Course detail

Surface Engineering

FSI-WPIAcad. year: 2025/2026

A number of application properties of materials depends on the morphology and state of their surfaces. It is not deciding if the surface is outer or inner. The materials behaviour is strongly affected by interface boundaries between separate blocks of microstructure forming the whole solid. The interface boundaries becomes more important (and their area fraction is higher) for materials with lower block dimensions. Followingly the most important is for interfaces in nanostructured materials. The course "Surface engineering" is focused on the most important aspects of surfaces and interface boundaries, physical, chemical and mechanical, namely from theoretical, diagnostic and technologic aspects.

Language of instruction

Czech

Number of ECTS credits

4

Mode of study

Not applicable.

Entry knowledge

Basic knowledge on microstructure and properties of materials in extent of first part of textbook L. Ptacek et al - "Materials Science". Introductory university course in mathematics, chemistry and physics.

Rules for evaluation and completion of the course

Exam: Verification of the knowledge about substantial parts of presented chapters. Emphasis will be focused on ability to apply obtained knowledge. Exam is in written form, completing questions may be given orally.
Presence on the course is recommended.

Aims

The aim of the course is to raise student's interest for those fields of Materials sciences and engineering, which are associated with solids surfaces and internal interface boundaries forming the solid. It is to be shown that these problems are not so marginal as they appears, on the contrary for some systems and processes are even crucial.
Students of the course will obtain compact overview from the surface engineering, namely:
1. Knowledge about meaning of outer surface and inner interface boudnaries of the materials for their application properties. Knowledge about processes that may affect the outer surface and internal interface boundaries.
2. Knowledge of metrology and microgeometry (tortuosity, roughness) of the surfaces.
3. Knowledge of the important systems, phenomena and processes, where (outer, inner) surface plays key role.

Study aids

Not applicable.

Prerequisites and corequisites

Not applicable.

Basic literature

Fiala, J., Kraus, I. Povrchy a rozhraní, ČVUT v Praze, Praha 2009, ISBN 978-80-01-04248-9 (CS)

Recommended reading

Not applicable.

Classification of course in study plans

  • Programme N-MTI-P Master's 1 year of study, summer semester, compulsory
  • Programme N-SLE-P Master's 1 year of study, summer semester, elective

Type of course unit

 

Lecture

26 hod., optionally

Teacher / Lecturer

Syllabus

01. Surface stress and wetting
02. Surface tortuosity and anizotropy
03. Colloidal state of material
04. Surface microstructure of solids
05. Microstructure of interface boundaries in solids
06. Epitaxy
07. Surfaces reactivity and adsorption
08. Surface microgeometry
09. Surface treatment
10. Recrystallisation, fatigue and spontanneous strukturalisation
11. Nanodispersive systems
12. Surfactants
13. Catalysis

Laboratory exercise

13 hod., compulsory

Teacher / Lecturer

Syllabus

01. Microgeometry of surfaces
02. Surface treatment procedures
03. Microstructure of interfaces
04. Microhardness
05. Scratch tests
06. Thermal barier coatings