(494e) Using 3D Printing in an Introductory Chemical Engineering Course

The 3D printing industry is expected to grow by up to 30% by 2026, and chemical engineers are well poised to benefit from this new technology. Therefore, exposing students to 3D product design and printing can be very beneficial. In order to introduce students to this field, chemical engineering students in a first year Chemical Engineering Technology course were tasked with designing, 3D printing, and testing a plastic tubing barb. First, students learned about process flow diagrams and AutoCAD design, and then they created their own 3D barb to connect two pieces of ¼” tubing using Inventor. Students were given a tour of the Makerspace, and they attended a short training session on how to use 3D printers. Students then printed their designs outside of class time, and they all brought their printed tubing barbs to class and tested them by connecting tubing and running water through the system. If a barb was found to leak or not fit the tubing, students were given a week to redesign and print a new barb, and then they tested out this new version. Upon completion of this activity, students wrote a reflection on the design, printing, and testing process. Overall, this was found to be an activity that students enjoyed while learning about 3D printing. This also proved to be a useful way to introduce learning from failure and the importance of redesigning and assessing a product.