One of the fundamental challenges associated with hydrocarbon production is ensuring the integrity of the assets used to extract and transport process fluids, particularly from effects such as internal corrosion. As a result, the demand for qualified corrosion engineers with specific expertise in oilfield operations continues to grow.
This course is appropriate for professional engineers in industry who are seeking to expand their expertise, as well as graduate engineers or physical scientists looking to gain specialist knowledge relevant to the oil and gas sector.
The course develops your skills in measuring, predicting and managing corrosion as well as assessing asset integrity. Optional modules allow you to focus on topics relevant to your interests and career plans.
Taught by academic staff at the forefront of their fields, the course enables you to develop a range of skills and a solid knowledge base from which to launch an exciting career within the oil and gas industry.
You’ll learn in a stimulating research environment supported by world-class specialist facilities which support the individual project element of the programme. These include access to equipment such as high temperature/high pressure autoclaves, quartz crystal microbalance, erosion-corrosion rigs/flow loops, rotating cylinder electrodes/bubble cells, visualisation cells and potentiostats with AC/DC capabilities.
The projects are also supported by access to our corrosion lab’s own advanced surface analysis suite, containing optical microscopes, mini-sims, IR/UV spectroscopy techniques, atomic force microscopes and a nano-indenter.
This course is accredited by the Institute of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) under licence from the UK regulator, the Engineering Council.
Core modules in each semester provide you with a thorough understanding of key aspects of oilfield corrosion engineering. You’ll study topics which cover aspects such as material selection, chemical inhibition, surface engineering technologies, the principles of physical metallurgy, electrochemistry and corrosion management strategies for new or mature assets.
You’ll also select from optional modules that allow you to focus on specific topic areas such as tribology and its impact on mechanism design or engineering computation. Modules are also available through Leeds University Business School covering aspects of operations management, to prepare you for a range of roles in industry.
Throughout the programme you’ll complete your Professional Project – an independent piece of research on a topic within mechanical engineering that allows you to demonstrate your knowledge and skills. In the two taught semesters you’ll review the literature around a specific topic (chosen from an extensive list provided) and plan the project, before completing the design, analysis, computation, experimentation and writing up in the summer months.
Want to find out more information about your modules?
Take a look at the Oilfield Corrosion Engineering module descriptions for more detail on what you will study.
Compulsory modules
Optional modules
Our groundbreaking research feeds directly into teaching, and you’ll have regular contact with staff who are at the forefront of their disciplines. You’ll have regular contact with them through lectures, seminars, tutorials, small group work and project meetings.
Independent study is also important to the programme, as you develop your problem-solving and research skills as well as your subject knowledge.
You’ll be assessed using a range of techniques including case studies, technical reports, presentations, poster sessions, in-class tests, assignments and exams. Optional modules may also use alternative assessment methods.
The professional project is one of the most satisfying elements of this course. It allows you to apply what you’ve learned to a piece of research focusing on a real-world problem, and it can be used to explore and develop your specific interests.
Most projects are experimentally based and linked with companies within the oil and gas industry to ensure the topic of research is relevant to the field whilst also addressing a real-world problem.
Recent projects for MSc Oilfield Corrosion Engineering students have included:
With this qualification, excellent career options are open to you to practise as a professional corrosion engineer and play a major role in ensuring the safe and efficient recovery of natural resources.
Graduates have gone on for a range of companies such as BP, Petronas, Wood Group Kenny and EM&I.
You’ll also be well prepared to continue with research in this field, either within industry or at PhD level within academia.
You’ll have access to the wide range of engineering and computing careers resources held by our Employability team in our dedicated Employability Suite. You’ll have the chance to attend industry presentations book appointments with qualified careers consultants and take part in employability workshops. Our annual Engineering and Computing Careers Fairs provide further opportunities to explore your career options with some of the UKs leading employers.
The University's Careers Centre also provide a range of help and advice to help you plan your career and make well-informed decisions along the way, even after you graduate. Find out more at the Careers website.
This programme offers a broad range of advanced subjects across the mechanical engineering disciplines. It’s aimed at graduate engineers who wish to pursue a career in industry using advanced engineering techniques, or those who want to gain in-depth knowledge for a career in research in industry or academia.
We emphasise the application of computational methods and packages in mechanical engineering analysis design and manufacture to solve complex engineering problems, but you’ll choose from a wide variety of options that allow you to tailor your studies to suit your own interests or career ambitions. You could gain specialist knowledge in mechatronics and robotics, automotive engineering, tribology, aerospace engineering and many more.
You’ll be taught in world-class facilities by researchers who are making breakthroughs in their fields. It’s an excellent opportunity to gain a wide range of knowledge and skills that will prepare you for an exciting and challenging career.
Specialist facilities
We have an impressive range of world-class facilities to support your studies. In addition to our advanced CAD facilities for design work, we have the latest industry-standard software for computational fluid dynamics and finite element modelling of material stress analysis.
There’s also a well-equipped workshop with CNC machinery, 3D printing facilities and wire EDM for building parts and extensive lab facilities for solid and fluid dynamics, erosion, corrosion, tribology, combustion, control and dynamics, robotics and optical measurement.
This course is accredited by the Institute of Mechanical Engineers (IMechE) under licence from the UK regulator, the Engineering Council.
In Semester 1 you’ll take a core module that introduces you to the fundamentals of computational and experimental methods, laying the groundwork for the rest of your studies. Beyond this, you’ll be able to choose modules in areas that suit your interests and career aspirations such as Combustion in Engines, fluid dynamics analysis, biomaterials or aspects of automotive and aerospace engineering.
Throughout the programme you’ll complete your Professional Project – an independent piece of research on a topic within mechanical engineering that allows you to demonstrate your knowledge and skills. In the two taught semesters you’ll review the literature around your topic and plan the project, before completing the design, analysis, computation, experimentation and writing up in the summer months.
If you choose to study part-time, you’ll extend your studies over a longer period so you can take fewer modules in each year.
Want to find out more about your modules?
Take a look at the Advanced Mechanical Engineering module descriptions for more detail on what you will study.
Compulsory modules
Optional modules
Our groundbreaking research feeds directly into teaching, and you’ll have regular contact with staff who are at the forefront of their disciplines. You’ll have regular contact with them through lectures, seminars, tutorials, small group work and project meetings.
Independent study is also important to the programme, as you develop your problem-solving and research skills as well as your subject knowledge.
You’ll be assessed using a range of techniques including case studies, technical reports, presentations, in-class tests, assignments and exams. Optional modules may also use alternative assessment methods.
After graduating from this course, you will be in a good position to seek employment with many leading organisations such as Airbus, Bentley Motors, Bombardier Transportation, Crompton Technology Group, Cummins UK, DePuy International, EAS Engineering, E-ON UK, Faraday Packaging Partnership, Ford Motor Company, Jaguar Land Rover, Nissan Motor Company, Prodrive, Ricardo UK and Siemens.
You’ll have access to the wide range of engineering andcomputing careers resources held by our Employability team in our dedicated Employability Suite. You’ll have the chance to attend industry presentations book appointments with qualified careers consultants and take part in employability workshops. Our annual Engineering and Computing Careers Fairs provide further opportunities to explore your career options with some of the UK’s leading employers.
The University's Careers Centre also provide a range of help and advice to help you plan your career and make well-informed decisions along the way, even after you graduate. Find out more at the Careers website.
Visit our website for more information on fees, scholarships, postgraduate loans and other funding options to study Materials Engineering at Swansea University - 'Welsh University of the Year 2017' (Times and Sunday Times Good University Guide 2017).
With our main research strengths of aerospace materials, environmental materials and steel technology, Swansea University provides an excellent base for your research as a MSc by Research student in Materials Engineering.
Swansea is one of the UK’s leading centres for Materials Engineering in teaching and research. The internationally leading materials research conducted at Swansea is funded by prestigious organisations. These industrial research links provide excellent research opportunities.
Key research areas within Materials Engineering include:
Design against failure by creep, fatigue and environmental damage
Structural metals and ceramics for gas turbine applications
Grain boundary engineering
Recycling of polymers and composites
Corrosion mechanisms in new generation magnesium alloys
Development of novel strip steel grades (IF, HSLA, Dual Phase, TRIP)
Functional coatings for energy generation, storage and release
MSc by research in Materials Engineering typically lasts one year full-time, two to three years part-time. This is an individual research project written up in a thesis of 30,000 words.
Our new home at the innovative Bay Campus provides some of the best university facilities in the UK, in an outstanding location.
Within Engineering at Swansea University there are state-of-the-art facilities specific to Materials Engineering.
- Comprehensive computer systems for specialist and general purposes.
- World-leading equipment for characterisation of the mechanical properties of metallic, ceramic, polymeric and composite materials.
- Extensive range of laboratories housing scanning electron microscopes with full microanalysis and electron backscatter diffraction capabilities.
The internationally leading materials research conducted at Swansea is funded by prestigious organisations including:
Rolls-Royce
Airbus
Tata Steel
Rolls-Royce
The Institute of Structural Materials at Swansea is a core member of the Rolls-Royce University Technology Centre in Materials.
This venture supports a wide ranging research portfolio with a rolling value of £6.5 million per annum addressing longer term materials issues.
Airbus
Over £1m funding has been received from Airbus and the Welsh Government in the last three years to support structural composites research and development in the aerospace industry and to support composites activity across Wales.
Tata Steel
Funding of over £6 million to continue our very successful postgraduate programmes with Tata Steel.
Other companies sponsoring research projects include Akzo Nobel, Axion Recycling, BAE Systems, Bayer, Cognet, Ford, HBM nCode, Jaguar Land Rover, Novelis, QinetiQ, RWE Innogy, Timet, TWI (Wales), as well as many smaller companies across the UK.
These industrial research links provide excellent opportunities for great research and employment opportunities.
The Research Excellence Framework (REF) 2014 ranks Engineering at Swansea as 10th in the UK for the combined score in research quality across the Engineering disciplines.
World-leading research
The REF shows that 94% of research produced by our academic staff is of World-Leading (4*) or Internationally Excellent (3*) quality. This has increased from 73% in the 2008 RAE.
Research pioneered at the College of Engineering harnesses the expertise of academic staff within the department. This ground-breaking multidisciplinary research informs our world-class teaching with several of our staff leaders in their fields.
Highlights of the Engineering results according to the General Engineering Unit of Assessment:
Research Environment at Swansea ranked 2nd in the UK
Research Impact ranked 10th in the UK
Research Power (3*/4* Equivalent staff) ranked 10th in the UK
This programme will provide you with the advanced knowledge and skills to pursue a successful career in the oil and gas industry.
You’ll study modules covering core topics related to the downstream activities of the industry including drilling and production technology, oilfield chemistry and corrosion, and chemical reaction processes. You’ll also have the option to take modules in topics such as separation processes, process optimisation and control, and multi-scale modelling and simulation.
Practical work supports your lectures and seminars, as you split your time between the lab and the classroom. You’ll also undertake a major research project investigating a specific topic in petroleum production engineering, which could relate to your own interests or career intentions. Taught by experts in our world-class facilities, you’ll gain the knowledge and skills to thrive in a challenging and exciting industry.You’ll benefit from the chance to study in cutting-edge facilities where our researchers are pushing the boundaries of chemical and process engineering. We have facilities for characterising particulate systems for a wide range of technological materials, as well as facilities for fuel characterisation, environmental monitoring and pollution control. In our Energy Building, you’ll find an engine testing fuel evaluation and transport emissions suite and other characterisation equipment.
We are seeking accreditation from the Energy Institute.
Most of the course revolves around core modules, giving you a range of knowledge relating to different aspects of downstream petroleum production processes. These will include chemical reaction processes, drilling and production technologies and oilfield chemistry and corrosion.
You’ll look at the principles of process performance analysis, refining theory, enhanced oil recovery, chemicals used in corrosion control and strategies for new or mature assets. On top of this, you’ll take an optional module that allows you to develop your knowledge in an area that suits your own interests.
In the summer months you’ll undertake a research project, which will demonstrate the skills you’ve gained and may even be linked to your future career plans.
Want to find out more about your modules?
Take a look at the Petroleum Production Engineering module descriptions for more detail on what you will study.
Compulsory modules
Optional modules
Our groundbreaking research feeds directly into teaching, and you’ll have regular contact with staff who are at the forefront of their disciplines. You’ll have regular contact with them through lectures, seminars, tutorials, small group work and project meetings. Independent study is also important to the programme, as you develop your problem-solving and research skills as well as your subject knowledge.
You’ll be assessed using a range of techniques including case studies, technical reports, presentations, in-class tests, assignments and exams. Optional modules may also use alternative assessment methods.
The research project is one of the most satisfying elements of this course. It allows you to apply what you’ve learned to a piece of research focusing on a real-world problem, and it can be used to explore and develop your specific interests.
Examples of project topics would include:
A proportion of research projects are formally linked to industry, and can include spending time at the collaborator’s site over the summer.
The programme’s main focus is on downstream petroleum industry activities such as drilling, production, refining and distribution.
With an MSc degree in Petroleum Production Engineering you could expect to pursue a successful career in the oil and gas industries in a wide range of areas as diverse as field engineering, production drilling engineering, pipeline and transportation logistics, refinery operations and management, refinery control and optimisation, and sales and marketing.
You’ll have access to the wide range of engineering and computing careers resources held by our Employability team in our dedicated Employability Suite. You’ll have the chance to attend industry presentations book appointments with qualified careers consultants and take part in employability workshops. Our annual Engineering and Computing Careers Fairs provide further opportunities to explore your career options with some of the UK’s leading employers.
The University's Careers Centre also provide a range of help and advice to help you plan your career and make well-informed decisions along the way, even after you graduate. Find out more at the Careers website.
Nuclear technology plays a crucial role in a wide variety of contexts and sectors in Belgium, including power production, waste management, nuclear fuel production, etc. The Belgian Nuclear Higher Education Network (BNEN) combines the expertise in nuclear education and research of six major Belgian universities (KU Leuven, UGent, VUB, UCL, ULG and ULB) with the Belgian Nuclear Research Centre SCK-CEN.
Nuclear technology plays a crucial role in a wide variety of contexts and sectors in Belgium, including:
The Belgium Nuclear Higher Education Network combines the expertise in nuclear education and research of six major Belgian universities (KU Leuven, UGent, VUB, UCL, ULG and ULB) with the Belgian Nuclear Research Centre.
The current programme can be divided into three core blocks:
The collaboration with SCK*CEN makes it possible to include actual use of facilities in the curriculum, supporting the development of skills and competences in a research environment. All subjects are taught by academics appointed by the partner universities, whereas the practical exercises and laboratory sessions are supervised by the experts of SCK*CEN. The Master’s thesis offers an opportunity for internship in industry or in a research laboratory.
All teaching activities take place on the premises of SCK*CEN. Courses are organised in English and in a modular way; teaching in blocks of one to three weeks for each module allows optimal time management for students and lecturers, facilitates registration for individual modules, and allows easy exchange with international students.
BNEN has served as a role model for the European Nuclear Education Network (ENEN) which now has become an association of over 60 members (universities, industry, regulators, research centres), aiming at facilitating mobility in Europe for students in nuclear engineering.
One particular aspect of the BNEN degree is that it automatically leads to the recognition as Class I Expert by the Federal Agency of Nuclear Control. In order to receive this accreditation the programme must at least offer 24 credits in Nuclear Safety and 12 credits in Radioprotection.
The Master of Science in Nuclear Engineering programme is an internationally oriented, interuniversity programme organised by BNEN in close collaboration with nuclear research centres and industry. The aim of the BNEN programme is to provide students with all the skills and scientific and technical background necessary to carry out duties at a high level of responsibility in order to ensure the safe and economical operation of nuclear power plants, the regulation and control of nuclear installations or to design new nuclear systems.
A major strength of the BNEN programme, as to its sustainability, is that it allows providing high quality academic education by experts from (or appointed by) the main Belgian universities at low individual cost and thus very efficiently harmonised/rationalised. In addition, the participation of the nuclear research centre SCK*CEN in the consortium provides superb realistic experimental facilities in a difficult (radioactive) environment at low cost for the universities.
A further fundamental strength of the programme can be found in the fact that a well-balanced curriculum is offered where the contents and format have been discussed at length with representatives of the major nuclear companies that are the first potential employers of the graduates. Objectives and programme outcomes were defined that encompass in depth disciplinary specific competences as well as, but in a less pronounced way, transferable skills and competences that are needed for an efficient integration of a graduate in a larger engineering team. There is a nearly complete overlap between objectives and realised competences in courses, electives, exercises and Master’s thesis. This can be ascribed to the following contributing factors:
Graduates possess the necessary skills and knowledge to carry out duties at a high level of responsibility in:
In addition, the degree itself is an important part of the legal qualifications necessary to become a safety professional in a major nuclear installation.
The Advanced Master is the ideal stepping-stone to a high-level job in the field of welding and joining technology. In many countries, there is a permanent and growing demand for scientists and engineers who are knowledgeable and trained at an academic level in the field of welding engineering.
The programme is indispensable (and obligatory) for engineers seeking to work as Responsible Welding Coordinators. Engineers interested in R&D, quality, design, production, maintenance and particularly welding metallurgy will also find the programme instructive.
4 Clusters in the programme:
Upon successful completion of the entire programme (60 ECTS), you will be awarded the degree of MSc in Welding Engineering.
Upon successful completion of the course (40 ECTS), you gain access to the International Institute of Welding oral examination. A passing score results in IIW accreditation as a certified International Welding Engineer (IWE) and European Welding Engineer (EWE).
The green KU Leuven Technology Campus De Nayer, near Mechelen, is certified as an Authorised Training Body for International Welding Engineering by the Belgian Welding Association (BVL), which represents the International Institute of Welding (IIW).
This advanced master's programme strives to offer students a complete training in the professional niche of Welding Engineering. The programme has the following goals:
To this end, students must acquire sufficient knowledge, skills and abilities in order to:
This programme opens up a wide spectrum of professional possibilities and exposes you to an extremely varied field of action: petrochemistry, the aviation and aero-space industry, civil construction, assembly plants, the nuclear sector, shipping and logistics, general construction, and more. As a welding engineer, you will carry out a wide range of duties, including research, design, production, maintenance, sales and quality inspection.
Our graduates find employment in local SMEs, large multinational industrial companies as well as private and public organisations at home and abroad. There is a real need for experts with the capability to conduct research, carry out quality control analyses, and perform inspections, monitoring and certification in the broad field of welding. Some graduates start a career as independent consultants.
A higher degree by research involves training in research methods and systematic, high level study of a research project. The nature of the work and the time it takes to finish the research means a research degree is demanding and needs great commitment.
You must present your results in a thesis, explain the methods used in your research and defend them in an oral examination.
To get an MPhil you must critically investigate and evaluate an approved topic and display an understanding of suitable research methods.
Materials and Engineering Research Institute (MERI)
MERI is a multi-disciplinary research institute encompassing four research centres each with their own specialist groups operating within them. We undertake high quality academic research across a range of disciplines and apply this research knowledge in a commercial and industrial context. Research areas include • polymers and composites • solar energy • structural integrity and corrosion • functional coatings • simulation and modelling • robotics.
In the 2008 Research Assessment Exercise we were the leading post–92 university in metallurgy and materials (UoA29). 75 per cent of our staff were judged to be internationally leading and we obtained a Times Higher Education average score of 2.15 reflecting the quality of our work and world class staff.
Our staff include • chemists • materials scientists • physicists • computer scientists • mechanical, electronic and electrical engineers, all working on individual or collaborative projects shared between research centres. Supported by a £6m equipment base, which will shortly undergo a £4m refurbishment, this inter-disciplinary approach enables us to solve complex problems ranging from fracture of artificial implants through to designing surfaces that can withstand frictional temperatures in excess of 1,000 degrees centigrade. Solutions to these kinds of problems put MERI at the top in terms of industrial collaboration.
The Materials Research and Analysis Service (MARS) is also a key strength in the research institute, established to provide regional business with access to research facilities and analysis, which enhances the capability of companies in terms of new and improved products.
Evidence of MERI’s research strength is reflected in the patent portfolio that currently consists of 22 granted patents with another 17 applications in progress.
MERI is made up of five centres of excellence
Training and development
An extensive range of training and development opportunities are available to doctoral researchers through the doctoral skills training series and MERI-based training.
MERI training:
Skills training for postgraduate research
This course will comprise 4 main sessions:
All of the sessions are mandatory for all MERI research students.
Weekly seminar programme
Speakers are invited weekly to discuss their latest research with our staff and students.
Research ethics
This session introduces you to the principle of research ethics and the Sheffield Hallam procedures for ethical clearance. It will also involve you doing an initial ethic checklist for your research project and introduce the online EPIGIUM module ethics 1, which all Sheffield Hallam research students must complete.
RefWorks
RefWorks is a web-based bibliographic system with which you can build up a database of all of your reference material. It is flexible and very powerful, particularly when it comes to outputting reference lists for papers and thesis.
Introduction to bibliographic databases
As a researcher it is vital to be able to access relevant high level information. Here you learn more sophisticated information retrieval skills and see how to use subject specific databases relevant to your research area.
Health and safety for postgraduate research
The session aims to provide clear health and safety guidelines for new postgraduate researchers around personal safety and safety of others within the university environment, including and laboratories & workshops.
Advanced measurement techniques
This module aims to equip you with the skills and knowledge to make informed decisions on experimental materials analysis techniques. A number of techniques are demonstrated, the emphasis being on what each can achieve and the potentials for synergy from combining results obtained using from different techniques. This promotes effective decision making in research planning and operation, as well as a broad understanding of what different approaches can be used for.
MATLAB
MATLAB is a powerful programming language for numerical computations. It is employed in a range of industrial and academic environments. MATLAB has numerous built-in functions for engineering, physical, graphical, mathematical and computing applications. Besides this it has a variety of specialised toolboxes for specific applications, such as control systems, machine vision, signal processing and many others. MATLAB also has the symbolic toolbox that allows operating on symbolic expressions. In the first sessions we will cover MATLAB fundamentals, and the following sessions will be tailored to the specific research needs of attendees.
MERI research symposium event
The MERI Research Symposium is an excellent opportunity for both staff and students who are either active researchers, or who are interested in engaging in research, to meet with colleagues from across the faculty, to raise awareness of current research projects. The event will incorporate talks from academic staff and second year MERI PhD students, with poster presentations from final year undergraduate engineering students and first year MERI students.
Poster preparation
This course is aimed at first year students to give tips and techniques on how to prepare for the MERI Research Symposium Event, at which they will present a poster.
Talk preparation
All second year students are required to give a talk at the MERI Research Symposium Event.
Thesis followed by oral examination
Research degrees are a vital qualification for most academic careers, and for professional specialisation and development in an existing or planned career. The rigorous analytical thinking they involve also demonstrates ability to potential employers in all areas of work.
