(93a) Enhancing Particle Technology Education through Art

One of the primary objective of engineering education is to enhance critical thinking that promotes the ability to synergistically integrate knowledge both for problem solving and for developing new knowledge and technology platforms. To achieve that goal, a graduate class project was designed that required student teams to paint “Sunset on the Beach”. The students were asked to formulate the paint based on their classroom knowledge involving, intermolecular forces, zeta potential measurements, surfactant and polymer adsorption on single and mixed powders, rheology of suspensions. Student teams were coached and assisted in their paint formulation endeavor. The project was evaluated by students to be a very effective learning experience beside being a fun project. This learning experience not only provided a knowledge integration perspective, it also gave them an opportunity to display their artistic creativity. In this presentation, teaching strategies that worked well and those that need further refinement to develop critical thinking skills will be highlighted.