Writing engineering theses and reports - slides

Reports and Theses - W. Hallett - University of Ottawa

Engineering Reports

W. Hallett

and Theses


1. Outline of Typical Report - I

Abstract (1-2 paragraph summary)

Table of Contents

List of Figures*

List of Tables*

Nomenclature (if you have many symbols oracronyms, otherwise define them in the text)

Title page

*not needed for short reports or reports with fewfigures and/or tables


1. Outline of Typical Report - II

1. Introduction (brief - set context)

3. Methods and Procedures- experiments, analysis, design work as

appropriate - can be several chapters if needed

2. Literature Review, Background or Theory- show what has been done before and how your

work continues or complements this- highlight original contribution to be made by

your work


1. Outline of Typical Report - III

4. Results and Discussion

6. References

5. Conclusions and Recommendations- conclusions are NOT the same as the summary- summarize what has been learned, what is new,

where to go from here- do NOT summarize methods, etc. again


1. Outline of Typical Report - IVAppendices

- information to support report, but not needed byall readers

- examples - tables of data- construction drawings- detailed mathematical derivations- computer codes- instrumentation, calibrations

- identify as Appendix A, Appendix B, etc.- each must have a title

(e.g. Appendix A: Instrument Calibration)


1. Outline of Typical Report - VSection numbering (example):

2. Pyrolysis (chapter)

2.1 Thermal Decomposition of Lab Reports (section)2.1.1 Role of Moisture and Alcohol Content (sub-section)2.1.2 Contribution of BS to Heat of Pyrolysis

(a) Pure BS (sub-sub-section)(b) Artificial BS

2.2 Products of Lab Report Pyrolysis2.2.1 Chemical Reactions2.2.2 Role of Heat Transfer


1. Outline of Typical Report - VI

FGPS Thesis Format:

- must be double-spacedwhy? so examiners can add comments and

corrections- must be printed one side of paper only

why? to make it easier for examiners to lookat several pages at once

LMake your document as “user-friendly” aspossible.


2. Presenting Data in Graphs

General principles:- measured data are presented as points (use symbols

such as Q, O, L, �, �, etc., not dots)- exception: trace produced by continuously

recording instrument (e.g. tensile test)

- theory or calculations are presented as lines orcurves (unless they are really only single points)

- measured points should not be connected by lines- if curves are drawn to show trends (use only ifnecessary) they should not join all the points


2. Graph Examples

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

0 10 20 30 40 50 radius (mm)

As plotted by Quattro or Excel:theory - takeout points

exp’t - takeout lines


2. Graph Examples

0

20

40

60

0 10 20 30 40 50 radius (mm)

Cleaned up

theory

measurementstake out gridlines - but leave tickson axes

measurements -points only

line only

vertical title is OK for report (but notfor oral presentation)


2. Graph Examples

0

20

40

60

0 10 20 30 40 50 radius (mm)

theory

measurements

can sketch in curve ifnecessary to show thatpoints belong to same series- but tell readers in captionthat this is NOT a fittedcurve, and do NOT join allthe points

Cleaned up, with trend line for experimental data:


2. Graph Examples

0 80 160 240100

200

300

T (EC)

time (s)

Exception: continuous trace produced by instrument

Solder A

Solder B

Solder C


0

200

400

600

800

1000

1200

0 1 2 3 4 5 voltage (V)

2. Graph Examples

line fitted by linearregression (give fitted equation)

P (Pa) = 240 V

Calibration data with line fitted by regression:


2. Graph Examples

0

20

40

0

1200

2400

5 10 15 height above grate (cm)

TG

TS

CO2

CO

O2

T

15A220S

T

arrow indicatesaxis for this curve

Presentation of theory and measurements together:


2. Graph Examples

0

0.5

1

1 2 3 4 5 height above grate (cm)

ñA = 1600 kg/m3

dPA = 0.5 mm

ÖSA = 0.5

baseline (05A520L)

åA = 0.6

Presentation of several different theoretical results:


2. Graph Examples

1

2

3

9 10 11 1/T (K -1 x 104)

each point is mean of severalmeasurements at sameconditions- error bars show ± onestandard deviation frommean (state this in caption)

Use of error bars for replicate measurements:

numerical model


2. Presenting Data in Graphs

General principles:- each graph or figure must have a detailed caption,

which should:- state what graph shows (e.g. velocity vs radius)- give conditions or values of variables (e.g. T, P,

etc.) for results shown- identify parts, special features

Caption and graph together should containenough information that they can be

understood without looking at the report text.


2. Presenting Data in GraphsLogarithmic scales

1 10 100 1000 x:(log10 × 0 1 2 3)

- principle: - powers of 10 evenly spaced on scale- log of numbers on scale progress linearly - plot actual numbers - do not show log of numbers- no. of “cycles” = no. of powers of 10

- example: 3 cycle log scale


2. Presenting Data in GraphsLogarithmic scales

One Cycle:

1 10 2 5

Logarithmic Scales - Uses:(a) for data that cover a large range of values

- log scale expands region of small values andcompresses region of large values

N.b. A log scale does not have a 0 (because log(0) isundefined) - do not use for data that go to 0 or < 0.


2. Graph Examples

0

20

40

60

80

100

0 20 40 60 80 100 120 ÄT (EC)

Boiling Curve - linear plot


2. Graph Examples

1

10

100

10 100 1000 ÄT (EC)

can add connecting curve toshow relation of two groupsof points (in this casenucleate and film boilingregions)

Boiling Curve - log-log plot (i.e. both axes logarithmic)


2. Presenting Data in GraphsLogarithmic scales - Uses: (b) to show particular relationships:

e.g. Arrhenius reaction rate

becomes straight line if plotted as r on log scaleversus 1/T on linear scale (semi-log plot), because

ln ( ÿr ) ' ln ( AyO2 ) &E

R T(CONSTANT)

ln ( ÿr ) ' A - B (1 / T )


2. Graph Examples

1

2

3

9 10 11 1/T (K -1 x 104)

Linear graph - gives a curve


2. Graph Examples

0.1

1

10

9 10 11 1/T (K -1 x 104)

Semi-log graph - straight line


2. Presenting Data in Graphse.g. power law relationships in log-log graph:

take log of both sides:

therefore y = axb will plot as straight line with slopeb on log-log paper

(Note again: you do not have to take logarithms ofdata - just use log scale)

(CONSTANT)


0

200

400

600

800

1000

0

1

2

3

4

0 2 4 6 8 10

%x

x3

2. Graph Examples

%xx3

x

Power law relationships on a linear graph:


1

10

100

1000

1 10

x3

%x

2. Graph Examples

x

y

Power law relationships on a log-log graph:(note again that graph cannot go to 0)


3. Experimental Errors

“accuracy” = how close measurements are to true value- established by calibration against known standard

“precision” = how reproducible measurements are- high precision = small degree of scatter

You must state honestly the precision and/oraccuracy of each instrument/measurement


3. Experimental Errors

Significant Figures- all numbers without exception must be givenwith a number of significant figures representingthe true accuracy or precision of the quantity- round off final results (but NOT intermediate

steps) of all calculations to reflect this

- do rounding only on final answers, aftercarrying out all arithmetic operations

- rounding of intermediate steps will introducemore errors


3. Experimental ErrorsSignificant Figures in Arithmetic Operations

- general rule:- addition or subtraction - result has same no. ofdecimal places as least precise input - round up ordown as appropriate

25.1 + 22.43 + 1.235 + 1.90 = 50.665 50.7

- note that 1.90 (not 1.9) has two decimal places -final 0 included if the number is precise to 0.01


3. Experimental ErrorsSignificant Figures in Arithmetic Operations - general rule:

- multiplication or division - result has same no. of sig. figures as least precise input:

1.2 × 25.4 / 745 = 0.040913 0.041

You cannot make numbers more precise bydoing arithmetic operations on them!

These rules are based on the theory of errorpropagation


4. ReferencesPurpose: to identify the source of any non-original

material in the report

You must give a reference for - any quotation, figure, etc. taken directly from

another work - failure to give a reference forcopied material is plagiarism

- information and ideas from other works, such as- properties data- equations or theories (unless widely known -

don’t give a reference for Bernoulli’s eq’n!)- ideas or explanations for physical phenomena


4. References(a) the author-date system

- one citation, 1 or 2 authors:

where ø(á) is the digamma function, tables and approximations for whichare given by Abramovitz and Stegun (1970) and other standard works.

- multiple citations:

... in which the droplet composition is assumed uniform in space,leading to evaporation as a batch distillation process (Newbold andAmundson, 1973; Law, 1978; Law and Law, 1981).

- references are listed alphabetically by first authorin the list of references at the end of the report

semicolon

- one citation, > 2 authors:....the choice for most spray computations even today (Lippert et al. 2000).

“et alii” (Latin, = and others)


4. References

- one citation:

The theory required for multiple distribution functions wasdeveloped recently [31]; it is here simplified by assuming .....

- multiple citations:

Advantage: compact, BUT references must be listed innumerical order in list of references - if you have to addnew references later you will have to re-number a lot ofreferences both in the list and in the text.

These fuels are typically denser and more viscous than petroleumfuels, with a specific gravity typically around 1.2 [5,6,10,22-25].

(b) the number system - references numbered in the orderthat they are first cited - if you cite the same work again, usethe same number. Number given as [21] or superscript21


4. References- citing specific page, etc.:

Properties are given by Smith and Jones (1970, Table I)....

or

Properties are given in several standard references [4, p. 25; 17, p. 30].

(c) footnotes for references - often used in the humanities, rarely in engineering1

1 footnotes in engineering are generally used for explanatory notesONLY, not for references


4. ReferencesList of referenceslist all references cited

- in alphabetical order (for author/date system); - or in numerical order (number system).

- ALL references listed must be cited in the text

Format- reference to paper in journal:

Smith, A., Jones, B., and Bloggs, W. (1993), High temperaturedecomposition of lab reports. Can. J. Chem. Eng 24, 36-44.

volume

pages

(exact format not critical - use that of a standardjournal in your area)

date

journal title - abbreviationssee Web of Science list


4. ReferencesFormat- reference to paper in conference proceedings:

Blow, J., and Snow, M. (1996), Toxic emissions from incineration of labreports, Conference on Incineration, Toronto, p. 25-36.

- reference to manufacturer’s data:Standard Stoker Co. (1942), Instruction manual for the Standard BKstoker. New York.

Étudiante, A., and Schueler, M. (2001), Handbook of Lab ReportRecycling, University of Ottawa Press, Ottawa, Canada.

- reference to book:

- reference to verbal or private information:Mulroney, B. (1993), personal communication.


4. ReferencesFormatReferences to web material:

Hallett, W.L.H. (2005), Packed bed combustion,http://by.genie.uottawa.ca/~hallett/packedbd.html

- use as little as possible, because web postings change andgo out of date. Give the date that you accessed the site,unless the material is literature with its own date.

- all web references must be to authoritative and reliablesources (e.g. university researchers, manufacturers,government labs). Avoid Wikipedia.

N.B. The use of unreliable or dubious sources reduces thecredibility of your own work!


4. References

The “bottom line” for references is that readers mustbe able to easily find all material you have used.

Note: References � Bibliography. A bibliography lists worksfor further reading, which may or may not have been cited inthe report. MS Word makes this error automatically.


5. Language and Style

1. Use the passive voice (”something was done”), not theactive (“I did something”), in a formal report

I measured the pressure with a capacitive transducerThe pressure was measured

We believed that droplets of this fuel would show disruptive burning.It was believed

2. Keep your personality out of it

I feel that I did an excellent job of conducting the experiment

this is for others to decide! Stick tofacts such as % error

avoid personal reactions


5. Language and Style3. Verb tense - past or present?

- use present for things that still exist now, or exist in adiagram in the report:

The combustor is connected to the fuel supply by a ½" pipe [a pieceof equipment that still exists, or referring to a figure which is beingdiscussed. Use “was” if combustor no longer exists.].

The velocity rises steadily with distance from the wall (Fig. 6). [Fig. 6 exists in the report now.]

- use past for completed actions:

The temperature was measured at several points in the combustor, andthe measurements showed a continual rise downstream from the burner.[BUT it would also be correct to write: Fig. 5 shows that thetemperature rises continually.... if one was discussing a graph.]

- be consistent - don’t keep changing tense



4. Avoid excessive use of acronyms (unless veryfamiliar) and jargon. Define all acronyms in the textand in the nomenclature.

The output from the linear displacement transducer (LDT) went

through a low-pass filter (LPF) and a high frequency amplifier (HFA)

before being transmitted by coaxial shielded cable (CSC) to the data

acquisition system (DAQ). The LDT, LPF and HFA were designed

and built in-house, while the CSC and the DAQ were purchased from

Acme Circuits.

transducer, filter and amplifier

cable


The fuel composition is described by the distribution f(I), which isdefined by

where á, â, and ã are the parameters of the distribution.

5. Placement of equation in text:

do NOT capitalize (MSWord always makes thismistake)

define all variables, either hereor in Nomenclature at beginning

number if you want torefer to equation later



6. “As such” does not mean “therefore”.

The transducer was calibrated against a water manometer. As such, itwas very accurate.

Therefore

The transducer was a high-grade capacitive instrument with astandardized calibration; as such, it was very accurate.

- the correct use of “as such” (if you must use this sillyexpression) must answer the question “as what?”:

7. “Data” is plural (singular is “datum” - rarely used)

The experimental data was plotted on a log-log graph. were

She was the senior engineer; as such, she was responsible for the runningof the plant.



8. Change of subject - be careful

The software is used to plot the data collected and can be viewed on athree-dimensional graph.

the data

9. Avoid vague statementsThe instrument used was accurate.

(give numbers, or state howinstrument was tested)


It was believed that.... (give reasons for your belief)

The theory fits the data well. (how well? to within howmuch error?)



10. Incorrect use of “like”

It looks like the transducer is defective.as if (“like” is not a conjunction, cannot be used to start a clause)

He was like ...He said...

It looks like a defective transducer.

but this is OK (used as a preposition):

For extensive discussion of style, see series in Can. J. Chem. Eng.: (2015), 93, 1889-1890, 2095-2097;

and (2016) 94, 3- 6, 205-208, 405-407, 713-715.


Happy writing!

www.dilbert.com

Writing engineering theses and reports - slides

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