Illinois Tech Elevate College Prep: Materials Engineering

Students will learn about the major concepts and receive hands-on experiences in fabricating lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries, including making components using additive manufacturing equipment, predicting materials properties through computational materials science and engineering methods, characterizing material crystal structure with the aid of X-ray diffractometry, imaging material morphology and size using scanning electron microscopy, and more! 

Learning Objectives:

Students will gain factual knowledge of how lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries are fabricated, what materials are used, and why. They will also gain factual knowledge of the advantages and challenges of additive manufacturing, how materials can enable additive manufacturing, the effectiveness of materials property prediction via computational materials science and engineering, the critical roles of materials characterization, and testing in advancing engineering materials for energy, electronic, biomedical, automotive, and aerospace engineering.

Example Activities:

Day one will focus on battery fabrication and testing, day two on additive manufacturing, day three on computational materials science and engineering, and day four on materials characterization and testing

Cost $499; $100 deposit due at time of registration

Date and Time: July 31–August 3 (Monday-Thursday), 9 a.m.–3:30 p.m. CST

Applications are viewed on a rolling basis, and seats in the program are filled on a first-come, first-serve basis. 

Location: Mies Campus

Eligibility: Rising ninth–12th graders (ages 14–17); some knowledge of chemistry and physics recommended