Chemical Engineering
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PDF generated at: Sun, 06 May 2012 13:54:05 UTC Contents Articles Chemical engineering 1 History of chemical engineering 8 Chemical engineer 11 Unit operation 15 Unit process 18 Process integration 19 Momentum transfer 21 Heat transfer 23 Mass transfer 34 Chemical process 36 Chemical reaction engineering 38 Chemical kinetics 40 Chemical process modeling 44 Chemical thermodynamics 45 Chemical plant 51 Process engineering 58 Process control 60 Process design 62 Fluid mechanics 65 Fluid dynamics 69 Transport phenomena 76 List of chemical process simulators 81 Outline of chemical engineering 84 Education for Chemical Engineers 87 Index of chemical engineering articles 88 List of chemical engineering societies 91 References Article Sources and Contributors 94 Image Sources, Licenses and Contributors 96 Article Licenses License 97 Chemical engineering 1 Chemical engineering Chemical engineering is the branch of engineering that deals with physical science (e.g., chemistry and physics), and life sciences (e.g., biology, microbiology and biochemistry) with mathematics and economics, to the process of converting raw materials or chemicals into more useful or valuable forms. In addition, modern chemical engineers are also concerned with pioneering valuable new materials and related techniques – which are often essential to related fields such as nanotechnology, fuel cells and biomedical engineering.[1] Within chemical engineering, two broad subgroups include 1) design, manufacture, and operation of plants and machinery in industrial chemical and related processes ("chemical process engineers"); and 2) development of new or adapted substances for products ranging from foods and beverages to cosmetics to cleaners to pharmaceutical ingredients, among many other products ("chemical product engineers"). Process engineers design, construct and operate plants Etymology A 1996 British Journal for the History of Science article cites James F. Donnelly for mentioning a 1839 reference to chemical engineering in relation to the production of sulfuric acid.[2] In the same paper however, George E. Davis, an English consultant, was credited for having coined the term.[3] The History of Science in United States: An Encyclopedia puts this at around 1880.[4] "Chemical engineering", describing the use of mechanical equipment in the chemical industry, became common vocabulary in England after 1850.[5] By 1910, the profession, "chemical engineer", was already in common use in Britain and the United States.[6] History Chemical engineering emerged upon the development of unit operations, a George E. Davis fundamental concept of the discipline. Most authors agree that Davis invented unit operations if not substantially developed it.[7] He gave a series of lectures on unit operations at the Manchester Technical School (University of Manchester today) in 1887, considered to be one of the earliest such about chemical engineering.[8] Three years before Davis' lectures, Henry Edward Armstrong taught a degree course in chemical engineering at the City and Guilds of London Institute. Armstrong's course "failed simply because its graduates ... were not especially attractive to employers." Employers of the time would Chemical engineering 2 have rather hired chemists and mechanical engineers.[4] Courses in chemical engineering offered by Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the United States, Owen's College in Manchester, England and University College London suffered under similar circumstances.[9] Starting from 1888,[10] Lewis M. Norton taught at MIT the first chemical engineering course in the United States. Norton's course was contemporaneous and essentially similar with Armstrong's course. Both courses, however, simply merged chemistry and engineering subjects. "Its practitioners had difficulty convincing engineers that they were engineers and chemists that they were not simply chemists."[4] Unit Students inside an industrial chemistry laboratory at MIT operations was introduced into the course by William Hultz Walker in 1905.[11] By the early 1920s, unit operations became an important aspect of chemical engineering at MIT and other US universities, as well as at Imperial College London.[12] The American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE), established in 1908, played a key role in making chemical engineering considered an independent science, and unit operations central to chemical engineering. For instance, it defined chemical engineering to be a "science of itself, the basis of which is ... unit operations" in a 1922 report; and with which principle, it had published a list of academic institutions which offered "satisfactory" chemical engineering courses.[13] Meanwhile, promoting chemical engineering as a distinct science in Britain lead to the establishment of the Institution of Chemical Engineers (IChemE) in 1922.[14] IChemE likewise helped make unit operations considered essential to the discipline.[15] New concepts and innovations By the 1940s, it became clear that unit operations alone was insufficient in developing chemical reactors. While the predominance of unit operations in chemical engineering courses in Britain and the United States continued until the 1960s, transport phenomena started to experience greater focus.[16] Along with other novel concepts, such process systems engineering (PSE), a "second paradigm" was defined.[17][18] Transport phenomena gave an analytical approach to chemical engineering[19] while PSE focused on its synthetic elements, such as control system and process design.[20] Developments in chemical engineering before and after World War II were mainly incited by the petrochemical industry,[21] however, advances in other fields were made as well. Advancements in biochemical engineering in the 1940s, for example, found application in the pharmaceutical industry, and allowed for the mass production of various antibiotics, including penicillin and streptomycin.[22] Meanwhile, progress in polymer science in the 1950s paved way for the "age of plastics".[23] Lag and environmental awareness The years after the 1950s are viewed{ to have lacked major chemical innovations.[24] Additional uncertainty was presented by declining prices of energy and raw materials between 1950 and 1973. Concerns regarding the safety and environmental impact of large-scale chemical manufacturing facilities were also raised during this period. Silent Spring, published in 1962, alerted its readers to the harmful effects of DDT, a potent insecticide. The 1974 Flixborough disaster in the United The Union Carbide India Limited plant where the Kingdom resulted in 28 deaths, as well as damage to a chemical plant 1984 explosion originated and three nearby villages. The 1984 Bhopal disaster in India resulted in Chemical engineering 3 almost 4,000 deaths . These incidents, along with other incidents, affected the reputation of the trade as industrial safety and environmental protection were given more focus.[25] In response, the IChemE required safety to be part of every degree course that it accredited after 1982. By the 1970s, legislation and monitoring agencies were instituted in various countries, such as France, Germany, and the United States.[26] Recent progress Advancements in computer science found applications designing and managing plants, simplifying calculations and drawings that previously had to be done manually. The completion of the Human Genome Project is also seen as a major development, not only advancing chemical engineering but genetic engineering and genomics as well.[27] Chemical engineering principles were used to produce DNA sequences in large quantities.[28] While the application of chemical engineering principles to these fields only began in the 1990s, Rice University researchers see this as a trend towards biotechnology.[29] Concepts Part of a series on Chemical engineering History Concepts Unit operations Unit processes Chemical engineer Chemical process Process integration Unit operations Momentum transfer Heat transfer Mass transfer Mechanical operations Unit process Chemical reaction engineering Chemical kinetics Chemical process modeling Chemical technology Process Control Process integration Branches Process design · Fluid mechanics Process systems engineering Chemical plant design Chemical thermodynamics Transport phenomena · *More* Chemical engineering 4 Others Outline of chemical engineering Index of chemical engineering articles Education for chemical engineers List of chemical engineers List of chemical engineering societies List of chemical process simulators Perry's Chemical Engineers' Handbook Category:Chemical engineering Chemical engineering involves the application of several principles. Key concepts are presented below. Chemical reaction engineering Chemical reactions engineering involves managing plant processes and conditions to ensure optimal plant operation. Chemical reaction engineers construct models for reactor analysis and design using laboratory data and physical parameters, such as chemical thermodynamics, to solve problems and predict reactor performance.[30] Plant design Chemical engineering design concerns the creation of plans and specification, and income projection of plants. Chemical engineers generate designs according to the clients needs. Design is limited by a number of factors, including funding, government regulations and safety standards. These constraints