CBE 108B: Chemical Process Computer-Aided Design and Analysis

Spring 2016
General Information

Lecture: TR 4-6 PM, Boelter 5249

Recitation: F 12-2 PM, Boelter 4400
Website: http://courseweb.seas.ucla.edu

Staff: Prof. K. Hing Pang, Prof David Chilin

Office Boelter 5531K
Email: khpang@ucla.edu
Office Hours: Tuesday 2 pm - 4 pm 6-7pm
Thursday 2 pm – 4 pm

Teaching Assistants :
Crose, Marquis
Tran Anh

Office Hours: TBA

Suggested Text: Peters,Timmerhaus and West, Plant Design and Eonomics for Chemical Engineers, Fifth Edition, McGraw Hill

References
(1) Turton Richard et al, Analysis, Synthesis, and Design of Chemical Processes
(2) King C. J., Separation Processes
(3) Douglas James M., Conceptual Design of Chemical Processes
(4) Gavin Towler, Ray Sinnott, Chemical Engineering Design, 2008, Elsevier
(5) Donald R Woods, Process Design and Engineering Practice
(6) Simsci-Esscor, PRO/II User’s Guide
(7) AspenTech, HYSYS User's Guide
(8) Brykowski F.J, Ammonia and Synthesis Gas: Recent and Energy Saving Developments, Park Ridge,
NJ, Noyes Data Corp., 1981
(9) Hydrocarbon Processing Refinery Handbook, 1988 or Later Edition
(10) Perry H., Chemical Engineers Handbook
(11) Nelson, W. L., Petroleum Refinery Engineering
(12) Leffler, W, Petroleum Refining for the Non-Technical Person
(13) Slack, A.V., James, G.R., Ammonia, New York, NY, Marcel Dekker, 1977.

Course Overview

This course, the second of the design series focuses on the design and economic study of a complete plant. The plant design project
started in the seventh week of the Winter Quarter. In this course, students will apply design and economic principles to perform a
process design of a complete chemical plant. This year, the emphasis is on optimization. The students will design an optimized plant
with respect to its location, capital and operating costs. At the end of the course students will produce a design document that includes
material and energy balances, process flow diagrams, operating and capital costs of the entire plant. A cash flow analysis will be
performed to determine the economic viability of the project taking into consideration of energy, feed stock and product pricing trends.
Students will also address control and instrumentation, safety and environmental issues. The students will learn a project management
methodology commonly used in industry today. They will work in teams to define project scope, work plan and schedule and how to
effectively control a project. Finally, they will learn the skills of effective communication through report writing and oral presentation.

At the end of this course students are expected to be able to perform the following:

1. Synthesize a process plant using the onion diagram concept

2. Proficiently use computer software to simulate an industrial scale plant
3. Based on industry standards design the following process equipment
heat exchangers and furnaces, distillation columns, absorbers and strippers, reactors, pumps and compressors, utilities systems
including multi-level steam and refrigeration systems, cooling towers and waste water treatment systems.
5. Design energy integration networks to minimize energy consumption
6. Produce industry-standard Process Flow Diagrams (PFD) and material and energy balances of a process
7. Sizing equipment
8. Cost-estimate a process plant
9. Conduct a cash flow analysis of an industrial plant
10. Plan a design project
11. Manage a design project

Students will draw upon the knowledge and skills acquired from earlier courses to perform the above tasks. These courses include
mass, heat and momentum transfer, reactor design, thermodynamics, control and instrumentation, economics and project management.
Students must also cope with design specifications of multiple constraints. For example, this year’s design project is a 2000 metric
tons per day ammonia manufacturing plant. First, students must design a steam-balanced plant. Second, the plant must be highly
energy-integrated. Third, a 10 year cash flow analysis must demonstrate a 15% rate of return.

Organization

Students form 5 teams of 15-16 students. The teams, representing five companies bidding on five engineering projects, are given
unique specifications to design the entire plant. The organization of a team is as follows: a student project manager is appointed by the
instructor. He oversees the execution of the project. He also appoints an assistant project manager. Each team is divided into five
sections. Each section consisting of a section leader and two other members is responsible for designing one section of the plant. The
section leader coordinates with his/her team member to arrive at the best design for his/her section. The project managers coordinate
with the section leaders to arrive at the final design of the entire plant. The instructors, Dr. H Pang acts as the client who sponsors the
project. The client provides the project team with background information, scope and design specifications.

Deliverables

Deliverables are in the form of interim progress reports and a final design project report. Individual sections write their own
progress reports. The project manager assembles and organizes the progress reports from his/her team and summarizes the results in an
executive summary. The first progress report is to report on definition of scope and design specifications, work plan, schedule,
milestones and team organization (task list and assignments). Schedule for progress reports will be set at a later date. The final report
addresses the design of the plant that each section is responsible for. Final reports must be submitted to the department office by 6 pm,
Thursday of the last week of lecture. Formal oral presentations will be made by the teams during the last week of lecture and the day
of the final exam.

Design Lectures/Briefings

Each week, all students meet formally in a two-hour lecture in which the instructor briefs students on project definition, specification
and design methodology. Students are advised to take full advantage of this time to clear your doubts and concerns about the project
with the instructor so that you may not have to search for him at odd times. Lectures on special topics will be conducted during some
sessions and individual group meetings will be held during other sessions.

Week Topics Sections

1T (3/29) Project Definition and organization. The CF Braun All sections
NH3 Process.
1R(3/31) Material Balances. Tips for process simulation: All sections
Controllers, calculators and stream calculators. Quiz
1
2T(4/5) Refrigeration and steam systems, Cooling towers Section 5

2R(4/7) * Distillation columns –CO2 removal, Cryogenic Sections with distillation columns, absorbers
column. Quiz 1 Due and strippers

3T(4/12) In-line FORTRAN in PRO/II- Kinetics Sections with reactors

3R(4/14) Tanks and Vessels – knock out drums, flash drums, All sections
condensers/accumulators, air-coolers, condensers.

4T(4/19) Simulate a furnace, Radiation side and convection Section 1

side

4R(4/21) Quiz 2

5T(4/26)* Cost Estimation, Columns and Vessels All sections

Tentative Grading Format

Students Percent Project Manger Percent

Interim reports 10 Interim Reports 10
Quizes 10 Project Execution 25
Final Report 40 Team Final Report Average 15
Average of Section Reports 15 Final Report 40
Oral Presentation 10 Oral Presentation 10
Project Execution 15
Total 100 100

Project Scope

Each team submits the best process design of a designated plant meeting the client’s specifications and provides an estimate for the
capital and operating costs of the entire plant. The emphasis is on a steam-balanced optimized plant. Each team first debates and
decides on the location of the plant from a political, social and economic perspective. The plants are to be built in a location of
your choice in designated regions. Each section performs optimization studies within its scope to arrive at the optimum process.
The project manager ensures that energy integration is addressed throughout the plant. Each team may negotiate to alter specifications
for the sake of optimization. Each team must also examine several cost scenarios through a ten-year cash flow analysis.
Detailed project definition and organization can be found in the document Design Statement. Design specifications can be found in a
document “Ammonia Plant Specifications.”

All CBE graduates are expected to acquire certain knowledge and skills by the time of graduation. These are called
ABET Program Outcomes and are listed on the departmental website, on CourseWeb, and on a poster in the hall outside
5531/5532 BH. Each required course addresses a subset of these 15 outcomes (a – o) to varying extent. A matrix of
course topics and program outcomes is published for each required class on CourseWeb (go to ABET/CSAB under Class
Resources). An entry of 0 in the matrix or for the course as a whole indicates that the particular outcome is not addressed
at all, whereas an entry of 3 indicates that the course addresses the particular outcome strongly. In addition, each
required course is assigned one or more highlighted outcomes. The instructor must make a detailed assessment of
whether or not students in the class achieved satisfactory performance relative to all highlighted outcomes for the course.

The highlighted outcomes for CBE 108A are:

(a) An ability to apply knowledge of mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, and chemical and biological
engineering, especially for the integration of molecular- to micro-scale information into macro-scale analysis and
design of chemical and biological processes and products
(c) An ability to design a chemical or biological system, component, or process that meets technical and economical
design objectives with consideration of environmental, social, and ethical issues, as well as sustainable
development goals
(h) An understanding of the impact of engineering solutions in a global and societal context

In this class, certain designated problems on the homework and quizzes, reports and oral presentations, which will be
noted clearly on printed materials, may be used for ABET assessment purposes. A score of 80% or better on these
particular problems will provide evidence that the outcomes have been met.

Class Addendum to HSSEAS Academic Integrity Policy

The HSSEAS Academic Integrity Policy is available for download from CourseWeb. Go to Syllabus/Info under Class
Resources and scroll to the bottom of the page. The HSSEAS policy statement also will guide you to the Student Guide
to Academic Integrity available at the website of the Office of the Dean of Students. Please note the following additional
policy items for this class:

1. Sharing of information of any kind among students during an exam is prohibited.

2. All assignments must be reflective of individual student effort. A student must attempt all assignments
independently before discussing them with classmates. Students may discuss assignments and projects with
classmates to a limited extent. However, students absolutely must not dictate detailed solution procedures or
provide written copies of solutions for others to copy or paraphrase. If in doubt about this issue, ask yourself “If I
give this help, will I be destroying all, or nearly all, the educational benefit of this homework problem for my
classmate?” If the answer is “Yes”, please avoid putting yourself and your classmate in violation of academic
integrity policy.
3. Usage of homework, project or exam solutions from any source is prohibited, unless they are distributed to the
class by the instructors or the TA.

Students with Disabilities

If you wish to request an accommodation due to a suspected or documented disability, please inform your instructor and
contact the Office for Students with Disabilities as soon as possible at A255 Murphy Hall, (310) 825-1501, (310) 206-
6083(telephone device for the deaf). Website: www.osd.ucla.edu.