UNIT 2.

PROCESS DESIGN DEVELOPMENT

❖ Project Conception
❖ Preparing Flow-sheets
❖ Piping & Instrumentation Diagrams
❖ Material And Energy Balances
Project Conception
Conception of an industrial project is the initial step in the process of defining the actual scope of
a project
what is a project?
❖ A project is a well-defined task which has a definable beginning and a definable end that
requires one or more resources for the completion of its constituent activities
❖ These resources must be interrelated with the project title ideas and accomplished to
achieve the raised objectives in the project
Chemical engineering projects
Chemical engineering projects can be divided into three types, depending on the novelty (the
quality of being new or usual) involved:
1. Modifications, and additions, to existing plant; usually carried out by the plant design group
2. New production capacity(expansion) to meet growing sales demand, and the sale of established
processes by contractors Repetition of existing designs, with only minor design changes
3. New processes, developed from laboratory research, through pilot plant, to a commercial
process. Even here, most of the unit operations and process equipment will use established designs
• The first step in devising (to invent a plan) a new process design will be to
– sketch out a rough block diagram showing the main stages in the process; and
– list the primary function (objective) and the major constraints for each stage
• Experience should then indicate what types of
– unit operations and
equipment should be considered
The Organization Of A Chemical Engineering Project

❖ The design work required in the engineering of a chemical manufacturing process can be
divided into two broad phases.
 ✓ Phase 1: Process design, which covers the steps from the initial selection of the process
to be used, through to the issuing of the process flow sheets and includes the selection,
specification, and chemical engineering design of equipment.
In a typical organization, this phase is the responsibility of the Process Design Group, and the
work is mainly done by chemical engineers. The process design group may also be responsible for
the preparation of the piping and instrumentation diagrams.
✓ Phase 2: Plant design, including the detailed mechanical design of equipment; the
structural, civil, and electrical design; and the specification and design of the ancillary
services.
These activities will be the responsibility of specialist design groups, having expertise in the whole
range of engineering disciplines.
• Other specialist groups will be responsible for cost estimation, and the purchase and
procurement of equipment and materials.
Generally the process design includes
1 . Literature survey & Patents
2. Process creation
i. mode of operation
ii. Raw material & product specification
iii. Process synthesis
3. Process flow diagram
4. Piping and instrumentation diagram
5. Equipment design and specification
i. Scale up of equipment’s
ii. Safety factor
iii. Equipment specification
iv. Material of construction
1 . Literature survey & Patents
❖ In the development of solution to a design need, it is important to make a thorough search
of the literature to obtain the latest data, flowsheets, equipment and simulation models that
may lead to a more profitable design.
❖ Chemical abstracts, engineering index, applied science and technology index, science
citation index……
 ❖ Perry’s chemical engineers handbook
❖ Other chemical engineers’ handbook
❖ Chemical engineering encyclopedia
❖ Other engineering handbooks
❖ Governmental and non-governmental reports
❖ University, institutes….others design report
❖ Patents:
❖ To avoid duplication….
2. Process creation
❖ After reviewing the literature and supporting materials the design engineer creates a
process that will produce a product in a safe and economical way
❖ In the process of synthesizing a flow of process operations to convert raw materials to
desired products, the design engineer first must select the mode of operation, raw material
& product specification and then synthesizes a step-by-step process
i. Mode of operation: batch vs continuous
❖ Continuous process: more preferred
❖ Reduced labor cost, improved process control, product quality and uniformity.
❖ Batch and semi-continuous process:
❖ For small production, seasonal product demand, special ordered product, and product
is interspersed b/n other product.
ii. Raw material & product specification

Here different conditions are established, such as Flow rate, composition, phase, form(particle
size), temperature, pressure, etc..
iii. Process synthesis steps / Process design
It involves the selection of processing operations to convert the raw materials to products.
The Anatomy of A Chemical Manufacturing Process

1.Raw material storage:

❖ Raw materials have to be stored for days or weeks and even for months to avoid production
interruptions so that the plant operates sustainably.
❖ The storage requirement depends on the nature of the raw materials, the method of delivery,
and what assurance can be placed on the continuity of supply.
❖ In the operation of a process plant adequate storage facilities for raw materials,
intermediate products, final products, recycle materials, off-grade materials, fuels, cleaning
agents, packaging materials and other items.
2. Raw material preparation:
✓ Raw materials preparation and purification is necessary to make the feed sufficiently pure
and are in the right form to be fed to the Physical & Chemical Material Transformation
unit operations.
✓ Feed contaminants that can poison process catalysts, enzymes, or micro-organisms must
be removed.
3. Material Transformation unit operation:
✓ The Material Transformation stage is the heart of a chemical manufacturing process.
✓ The raw materials are brought together under conditions that promote the production of the
desired product both at the physical transformation unit or the reactor.
4. Product separation:
✓ The products and byproducts are separated from any unreacted inputs and undesirable side
products after the material transformation units
✓ If the unreacted inputs are insufficient quality, it will be recycled back to material
transformation units or to the raw material purification and preparation stage. The
byproducts should be also separated from the products at this stage.
5. Product Purification:
✓ The main product will often need purification before sale to meet product specifications. If
produced in economic quantities, byproducts may also be purified before sale.
6. Product storage:
✓ Finished product must be held to match production with sales or to store unsold products.
Products must be packed and stored depending on the nature of the product.
7. Byproduct storage:
✓ Byproducts require storage.
8. Waste treatment plant :
✓ Wastes generated particularly from raw material preparation, Product separation and
Product Purification units must be treated before it is discharged into the environment.
✓ After elimination of the less profitable processes, still provides several entirely different
processing flowsheets for the manufacture of the same product. These processes must be
compared in order to select the one that is best suited for the existing conditions
Process Feasibility Survey
❖ In a feasibility survey, process involved must be considered along with the existing and
potential market conditions for the particular product.
❖ A preliminary feasibility survey gives an indication of the probable success of the project
and also shows what additional information is necessary to make a complete evaluation.
The Following is a list of items that should be considered in making a PROCESS feasibility
survey:
✓ Raw materials (availability, quantity, quality, cost)
✓ Chemical and physical processes (equilibrium, yields, rates, optimum conditions)
✓ Facilities and equipment available at present
✓ Facilities and equipment which must be purchased
✓ Estimation of production costs and total investment
✓ Profits (probable and optimum, based per mass of product and per year or return on
investment)
✓ Materials of construction
✓ Safety considerations
✓ Markets (present and future supply and demand, price changes, location and number of
possible customers)
✓ Competition (overall production statistics, comparison of manufacturing processes,
product specifications of competitors)
✓ Properties of products
✓ Sales and sale service (distribution, advertisement, technical services)
✓ Shipping restrictions and containers
✓ Plant location
✓ Patent situation and legal restrictions
✓ In many cases, the preliminary feasibility survey indicates that additional research,
laboratory or pilot plant data are necessary and a program to obtain this information may
be initiated.
✓ Process development on a pilot-plant or semi-work scale is usually desirable in order to
obtain accurate design data for new products
By process development the following information are obtained:
✓ material and energy balances
✓ process conditions
✓ yields
✓ rates
✓ grades of raw materials and products
✓ batch versus continuous operation
✓ materials of construction
✓ operating characteristics
✓ and other design variables.
Comparison of Different Processes
1. Technical factors
✓ Process flexibility
✓ Continuous operation
✓ Special controls involved
✓ Commercial yields
✓ Technical difficulties involved
✓ Energy requirements
✓ Special auxiliaries required
✓ Possibility of future developments
Health and safety hazards involved
2. Raw Materials
✓ Present and future availability
✓ Processing required
✓ Storage requirements
✓ Materials handling problems.
3. Waste products and by-products
✓ Amount produced
✓ Value
✓ Potential markets and uses
✓ Manner of discard
✓ Environmental aspects
4. Equipment
✓ Availability
✓ Materials of construction
✓ Initial costs
✓ Maintenance and installation costs
• For specification:
- Identification, function, operation (continuous or batch),
- Materials handled
(quantity, composition, physical properties).
-Basic design data,
- Essential controls (temperature, air, noise),
 - Insulation requirements,
- Allowable tolerances,
- Special information and details are to be given.
5. Plant location
✓ Amount of land required
✓ Transportation facilities
✓ Nearness to markets and raw material sources
✓ Availability of services and power facilities
✓ Availability of labor
✓ Climate
✓ Legal restrictions and taxes
✓ Replacement requirements
✓ Special designs
6. Costs
✓ Raw materials
✓ Energy
✓ Depreciation
✓ Other fixed charges
✓ Processing and overhead
✓ Special labor requirements
✓ Real estate
✓ Patent rights
✓ Environmental controls.
7. Time factor
✓ Project completion deadline
✓ Process development required
✓ Occurrence at right time from market standpoint
✓ Value of money.
 8. Process considerations
✓ Technological availability
✓ Raw materials common with other processes
✓ Consistency of product within company
✓ General company objectives.
iv. Types of process design
As soon as sufficient data are available from feasibility survey or process development the
preliminary, detailed estimates and firm designs should be carried out so that money and time
losses are eliminated before the construction and operation phases.
i. Preliminary or quick estimate designs
ii. Detailed estimate designs
iii. Firm process or detailed designs.
Preliminary or Quick Estimate Designs
❖ Preliminary designs are ordinarily used as a basis for determining whether further work
should be done on the proposed process. The design is based on
❖ approximate process methods and rough cost estimates are prepared.
❖ Few details are included and
❖ the time spent on calculations is kept at a minimum.
❖ The primary step in preparing the preliminary design is to establish the bases for design.
The basic items are;
❖ the properties of the product and the manufacturing process
❖ availability and quality of raw material
✓ annual operating factor
✓ energy requirements
✓ valuable by-products
❖ The preliminary design must provide the following out put for detailed estimate design;
✓ manufacturing process
✓ material and energy balances
✓ temperature and pressure ranges
✓ raw material and product specifications
✓ yields, reaction rates, time cycles, capacity
✓ materials of construction
 ✓ utility requirements
✓ plant site
The Detailed estimate leads the accurate estimation of
✓ required capital investment
✓ manufacturing costs
✓ potential profits
Based on these the following factors should be determined in detailed estimate design
stage.
types of buildings, heating, ventilating, lighting, power supply, drainage, waste disposal,
safety facilities and instrumentation.
ii. Detailed Estimate Designs
❖ If the results of the preliminary design show that further work is justified, a detailed
estimate design may be developed.
❖ In this type of design, the cost and benefit potential of an established process is determined
by detailed analysis and calculations.
❖ However, exact specifications are not given for the equipment and drafting work is
minimized.
iii. Firm Design or Detailed Design
❖ At this stage all detailed drawings are prepared and real investments are determined.
❖ A complete plant layout (production lines, facilities, etc), blueprints and instructions for
construction are developed.
❖ Specifications are given for warehouses, laboratories, guard-houses, fencing, change
houses, transportation facilities etc.
❖ MUST BE DEVELOPED WITH THE ASSISTANCE OF PERSONS SKILLED IN
VARIOUS ENGINEERING FIELDS.
4. Process flow sheet/diagram
❖ It shows the arrangement of the equipment selected to carry out the process; the stream
connections; stream flow-rates and compositions; and the operating conditions.
❖ The flow-sheet is the key document in process design. It is a diagrammatic model of the
process.
 ❖ The flow-sheet will be used by the specialist design groups as the basis for their designs. It
will also be used by operating personnel for the preparation of operating manuals and
operator training.

Flow-sheet Presentation

❖ As the process flow-sheet is the definitive document on the process; the presentation must be

– clear

– comprehensive

– accurate and

– complete.

❑ Block flow Diagrams (schematic flow diagram)

• Is process flow diagram of multiple process units with a large industrial plant that usually contain
less detail

• A block diagram is the simplest form of presentation. Each block can represent a single piece of
equipment or a complete stage in the process.
 • These block diagrams are useful for showing simple processes. With complex processes,
their use is limited to showing the overall process, broken down into its principal stages.
• Block diagrams are useful for representing a process in a simplified form in reports and
textbooks, but have only a limited use as engineering documents.
• The stream flow-rates and compositions can be shown on the diagram adjacent to the
stream lines, when only a small amount of information is to be shown, or tabulated
separately.
• The blocks can be of any shape, but it is usually convenient to use a mixture of squares and
circles, drawn with a template
• The chemical engineer uses flow diagrams to show
• the sequence of equipment and unit operations in the overall process
• to simplify visualization of the manufacturing procedures
• to indicate the quantities of materials and energy transfer
• These diagrams may be divided into three general types:
1) qualitative,
2) quantitative, and
3) combined-detail.
 1) qualitative,
✓ Indicates
✓ the flow of materials
✓ unit operations involved
✓ equipment necessary, and
✓ special information on operating temperatures and pressures
Example :- see the production of nitric acid from figure below

Quantitative flow diagram

✓ Shows the quantities of materials required for the process operation
Example:- see the production of nitric acid from figure below for the same process
 Combined-detail flow diagram
• Preliminary flow diagrams are made during the early stages of a design project. As the
design proceeds toward completion, detailed information on flow quantities and equipment
specifications becomes available and combined-detail flow diagrams can be prepared
This type of diagram shows the qualitative flow pattern and serves as a base reference for giving
equipment specifications, quantitative data, and sample calculations
• Tables presenting pertinent data on the process and the equipment are cross-referenced to
the drawing.
• In this way, qualitative information and quantitative data are combined on the basis of one
flow diagram
The drawing does not lose its effectiveness by presenting too much information; yet the necessary
data are readily available by direct reference to the accompanying tables
• A typical combined-detail flow diagram shows the location of temperature and pressure
regulators and indicators, as well as the location of critical control valves and special
instruments.
Each piece of equipment is shown and is designated by a defined code number
• For each piece of equipment, accompanying tables give essential information, such as
specifications for purchasing, specifications for construction, type of fabrication, quantities
and types of chemicals involved, and sample calculations
Equipment symbols and flow-sheet symbols, particularly for detailed equipment flow sheets, are
given in appendix
➢ Presentation of stream flow-rates
• The data on the flow-rate of each individual component, on the total stream flow-rate, and
the percentage composition, can be shown on the flow-sheet in various ways.
• The simplest method, suitable for simple processes with few equipment pieces, is to
tabulate the data in blocks alongside the process stream lines, as shown in figure 4.1.

• A better method for the presentation of data on flow-sheets is shown in Figure 4.2. In this
method each stream line is numbered and the data tabulated at the bottom of the sheet.
• Alterations and additions can be easily made. This is the method generally used by
professional design offices.
 ➢ Information to be Included
• The amount of information shown on a flow-sheet will depend on the custom and practice
of the particular design office.
• Below is the essential items and optional items. The essential items must always be shown,
the optional items add to the usefulness of the flow-sheet but are not always included.
✓ Essential information
1. Stream composition, either: (i)the flow-rate of each individual component, kg/h, which is
preferred, or (ii) the stream composition as a weight fraction.
2. Total stream flow-rate, kg/h.
3. Stream temperature, degrees Celsius preferred.
4. Nominal operating pressure (the required operating pressure).
✓ Optional information
1. Molar percentages composition.
2. Physical property data, mean values for the stream, such as:
(i) density, kg/m3, (ii) viscosity, mN s/m2.
3. Stream name, a brief, one or two-word, description of the nature of the stream, for example
“Acetone column bottoms”.
4. Stream enthalpy, kJ/h.
➢ Layout
• The sequence of the main equipment items shown symbolically on the flow-sheet follows that
of the proposed plant layout.
• But the aim should be to show the flow of material from stage to stage as it will occur, and to
give a general impression of the layout of the actual process plant.
• The equipment should be drawn approximately to scale.
➢ Precision of data
• The total stream and individual component flows to be shown at most one decimal place
➢ Basis of the calculation
• It is good practice to show on the flow-sheet the basis used for the flow-sheet calculations.
• This would include: the operating hours per year; the reaction and physical yields; and the
datum temperature used for energy balances.
➢ Services (utilities)
• To avoid cluttering up the flow-sheet, it is not normal practice to show the service headers
and lines on the process flow-sheet.
➢ Equipment identification
• Each piece of equipment shown on the flow-sheet must be identified with a code number
and name.
5. Piping and instrumentation diagram
• The Piping and Instrument diagram (P and I diagram or PID) shows the engineering details
of the equipment, instruments, piping, valves, and fittings and their arrangement.
• It is often called the Engineering Flow sheet or Engineering Line Diagram. It should
include
1. All process equipment, identified by an equipment number. The equipment should be drawn
roughly in proportion and the location of nozzles shown.
2. All pipes, identified by a line number. The pipe size and material of construction should be
shown. The material may be included as part of the line identification number.
3. All valves, control and block valves, with an identification number. The type and size should
be shown. The type may be shown by the symbol used for the valve or included in the code used
for the valve number.
4. Ancillary fittings that are part of the piping system, such as inline sight-glasses, strainers, and
steam traps, with an identification number.
5. Pumps, identified by a suitable code number.
6. All control loops and instruments, with an identification number.
➢ Symbols and Layout
• The symbols used to show will depend on the practice of the particular design office.
• The equipment symbols are usually more detailed than those used for the process flow
sheet.
• Full details of pipe layout are usually shown in a different drawing, known as a piping
isometric drawing.
• International standard symbols for instruments, controllers, and valves are given by the
Instrumentation Systems and Automation Society design code ISA-5.1-1984 (R1992).
Some companies use their own symbols.
➢ Basic Symbols
• Control Valves
➢ VALVE SELECTION
• The valves used for a chemical process plant can be divided into two broad classes,
depending on their primary function:
1. Shut-off valves (block valves or isolation valves), whose purpose is to close off the flow.
2. Control valves, both manual and automatic, used to regulate flow.
➢ CONTROL AND INSTRUMENTATION
✓ Instruments
• Instruments are provided to monitor the key process variables during plant operation.
• They may be incorporated in automatic control loops or used for the manual monitoring of
the process operation.
• In most modern plants, the instruments will be connected to a computer control and data
logging system.
Instruments monitoring critical process variables will be fitted with automatic alarms to alert the
operators to critical and hazardous situations.
✓ Instrumentation and Control Objectives
The primary objectives of the designer when specifying instrumentation and control schemes are
❑ Safe plant operation: To keep the process variables within known safe operating limits; To
detect dangerous situations as they develop and to provide alarms and automatic shutdown
systems
To provide interlocks and alarms to prevent dangerous operating procedures.
❑ Production rate: To achieve the design product output.
❑ Product quality: To maintain the product composition within the specified quality
standards.
❑ Cost: To operate at the lowest production cost, commensurate with the other objectives.
Material And Energy Balances
Material balances
➢ Material balances are the basis of process design. A material balance taken over the
complete process will determine the quantities of raw materials required and products
produced.
➢ Balances over individual process units set the process stream flows and compositions.
Chemical processes may be classified into as batch, continuous, or semi batch, or either steady
state or transient
➢ Batch process: the feed is charged (fed) into a vessel at the beginning of the process & the
vessel content are removed sometimes later.
➢ Continuous process: the inputs and outputs flow continuously throughout the duration of
the process.
➢ Semi-batch process: any process that is neither batch nor continuous.
➢ If the values of all variables in the process do not change with time, Steady state process.
➢ If any of the process variables change with time, transient or unsteady state.
➢ A balance on a certain conserved quantity can be written as:
Material out = Material in + Generation - Consumption – Accumulation
➢ For a steady-state process the accumulation term will be zero
➢ If the balanced quantity is total mass (or if there is no reaction), set generation and
accumulation = 0
➢ If there is no chemical reaction the steady-state balance reduces to
Material in = Material out
➢ A balance equation can be written for each separately identifiable species present,
elements, compounds and for the total material.
➢ The standard procedures for material balances are:
1) Make any necessary assumptions (E.g. steady state, no rxn, etc.)
2). Draw a flowchart for the process & fill in all known variables and values. Label unknown
stream variables on the chart. Include either:
✓ Total mass & stream composition
✓ Total mole & stream composition
✓ The mass or molar flow rate of each stream components.
3) Choose as a basis of calculation an amount or flow rate of one of the process stream.
4) Express what the problem statement asks you to determine in terms of the labeled variables.
5) If you are given mixed mass and mole units for a stream, convert all quantities to one basis.
6) Do the degree of freedom analysis. Count the unknowns and identify equations.
✓ ndf = nunknown – nindp. Equ
✓ If ndf = 0, the problem can in principle be solved
✓ If ndf > 0, the problem is underspecified
✓ If ndf < 0, the problem is over specified
✓ Sources of equations relating unknown process stream variables include the following:
✓ Material balances
✓ Energy balances
✓ Process specifications
✓ Physical properties and laws
✓ Physical constraints
✓ Stoichiometric relations
7) If the number of unknowns equal the number of equations then start solving the equation.
Recycle
➢ It is rare that a chemical reaction A → B proceeds to completion in a reactor.
➢ No mater how A is present in the feed or how long the reaction mixture remains in the
reactor, some A is normally found in the products.
• Used for recovery of catalyst, dilution of a process stream, control of a process variable,
circulation of working fluid.
 Purge
➢ It is usually necessary to bleed off a portion of a recycle stream to prevent the build-up of
unwanted material.
➢ For example, if a reactor feed contains inert components that are not separated from the
recycle stream in the separation units, these inerts would accumulate in the recycle stream
until the stream eventually consisted entirely of inerts.

Energy Balance
➢ Process industries have always recognized that wasting energy leads to reduced profits.
➢ If a plant uses more energy than its competitors, its product could be priced out of the
marketplace.
➢ A chemical process may consist of reactors, pumps, compressors, distillation columns,
mixing tanks, evaporators, filter presses, particle size reduction and transportation
apparatuses. Each of these units either requires or releases energy.
➢ So, the total amount of energy required in the plant should be estimated and we always
need to design and operate each unit operations in such a way that the energy requirement
is minimum.
➢ Energy can exist in several forms: heat, mechanical energy, electrical energy, and it is the
total energy that is conserved.
➢ The final stage of all designs is writing a design report which will present the results of the
design works.
➢ This report shows both engineering and economics calculations and designs.