How This Course Works
The course is organised into six modules, each building on the last. Within each module you'll find:
- Lessons — core content with embedded visuals, callouts, and knowledge checks
- Formative quizzes — low-stakes practice to test your understanding (not graded)
- Graded quizzes — submitted to your facilitator for assessment
- Workbooks — extended written responses that deepen your thinking
- Scenario cards — real-world situations to apply what you've learned
- Assessment tasks — structured evidence-based assignments
Everything is grounded in the R1-A training rig — a simplified vacuum system that makes abstract concepts concrete. Later modules introduce the R2-A and R3-A rigs to extend your thinking to industrial-scale systems.
Work at your own pace through the asynchronous content. Your facilitator will run periodic sync sessions for discussion and Q&A.
How to Submit Your Work
Graded Quizzes — Answer all questions, then click Submit Quiz. Your responses are sent automatically to your facilitator. You will receive a confirmation code.
Workbooks — Complete your responses in each field, then click Submit Workbook at the bottom of the page. Your work is sent to your facilitator.
Assessments — Complete the assessment tasks, then click Submit Assessment. Your work is sent to your facilitator.
All submissions include a confirmation code. Keep this code as your receipt.
If you see "Saved locally" instead of "Submitted" — your internet connection may have dropped. Use the Copy to Clipboard or Email to Self buttons to save your responses and send them to your facilitator manually.
Vacuum Fundamentals & System Orientation
- L1Welcome & OrientationLesson
- L2What Is Vacuum?Lesson
- L3Pressure Concepts & UnitsLesson
- L4Gas Behaviour in Vacuum SystemsLesson
- L5Reading a Vacuum System SchematicLesson
- L6System States & Diagnostic ThinkingLesson
- Formative Quiz (Practice)Quiz
- Graded QuizQuiz
- Assessment Criteria & RubricAssessment
- Workbook (50-point assignment)Workbook
- Scenario CardsScenarios
Influences on Real Vacuum Systems
- L1Welcome Back & Module 2 OrientationLesson
- L2Gas Load — Where Does the Gas Come From?Lesson
- L3Rate of Rise — Telling Outgassing from LeaksLesson
- L4Contamination — Recognising What Shouldn't Be ThereLesson
- L5The Residual Gas Analyser & Diagnostic IntegrationLesson
- L6Module 2 Review & Connection ForwardLesson
- Formative Quiz (Practice)Quiz
- Graded QuizQuiz
- Assessment Criteria & RubricAssessment
- Workbook (50-point assignment)Workbook
- Scenario CardsScenarios
Flow Behaviour, Conductance & System Geometry
- L1Welcome & Module 3 OrientationLesson
- L2Viscous Flow vs Molecular Flow — Why Gas Behaviour ChangesLesson
- L3Conductance — Why Geometry MattersLesson
- L4Interpreting Pump-Down CurvesLesson
- L5Beyond R1-A — Conductance in Real SystemsLesson
- L6Module 3 Review & Connection ForwardLesson
- Formative Quiz (Practice)Quiz
- Graded QuizQuiz
- Assessment Criteria & RubricAssessment
- Workbook (50-point assignment)Workbook
- Scenario CardsScenarios
Materials, Seals, Flanges & Interfaces
- L1Welcome & Module 4 OrientationLesson
- L2Vacuum-Compatible Materials — MetalsLesson
- L3Seals — Where Vacuum Meets AtmosphereLesson
- L4Flanges & Connections — How Components JoinLesson
- L5Material Selection for Vacuum ApplicationsLesson
- L6Module 4 Review & Connection ForwardLesson
- Formative Quiz (Practice)Quiz
- Graded QuizQuiz
- Assessment Criteria & RubricAssessment
- Workbook (50-point assignment)Workbook
- Scenario CardsScenarios
Chambers, Components, Valves & System Layout
- L1Welcome & Module 5 OrientationLesson
- L2Chamber Types & DesignLesson
- L3Valve Types & Their FunctionsLesson
- L4Feedthroughs — Connecting Inside to OutsideLesson
- L5Isolation Points & Valve SequencingLesson
- L6Module 5 Review & Connection ForwardLesson
- Formative Quiz (Practice)Quiz
- Graded QuizQuiz
- Assessment Criteria & RubricAssessment
- Workbook (50-point assignment)Workbook
- Scenario CardsScenarios
Pumping Principles & Pumping Behaviour
- L1Welcome & Module 6 OrientationLesson
- L2Roughing Pumps — Removing the Bulk GasLesson
- L3High-Vacuum Pumps — Beyond RoughingLesson
- L4Pumping Performance — Speed, Ultimate Pressure & the Oil Mist FilterLesson
- L5Pump Safety & Recognising ProblemsLesson
- L6Course Integration & What Comes NextLesson
- Formative Quiz (Practice)Quiz
- Graded QuizQuiz
- Assessment Criteria & RubricAssessment
- Workbook (50-point assignment)Workbook
- Scenario CardsScenarios
Interactive Tools & Resources
R1-A Side Elevation
2D assembly drawing of the R1-A training rig — SVG schematic with labeled components.
Open Tool →R1-A Interactive States
Toggle between system states — see how valve positions and pressures change.
Open Tool →R1-A Scenario Animator
Step through operational scenarios with animated state transitions.
Open Tool →P&ID Diagram (ISO 14617)
Process & instrumentation diagram using international standard symbols.
Open Tool →Conductance Animator
Visualise mean free path and flow regime transitions as pressure changes.
Open Tool →Pumpdown Curve Simulator
Interactive pressure-over-time graph — adjust parameters and see effects.
Open Tool →R3-A Component Schematic
Advanced rig variant — research/semiconductor sector configuration.
Open Tool →Give Us Your Feedback
This is a prototype course and your feedback is genuinely valuable. On every page you'll find a feedback overlay (look for the tab on the right side of the screen). Use it to:
- Flag anything confusing, incorrect, or unclear
- Suggest improvements to lessons, quizzes, or tools
- Report technical issues (broken links, display problems)
- Tell us what's working well
Your comments go directly to the course development team. Don't hold back — honest feedback makes the course better for everyone.