Page 59 - Handbook PG 20182019

Faculty of Science Postgraduate Booklet, Session 2018/2019

SQC7012 Thermal Analysis

Thermal analysis (TA) describes the analytical experimental techniques which investigate the
behaviours (such as weight, length, modulus, heat flow, temperature, enthalpy, dimension etc.) of a
sample as a function of temperature. TA techniques can investigate both the physical phenomena
(such as the changes in crystallographic properties, melting, sublimation, adsorption etc.) and
chemical phenomena (such as dehydration, decomposition, oxidation, reduction etc.) of a material.
In general, TA techniques (such as Differential Scanning Calorimetry, Thermal Gravimetric Analysis,
Differential Thermal Analysis, Dynamic Mechanical Analysis and etc.) are used for the qualitative and
quantitative analyses of macromolecules and inorganic compounds. Students will be exposed to the
theories, instrumentation, operations and applications of some TA techniques. Applications of these
techniques in conjunction with other methods of analysis will also be discussed.

Specific topics on the transitions and relaxations of amorphous and crystalline materials, particularly
polymers, will be included. Students will develop skills in monitoring the instrumental parameters
and data analysis through the presentation of some specific case study. The knowledge gained from
this course will be beneficial for the students when TA becomes a part of their job in real life.

Assessment Methods:
Continuous Assessment: 50%
Final Examination: 50%

Medium of Instruction:
English

Transferable Skills:
-

Humanity Skill:
CS2, CTPS3

References:
1. Joseph D. Menczel, R. Bruce Prime, Thermal Analysis of Polymers, Fundamentals and
Applications (2009), Wiley, A John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
2. Douglas A. Skoog F., James Holler, Stanley R. Crouch, Principles of Instrumental Analysis (6th
Edition) (2007), Thomson Inc.
3. P.J. Haines; "Principles of Thermal Analysis & Calorimetry", Royal Society of Chemistry,
Cambridge (2002).
4. Jaroslav Šesták, Peter Šimon. Thermal analysis of Micro, Nano- and Non-Crystalline Materials
(2013) Springer.

SQC7013 Chemometric

Chemometrics is the use of mathematical and statistical methods to improve the understanding of
chemical information and to correlate quality parameters or physical properties to analytical
instrument data. This course provides a practical guide to solving scientific problems using
chemometric tools. Topics discussed are organized in three main parts:

Part I – Design of experiments
Part II – Pattern Recognition

58