Courses in Chemical Engineering (CENG)
Not all courses are offered each quarter and/or year. Make sure to check the updated Tentative Teaching Schedule each year.
Note: Core courses are offered once a year. Technical Electives are not offered every year.
All students enrolled in CENG courses or admitted to the CENG program are required to meet prerequisite and performance standards, i.e., students may not enroll in any CENG courses or courses in another department which are required for the major prior to having satisfied prerequisite courses with a C– or better. (The program does not consider D or F grades as adequate preparation for subsequent material. All courses except CENG 4 and CENG 199 must be taken for a letter grade. P/NP will not be accepted). All CENG courses must have a grade of C- or above as a passing grade.
Lower-Division
CENG 4. Experience Chemical Engineering (1) Hands-on, team-based laboratory activities to demonstrate modern applications of chemical engineering, and the role of the chemical engineer in academia and industry. Emphasis on teamwork, safe laboratory practices, and student-directed problem-solving. Prerequisites: Department approval required. (P/NP grading only; for incoming CENG first-year students and transfers. CENG 4 is mandatory).
CENG 15*. Engineering Computation Using Matlab (4) (Cross-listed with NANO 15) Introduction to solution of engineering problems using computational methods. Formulating problem statements, selecting algorithms, writing computer programs, and analyzing output using MATLAB. Computational problems from nanoengineering, chemical engineering, and materials science are introduced. The course requires no prior programming skills. Students may only receive credit for one of the following: CENG 15, CENG 15R, NANO 15, NANO 15R, or MAE 8.
*CENG 15, CENG 15R, and MAE 8 are not cross-listed courses. If students need to repeat CENG 15 or CENG 15R, students must retake the same numbered course, since they are not interchangeable.
CENG 15R*. Engineering Computation Using Matlab Online (4) (Cross-listed with NANO 15R.) Introduction to solution of engineering problems using computational methods. Formulating problem statements, selecting algorithms, writing computer programs, and analyzing output using Matlab. Computational problems from NanoEngineering, chemical engineering, and materials science are introduced. This is a fully online, self-paced course that utilizes multi-platform instructional techniques (video, text, and instructional coding environments). The course requires no prior programming skills. Students may only receive credit for one of the following: CENG 15, CENG 15R, NANO 15, NANO 15R, or MAE 8.
*CENG 15, CENG 15R, and MAE 8 are not cross-listed courses. If students need to repeat CENG 15 or CENG 15R, students must retake the same numbered course, since they are not interchangeable.
Upper-Division
CENG 100. Material and Energy Balances (4) Introduction to steady and time-dependent material and energy balances using a variety of problem-solving strategies. Concepts include degrees-of-freedom analysis, unit operations, multi-unit systems, chemical reaction kinetics and equilibrium, and phase equilibrium. Prerequisites: CENG 4 and CHEM 6B.
CENG 101A. Introductory Fluid Mechanics (4) Kinematics and equation of motion; hydrostatics; Bernoulli’s equation; viscous flows; turbulence, pipe flow; boundary layers and drag in external flows; applications to chemical, structural, and bioengineering. Students may not receive credit for both MAE 101A and CENG 101A. (CENG students must take CENG 101A, not MAE 101A. CENG students will not receive credit for MAE 101A, if taken). Prerequisites: Admission to the major and grades of C– or better in PHYS 2A, MATH 20D, MATH 20E or consent of instructor. Priority enrollment given to Chemical Engineering and NanoEngineering majors.
CENG 101B. Heat Transfer (4) Conduction, convection, radiation heat transfer; design of heat exchangers. Students may not receive credit for both CENG 101B and MAE 101C. (CENG students must take CENG 101B, not MAE 101C. CENG students will not receive credit for MAE 101C, if taken). Prerequisites: Admission to the major and a grade of C– or better in CENG 101A. Priority enrollment given to Chemical Engineering majors.
CENG 101C. Mass Transfer (4) Diffusive and convective mass transfer in solids, liquids, and gasses; steady and unsteady state; mass transfer coefficients; applications to chemical engineering and bioengineering. Prerequisites: Admission to the major and grade of C– or better in CENG 101A.
CENG 102. Chemical Engineering Thermodynamics (4) Thermodynamic behavior of pure substances and mixtures. Properties of solutions, phase equilibria. Thermodynamic cycles. Chemical equilibria for homogeneous and heterogeneous systems. Prerequisites: CENG 100, CHEM 6C, and MATH 20C.
CENG 113. Chemical Reaction Engineering (4) Principles of chemical reactor analysis and design. Experimental determination of rate equations, design of batch and continuous reactors, optimization of selectivity in multiple reactions, consideration of thermal effects and residence time distribution. Introduction to multi-phase reactors. Prerequisites: CENG 15, CENG 100, MATH 20D.
CENG 114*. Probability and Statistical Methods for Engineers (4) (Cross-listed with NANO 114) Probability theory, conditional probability, Bayes theorem, discrete random variables, expectation and variance, central limit theorem, graphical and numerical presentation of data, least squares estimation and regression, confidence intervals, testing hypotheses. Students may not receive credit for both CENG 114 and NANO 114. Prerequisites: MATH 18 and NANO 15 or CENG 15 or MAE 8.
*Effective Winter 2015 for students who want to switch to the new curriculum: If you have not taken ECE 109 or any of its equivalents (before SP15), you must take CENG 114. There will be no equivalents for CENG 114. Students should not take CENG 114 if they have completed ECE 109 or an equivalent before SP15. CENG 114 will not count as a TE.
Students who are enrolled in ECE 109 or an equivalent course (not CENG 114) in WI15 (or prior to WI15) must fill out a petition requesting to use ECE 109 or the equivalent course instead of CENG 114.
CENG 120. Chemical Process Dynamics and Control (4) Examination of dynamic linear and linearized models of chemical processes. Stability analysis. Design of PID controllers. Selection of control and manipulated variables. Root locus, Bode and Nyquist plots. Cascade, feed- forward and ratio controls. Prerequisites: Admission to the major; CENG 15 or MAE 8 or NANO 15, and CENG 100 and CENG 101B and CENG 113 and MATH 20D. Restricted to majors CE25, NA25, MC25, MC27, MC28, MC29.
CENG 122. Separation Processes (4) Principles of analysis and design of systems for separation of components from a mixture. Topics will include staged operations (distillation, liquid-liquid extraction), and continuous operations (gas absorption, membrane separation) under equilibrium and nonequilibrium conditions. Prerequisites: Admission to the major and grades of C– or better in CENG 100, CENG 102, CENG 101C. Priority enrollment given to Chemical Engineering majors.
CENG 124A. Chemical Plant and Process Design I (4) Principles of chemical process design and economics. Process flow diagrams and cost estimation. Computer-aided design and analysis. Representation of the structure of complex, interconnected chemical processes with recycle streams. Ethics and professionalism. Health, safety, and the environmental issues. Prerequisites: Admission to chemical engineering major and grades of C– or better in CENG 113 and CENG 122, or consent of instructor. Priority enrollment given to Chemical Engineering majors.
CENG 124B. Chemical Plant and Process Design II (4) Engineering and economic analysis of integrated chemical processes, equipment, and systems. Cost estimation, heat and mass transfer equipment design and costs. Comprehensive integrated plant design. Optimal design. Profitability. Prerequisites: Admission to chemical engineering major and grade of C– or better in CENG 124A. Priority enrollment given to Chemical Engineering majors.
CENG 134. Polymeric Materials (4) (Cross-listed with NANO 134 and CHEM 134) Foundations of polymeric materials. Topics: structure of polymers; mechanisms of polymer synthesis; characterization methods using calorimetric, mechanical, rheological, and X-ray-based techniques; and electronic, mechanical, and thermodynamic properties. Special classes of polymers: engineering plastics, semiconducting polymers, photoresists, and polymers for medicine. Students may only receive credit for one of the following: CENG 134, CHEM 134, NANO 134. Prerequisites: CHEM 6C and PHYS 2C.
CENG 157. Process Technology in the Semiconductor Industry (4) Brief introduction to solid-state materials and devices. Crystal growth and purification. Thin film technology. Application of chemical processing to the manufacture of semiconductor devices. Topics to be covered: Physics of solids, unit operations of solid state materials (bulk crystal growth, oxidation, vacuum science, chemical and physical vapor deposition, epitaxy, doping, etching). Prerequisites: CENG 101A and CENG 101B and CENG 101C. CENG 101C can be taken concurrently. (Undergraduate students must enroll in CENG 157, and not CENG 257. Students may not receive credit for both CENG 157 and CENG 257.)
CENG 160. Introduction to Biochemical Engineering (4) Introduction to biochemical engineering. Topics include biological macromolecules, enzyme kinetics, cell metabolism, protein synthesis, recombinant DNA technology, bioreactor design, and bioproduct recovery. Prerequisites: CENG 100. (Undergraduate students must enroll in CENG 160, and not CENG 260. Students may not receive credit for both CENG 160 and CENG 260.)
CENG 170*. Experimental Methods for Chemical Engineers Process (4) Principles and practice of measurement and control, design and conduct of experiments, and technical report writing. Specific topics include dimensional analysis, error analysis, data acquisition and data reduction, as well as background of experiments and statistical analysis. Prerequisites: CENG 100 and CENG 102.
*Effective Fall 2023 CENG 170 has replaced MAE 170 for the Chemical Engineering major requirements. Students who have not completed MAE 170 prior to FA23 must complete CENG 170. Students will not be given credit for both MAE 170 and CENG 170.
CENG 175. NanoEngineering in Medicine (4) (Cross-listed with NANO 175) Introduction to nanomedicine; topics include: nanoscale material, biological systems vs. synthetic vs. bio-inspired systems; drug and gene delivery, molecular imaging, vaccines, immunoengineering, pharmacology, clinical application in cancer, cardiovascular disease, infectious disease, immune diseases, genetic disorders, skin diseases, and regenerative medicine. Students may not receive credit for both CENG 175 and NANO 175. Prerequisites: Upper Division Standing.
CENG 176A. Chemical Engineering Process Laboratory I (4) Laboratory projects in the areas of applied chemical research and unit operations. Emphasis on applications of engineering concepts and fundamentals to solution of practical and research problems. Prerequisites: CENG 113 and CENG 122 and CENG170, or consent of instructor.
CENG 176B. Chemical Engineering Process Laboratory II (4) Training in planning research projects, execution of experimental work and articulation (both oral and written) of the research plan and results in the areas of applied chemical technology and engineering operations related to mass, momentum, and heat transfer. Prerequisites: CENG 176A.
CENG 199. Independent Study for Undergraduates (4 & 4) Research project as equivalent to a "senior thesis" can be approved for two Technical Elective courses (eight units total). This course is taken as an elective on a P/NP basis. It must be done in consecutive quarters and the student must find a faculty member who will oversee the research project. Eligible students must have completed at least 90 units and must have a UC San Diego cumulative GPA of 3.0 or better. Detailed policy and procedures may be obtained from the Student Affairs Office. Prerequisites: Consent of instructor. Click here to learn how to enroll in CENG 199.