Units of Study

Chemical engineering is concerned with industrial processes in which material in bulk undergoes changes in its physical or chemical nature. Chemical engineers design, construct, operate and manage these processes and in this they are guided by economic, environmental and societal considerations.

The process industries continue to be major employers of chemical engineers: examples include the large complexes at Botany in New South Wales and Altona in Victoria, and the petroleum refineries in all mainland States; other examples are the minerals processing industries that refine Australian ores such as bauxite, nickel sulphides and rutile to produce aluminium, nickel and titanium. In addition there are the traditional metallurgical industries, steel, copper, zinc, lead etc, as well as general processing industries producing paper, cement, plastics, paints, glass, pharmaceuticals, alcohol and foodstuffs. Allied process operations are those involving waste disposal, pollution abatement, power production and nuclear technology. In addition, over recent years chemical engineering has continued to develop, and now encompasses many other technologically important fields: examples include bio-processing and nano-technology.

Chemical engineering studies are based on chemistry, mathematics and physics and the first two are taken to some depth. Each student completes a common core of units of study, fundamental to the study of chemical engineering, and also takes a number of elective courses, chosen according to his or her particular field of interest from course options.

Regardless of the option chosen, the graduate will be a fully qualified chemical engineer, well prepared for a career in a wide range of industries.

Please find more detailed information from Undergraduate Units of Study