From Mud Bricks to Outer Space: Composite Materials

11thGrade Composite Materials and Product Design Module Overview

Topic:Composite materials, manufacturing and design

Grade Level:11

Course:Engineering Technologies III (2nd6 Weeks)

Time Allotted for Module:6 weeks

Prior Knowledge:Students should have some familiarity with material properties, solving algebraic equations, creating graphs and tables, and researching using the Internet.

Overview:

The purpose of this module is to develop an understanding of composite materials; their historical implications, applications, design processes, manufacturing, and mass production.The use of composite materials over time, the differences in composite materials across cultures, and the varieties and purposes of composite materials will be explored and discussed.

Vocabulary

Adobe: sun-dried brick made of clay and straw, in common use in countries having little rainfall

Aggregate: any of various loose, particulate materials, such as sand, gravel, or pebbles, added to a cementing agent to make concrete, plaster, etc.

Asphalt: A brownish-black solid or semisolid mixture of bitumens obtained from native deposits or as a petroleum byproduct, used in paving, roofing, and waterproofing;mixed asphalt and crushed stone gravel or sand, used for paving or roofing

Binder/Matrix: surrounding and adhesive material

Bitumens: Any of various flammable mixtures of hydrocarbons and other substances, occurring naturally or obtained by distillation from coal or petroleum, that are a component of asphalt and tar and are used for surfacing roads and for waterproofing

Brainstorming: A method of shared problem solving in which all members of a group spontaneously contribute ideas; a similar process undertaken by a person to solve a problem by rapidly generating a variety of possible solutions

Carbon fiber: a strong, stiff, thin fiber of nearly pure carbon, made by subjecting various organic raw materialsto high temperatures, combined with synthetic resins to produce a strong, lightweight material used in construction of aircraft, spacecraft, graphite golf clubs, etc.

Component: a part or ingredient

Composite: made up of disparate or separate parts or elements; compound

Composite material: engineered materials made from two or more constituent materials with significantly different physical or chemical properties which remain separate and distinct on a macroscopic level within the finished structure

Concrete: an artificial, stone-like material used for various structural purposes, made by mixing cement and various aggregates, such as sand,pebbles, gravel, or shale, with water and allowing the mixture to harden

Concrete, reinforced:concretecontainingsteelbars,strands,mesh,etc.,toabsorbtensileandshearingstresses

Epoxy: also called epoxy resin, any of a class of resins derived by polymerization from epoxides: used chiefly in adhesives, coatings,electrical insulation, solder mix, and castings;can also be a verb meaning to bond two materials by means of an epoxy resin

Fiberglass: a material consisting of extremely fine filaments of glass that are combined in yarn and woven into fabrics, used in masses asa thermal and acoustical insulator, or embedded in various resins to make boat hulls, fishing rods, and the like

Flexural strength: the highest stress experienced within the material at its moment of rupture

Graphite: a very common mineral, soft native carbon, occurring in black to dark-gray foliated masses, with metallic luster and greasy feel; used for pencil leads, as a lubricant, and for making crucibles and other refractories; black lead

Hooke’s law: in simple terms, strain is directly proportional to stress; σ=Eε

Kevlar: a strong, lightweight material introduced by the DuPont Company, used in making tires and bullet proof vests

Optimize: to make as effective, perfect, or useful as possible

Polymer: a compound of high molecular weight derived either by the addition of many smaller molecules, as polyethylene, or by the condensation of many smaller molecules with the elimination of water, alcohol, or the like, as nylon(1866, probably from German, Polymere (Berzelius, 1830), from Greek, polymeres "having many parts," and from polys "many")

Prototype: the original or model on which something is based or formed; an original type, form, or instance serving as a basis or standard for later stages;an original, full-scale, and usually working model of a new product or new version of an existing product

Reinforcement/substrate: base material used to strengthen

Stakeholder: a person or group that has an investment, share, or interest in something, as a business or industry

Strain: deformation of a body or structure as a result of an applied force, dimensionless

Stress: the ratio of force to area; σ– normalized force – Force/Area, units (psi, N/m2m, orPa)

Tension: a force related to the stretching of an object (the opposite of compression)

Young’s modulus: E – ratio of stress to strain, units (psi, N/m2m, orPa)

Materials

11th Grade Composite Materials Module Overview Page 1

DAY 1

Supplies per group:

10 Regular marshmallows

1 cup Rice Chex cereal

2 Two-inch squares pre-made Rice Chex bars

DAY 2-4

Computers with Internet access and printers

Poster board, markers, pens, scissors to create poster presentations

DAY 5-7

Soil

Several sizes of mesh screen or sieves for sifting

Straw (dried grass clippings)

Additional powdered clay and sand

Old ice cube tray (for brick molds)

Small plastic lids or plates (for pies)

Newspaper

DAY 8-11

Adhesive comparison lab:

Testing equipment (see drawings in adhesivelab.pdf)

Vise

Timer

Buckets

Sand

Scales

Wood strips (hardboard, particle board, plywood, hardwood, and softwood)

Glue (polyvinyl resin, aliphatic resins, contact cement, epoxy, hot melt, hide glue, others)

Reinforcement Structure lab:

Metal wire, eight 18-inch fibers

Wire cutters

Quick-drying epoxy

Rubber gloves

Craft stick

Testing apparatus:

Ruler

Two clamps to attach test bending strength of test fibers to two desks 1 foot a part

Hook

Weight (1, 3, and 5 lbs.)

See video link above.

DAY 12

Computer

Printer

Internet access

Design paper and materials

Rulers

Building materials as determined by student teams

DAY 13-15

Supplies per group:

Safety glasses

Rubber gloves

Waxed milk carton side

Mold pattern

Scissors

Craft sticks

Tape

Paper cups

Stirring sticks

Reinforcement materials:

Wood strips (hardboard, particle board, plywood, craft sticks)

Metal wire

Straw, grass

Binder/Matrix materials

Plaster of Paris

Quick drying epoxy

Polyvinyl resin

DAY 16-17

Computers and internet access

DAY 18-19

Colored markers, rulers, and10 pocket calculators or

Computer, spreadsheet software, and printer

Fixed Costs worksheets

Variable Costs worksheets

Product Pricing worksheets

Break Even Chart worksheets

Balance Sheet worksheets

Computer

Printer

Internet access for research

DAY 20-21

Computer

Printer

Internet access for research

DAY 22

Computer withpresentation software (such as Excel) and Internet access

DAY 23-28

EACH GROUP

2 Tablespoons of cake icing

1 Sheet of 18" x 18" wax paper

2 Sheets of paper towels

2 Plastic straws

1 Plastic knife

1 Plastic spoon

6-8 Toothpicks

Graphing calculator

2 Edible Rover Worksheets (from link)

2 Rover Scientific Instrumentation Options - Math Worksheets

3 Graham Crackers (body)

For testing:

Cotton string or fishing line –used to pull Mars rover during testing

Deck of cards

Scale – to measure rovers in grams

Stopwatch

ENTIRE CLASS

Various types of candy/cookies –see Mars Rover Teacher.pdf

Cardboard

Paper plates

Straws

Foil

DAY 29-30

none

11th Grade Composite Materials Module Overview Page 1

Science Standards

Nature of Science, Standard 1: Practice of Science

SC.912.N.1.1Define a problem based on a specific body of knowledge, for example: biology, chemistry, physics, and earth/space science, and do the following:

pose questions about the natural world,
conduct systematic observations,
examine books and other sources of information to see what is already known,
review what is known in light of empirical evidence,
plan investigations,
use tools to gather, analyze, and interpret data (this includes the use of measurement in metric and other systems, and also the generation and interpretation of graphical representations of data, including data tables and graphs),
pose answers, explanations, or descriptions of events,
generate explanations that explicate or describe natural phenomena (inferences),
use appropriate evidence and reasoning to justify these explanations to others,
communicate results of scientific investigations, and
evaluate the merits of the explanations produced by others

Physical Science, Standard 10: Energy

SC.912.P.10.1Differentiate among the various forms of energy and recognize that they can be transformed from one form to others.

SC.912.P.10.2Explore the law of Conservation of Energy by differentiating among open, closed, and isolated systems and explain that the total energy in an isolated system is a conserved quantity.

SC.912.P.10.3Compare and contrast work and power qualitatively and quantitatively.

SC.912.P.10.4Describe heat as the energy transferred by convection, conduction, and radiation, and explain the connection of heat to change in temperature or states of matter.

SC.912.P.10.5Relate temperature to the average molecular kinetic energy.

SC.912.P.10.6Create and interpret potential energy diagrams, for example: chemical reactions, orbits around a central body, motion of a pendulum.

SC.912.P.10.14Differentiate among conductors, semiconductors, and insulators

SC.912.P.10.18Explore the theory of electromagnetism by comparing and contrasting the different parts of the electromagnetic spectrum in terms of wavelength, frequency, and energy, and relate them to phenomena and applications.

Physical Science, Standard 12: Motion

SC.912.P.12.2Analyze the motion of an object in terms of its position, velocity, and acceleration (with respect to a frame of reference) as functions of time.

SC.912.P.12.3Interpret and apply Newton's three laws of motion.

SC.912.P.12.4Describe how the gravitational force between two objects depends on their masses and the distance between them.

SC.912.P.12.9Recognize that time, length, and energy depend on the frame of reference.

Math Standards

Algebra, Standard 1: Real and Complex Number Systems

MA.912.A.1.4Perform operations on real numbers (including integer exponents, radicals, percents, scientific notation, absolute value, rational numbers, irrational numbers) using multi-step and real-world problems.

Algebra, Standard 2: Relations and Functions

MA.912.A.2.1Create a graph to represent a real-world situation.

MA.912.A.2.2Interpret a graph representing a real-world situation.

MA.912.A.2.13Solve real-world problems involving relations and functions.

Algebra, Standard 10: Mathematical Reasoning and Problem Solving

MA.912.A.10.1Use a variety of problem-solving strategies, such as drawing a diagram, making a chart, guessing- and-checking, solving a simpler problem, writing an equation, working backwards, and creating a table.

MA.912.A.10.2Decide whether a solution is reasonable in the context of the original situation.

MA.912.A.10.4Use counterexamples to show that statements are false.

Statistics, Standard 1: Formulating Questions

MA.912.S.1.1Formulate an appropriate research question to be answered by collecting data or performing an experiment.

Statistics, Standard 3: Summarizing Data (Descriptive Statistics)

MA.912.S.3.3Calculate and interpret measures of the center of a set of data, including mean, median, and weighted mean, and use these measures to make comparisons among sets of data.

References

Adhesive Lab.pdf, Adhesive Test DS.pdf

Airplane worksheet.pdf
teacher-created

Board Evaluation Rubric.pdf
teacher-created

Braiding Twisting Reinforcements (modified from these videos)

Composite Design Lab.pdf, Composite TestDS.pdf, Composite Design Lab Teacher.pdf, Post Composite Worksheet.pdf; all are modified from the following two sites:

Composites and Aircraft.pdf
teacher-created

DesignBriefTips.pdf

Design Project Checklist.pdf (World Association of Technology Teachers)

Design Project Rubric.pdf
teacher-created

Expanding Marshmallows

Finance Project.pdf

Fixed Costs Worksheet.pdf

History of Composite Poster Project.pdf, History of Composite Poster Project Rubric.pdf
teacher-created

Lunar Plant Growth Student Project.pdf, Lunar Plant GrowthTeacher.pdf, Lunar Design Process Student Worksheet.pdf

MakeItMudbricks

Mars Rover Design.pdf, Mars Rover Design Teacher Notes.pdf, Mars Rover Testing DS.pdf, Mars Rover Project Evaluation Rubric.pdf, Rover Design Changes Worksheet.pdf

Marshmallow Rabbit

Microgravity.com

MicrogravityMathematics.pdf

Mud bricks Teacher Info.pdf, Mud bricks Student Worksheet.pdf
modified from

Peeps Chemistry

Presentation Guidelines.pdf

Presentation Rubric.pdf
teacher-created

Product Development Worksheet.pdf

Reinforcement Structure Lab.pdf, ReinforcementTestDS.pdf, Reinforcement Teacher.pdf
modified from

RiceChexBarDS.pdf, RiceChexBarLab.pdf (both modified from the site below)

11th Grade Composite Materials Module Overview Page 1