Chemical & Process Engineering

Mass and Energy Balance

Required. Perform a complete mass and energy balance for a real chemical process (ammonia synthesis, distillation of a two-component mixture, combustion system, or equivalent): species balance for each unit operation, overall material balance table, energy balance with heat duties calculated from first principles, and thermodynamic property data source documented. DWSIM (free, open-source process simulator) or Excel with published thermodynamic data tables. A process engineer challenges the balance: presents a changed feed composition or throughput and asks how the product stream compositions and heat duties change.

Process Flow Diagram and P&ID

Required. Produce a Process Flow Diagram (PFD) and a Piping and Instrumentation Diagram (P&ID) for the process balanced in seq 10: PFD with stream numbers, stream table, and design basis; P&ID with pipe class designation, valve tag numbers, ISA instrument tag designation, and all control loops labelled. DWSIM has PFD capability; draw.io is free for P&ID symbols. A process engineer challenges the P&ID: identifies a missing safety instrumented function and asks where the high-high pressure trip should be placed and what action it should take. Builds directly on mass/energy balance.

Process Safety Analysis (HAZOP)

Elective. HAZOP study of the process from seq 10 and seq 20: systematic examination of each P&ID node using the seven HAZOP guide words (No, More, Less, As Well As, Part Of, Reverse, Other Than), deviation identification, consequence assessment, existing safeguard documentation, and risk ranking with recommended actions. The completed HAZOP worksheet is the proof artifact. A process safety engineer or HAZOP leader challenges with an undisclosed process deviation: presents a scenario not in the original HAZOP and asks what guide word captures it, what the consequence is, and what safeguard would prevent it.

Reactor or Separation Process Design

Elective. Design a reactor or separation unit: for a reactor — residence time calculation, conversion vs. temperature trade-off, and selectivity analysis for a real reaction system with kinetic data from published literature; for a distillation column — shortcut McCabe-Thiele or Fenske-Underwood-Gilliland design with tray count and reflux ratio. DWSIM has reactor and distillation column unit operations. A process engineer challenges: presents a changed separation specification and asks how the tray count or reactor volume changes.

Chemical Engineering Design Report

Elective. A complete process design report: design basis, process description, PFD with stream table, equipment list with design specifications, HAZOP summary, and economic evaluation (capital and operating cost order of magnitude). All three Engineering Design Triad artifacts at professional integration: PFD (design), mass/energy balance and equipment sizing calculations (analysis), design report (documentation). A senior process engineer or academic reviews the report and challenges a design assumption.

Free, open-source chemical process simulator equivalent to Aspen Plus or HYSYS. Runs on Windows, Mac, Linux, and in the browser. Supports mass and energy balances, thermodynamic property calculations (NRTL, Peng-Robinson, SRK), PFD drawing, reactors, distillation columns, heat exchangers, and compressors. Use for the mass/energy balance, PFD, and reactor/separation design steps.

The standard chemical engineering reference for thermodynamic data, unit operation design methods, and physical property data. Many university libraries provide free digital access. Use for the mass/energy balance step (thermodynamic property data), the reactor design step (published kinetic data), and the distillation design step (VLE data and shortcut methods).

IEC 61882 defines the HAZOP methodology and the seven guide words. AIChE Center for Chemical Process Safety publishes free articles on HAZOP best practice. Use for the HAZOP step — the guide words must be applied systematically to every P&ID node using the IEC 61882 Table 1 worksheet format.

Free thermodynamic data for pure substances: enthalpy of formation, heat capacity, vapour pressure, and phase diagrams. Use for the mass/energy balance step when not using DWSIM — NIST WebBook provides the thermodynamic property data needed to calculate heat duties from first principles without a simulator.