The first two installments of this three-part series (CE, November 2005, pp. 40–45, and December, pp. 42–47) dealt mainly with the major methods for estimating the capital costs of pilot plants. This final installment begins with a look…
In process engineering and design, thermodynamics theory is applied to real and complex chemical-process applications. Software design simulators, such as HYSYS, PROII and Aspen Plus, serve as powerful tools that simplify process thermodynamic calculations. They eliminate the need…
Leakage costs industry millions of dollars every year. For example, a few small leaks in a facility using air at 100 psig, with an electric consumption cost of about 6¢/kWh, can waste more than $22,000 annually. Delaying the…
Whether working on retrofits or new-plant construction, engineers involved with chemical-process projects nowadays are likely to find themselves under pressure to reach completion quickly, sometimes even at the cost of bypassing traditional procedures and project controls. The downside becomes a…
Although water and steam are the ideal media for heat transfer, there are often situations when other heat-transfer fluids are called upon to perform this function in the chemical process industries (CPI). Thus there are, at the…
Cyclones are among the simplest and most easily fabricated pieces of processing equipment. They are used extensively in the chemical process industries (CPI) for gas-solids separation. In petroleum refineries, for example, cyclones are used in the reactors and regenerators of…