The department was founded in 1930 under the name ‘Metaalkunde’. Over the years, its name was changed twice in order to match closer the educational and research activities of those times. The first change was implemented in 1984 to ‘Metaalkunde en Toegepaste Materiaalkunde (Metallurgy and Materials Engineering) whereas the second change was implemented in 2014 to ‘Materiaalkunde’ (Materials Engineering).

The Department of Materials Engineering (MTM), within the Faculty of Engineering Science, is responsible for education, research and services in the field of materials science, balancing fundamental and applied research under the umbrella of sustainability. Important values are relevance for society, continuity and trust and confidentiality in long-term-co-operation with strong industrial partners.

The research activities at MTM are divided in three divisions:

• Structural Composites and Alloys, Integrity and Non-destructive Testing
• Surface and Interface Engineered Materials
• Sustainable Metals Processing and Recycling

The research at MTM contributes to the development of materials and processes which will co-shape the future. Examples are new or improved recycling processes, biodegradable composites, materials for lithium ion batteries, sensors based on functional materials, …