Profile and history of the department
Department Profile
The department currently offers instruction in the following bachelor’s degree programs: Chemistry and Materials Technology, Chemistry of Biomaterials for Medical Applications, Conservation and Restoration of Works of Art and Crafts, and Conservation and Restoration Technology of Cultural Heritage Objects.
At the master’s level, the department offers instruction in the Chemistry and Materials Technology program, with specializations in Metallic Materials, Biomaterials, Materials in Forensic Chemistry, Nanomaterials, and Materials for Electronics. The department also participates in teaching the Conservation and Restoration of Cultural Heritage Objects program.
At the doctoral level, the department provides instruction in the Chemistry and Materials Technology program.
In total, the department offers 54 courses in Czech and English during the academic year (including 6 for the doctoral program) and contributes to the teaching of an additional 4 courses. In the 2024–2025 academic year, the institute has 25 undergraduate students, 20 master’s students, and 36 doctoral students.
Organizationally, the Institute of Metallic Materials and Corrosion Engineering is currently divided into three research groups (physical metallurgy, chemical metallurgy, and corrosion engineering, which also includes the restoration of metal monuments), each of which is responsible for a specific area of teaching and research activities.
The Institute co-organizes several specialized conferences focused on metallic materials and corrosion. These include, in particular, the “Aluminum and Non-Ferrous Metals” conference, which focuses on developments in the field of advanced non-ferrous metal alloys; the AKI conference, which focuses on corrosion and corrosion protection of metals; and the “Microscopy and Non-Destructive Testing of Materials” conference.
The Professor Josef Koritta Endowment Fund, which was registered in November 1994, operates under the Institute of Metallic Materials and Corrosion Engineering.
History of the Department
The current Institute of Metallic Materials and Corrosion Engineering was established as the Institute of Chemical Metallurgy and Metallography at the Czech Technical University in Prague in 1923, evolving from the Chemical Metallurgy Laboratory, which was part of the Institute of Theoretical and Physical Chemistry and Metallurgy headed by Prof. František Wald at the Czech Technical University.
The teaching of metallurgy in the Czech lands has a long tradition. Its origins at the Royal Czech Estates School date back to 1806. The separate course “Iron Metallurgy” was included in the curriculum starting in 1871 and was taught by Associate Professor Jan Dušánek. Of considerable importance for the development and improvement of metallurgy education was the work of Prof. František Wald, who was appointed professor of theoretical and physical chemistry and chemical metallurgy in 1908, and especially the arrival of Prof. Otakar Quadrat in 1923, who took over from Prof. Wald, taking over the Department of Chemical Metallurgy, which had been transformed into the Institute of Chemical Metallurgy and Metallography. He headed the institute until 1956. In the late 1950s and early 1960s, the teaching of metallurgy and metallography was supplemented with new courses: Corrosion Engineering and the Science of Metallic Materials. In 1958, Prof. Josef Koritta was appointed head of the department. Under his leadership, which lasted until 1972, a modern study program focused on metals technology was developed. Instruction was oriented more toward the fields of physical metallurgy and corrosion engineering, and the original focus on metallurgical analytical chemistry was de-emphasized. From 1973 to 1979, the department was headed by Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ing. Ferdinand Franz, DrSc.; from 1979 to 1991 by Prof. Ing. Ladislav Kubíček, DrSc.; from 1991 to 2009 by Prof. Ing. Pavel Novák, CSc., and since 2009, the department has been headed by Prof. Dr. Ing. Dalibor Vojtěch.
A shift in the curriculum took place in the 1990s, when instruction began to emphasize the production of metals from secondary raw materials and processes for the disposal of metal-containing waste. The curriculum was also expanded to include the restoration of metal art monuments and historical methods of metal production. The list of elective courses now includes courses covering basic information on non-metallic materials and materials for medical implants. Laboratory instruction and independent student research were also strengthened through the introduction of semester-long research projects.