by the lecturer. There will be 7 independent quizzes in total. The top 6 will contribute 4% each to your final mark. You can drop one quiz. If you cannot attend or miss a quiz you will not be offered a resit. A standard quiz might have a number of questions and you will be given a time limit to complete the quiz once you open it in your computer. The exact nature of the quiz might very from module to module.Mid-Term Exam: The mid-term exam will cover the first 4 modules of the course. The date and time of the mid-term will be provided.Final Exam: The final exam will focus on the last 3 modules but will also include material covered cover in the first 4 modules of the course. There may be some short answer, calculation or essay questions. More information will be provided.Tutorials: You may be given problems to solve in the tutorials and outside of class to complete as part of the course. The tutorials are intended to reinforce important concepts in the course and help you prepare for the quizzes and exam. The tutorials will not be directly assessed but it is import you complete them to aid in your understanding of the course. Note: Tutorials for the flipped portion of the course (modules 5 and 6) will be assessed and you will be required to attend the tutorials to complete and submit your work.Final Exam: The final exam will cover the entire course. There may be some short answer, calculation or essay. More information will be provided.Tutorials: You may be given problems to solve in the tutorials and outside of class to complete as part of the course. The tutorials are intented to reinforce important concepts in the course and help you prepare for the quizzes and exam. The tutorials will not be directly assessed but it is import you complete them to aid in your understanding of the course.Note: Tutorials for the flipped portion of the course (modules 5 and 6) will be assessed and you will be required to attend the tutorials to complete and submit your work.Students must work independently during the exam. They are NOT allowed to use any book, notes, and online resources during the exam or quizzes unless explicity stated. Breaching this rule will cause the student to fail the entire course.
Callister, William D. , Rethwisch, David G; Materials science and engineering : an introduction ; 9th edition ; John Wiley and Sons, Inc., 2014.
Mamlouk, Michael S. , Zaniewski, John P; Materials for civil and construction engineers ; 3rd ed; Prentice Hall, 2011.
Any student who has been impaired by significant exceptional and/or unforeseeable circumstances that have prevented them from completing any major assessment items, or that have impaired their performance such that the results are not representative of their true level of mastery of the course material, may apply for special consideration through the formal university process. The applicability and academic remedy/action associated with the special consideration process is listed for each assessment item below. Please refer to the University Special Consideration Regulations and Special Consideration Policies and Procedures documents for more information on the acceptable grounds for special consideration and the application process.Mid-term test Students will be offered an equivalent alternative test. The mark on this alternative test will replace the original test mark in the course grade calculation unless a student declines or does not respond to the offer of the alternative exam, in which case the original mark will be used. Students will not be advised of their original mark as part of this process.Final exam The academic remedy for a special consideration assessed at a moderate level or higher is an equivalent exam. The alternative exam will be held on campus during the week of July 7th. The mark on the alternative exam will replace the original exam mark in the course grade calculation unless a student declines or does not respond to the offer of the alternative exam, in which case the original mark will be used. Students will not be advised of their original mark as part of this process. All communication associated with special considerations will be conducted using official UC email accounts. The offer to sit an alternative assessment will come with a date and time. Students will have a clearly specified amount of time to respond to the offer. Failure to respond in the specified time frame will be interpreted as a declined offer. If a student has applied for special consideration but the application has not yet been approved, they may be permitted to sit the alternative exam, but the mark will not be applied until the special consideration application has been approved.Generative AI PolicyGenerative AI (e.g., ChatGPT) is a new technology with clear implications for civil and natural resource engineering practice. In this course, the use of generative AI is permitted for report writing providing it adheres to this policy.Generative AI can be used to improve your writing and provide editing feedback. When using AI to alter your writing, it is important to check that the substantive message of the text has not been altered. It is recommended that your prompt end with “…and explain the changes that you made” so that you can gain feedback to improve your own writing. It is not recommended to use AI to generate original text. Rather, it is safer to place yourself in the role of author, and AI in the role of editor, so that it is only improving the communication of your original ideas.AI can be used to find, gather and summarize knowledge on a subject that is outside your expertise. However, it is important that you verify any information produced by AI. AI output can be convincingly wrong on technical matters. AI output can be incomplete, potentially omitting alternative hypotheses or views. AI output can be contradictory, offering concluding statements that are incoherent with arguments given earlier. Thus, it is important to verify AI-generated output. This includes checking source material, asking or reprompting an AI for alternative views, and challenging it to justify its statements. Verification may only possible when you are a subject matter expert, i.e., a competent engineer.An AI is not a substitute for a creative, problem-solving engineer. It cannot match the complex reasoning or emotional intelligence of a human. Relying on an AI to solve problems for you may prevent you from achieving course Learning Outcomes. Being unable to demonstrate your mastery of Learning Outcomes during an invigilated assessment (test or exam) when AI is unavailable could lead to you failing the course.If you decide to use AI to complete a course assessment, then it is important that you are transparent about this use. If you use AI to edit the text of your submission, then you must disclose this in your submission. Use of AI that falls within the policy described here will not result in a penalty.Students suspected of using AI outside the specifications of this document will be reported to the department Academic Integrity Officer. As part of their investigation, students may be invited to attend an interview, during which they may be asked to describe how the assessment was completed or to demonstrate their knowledge of the subject. If it is determined that a student is likely to have misused AI, then disciplinary action may be taken, including partial or full denial of credit for an assignment or course, X-mark on transcript denoting breach of academic integrity, suspension, fines and expulsion.Further reading:Academic Integrity at the University of Canterbury. https://www.canterbury.ac.nz/about-uc/what-we-do/teaching/academic-integrityEngineering NZ guidelines on ethical use of Generative AI. https://www.engineeringnz.org/programmes/engineering-and-ai/appropriate-safe-and-ethical-use/
Domestic fee $1,122.00
International fee $6,238.00
* All fees are inclusive of NZ GST or any equivalent overseas tax, and do not include any programme level discount or additional course-related expenses.
For further information see Civil and Natural Resources Engineering .