Environmental Design Problems

Biocatalytic desulfurization of diesel fuel Sulfur recovery using oxygen-enriched air California smog control Zero emissions from a THF plant Volatile organic compound (VOC) abatement—thermal incineration, catalytic incineration, or adsorption, for ozone control 

CO2 fixation by microalgae to mitigate the greenhouse effect H2 generation for reformulated gasoline Water treatment 

Effluent remediation from wafer fabrication Recovery of germanium from optical fiber manufacturing effluents 

Phytoremediation of lead-contaminated sites Soil remediation and reclamation Miscellaneous 

Fuel processor for 5 kW PEM fuel cell unit Combined-cycle power generation Production of low-sulfur diesel fuel Waste-fuel upgrading to acetone and isopropanol Conversion of cheese whey (solid waste) to lactic acid Ethanol for gasoline from com symp 

---

There are a number of industrial gas separation systems that use the selective permeability of plastics to separate the constituents. In design problems relating to such applications, the designer must consider the environmental conditions to determine whether the materials having the desired properties will withstand the temperatures and physical and chemical stresses of the application. Frequently the application will call for elevated temperatures and pressures. In the case of uranium separation, the extreme corrosivity of the fluorine compounds precluded the use of any material but PTFE. The PTFE... 

Izumi, K. (1961-62), a discussion of certain relationships of art to the problem of environmental design and, in particular, the responsibilities of the artist when he participates in creating an environment for other people. 

Provide clear definition of the design problem. Collect sufficient engineering data. Get a comprehensive picture of chemistry and reaction conditions, thermal effects and chemical equilibrium, as well as about safety, toxicity and environmental problems. Examine the availability of physical properties for components and mixtures of significance, identify azeotropes and key binaries. Define the key constraints. 

Problem adapted from D.T. Allen, N. Bakshani.and K. Rosselot, Pollution Preiention Homework arid Design Problems for Engineering Curricula, American Institute for Pollution Prevention. New York. 1992. The emissions and energy consumption data are from Franklin Associates, Ltd., Resource and Environmental Profile Analysis of Polyethylene and Unbleached Paper Grocery Sacks. Report prepared for the Council for Solid Waste Solutions, Prairie Village, KS, June 1990. 

Vinyl chloride monomer (VCM) manufacture Maximization of VCM production and minimization of environmental burden, environmental impact and operating cost simultaneously. e-constraint method A design methodology consisting of 4 steps was proposed and applied to VCM plant The steps are (1) life cycle analysis of the process, (2) formulation of the design problem, (3) MOO, and (4) multi-criteria decision-making to find best compromise solutions. Khan et al. (2001)... 

For process optimization with respect to several economic criteria such as net present worth, payback period and operating cost, the classical Williams and Otto (WO) process and an industrial low-density polyethylene (LDPE) plant are considered. Results show that either single optimal solution or Pareto-optimal solutions are possible for process design problems depending on the objectives and model equations. Subsequently, industrial ecosystems are studied for optimization with respect to both economic and environmental objectives. Economic objective is important as companies are inherently profit-driven, and there is often a tradeoff between profit and environmental impact. Pareto-optimal fronts were successfully obtained for the 6-plant industrial ecosystem optimized for multiple objectives by NSGA-ll-aJG. The study and results reported in this chapter show the need and potential for optimization of processes for multiple economic and environmental objectives. 

Landfills are simply buried containers designed to hold solid wastes while at the same time preventing waste materials from having a negative environmental impact. Such precautions are necessary, especially if land reuse for alternate purposes is a key issue. Consequently, it is best to regard a landfill site as merely a temporary disposal facility. For example, if the contents of a landfill site present an environmental contamination problem, they may have to be either relocated or rendered environmentally neutral (i.e., having no residual biodegradable oil and no residual content of leachable material). 

Proper design of biomaterials, especially for long-term applications, should consider mechanical degradation and environmental aging problems. Thermal degradation is of lesser importance in biomaterials, due to the relatively small fluctuations of the temperature in most biomedical applications. 

Table 14.5 presents a sample of subjects that can be solved by means of public information. Most of the subjects are of petrochemical nature, more suited for the fully application of the methodology developed in this book. However, processes in speciality chemicals, biotechnologies or environmental engineering could be envisaged. The list contains also examples of design problems based on the internal scientific research. 

Capital and timetable Specific design problems Need for process changes Process safety Environmental safety Site selection Plant layout... 

In such subjective statements, detailed information was obtained about the nature of the design problems, the handling of tools (CAD, AI systems, conventional aids, etc.), and the environmental conditions (time pressure, disturbances, etc.). Beeause the design task was already finished, no time pressure exists to investigate all aspects of the stress situation. Because the situation was documented on video in different views (overall situation, CAD screen, desk views), the memory of the subject is maximally aided. 

A-II.8.1 Effluent Remediation from Wafer Fabrication (1993 Environmental Design Contest Problem)... 

---