Fluid flow operations, engineering problems

Volumes 1, 2 and 3 form an integrated series with the fundamentals of fluid flow, heat transfer and mass transfer in the first volume, the physical operations of chemical engineering in this, the second volume, and in the third volume, the basis of chemical and biochemical reactor design, some of the physical operations which are now gaining in importance and the underlying theory of both process control and computation. The solutions to the problems listed in Volumes 1 and 2 are now available as Volumes 4 and 5 respectively. Furthermore, an additional volume in the series is in course of preparation and will provide an introduction to chemical engineering design and indicate how the principles enunciated in the earlier volumes can be translated into chemical plant. 

The problems solved in Chapters 5 and 6 are simple problems with many numerical parameters specified. You may have wondered where those numbers came from. In a real case, of course, you will have to make design choices and discover their impact. In chemical engineering, as in real life, these choices have consequences. Thus, you must make mass and energy balances that take into account the thermodynamics of chemical reaction equilibria and vapor-liquid equilibria as well as heat transfer, mass transfer, and fluid flow. To do this properly requires lots of data, and the process simulators provide excellent databases. Chapters 2-4 discussed some of the ways in which thermodynamic properties are calculated. This chapter uses Aspen Plus exclusively. You will have to make choices of thermodynamic models and operating parameters, but this will help you learn the field of chemical engineering. When you complete this chapter, you may not be a certified expert in using Aspen Plus , but you will be capable of actually simulating a process that could make money. 

PT 3—Operations Course Description This course combines systems into operational processes with emphasis on operation under various conditions. Topics include typical duties of an operator. Instruction focuses on the principles of chemical engineering and process equipment. Emphasis on scale-up from laboratory bench to pilot unit. Describe unit operation concepts solve elementary chemical mass/energy balance problems interpret analytical data and apply distillation and fluid flow principles. The purpose of this class is to provide adult learners with the opportunity to work in a self-directed work team, operate a complex distillation system, collect and analyze data. 

Many important engineering problems cannot be solved completely by theoretical or mathematical methods. Problems of this type are especially common in fluid-flow, heat-flow, and diffusional operations. One method of attacking a problem for which no mathematical equation can be derived is empirical experimentation. For example, the pressure loss from friction in a... 

One of the common problems associated with underwater pelletizers is the tendency of the die holes to freeze off. This results in nonuniform polymer melt flow, increased pressure drop, and irregular extrudate shape. A detailed engineering analysis of pelletizers is performed which accounts for the complex interaction between the fluid mechanics and heat transfer processes in a single die hole. The pelletizer model is solved numerically to obtain velocity, temperature, and pressure profiles. Effect of operating conditions, and polymer rheology on die performance is evaluated and discussed. 

The proposed model consists of a biphasic mechanical description of the tissue engineered construct. The resulting fluid velocity and displacement fields are used for evaluating solute transport. Solute concentrations determine biosynthetic behavior. A finite deformation biphasic displacement-velocity-pressure (u-v-p) formulation is implemented [12, 7], Compared to the more standard u-p element the mixed treatment of the Darcy problem enables an increased accuracy for the fluid velocity field which is of primary interest here. The system to be solved increases however considerably and for multidimensional flow the use of either stabilized methods or Raviart-Thomas type elements is required [15, 10]. To model solute transport the input features of a standard convection-diffusion element for compressible flows are employed [20], For flexibility (non-linear) solute uptake is included using Strang operator splitting, decoupling the transport equations [9],... 

The behavior of fluids is important to process engineering generally and constitutes one of the foundations for the study of the unit operations. An understanding of fluids is essential, not only for accurately treating problems on the movement of fluids through pipes, pumps, and all kinds of process equipment but also for the study of heat flow and the many separation operations that depend on diffusion and mass transfer. 

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