MATSE 428: Process Design

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Textbook:

(a) Class Notes
(b) G.H. Geiger and D.R. Poirier, "Transport Phenomena in Metallurgy", TMS, Pittsburgh 1994

References:
N.J. Themelis, "Transport and Chemical Rate Phenomena," Gordon & Breach Publ., Amsterdam, 1995
H.S. Fogler, "Elements of Chemical Reaction Engineering", 2nd ed. Prentice Hall, 1992
J.W. Evans and L.C. DeJonghe, "The Production of Inorganic Materials", MacMillan 1991
O. Levenspiel, "Engineering Flow and Heat Exchange", Plenum Press 1984
D.E. Seborg, T.F. Edgar and D.A. Mellinchamp, "Process Dynamics and Control", Wiley & Sons 1989.
D.C. Montgomery, "Design and Analysis of Experiments", J. Wiley & Sons 1984

Catalog Description:

Reviews the basic concepts of heat and mass transfer, control theory and statistical analysis in the context of fabrication processes typical of materials industries; supplements the numerical procedures and algorithms that constitute a computational repertoire adequate for the engineering practice. In the frame of an actual engineering design project, the combined application of the principles of materials processing, plant layout, reactor design, peripheral facilities, logistics of supply, and economic feasibility are practiced. Prerequisite Prerequisite: MATSE 321. 3 hours, or 3/4 unit. 3 lecture-discussion hr/wk.

Course Topics:

I. Design of Processing Facilities

• Introduction of design elements
• Review of thermodynamic boundary conditions
• Energy Balances: underlying principles and practical application.
• Rate Phenomena: physical basis for phenomenological equations; solution methods for steady-state conditions.
• Transport Phenomena
• Energy Transfer: conduction, radiation, convection, combined transfer mechanisms
• Mass Transport: conveyance, fluid flow
• Combined Transport (Heat and Mass Transfer) and Rate Phenomena
• Unit Operations
• Reactor Types: batch- vs. continuous processes, residence time, yield, co-current vs. counter-current, parallel and sequential structures, process efficiency
• Flow Charts
• Design Equations

II. Process Control

• Process Models (i.e., Design Equations)
• Transfer Function
• Dynamic Behavior
• Feedback Control
• Transient Response and Controller Design

Course Objectives:

1. Impart the basic knowledge numerical tools required for the design and operation of materials manufacturing facilities.
2. Teach students the reasoning that underlies engineering design.
3. Provide students with the fundamental understanding needed for formulating process models.
4. Have students gain an appreciation for the scale, mass flow rates, and energy consumptions in industrial plants.
5. Engage students in an open-ended design project, requiring them to combine the knowledge they acquired in a number of different undergraduate courses, and provide students with an appreciation of the relevance of the various subjects in the context of their profession.
6. Revisit mathematical techniques in the context of engineering practice.
7. Promote teamwork approach to problem solving; convey the importance of technical communication and interdisciplinary aspects of engineering.

Course Outcomes:

1. Students have the ability to outline and dimension industrial and/or laboratory equipment for materials synthesis and processing.
2. Students developed the skill to approach engineering design problems in an organized and methodical fashion.
3. Students have gained command of analytical and numerical tools towards application in engineering practice.
4. Students have obtained knowledge and appreciation of industrial modes of operation.

Assessment Tools:
(a) Regular homework assignments allowing for the practice of all course subjects covered in class.
(b) Term project consisting of the design of an existing industrial process facility, typical for materials manufacturing. This includes computation of the mass and energy balances, overall dimensioning of reactors, and quantitative descriptions of operating conditions and necessary utilities. At the end of the semester, students take a field trip to the plant. There they give a presentation of their design solution to the engineers at the plant and discuss their work. Subsequently students are given a tour of the real facility, allowing them to appreciate the adequacy of assumptions that they made. Evaluation is based on:
a. Communication skill exhibited during the presentation.
b. The project report, which is expected to include a detailed description of the model assumptions, the formulation of design equations, the solution procedure, drawings, and computer programs.

Contribution of Course to Meeting the Professional Component: 100%

Prepared by: John Kieffer, April 2001