Integrated Design and Simulation of Chemical Processes

Alexandre C. Dimian, Costin Sorin Bildea, Anton A. Kiss

• Publisher: Elsevier Science
• Year: 2014
• ISBN:
  9780444627087
• Edition: 2
• Topic: Technology & Engineering
• Subtopic: Chemical & Biochemical Engineering
• Index: Technology & Engineering

This comprehensive work shows how to design and develop innovative, optimal and sustainable chemical processes by applying the principles of process systems engineering, leading to integrated sustainable processes with 'green' attributes. Generic systematic methods are employed, supported by intensive use of computer simulation as a powerful tool for mastering the complexity of physical models.

New to the second edition are chapters on product design and batch processes with applications in specialty chemicals, process intensification methods for designing compact equipment with high energetic efficiency, plantwide control for managing the key factors affecting the plant dynamics and operation, health, safety and environment issues, as well as sustainability analysis for achieving high environmental performance. All chapters are completely rewritten or have been revised.

This new edition is suitable as teaching material for Chemical Process and Product Design courses for graduate MSc students, being compatible with academic requirements world-wide. The inclusion of the newest design methods will be of great value to professional chemical engineers.

• Systematic approach to developing innovative and sustainable chemical processes
• Presents generic principles of process simulation for analysis, creation and assessment
• Emphasis on sustainable development for the future of process industries

Chapter 1

Integrated Process and Product Design

Alexandre C. Dimian; Costin S. Bildea; Anton A. Kiss

Abstract

This chapter presents the roadmap of the book Integrated Design and Simulation of Chemical Processes. The objective of this book is to develop a creative and integrated approach for solving conceptual process design problems, by adopting a systems view and by employing systematic methods for the design of sub-systems and components. Integrated Process Design approach consists of combining Process Synthesis, which frames the material balance envelope, with Process Integration, which incorporates the optimal use of helping resources (energy, water, solvents, etc.). Key topics include the systems approach, sustainable development as well as production-integrated environmental protection.

Keywords

Chemical process design

Integrated process design

Conceptual process design

Chemical product design

Process synthesis

Process integration

Sustainable development

Environment protection

Life cycle analysis

Process systems engineering

1.1 Introduction

1.1.1 Motivation

The products manufactured by the Chemical Process Industries (CPIs) are vital for fulfilling the needs of the modern society. The process designer is the person in charge of transforming a valuable idea or experiment into an industrial process. The creative effort should be rewarded by substantial technical and economic advantages. Thus, novelty and efficiency are key motivations for process designers. Today, sustainable development sets new challenges for designers, namely the transition to renewable resources, as well as the protection of the natural environment.

The job of a process designer is to fulfil not only originality, efficiency and sustainability criteria, but to consider a large number of constraints, often contradictory. For example, using biomass as renewable feedstock implies typically a complex chemistry, with many by-products and impurities. Better selectivity may be achieved working at lower conversion, but with supplementary costs in equipment and energy for handling the recycles. The environmental regulations set severe targets for waste and emissions, adding supplementary costs. Modern plants should use less land. In the end, the designer has to find an optimum ensuring high valorisation of materials, low energy requirements and no pollution, by employing compact and efficient equipment. The combination of so many aspects gives highly integrated processes. Their optimal design makes use of systematic conceptual methods and powerful computer simulation tools forming the core of the Process Systems Engineering (PSE) discipline.

Etymologically, the word engineer comes from the Latin ingenium meaning the skills to understand, create and invent. Today, the CPIs are confronted with multiple crises and challenges, but innovation is ultimately the key issue. In this context, enhancing the creativity of designers plays a central role. We believe that the creativity should be accessible to everyone having adequate professional knowledge and motivation for discovery. Creativity can be learned and teaching the creativity of process designers is the goal of this book.

The intellectual support for enhancing creativity is the employment of a systems approach and systematic methods. This has at least two merits: (1) It provides guidance in identifying the feasibility of the project before the design of units. (2) Not just a single solution but several alternatives are generated and evaluated, corresponding to design decisions and constraints. After ranking by some performance criteria, the most convenient alternatives are refined and optimised. Note that by applying systematic methods, quasi-optimal targets for units can be set well ahead of their detailed sizing.

The assembly of the systematic methods employed for developing process flowsheets and ensuring the optimal use of materials and energy forms the paradigm of Integrated Process Design (IPD). Its application relies on the intensive use of Process Simulation. This approach allows the engineer to understand the behaviour of complex process systems, explore alternatives and propose effective innovative solutions.

Traditionally, process design was oriented to commodity chemicals. Recent years have seen an increasing interest in a more systematic approach to Product Design, which deals with manufacturing of higher value-added chemicals. Thus, the integrated paradigm concerns today both process and product design.

1.1.2 The road map of the book

The book contains five sections: Process Simulation, Thermodynamics, Process Synthesis, Process Integration and Design Project. Each section has several chapters, 21 in total plus appendices. The road map depicted in Figure 1.1 shows an overview of the chapters.

Figure 1.1 The road map of the book.

The main avenue links the introductory chapter on IPD with the section devoted to the Design Project, the final goal, and at the same time allows the circulation of information between different sections and chapters. Double sense roads indicate that the information goes in and out between sections and some chapters.

In this book, we adopted the strategy of teaching the principles by the assignment of a design project. For this reason, there are no problems at the end of chapters. Instead, students will be trained by applying the theoretical concepts to their own project.

Guiding examples can be found in the book published by Dimian and Bildea (2008) containing 11 detailed computer-aided case studies.

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Table of contents

• Cover image
• Title page
• Table of Contents
• Copyright
• Preface
• Acknowledgements
• Chapter 1: Integrated Process and Product Design
• Chapter 2: Introduction in Process Simulation
• Chapter 3: Steady-State Flowsheeting
• Chapter 4: Dynamic Simulation
• Chapter 5: Generalised Computational Methods in Thermodynamics
• Chapter 6: Phase Equilibria
• Chapter 7: Process Synthesis by the Hierarchical Approach
• Chapter 8: Synthesis of Reaction Systems
• Chapter 9: Synthesis of Separation Systems
• Chapter 10: Process Intensification
• Chapter 11: Batch Processes
• Chapter 12: Chemical Product Design
• Chapter 13: Pinch Point Analysis
• Chapter 14: Applied Energy Integration
• Chapter 15: Plantwide Control
• Chapter 16: Health, Safety and Environment
• Chapter 17: Sustainability Analysis
• Chapter 18: Process Design Project
• Chapter 19: Economic Evaluation of Projects
• Chapter 20: Equipment Selection and Design
• Chapter 21: Case Studies
• Appendices
• Index