2026 (Current Year) Faculty Courses School of Materials and Chemical Technology Department of Chemical Science and Engineering Graduate major in Chemical Science and Engineering

Elements of Chemical Systems Engineering I

Academic unit or major: Graduate major in Chemical Science and Engineering
Instructor(s): Sakae Toyoda / Ryuhei Nakamura / Takuya Harada / Yukitaka Kato / Manabu Ihara / Sergei Manzhos / Hiroyasu Fujitsuka
Class Format: Lecture (Face-to-face)
Media-enhanced courses: -
Day of week/Period (Classrooms): 7-8 Fri (W3-707(W371))
Class: -
Course Code: CAP.T415
Number of credits: 100
Course offered: 2026
Offered quarter: 1Q
Syllabus updated: Mar 13, 2026
Language: Japanese

Syllabus

Course overview and goals

This course provides graduate students with an understanding of chemical and energy-based systems at a wide range of multiple scales from the atomic and molecular level to the global scale, and provides explanations of cutting-edge research on the design and development of materials, processes, and energy systems and their applications in the real world, based on related fundamental disciplines.
Students learn broad knowledge of chemical system engineering from fundamentals to applications, and the importance of designing and developing materials, processes, and energy systems from a bird's-eye viewpoint.

Course description and aims

By taking this course, students will acquire the following abilities:
1) Understand and explain the fundamental aspects of the design/development/analysis of materials, processes, and environment/energy systems in the field of chemical system engineering.
2) Understand and explain state-of-the-art research topics in chemical system engineering, based on basic knowledge.

Keywords

Origin of Life, Energy big data, Material cycle analysis, Energy storage, First principles modeling, solid catalyst

Competencies

Specialist skills
Intercultural skills
Communication skills
Critical thinking skills
Practical and/or problem-solving skills

Class flow

Each class is conducted face-toin person, and students work on exercises or reports related to the content of the day's class.

Course schedule/Objectives

	Course schedule	Objectives
Class 1	Thinking About the Origin of Life (Ryuhei Nakamura)	Life is thought to have emerged on Earth about 3.8 billion years ago, yet most direct evidence has been lost due to plate tectonics. This lecture examines how the origin of life can be investigated scientifically under such constraints, with a focus on perspectives from applied chemistry.
Class 2	Principle of CO2 capture process and the frontier of advanced technologies (Takuya Harada)	Understand the principle of carbon capture and the frontier of advanced process technologies for the establishment of next generation carbon neutral system.
Class 3	Analysis of material cycles in the environment using stable isotope ratios (Sakae Toyoda)	Explain the causes of variation in stable isotope ratios and the principles of their application to material cycle studies.
Class 4	Energy Storage Technologies for Carbon Neutrality (Yukitaka Kato)	Understand the nature of energy storage technologies utilizing renewable energy and the necessity of chemical engineering.
Class 5	Realizing energy innovation through Energy big data science --Development of “Carbon Air Secondary Battery (CASB)” system and “Ene-Swallow®︎”— (Manabu Ihara)	Understand the relationship between energy big data science and electrochemistry, and energy systems science.
Class 6	Mechanistic insight into materials for electrochemical power sources from first principles (Sergei Manzhos)	We will demonstrate how key phenomena affecting the performance of functional materials in batteries, fuel cells, etc. can be understood based on first principles modeling.
Class 7	(Hiroyasu Fujitsuka)	(未定）

Study advice (preparation and review)

To enhance effective learning, students are encouraged to spend approximately 100 minutes preparing for class and another 100 minutes reviewing class content afterwards (including assignments) for each class.
They should do so by referring to textbooks and other course material.

Textbook(s)

None required.

Reference books, course materials, etc.

Materials are provided during class or uploaded on LMS as needed.

Evaluation methods and criteria

Attendance will be checked in each class. Full attendance is required in principle. Grades will be based on exercises in classes or reports.

Related courses

CAP.T416 ： Elements of Chemical Systems Engineering II

Prerequisites

This course is intended for students enrolled in the laboratories of faculty members in the Chemical Systems field of Department of Chemical Science and Engineering. However, undergraduate students are not permitted to take this graduate-level course in advance.