My favorite class in college is one that I am taking now. The course is called CHE460-Chemical Process Dynamics and Control or just Process Control for short. In this course, we learned how to model and control simple chemical processes. We also learned about different types of controllers and their advantages.
My favorite part of this course is the fact that it has direct industry applications. It is really exciting to learn about the controllers that are actually implemented in industrial processes. I am also currently taking Plant Design, my senior design course. My design project is designing a natural gas power plant, which requires multiple control systems to control various parameters (ex: temperatures, pressures, flow rates, etc). Everything that I have learned about control systems in Process Control has been important to my design project.
Another thing that makes this course so enjoyable is the professor. Dr. Qin is one of the best professors I have had in college. First of all, he is just an all around nice guy. He is always willing and available to speak with students, whether it’s about homework or careers. He isn’t too serious or rigid and likes to throw humor into his lectures. Aside from his personality, Dr. Qin is also a fantastic teacher. I have found that his course is much easier to understand simply because he takes the time to make sure everything is clear. He even created a facebook group where students can ask questions about the course.
If you’d like to read about some of the other courses that Viterbi students love, check out their blogs at https://viterbivoices.usc.edu/blog/
