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Chemical Engineering Design: 2 - Development

Module description

This module continues directly from where you left off in term 1. You and your team will now develop your concept into the detailed design of a complex chemical plant that meets the brief you were given within the specifications and uncertainty associated with the open-ended nature of the design process. This will involve flowsheets, key process equipment, and operational details, such as control, start-up and shut-down, etc. Your design should be accompanied by a simulation of your plant using process simulation software. You will also be expected to and produce all the necessary documentation related with health, safety and environment legislation, showing an appreciation of the wider aspects related with a chemical plant.

Module aims - intentions of the module

You and your team will now have to develop your conceptual design into an extended front-end engineering design (FEED) study and produce all the documentation to present to your customer. This should include the final flowsheet, details about the operation of your proposed process/plant, individual equipment and control, as well as safety, health, environment and sustainability reviews and statements.

You should be able to solve material and energy balances for multiple stage operations and processes, relate that with separation, reactor technology (ENS3019 Reaction and Reactor Engineering 2), flow and heat exchange in equipment selection, deployment and specifications. You should also be able to demonstrate the optimisation of process design. Control systems and operations should be outlined, including details on start-up and shut-down, risk and hazard assessment, and maintenance considerations.

At the end of this module, you should have a plant or process sign-off ready to present to your customer, along with a development technical report which includes all the necessary design documentation. Your design should be fit for purpose, meeting all the requirements, and demonstrating an appreciation of the sensitivity of operational variables, and showing awareness of the wider context in which your plant will operate.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

ILO: Module-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 1. Understand the importance of identifying the objectives and context of design in terms of: the business requirements; the technical requirements; sustainable development; safety, health and environmental issues; appreciation of public perception and concerns.
• 2. Understand that design is an open-ended process, often with incomplete and contradictory information, constraints and multiple objectives.

ILO: Discipline-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 3. Deploy chemical engineering knowledge using rigorous calculations and results analysis to develop a design and with appropriate checks for feasibility and practicability.
• 4. Deploy a systems approach considering complexity, interaction and integration, and where appropriate, being able to use theory or experimental research to mitigate deficiencies, including the use of commercial software to solving chemical engineering problems, understanding its limitations.

ILO: Personal and key skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 5. Work in a team and understand and manage the processes of: peer challenge; planning, prioritising and organising team activity; the discipline of mutual dependency; while working inclusively and effectively and recognising the importance of (and developing) leadership skills.
• 6. Communicate effectively to: acquire input information; present outcomes of the design clearly, concisely, and with the appropriate amount of detail, including flowsheets and stream data; explain and defend chosen design options and decisions taken.

Syllabus plan

There is no syllabus this term. There will be a lecture at the start reviewing a case study in detail, and plant simulation software and project-based learning (PBL) support sessions.

Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)

Details of learning activities and teaching methods

Summative assessment (% of credit)

Details of summative assessment

Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)

Re-assessment notes

Reassessment will be to complete the design development of individual student’s designs developed in ENS3006, or of a design provided to students by the module lead when this is not possible. This will be worth 100% of the module and will be assessed by two coursework submissions, comprising a final build sign-off summary and documentation (70%), and a video presentation aimed at the customer or investor (30%). For deferred candidates, the mark will be uncapped. For referred candidates, the mark will be capped at 40%.

Indicative learning resources - Basic reading

• G. Towler, R. Sinnot, Chemical Engineering Design: Principles, Practice and Economics of Plant and Process Design

Indicative learning resources - Web based and electronic resources

• ELE

Key words search

chemical engineering, design, process, plant