66352 - Development and Management of the Industrial Chemical Processes M

Academic Year 2021/2022

  • Moduli: Fabrizio Cavani (Modulo 1) Francesco Basile (Modulo 2) Giuseppe Fornasari (Modulo 3) Stefania Albonetti (Modulo 4)
  • Teaching Mode: Traditional lectures (Modulo 1) Traditional lectures (Modulo 2) Traditional lectures (Modulo 3) Traditional lectures (Modulo 4)
  • Campus: Bologna
  • Corso: Second cycle degree programme (LM) in Industrial Chemistry (cod. 0884)

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes are: i) development and management of chemical processes for the production of commodities, fine chemicals and specialties; ii) application of scale-up methodologies from lab to pilot and industrial plant; iii) application of methodologies of the registration and authorisation of chemical compounds; iv) evaluation of hazards associated to chemical productions, and perform risk assessment; v) application of strategies for products separation; vi) estimation of economic parameters, analysis of costs associated to a chemical production; vii) choice of the catalyst and of process parameters for a chemical process; viii) fundamentals of intellectual property, and marketing strategies.

Course contents

Pre-requisites

Characteristic and structure of the chemical industry. Concepts of mass and energy balances. Main catalytic reactions. Main biphasic equilibria and related diagrams. Concepts of chemical process economy. Concepts of intellectual property Concepts on toxicity and hazard of chemical compounds, and on their flammability. Concepts on the design of process flow-sheets. Concepts of thermodynamics and kinetics, in order to understand the effect of process parameters on yield and selectivity to products.

Strategies in the design and operation of a chemical process. Process and product types. Procedures for the regulation and authorization of chemicals. Life cycle of a product and added value: priorities in the design of a process. Practical examples of the evolution of chemical processes. Guidelines in the scale-up of chemical processes.

Basic Concepts. Recalling fundamentals and guidelines for the design of flow-sheets. Main types of catalysts and their industrial applications. Homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysis. Role of the main reaction parameters. Characteristics of the main types of reactor; performance and selection criteria.

The risk analysis in chemical processes. Hazard and operability study (Hazop). Quantitative risk assessment. Fault tree analysis (FTA). Calculation of the frequency of accidents. Consequence assessment. Risk management.

The formulation of chemical compounds. Importance of formulation in the chemical industry; principles and methodologies. Emulsions, choice of emulsifier.

Economic analysis of chemical processes. Economic aspects in the design and management of chemical processes. Battery limit and calculation of costs. Fixed and variable costs, types and their impact. Main methods for the economic evaluation. Practical examples.

The management of chemical processes. Effect of the main operating parameters (temperature, pressure, partial pressures of reactants, time) on process performance indicators: conversion, yield, selectivity, productivity. Thermodynamic and kinetic aspects.

Intellectual and industrial property. Human resource management and marketing strategies.

Examples of industrialisation of products, processes, materials.

Separations. classification in function of the separating agent; impact on overall economic costs. Degrees of freedom in the design and management. Strategies for the choice of the best separation method depending on the type of industrial process: from reverse osmosis distillation. Chemical-physical principles.

Laboratory of industrial chemical processes. Exercises: Hazop diagram of a bench- or continuous reactor; FTA for a primary accidental event related to Hazop. Laboratories: Development of catalysts, preparation of Keggin type heteropolyacids and Anderson. Development of a chemical process,acylation of anisole with acetic anhydride. Visit to a chemical plant.

Readings/Bibliography

-Principi di Chimica Industriale - Ed. Zanichelli (Bologna). Editori: F. Cavani et al. In press at the end of 2021.

Teaching methods

Teaching methods

Lectures; practical experience in lab and exercises.

Assessment methods

The exam is done through a final test, aimed at ascertaining the acquisition of the expected knowledge and skills. The final exam consists of an oral test, divided into two parts, and a report on activities carried out in the laboratory. 

The first part consists of a discussion on the topics: Fundamentals of industrial chemistry. The risk analysis in chemical processes. Thermal run-away. The management of chemical processes: the effect of process parameters. Formulation in the chemical industry. Separation tecnologies. The outcome of this part accounts for the 50% of the final vote.

The second part consists of a discussion on the topics: Scale-up of chemical processes. Catalysis. Fundamentals of flow-sheet design. Economic analysis of chemical processes. Intellectual and industrial property. Industrialization of products, processes, materials. The outcome of this part contributes to the 35% of the final vote.

The report on the activity carried out in the laboratory, to be delivered by each group and normally required at least one week before the oral test taken by a member of that group, is determined by reference to accuracy in the description of applied experimental methodology, and fairness in the elaboration and discussion of the final result; the outcome contributes to the 15% of the final vote.

The final vote, out of thirty, is therefore the weighted average of the three contributions described above.

Teaching tools

Teachers use PowerPoint presentations that are made available to students. Handouts are provided relative to the experiences to be conducted in the laboratory.

Office hours

See the website of Fabrizio Cavani

See the website of Francesco Basile

See the website of Giuseppe Fornasari

See the website of Stefania Albonetti

SDGs

Good health and well-being Industry, innovation and infrastructure

This teaching activity contributes to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals of the UN 2030 Agenda.