Chemical Processes

Chemical engineering products, processes, and challenges Commodities Molecules Nanostructures Key cost speed to market function Basis unit operations discovery properties    

A commodity: TiO2 (titanium oxide) Extremely white, opaque, edible, dirt resistant. Used in paper, food, cosmetics, paint, textiles, plastics. World consumption: 4 million tons/yr. Cost: $2,000/ton. Total world value = $8 billion/yr. A 1% increase in production efficiency = 0.01*2*103 *4*106 $/yr = $80 million/yr.

Molecules Small and simple: ammonia (NH3) sulfuric acid (H2SO4) ethylene (C2H4) sugar (C12H22O11) Large and complex: insulin C257H383N65O77S6 Large and simple (polymers): polyethylene[-CH2-CH2]n Insulin 1st produced in the pancreas of fetal calves Now mass produces synthetically using E. coli or yeast See www.psrc.usm.edu/macrog for a very good introduction to polymers.

Polymers, e.g. polyethylene is made up of many monomers:

Copolymers are made up of two kinds of monomers, say A and B

SBS rubber (tires, shoe soles) The polystyrene is tough; the polybutadiene is rubbery

Nano applications of polymers Organized block copolymer of PMMA (polymethylmethacrylate) and PS (polystyrene). Spin casting in electric field produces cylinders of PS embedded in the PMMA which are oriented in the direction of the electric field PMMA cylinders are 14nm diameter, 24nm apart. PS can be dissolved with acetic acid to leave holes. Use as a microscopic filter?

Computer application: Cylindrical holes are electrochemically filled with magnetic cobalt. Each cylindrical hole can then store 1 “bit” of information. bit/cm = 1 / (2.4*10-7) bit/cm2 = 1.7*1011 = 170 Gbits/cm2 CD’s = 0.14 Gbits/cm2 DVD’s = 0.34 Gbits/cm2 Blu-ray = 1.16 Gbits/cm2

Genetic engineering: production of synthetic insulin 1) Extract a plasmid (a circular molecule of DNA) from the bacterium E-coli 2) Break the circle 3) Insert a section of human DNA containing the insulin-producing gene 4) Insert this engineered gene back into the E-coli bacterium 5) The E-coli and its offspring now produce insulin

Chemical Engineering Two strategies for obtaining chemical compounds and materials: 1) Create the desired compound from raw materials via one or more chemical reactions in a “reactor” 2) Isolate the compound where it exists in combination with other substances through a “separation process”

Reactors Reactor fermenters in a brewery pharmaceuticals reactor raw materials energy product + contaminants byproducts catalyst Reactor fermenters in a brewery pharmaceuticals reactor

Separations Based on differences between individual substances: Boiling point Freezing point Density Volatility Surface Tension Viscosity Molecular Complexity Size Geometry Polarization

Separations Based on differences in the presence of other materials Solubility Chemical reactivity

Separations: Garbage

Garbage separation (cont.)

Garbage separation (cont.)

Counter-current processes

Counter-current heat exchangers in nature

Counter-current heat exchangers How do they work? appendage body Tb-out Tb-in heat loss exchanger body appendage Tb-out Tb-in exchanger limited heat exchange good heat exchange