Plant and Equipment

Design
Outline

 Introduction
 Plant Design
 Materials of Fabrication Selection
 Process Equipment Design
 Solutions to Objective Type Qs
 Problem-Solving
Plant Design

 Plant design
 includes all engineering aspects involved in the
development of a new, modified, or expanded commercial
process in a chemical or biochemical plant.
 Process engineering
 used in connection with economic evaluation and general
economic analyses of commercial processes
 Process design
 actual design of the equipment and facilities necessary for
providing the desired products and services
Plant Design
 General Overall Design Considerations

1. PROCESS DESIGN DEVELOPMENT

 Inception of basic idea (salesman, customer report
 New or modified product
 Pilot plant can be constructed

The engineer should have the ability to eliminate

unprofitable ventures before the design project
approaches a final proposal stage.
Plant Design
 General Overall Design Considerations

1. PROCESS DESIGN DEVELOPMENT

COMMERCIAL
PILOT PLANT
DEVELOPMENT PLANT

 small-scale replica of the  usually constructed from

full-scale final plant odd pieces of equipment that
are already available and is
not meant to duplicate the
exact setup to be used in the
full-scale plant
Plant Design
 General Overall Design Considerations

2. FLOWSHEET DEVELOPMENT
 Chemical engineer creates one or more solutions
 Different feeds and intermediates
 Performs mass and energy balances
Plant Design
 General Overall Design Considerations
3. COMPUTER AIDED DESIGN
 Allows rapid calculations, large storage
 Allow examination of effect that various design
variables will have on the process or plant design
more rapidly than manual calculation
 Use of simulation programs
 Can regress experimental data obtained in the
laboratory or pilot plant for empirical or theoretical
curve fitting
 Use of spreadsheet programs
Plant Design
 General Overall Design Considerations

4. COST ESTIMATION
 As final process design is completed it becomes
possible to make accurate cost estimations
 Predesign cost estimation
 Provide basis for company management to decide to
infuse further capital
Plant Design
 General Overall Design Considerations

5. PROFITABILITY ANALYSIS OF
INVESTMENTS
 When a company invests money it expects to
receive a return
 Rate of return (minimum acceptable)
 Time value of money
Plant Design
 General Overall Design Considerations

6. OPTIMUM DESIGN
 Several alternative methods can be used for any
given process or operation
 Formaldehyde
 Catalytic dehydrogenation of methanol
 Controlled oxidation of natural gas
 Direct reaction between CO and H2 under special
conditions of catalyst, T and P
Plant Design
 General Overall Design Considerations

6. OPTIMUM DESIGN

If there are two methods for obtaining exactly

equivalent final results, the preferred method is the
one involving the LEAST TOTAL COST.

Optimum Economic Design

Plant Design
 General Overall Design Considerations

7. OPTIMUM OPERATION DESIGN

 Optimum conditions for specific conditions of
temperature, pressure, contact time, or other
variable

Assumptions are made only when they are necessary

and reasonably correct and will not adversely affect
the overall design and its economic conclusions.
Materials of Fabrication Selection
 corrosion – chemical or electrochemical attack
 choose combination of metals that are close as possible in
the galvanic series
 corrosion rate → affected by pH
 aluminum and zinc dissolves rapidly in either acidic and
basic solutions
 oxidizing agents
 powerful accelerator of corrosion
 cathodic protection
 widely used in the protection of underground pipes and
tanks from external soil corrosion and in water systems.
Materials of Fabrication Selection

 Ferrous Metals and Alloys (see Perry’s)

 steel
 carbon steel is commonly used
 low cost
 ease of fabrication
 limited corrosion resistance
 stainless steel
 martensitic
 ferritic
 austenitic
Process Equipment Design
Factors considered in the selection of materials of
construction for process vessels

1. CHEMICAL FACTOR
 Resistance to corrosion
 Table in Peters et al., corrosion resistance
 Table of Materials of Construction in ChE
Handbook
 Reagent → Vessel material
Process Equipment Design
Factors considered in the selection of materials of
construction for process vessels

2. PHYSICAL FACTOR
 Ability to resist expansion
 Material properties: elasticity, machinability,
porosity, hardness, softness, conductivity of heat
and elasticity, etc.
Process Equipment Design
Factors considered in the selection of materials of
construction for process vessels

3. ECONOMIC FACTOR
 Cost of Material of Construction
 Fabrication cost
Process Equipment Design
Pressure Vessels

1. RIVETED (seldom given in BE, not used in industries)

Longitudinal joint (tangential stress)

circumferential joint (longitudinal stress)

Process Equipment Design
Pressure Vessels

2. WELDED (commonly used in industries)

Design Equation
 Objective Type Qs

Answers
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Problem Solving

1) The only strength of stress grade lumber that can be

precisely determined without breaking the piece is

a. rigidity
b. factor of safety
c. modulus of rupture
d. stiffness
Problem Solving

2) The chief difference between exterior grade plywood

and interior grade plywood is

a. that different types of glue are used

b. in the number of laminations used
c. in the weight per square foot
d. in the size of knotholes permitted
Problem Solving

3) Warp, wane and checks are all factors that help

determine the quality of

a. concrete
b. stress grade lumber
c. structural glass
d. brick masonry
Problem Solving

4) The Brinell Number of a material is a measure of

a. specific gravity
b. specific heat
c. density
d. hardness
Problem Solving

5) A major classification group of stainless steels 6% to

22% nickel in addition to 16% to 26% chromium. This
group differs from the other two major groupings in that
its steels

a. are non-magnetic
b. have their iron in the ferrite form
c. have their iron in the martensitic form
d. have a coefficient of linear expansion almost zero
Problem Solving

6) The ultimate strength divided by the allowable stress

is

a. yield point
b. percentage of elongation
c. working stress
d. factory of safety
Problem Solving

7) If an engineering structure is to be designed against

rupture of any of its members under steady load, the
factor of safety is a ratio based on working stress and

a. elastic strength
b. ultimate strength
c. toughness
d. endurance limit
Problem Solving

8) The unit lateral deformation of a body under stress

divided by the unit longitudinal deformation is known as

a. Poisson’s Ratio
b. Hooke’s Law
c. Euler’s Ratio
d. Mohr’s Modulus
Problem Solving

9) A thin wire is subject to a tensile stress. If the

temperature is constant, the electric resistance of the
stressed wire with respect to the electric resistance of the
unstressed wire will

a. increase
b. decrease
c. remain the same
d. any of these, depending on the material
Problem Solving

10) The offset method is used to find a property of

metals that do not have a well-defined stress-strain curve
such as steel. This property is called the

a. yield point
b. modulus of elasticity
c. proportional limit
d. moment of inertia
Problem Solving

11) The stress in an elastic material is

a. inversely proportional to the material’s yield

strength
b. inversely proportional to the force acting
c. proportional to the displacement of the material
acted on by the force
d. inversely proportional to the strain
Problem Solving

12) In the construction of a vinegar container tank, one of

these metals of construction is

a. aluminum
b. stainless steel
c. brass
d. monel
 Problem Solving

Solutions
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Problem Solving
 Problem No. 17
Four inch (4.0 inch) schedule 40 steel pipes are to be
used to transport high pressure steam. The pipe joints are
to be butt-welded. The safe working fiber stress for butt
welded pipes is 457.1 kg/cm2. The maximum steam
pressure, in kg/cm2, the pipes can handle is

a. 50.8 kg/cm2
b. 18.28 kg/cm2
c. 25 kg/cm2
d. 55 kg/cm2
Problem Solving
 Problem No. 18
A spherical carbon storage tank for ammonia has an
inside diameter of 30 ft. All joints are butt welded with
backing strip. If the tank is to be used at a working
pressure of 50 psig and a temperature of 80 ̊ F,
estimate the necessary wall thickness. Assume no
corrosion allowance is necessary. Efficiency is 80% and
allowable tensile strength is 13,700 psi.
a. 1/2 in
b. 1/4 in
c. 7/16 in
d. 5/16 in
Problem Solving
 Problem No. 19
A reactor will operate at 300 psi and 600 ̊ F. Height =
12 ft; crown radius = 66 in; diameter = 6 ft; double
welded butt joint, efficiency = 80%. Allowable tensile
strength of material is 12,000 psi. The thickness of the
shell is

a. 1 and 3/16 in
b. 1 and 1/16 in
c. 2 in
d. 1 and ¼ in
Problem Solving
 Problem No. 20
A reactor will operate at 300 psi and 600 ̊ F. Height =
12 ft; crown radius = 66 in; diameter = 6 ft; double
welded butt joint, efficiency = 80%. Allowable tensile
strength of material is 12,000 psi. The thickness of the
head is

a. 5/2 in
b. 1/2 in
c. 3/4 in
a. 3/2 in
Problem Solving
 Problem No. 22
A water tank 30 ft. in diameter has a thick steel plate
available at 3/8 in thick. Assume the allowable stress of
steel is 15,000 psi and a joint efficiency of 80%. Provide
a corrosion allowance of 1/16 inch. The maximum height
of the water tank is

a. 84.3 ft
b. 43.6 ft
c. 68.05 ft
a. 48.03 ft
Problem Solving
 Problem No. 15
A chemical engineer was commissioned to design a vertical
cylindrical tank with a flat bottom and a conical roof. The tank
must be able to hold a maximum of 4,500 m3 of water for
firefighting purposes. Ease of climbing the tank and bearing
capacity allows a maximum height of 16.5 m from the bottom of
the tank up to the rim of the tank cylinder. Normal working
practice dictates that the maximum working capacity of the tank is
90% of the total tank volume. The tank roof has a 10% incline.
Suitable steel plates available for constructing the tank come in
size 4’x8’ sheets. The number of steel plates needed is…
Problem Solving
 Problem No. 15

The number of steel plates needed is…

a. 540
b. 575
c. 610
a. 525
Problem Solving
 Problem No. 23
A cylindrical water tank with a hemispherical dome has
the dimensions shown (See MRRI Reviewer p. 326) The
tank is full. The total force, in lbf, exerted by the water
on the base of the tank is most nearly
a. 500,000
b. 520,000
c. 550,000
a. 590,000
Problem Solving
 Problem No. 21
A horizontal cylindrical tank is used for the storage of motor
gasoline in the bulk plant of an oil company in Pandacan. The tank
has an inside diameter of 3 m and an inside length 10 m. The
suction line of the tank is located 30 cm from the tank bottom to
avoid sucking out the sludge. To prevent overfilling, the maximum
height of liquid in the tank is not made to exceed 90% of the
vertical height of the tank. The working capacity of the tank in
kiloliters is
a. 36.23
b. 63.32
c. 45.23
a. 68.32
Unit Operation
Economics
Engr. Joey D. Ocon, MSc
June 9, 2011
 Objective Type Qs

Answers
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Problem Solving

1) A design based on conditions giving the least cost per

unit time

a. battery limit
b. break-even point
c. optimum economic design
d. plant design
Problem Solving

2) A flow diagram indicating the flow of materials, unit

operations involved, equipment necessary and special
information on operating temperature and pressure is

a. schematic diagram
b. qualitative flow diagram
c. combined-detail flow diagram
d. quantitative flow diagram
Problem Solving

3) In a plant design implementation, soil testing is done

to determine

a. pH
b. load bearing capacity
c. porosity
d. viscosity
Problem Solving

4) This involves all engineering aspects in the

development of either a new, modified or expanded
industrial plant

a. plant design
b. optimum design
c. process design
d. engineering design
Problem Solving

5) A chemical engineer specializing in the economic

aspects of design is called

a. plant engineer
b. cost engineer
c. design engineer
d. process engineer
Problem Solving

6) This refers to the actual design of the equipment and

facilities necessary for carrying out the process

a. process engineering
b. plant design
c. process design
d. optimum design
Problem Solving

7) The final step before developing construction plans for

the plant and includes complete specifications for all
components of the plant and accurate costs based on
quoted prices.

a. preliminary design
b. quick estimate design
c. firm process design
d. detailed design estimate
Problem Solving

8) A thorough and systematic analysis of all factors that

affect the possibility of success of a proposed
undertaking usually dealing with the market, technical,
financial, socio-economic and management aspects is
called

a. project feasibility study

b. plant design
c. project development and research
d. product development
Problem Solving

9) Discusses the nature of the product line, the technology

necessary for production, its availability, the proper mix
of production resources and the optimum production
volume.

a. market feasibility
b. socio-economic feasibility
c. technical feasibility
d. management feasibility
Problem Solving

10) Discusses the nature of the unsatisfied demand which

the project seeks to meet, its growth and the manner in
which it is to be met.

a. financial feasibility
b. management feasibility
c. market feasibility
d. technical feasibility
Problem Solving

11) Optimum economic pipe diameter for fluid flow is

determined by the

a. viscosity of the fluid

b. density of the fluid
c. pumping cost plus fixed cost of the pipe
d. viscosity and density of the fluid
 Problem Solving

Solutions
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Problem Solving
 Problem No. 13
A smelting furnace operating at 2,400˚F is to be insulated on the
outside to reduce heat losses and save on energy. The furnace
wall consists of a ½ inch steel plate and 4-inch thick refractory
inner lining. During operation without outer insulation, the outer
surface of the steel plate exposed to air has a temperature of
300 ˚F. Ambient air temperature is at 90˚F. Operation is 300
days per year. Thermal conductivities in BTU/hr-ft-˚F are: steel
plate = 26; refractory = 1; insulation to be installed=0.025. The
combined radiation and convection loss to air irrespective of
material exposed is 3 BTU/hr-ft2.˚F, annual fixed charge is 20%
of the initial installation cost. If heat energy is P5.00 per 10,000
BTU and installed cost of insulation is P100/in-ft2 of area, the
optimum thickness of the outer insulation that should be is…
Problem Solving
 Problem No. 11
A multiple effect evaporator produces 10,000 kg of salt from a
20% brine solution per day. One kg of steam evaporates 0.7 N
kg water in N effects at a cost of P25/1000 kg of steam. The cost
of the first effect is P450,000 and the additional effects at
P300,000 each. The life of the evaporator is 10 years with no
salvage value. The annual average cost of repair and
maintenance is 10% and taxes and insurance is 5%. Assume 300
operating days per year. The optimum number of effects for
minimum annual cost is
a. 3 effects
b. 5 effects
c. 4 effects
d. 2 effects
Problem Solving
 Problem No. 12
A process requires 20,000 lb/hr of saturated steam at 115 psig.
This is purchased from a neighboring plant at P18.00 per short ton
and the total energy content rate (mechanical) in the steam may
be valued at P7.5x10-6 per BTU. Hours of operation per year are
7200. The friction loss in the line is given by the following
equation: (see MRII Reviewer p. 328) The optimum pipe diameter
that should be used for transporting the above steam is
a. 6 in
b. 4 in
c. 3 in
d. 5 in
Problem Solving
 Problem No. 15
One hundred gram moles of R are to be produced hourly from a
feed consisting of a saturated solution of A (CAO = 0.1 gmol/L).
The reaction A → R with rate ra = (0.2/hr)CA. Cost of reactant at
CAO = 0.1 gmol/L is P3.75/gmol A; cost of backmix reactor,
installed complete with auxiliary equipment., instrumentation,
overhead, labor depreciation, etc is P0.075/hr-L. The %
conversion of A that should be used for optimum operation is

a. 45%
b. 60%
c. 50%
d. 40%