Sieving the class: Teaching particle size distributions and analysis

Publication date: April 2018Source: Education for Chemical Engineers, Volume 23Author(s): Colin Brown, Clive Davies, Nicola Brown, Tony PatersonAbstractSome engineering subjects, while mathematically straightforward, can be conceptually difficult for students to understand. Traditional lecture methods using textbooks and PowerPoint point slides, while popular with some lecturers, are not always the best teaching tool when critical concepts require embedding. In this paper we consider the development of a simple exercise to introduce and teach principles of particle size analysis. A practical exercise we have termed ‘sieving the class’ is introduced and explained and questions relating to size distributions are discussed. In ‘sieving the class’, the ‘size’ of each person in a volunteer group, ideally the class itself, is determined using single square apertures analogous to those in a wire mesh sieve, constructed from plumbing polyvinyl chloride piping. This approach has the potential to directly engage students in the construction of a size distribution, and to promote and provoke useful supplementary discussion. Ethics approval was required, and obtained, and an introductory trial was carried out to implement and evaluate the framework outlined here. Student response was assessed in a written survey with more than half the class acknowledging enhanced understanding of the concept of size distribution and more than eighty percent recording the lecture experience a...

Source: Education for Chemical Engineers - July 6, 2018 Category: Chemistry Source Type: research