Week 1

Overview of the module👈:

The purpose of learning this module is to help us to develop an aptitude of chemical product design, appreciate the importance of chemical engineering principles in real life and help us to occupy ourselves with product design knowledges which applicable in the workforce in the future. 

First of all, we were also introduced the CDIO Diagram once again in ICPD module. Actually, what does CDIO means❓❓❓. No idea what it means? Don't worry, we got you covered❗❗❗

(Photo taken from Week 1 Module Overview.pdf)

Furthermore, we were briefed by Dr Noel Kristian about the assessment, teaching plan and the practical plans for this module. 

What is a chemical product by the way💡?:

A chemical product is a product which is designed or manufactured using chemical engineering principles. There are some examples of chemical engineering principles which we have learned in last semester such as fluid flow, heat transfer and others. Here comes another question: What is chemical product design😲? Well, it is a process which chemical products are designed and developed.

Besides that, there are 4 categories of chemical products which are commodities, chemical devices, molecular products and micro-structured products. Below is the summary of these 4 categories of chemical products:

1. Commodities

• Made in large quantities

• Sold at the lowest possible price

• The traditional focus of chemical engineering

• Made through reaction engineering and unit operations

  2. Chemical devices

• Miniature processes which accomplish a particular chemical transformation

• Provides convenience

  3. Molecular products

• Possess a specific chemical structure

• Discovered through research

 4. Micro-structured products

• Products with specific function

For the activity conducted for week 1, we came out with a household appliance which was hair dryer.

Broad Category: Household

Sub-category: Appliances

Chemical Product: Hair Dryer

Figure 1 : Inner side of hair dryer

(Image source: Dever, 2021)

1. Describe how chemical engineering principles have been applied in the design and/ or manufacture of the identified chemical product.

Answer: 

The hair dryer dries our hair by evaporation. The hot air emitted from hair dryer causes our hair temperature to increase, and allows our hair to dry fast in a short time. This is because since the temperature of our surrounding hair increases, the water droplets in our hair experiences phase change and higher temperature causes to be easier to overcome the forces of attraction between water molecules which changes from liquid phase to gas phase.

(HowStuffWorks, 2021)

2. Categorize your chemical product idea and explain why you classify it under that particular category.

Answer: 

Chemical device. It is because hot air emitted from hair dryer undergoes chemical processes such as evaporation, which means it evaporates water droplets on our hair and cause water droplets to become gas phase.

References:

1. HowStuffWorks, 2021. How Hair Dryers Work. [online] HowStuffWorks. Available at: <https://home.howstuffworks.com/hair-dryer.htm> [Accessed 27 April 2021].

2. Dever, W., 2021. How do Hairdryers Work? | SiOWfa16: Science in Our World: Certainty and Controversy. [online] Sites.psu.edu. Available at: <https://sites.psu.edu/siowfa16/2016/12/02/how-do-hairdryers-work/> [Accessed 6 May 2021].

Now let's move on to Tuckman's 5 stages of team formation👀...

Tuckman's 5 stages of team formation👊: (FSNPA)

1. Forming👋

Forming is the stage that everyone meets with new team members who we do not know well. At this phase, team members will get to know more about each other such as their hobbies, interests, personalities and other stuff. Furthermore, it is the time that ground rules are established in a team.

2. Storming👐

Storming is the stage where team members start to communicate their feelings but they might view as themselves rather than as a team. They will resist control by group leaders and show hostility.

3. Norming✊

Team members will feel part of the team and realize that they can achieve work if they accept other members’ viewpoints.

4. Performing👏

Team members will work together in an open and trusting atmosphere where flexibility is the key and hierarchy is fundamental.

 5. Adjourning👍 

Team members work as a team and conduct assessments of the year and the implements a plan for transitioning roles and recognizing members’ contributions.

Reflection for Week 1:

Ambrose:

I am so thrilled that I am able to rock this module with new faces although we are from the same class! Besides that, since we are new for each other, we might not work well at first but I sincerely hope that I will able to create a good chemistry with my new teammates throughout this module. Other than that, I think documentation is an excellent way for me because I am a forgetful person and by documentation, I can refer back to what I have documented and also gain better understanding of the weekly learning materials.

Joshua:

When I document what I am doing in real time versus after the fact, it captures the thought processes about the things I am doing and what I’ve learned in the moment. This also allows me to reflect on what I have learned because I have to express them in words in a coherent manner, solidifying my understanding and making it easier to revise on these concepts in the future should my memory be not as clear.

Yongjie:

Edmund:

I learnt what a chemical product is and the categories of a chemical product. I was also introduced to a new team which is an exciting and interesting journey ahead for me as I am new to my groupmates. Through the brainstorming activity of thinking of our chemical product and 'The Retreat', we got to learn a lot from each other such as backgrounds, interests, and reasons to why they picked this course. Moreover, I hope that we are able to bond together as a team and overcome future challenges by using the 5 stages of the team formation model effectively.