Materials and process technologies are becoming more technical and the search for new materials is a matter of aggressive research for the faculty and students of the Department of Metallurgical Engineering and Materials Science. To meet world-class standards in metallurgy and materials development, IITB needs to upgrade its educational facilities and research labs.

The vision of the Department is aggressive, but minimal if world-class success is the goal of IITB. And, there is more to the vision than just achieving recognition for IITB. Being situated in a developing country places an additional burden on department faculty to develop materials useful to Indian industry and society.

The level of effort needed to maintain excellence in teaching is ever increasing, and the need for new products and targeted development of relevancy to India is a significant challenge--one that can be met only by an infusion of funding for classroom and teaching lab improvement, and addition of state-of-the-art equipment.

Growth within the department focuses on the twin needs of education and research-- interconnected and interdependent on acquisition of the newest technology. Traditional technologies need to be maintained. This includes work in metals, alloys, ceramics and composites. New technologies also need to be pursued, such as nanomaterials, polymers and thin films. Areas of focus are in materials processing, physical and mechanical metallurgy, advanced ceramics and composites, thin films and surface engineering, and polymers.

But hindering progress, facilities of the department are aged. Work to upgrade facilities and equipment has been slow. Ground is constantly being lost in an area where discoveries are the result of constant forward movement. New facilities are required to meet world-class standards. Four major laboratories are needed, along with the maintenance funds to keep them running properly. In addition to the research labs, scholarships are needs for dual degree and graduate students to provide research and teaching assistance. Finally, a new building is needed to meet student instruction needs, to include teaching labs and modern classrooms with facilities for computer assisted teaching.
 

New Laboratories and Equipment. Major upgrade is needed to meet world-class standards for research and education, including materials processing facilities, sample prep equipment, metallography facilities, electron beam characterization equipment, a powder characterization facility, equipment to characterize thin films, thermal analysis equipment, mechanical testing apparatus, an X-Ray facility, corrosion facilities and much more. A full-scale proposal is available for review.

Dual Degree and Graduate Student Scholarships will enable increased student work, improved instruction and student research

Classroom Building and Renovation of Teaching Labs are needed to provide world-class instruction. Current facilities have deteriorated over the years and do not allow for modern computer-based instruction.

Facility and Equipment Maintenance Fund, to maintain and operate the new laboratory equipment and facilities envisioned