units

MTE4596

Faculty of Engineering

18 September 2017 22 November 2024
Monash University

Undergraduate - Unit

This unit entry is for students who completed this unit in 2015 only. For students planning to study the unit, please refer to the unit indexes in the the current edition of the Handbook. If you have any queries contact the managing faculty for your course or area of study.

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6 points, SCA Band 2, 0.125 EFTSL

Refer to the specific census and withdrawal dates for the semester(s) in which this unit is offered.

LevelUndergraduate
FacultyFaculty of Engineering
Organisational UnitDepartment of Materials Engineering
OfferedClayton Second semester 2015 (Day)
Coordinator(s)Assoc Professor John Forsythe

Synopsis

Biocompatibility is explored and is related to the foreign body response. The importance of the interfacial properties of biomaterials is covered and includes factors affecting cellular response and protein adsorption. Polymers and ceramics used in medicine are reviewed with examples including the total hip joint replacement (TFJR), heart valves, catheters and vascular grafts and hydrogels used in ophthalomology. Drug delivery devices are reviewed and include degradation mechanisms and kinetics. Biomaterials with biological recognition and smart biomaterials will be studied. Biosensors and examples in bionanotechnology will be investigated. Tissue engineering and scaffold manufacture is covered and the use of stem cells for regenerative medicine reviewed.

Outcomes

  • Have a basic understanding of the processes involved in the foreign body response and biocompatibility
  • Appreciate some factors that affect protein adsorption
  • Understand the different classes of polymeric biomaterials used in the body.
  • Be familiar with some of the degradation processes of polymers
  • Describe some methods of drug delivery
  • Describe the action and use of smart materials
  • Be familiar with ceramic materials used in body and some aspects of thermal spraying
  • Understand some techniques used in tissue engineering including some methods of scaffold manufacture
  • Understand some techniques commonly used to characterise biomaterial surfaces.
  • Be able to review a journal article and provide a detailed assessment.
  • Have an ability to communicate within a team, and submit a group assignment.

Assessment

Examination (2 hours): 50%
Mid-semester test (1 hour): 20%
Individual assignment: 10%
Group assignment: 10%
Laboratory work:10%

Workload requirements

2 hours lectures, 1 hour tutorials, 8 hours of private study per week per week and 6 hours laboratory classes per semester

See also Unit timetable information

Chief examiner(s)

Professor Nick Birbilis

Prerequisites

Must have passed 96 credit points

Prohibitions

MTE4539, MTE5596