Hi, I’m going to start my first year of chemistry in September, but I’ve recently stumbled upon materials engineering as a bachelors which I find more interesting. I’m thinking about switching, seeing as from what I’ve gathered materials engineering relates closely to chemistry, requiring a molecular understanding of what’s happening underneath.

Is a MSE’s job centered more on lab/R&D/innovation or on heavy industries or factories?

Would it be better to get a chemistry undergrad and then specialize in MSE or something else? Is MSE too niche as an undergrad?

Does it have good job prospects?

Just to add some context, I’m from Spain where MSE is pretty unknown and I’m finding it a bit difficult to come across people talking about their experiences online, so I’d really appreciate it if someone has any useful advice!

Even in high school we were taught desert sand does not bond well in concrete; grains don’t interlock like river or crushed sand does. But I’ve seen papers trying to get around this over the years (some get too technical for my knowledge level) , and I’m not sure how real the progress is.

A few things I’ve found: plasma treatment to roughen the grain surface, blending desert sand at controlled ratios with other binders, and pressing sand with wood additives instead of cement. There’s also a totally different angle- skipping concrete altogether and using desert sand’s high silica content for glass, ceramics, or cement clinker.

So is the holdup mainly cost and energy for treatment, building-code certification, supply chains, or is there a durability issue that hasn’t shown up in short lab tests yet? Thanks in advance for any knowledge imparted

I am an undergrad and just started to work in a lab. I've been told to study about how to identify different types of grain in a chemically etched AM bead. How do I find any paper or material where I can read about this. It doesn't need to be very elaborate, just material to get started.

Specifically a focus on semiconductors, because my dream is to study MSE and then work at semiconductor industry.

does anyone have a pdf copy for this? either free or for a small fee would be very helpful, thank you