1. HPC Utilization at Sasol Technology R&D Werner Janse van Rensburg CHPC National Meeting, Cape Town, December 2013

2. 2 better together, one team – One Sasol copyright reserved, 2013, department, company Copyright reserved, 2013, Sasol Technology SASOL: Energy and Chemicals company making use of Coal and natural Gas feedstock Unique technology is based on Fischer-Tropsch Chemistry for CTL and GTL ventures (www.sasol.com)www.sasol.com Sasol Technology R&D includes significant Fundamental Research component Projects relying on High Performance Computing (HPC) applications: Quantum Mechanical Calculations (DFT)  Heterogeneous Catalysis Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD)  Reactor Design Fundamental Research at Sasol Technology R&D

3. 3 better together, one team – One Sasol copyright reserved, 2013, department, company Copyright reserved, 2013, Sasol Technology Sasol Technology R&D HPC Applications & Needs HPC instrumental as fundamental research component at Sasol Technology R&D (1) Quantum Mechanical Calculations (DFT) – Computational Chemistry Mechanistic studies of elementary chemistry reactions Density Functional Theory (DFT) calculations on model catalyst surfaces Nanoparticle morphology studies Provides insight on atomistic level of relevant chemistry Provides basis for development of microkinetic models of catalytic processes Requires substantial computing resource (HPC) for viable research

4. 4 better together, one team – One Sasol copyright reserved, 2013, department, company Copyright reserved, 2013, Sasol Technology Sasol Technology R&D HPC Applications & Needs HPC instrumental as fundamental research component at Sasol Technology R&D (2) Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) a Numerical methods and algorithms to study fluid (fluid-like) processes Also includes fluidization of solids and gas (air) flow Analysis of commercial scale reactors, internals and associated unit operations. Analysis and optimization of pilot plant reactor performance to assist in intensification and scale-up to commercial size. Reactor pre-design analysis; Typically to study multiphase transient flow problems a Dr Robin Jordi

5. 5 better together, one team – One Sasol copyright reserved, 2013, department, company Copyright reserved, 2013, Sasol Technology HPC Challenges at Sasol Technology R&D Internal: Appropriately Trained Employees Maintenance of internal HPC infrastructure External, i.e. Sasol/CHPC partnership: Contract Agreements needs to be negotiated which has initial time component Compared to Sasol Umbrella Agreements with other public enterprises IP Rights Bill: Full Cost usage to be determined and agreed Involvement of Commercial & Legal divisions a prerequisite Industry Software Licensing Agreements unique for each software package Three-Way Negotiations necessary: Industry/CHPC/Software Vendor Different computational Resources required for different Applications Many simultaneous calculations vs single highly parallelized calculations Security important for accessing data and setting up groups to access data, i.e. IP aspects Connectivity Speed may be important depending on application For example, consideration of full cost usage of SANReN network

6. 6 better together, one team – One Sasol copyright reserved, 2013, department, company Copyright reserved, 2013, Sasol Technology Advantages of Sasol/CHPC Collaboration Sasol: Open, friendly, professional and mutually respectful collaboration Significant throughput in project calculations realized for DFT applications High performance of parallel computing for CFD successfully demonstrated Operational vs Capital expense: Influence on budgeting strategy SA Tax Law allows 100-150% corporate tax rebates for fundamental research operational costs Pay as you use flexibility  Cost is Usage dependent Focus on Practical Application rather than systems administration Systems administration CHPC Exclusive Function, but input welcomed for specialized software installations, etc. Hardware maintenance, Infrastructure, Upgrades, etc. performed by CHPC CHPC: Demonstrated successful Industry Contract and usage Part of Business Model to allow 30% industrial CHPC utilization Win-Win result demonstrated

7. 7 better together, one team – One Sasol copyright reserved, 2013, department, company Copyright reserved, 2013, Sasol Technology Skills/Initiatives Required for HPC Utilization Trained Computational Chemistry individuals for Quantum Mechanical (e.g. DFT) applications Trained Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) personnel HPC systems administrator requirements Divorcing scientist/administrator functions for effective research Current Sasol/CHPC collaboration represents appropriate model Separation of research and systems administration functions Diversification of hardware resource access and availability security

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