Process Economics - Summary

Process economics is required to evaluate design options, carry out process optimization and evaluate overall project profitability. Two simple criteria can be used  

These criteria can be used at various stages in the design without a complete picture of the process. 

The dominant operating cost is usually raw materials. However, other significant operating costs involve catalysts and chemicals consumed other than raw materials, utility costs, labor costs and maintenance. 

Capital costs can be estimated by applying installation factors to the purchase costs of individual items of equipment. However, there is considerable uncertainty associated with cost estimates obtained in this way, as equipment costs are typically only 20 to 40% of the total installed costs, with the remainder based on factors. Utility investment, off-site investment and working capital are also needed to complete the capital investment. The capital cost can be annualized by considering it as a loan over a fixed period at a fixed rate of interest. 

As a more complete picture of the project emerges, the cash flows through the project life can be projected. This allows more detailed evaluation of project profitability on the basis of cash flows. Net present value can be used to measure the profit taking into account the time value of money. Discounted cash flow rate of return measures how efficiently the capital is being used. 

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In summary, protection of the catalyst and the reactor is essential if shutdowns are to be minimized, and this is particularly the case when the heavier feedstocks are used in the hydrodesulfurization process. Some measure of protection from the asphaltic constituents can be achieved by removal of these materials by means of a deasphalting step (Chapter 7). The overall relative merits of any particular total processing scheme should be assessed in terms of feedstock properties, product yields, process variables, and last but not least, process economics. 

Process economics including costs, profits, and return on investment Conclusions and recommendations Presented in more detail than in Summary Acknowledgment... 

Economic Summary. Phenol Production. A comparison of today s processes, including the cumene nonhydrolysis route, has been published by Tonn and is summarized with some omissions in Table 13-6. Many of the figures in a table of this kind are necessarily uncertain, but some definite conclusions can be drawn from them. 

To obtain a feel for the economic value of the process, a calculation was made based on the assumption that the relative performance of Fig. 14 could be extrapolated directly to a 500-acre field with a 20-ft pay thickness at 1,000-ft depth. An acquisition cost of 50 cents/bbl of waterflood reserves was assigned to the acreage and all development costs were included. Operating costs applicable to the area where assigned and the chemical costs included. An economic summary of the projection is presented in Table 2 and the 6 per cent discounted cash flow curve is shown in Fig. 15 for the two floods. It can be seen from this information that the resulting production gains far override the cost of the polymer. Further economies can be expected from the fact that the polymer solution was produced intact and suitable... 

The properties of fillers which induence a given end use are many. The overall value of a filler is a complex function of intrinsic material characteristics, eg, tme density, melting point, crystal habit, and chemical composition and of process-dependent factors, eg, particle-si2e distribution, surface chemistry, purity, and bulk density. Fillers impart performance or economic value to the compositions of which they are part. These values, often called functional properties, vary according to the nature of the appHcation. A quantification of the functional properties per unit cost in many cases provides a vaUd criterion for filler comparison and selection. The following are summaries of key filler properties and values. 

In summary, many alternative poly(3HB) and poly(3HB-co-3HV) producing strategies have been demonstrated in the past which might be considered for economic evaluation and future production processes. However, it should not be forgotten that all of these bacterial processes may some day have to compete with future alternative processes based on the production of poly(3HB) and poly(3HB-co-3HV) in transgenic plants [38-40]. 

In this chapter, we examine the various processes by taking a qualitative look at which parts need to be improved by further research in order to make them commercially attractive for the separation of lower volatility products and especially competitive with low pressure distillation. Once again we focus on the rhodium/tertiary phosphine catalysed hydroformylation of long chain alkenes, specifically 1-octene, since data concerning this reaction is provided in the preceding chapters. A summary of the best results obtained from each of the processes and the problems associated with their implementation appears in Table 9.1. A full economic analysis of each approach to the product separation problem is beyond the scope of this book, so any conclusions as to... 

Table 16.4 provides the summary of economic costs and results. The presumption throughout is that each process can be operated with environmental and human safety to produce a fully satisfactory product of sufficient quality to command market prices. The processes which produce discrete products, i.e. methanolysis and hydrolysis, will have to meet commercial specifications. The mixed-species product processes, i.e. simple glycolysis, hybrid and glycolysis with color filtration, must be able to feed adjacent polymerization facilities to make satisfactory product. Because the simple glycolysis process has little purification capability,... 

In summary, electrodeposition of metals from organic solvents may be helpful in relatively short-term fundamental investigations, but it seldom provides an opportunity for an economic large-scale extraction process.96... 

In summary, the design project consists of a detailed technical and economic feasibility study for the process, followed by the detailed design of selected plant items and associated equipment. The production... 

The renewable energy processes will be monitored and controlled by small, fast, and economical detectors, and fiber optics will play a major role in their designs. The operation and applications of fiber-optic probes have already been discussed in connection with Figure 3.2, so only a brief summary is provided here. Fiber-optic probes can be installed in situ, whereas their readout instruments can be several hundred meters from the probe. The probe can be located in toxic, corrosive, radioactive, explosive, high- or low-temperature/ pressure, and noisy environments. Because the measurement signal is optical, the cables are immune to microwave or electromagnetic interference. 

Table II gives a summary comparison of the major economic elements for each process. Base plant capacity is 100 million SCF/day of hydrogen investment is representative of estimated mid-1979 costs.

The choice between these two alternative residuumprocessing methods depends on many economic factors, and how such a choice would be made is beyond the scope of this study. However, these two processes are compared in Reference 2. Figure 4, a summary chart from Reference 2, indicates that coking is the preferred choice if it is desired to convert 60% or more of the crude (Arabian Heavy, in this case) to prime (clean) products. 

The process is conducted at the high pH in the presence of sodium sulfide, sodium hydrosulfide, and sodium hydroxide at 150-180°C for about 2 hours (Fig. 33.26). Along with the primary cellulose product, the process generates a solution containing dissolved lignin, most of the wood s hemicellu-loses, and spent pulping chemicals ( black liquor ). This solution is used in the kraft recovery boiler as a source of power for the mill and fuel for chemical recovery operations crucial to economic operation. The chemistry of pulping reactions has been the subject of much study, and summaries are available the literature.425 127... 

Economics A summary of the investment cost and the utility consumption for a typical para-xylene aromatics complex to process 1.336 million mtpy of naphtha feed is indicated below. The estimated ISBL erected... 

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