The disciplinary definition would be that chemical engineering is the profession in which knowledge of mathematics, physics, chemistry and biology, gained by study, experience and practice, is applied with judgement to develop economic and safe ways of converting raw materials or chemicals into more useful products to benefit mankind.[1][2]
The occupational definition would be that chemical engineering is a field that deals with industrial and natural processes that involve the chemical, physical or biological transformation of matter or energy into forms useful for mankind, economically and safely without compromising the environment.[2]
Perhaps, the simplest definition is that chemical engineering is the design, development and management of a wide and varied spectrum of industrial and other endeavors.[3]
Contents1 History2 Chemical engineering applications3 Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering4 Professional societies and organization5 ReferencesHistoryThe industrial revolution of the early 1800's gave birth to many large-scale chemical plantsincluding the Lead-Chamber method for producing sulfuric acid. The raw materials included a nitrate which, in the final stage of the process, was lost to the atmosphere as nitric oxidegasand had to be replaced by costly fresh nitrate imported from Chile. In 1827, the French chemist Joseph-Louis Gay-Lussacdeveloped a tower that recovered most of the nitrogen oxidegases formed and reduced the consumption of nitrate. The first Gay-Lussac tower was installed at a plant in France in 1837. However, its use was not widespread until a British chemist, John Glover, invented an improved version of the tower, patented in Englandin 1859. By the 1870s, Non Stick Coating the Glover–Gay-Lussac system was used throughout Britain and Europe. Because Glover's tower was essentially a mass transfertower, he is often considered to be the first chemical engineer.[4]
In 1791, a French physician, Nicholas Le Blanc, patented a method of producing sodium carbonatefrom sea salt.[5]By 1810, it was in widespread use. However, it produced the hazardous byproducts hydrochloric acid, nitrogen oxides, sulfurand chlorinegas. In 1811, Augustine Jean Fresnel, a French physicist, discovered a cleaner process for producing sodium carbonate by bubbling carbon dioxidethrough an ammonia-containing brine. Attempts to build large-scale plants using Fresnel's process were unsuccessful. In 1863, some fifty years later, a Belgian chemist, Ernest Solvay, successfully applied Fresnel's process using a tall gas absorption tower in which carbon dioxide bubbled up through a descending flow of brine, together with efficient recovery and recycling of the ammonia. Use of the Solvay process soon became widespread and it is still used today. Ernest Solvay's work is sometimes thought of as one of the first accomplishments of chemical engineering.[6]
The Haber process for the production of ammoniaby combining hydrogen and nitrogenwas first patented by a chemist, Fritz Haber, in 1908. In 1910, an engineer, Carl Bosch, while working for the Germanchemical company BASF, successfully commercialized the process and secured further patents. It was first used on an industrial scale by the Germans during World War I. Haber and Bosch were later awarded Nobel prizes, in 1918 and 1931 respectively, for their work in overcoming the chemical and engineering problems posed by the use of large-scale high-pressuretechnology. Their process is often referred to as the Haber-Bosch processand is considered to be one of the major chemical engineering achievements because it made possible the large-scale production of ammonia-based fertilizers that transformed the world's food production.[7][8]
Under the British Alkali Act of 1863, an Alkali Inspector and four subinspectors were appointed to curb the discharge into the air of hydrochloric gas from the Le Blanc sodium carbonate plants. During his long career, one of the Alkali Inspectors, George Davis, inspected many of the Lead Chamber, Le Blanc and Solvay plants in the Midland area of England. What he learned convinced him of the necessity for a new branch of engineering that combined applied chemistry and traditional engineering. In 1880, George Davis proposed the formation of a Society of Chemical Engineers which failed to become a reality. In 1887, he gave a series of 12 lectures on industrial chemical operations at the Manchester Technical School. His lectures can be regarded as the forerunner of the discipline of chemical engineering.[9][10]In 1901, Davis published a Handbook of Chemical Water Based Acrylic Paint Engineering.[11]He is considered to be the father of modern chemical engineering.
In 1888, the first chemical engineering curriculum, designed by Lewis Norton, began at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology(MIT). In 1892 and 1894, respectively, the University of Pennsylvaniaand Tulane Universityin Louisianaalso began chemical engineering programs.[10]
In 1908, the American Institute of Chemical Engineers(AIChE) was formed and, in 1922, the Institution of Chemical Engineers(IChemE) was founded in England.
In 1923, MIT Professors William H. Walker, Warren K. Lewisand William H. McAdamsproduced the classic book Principals of Chemical Engineering[12]which greatly stimulated the evolution of chemical engineering in the United States and encouraged the creation of chemical engineering departments in universities worldwide. In that same year, Professor E.C. Williamsestablished the first chemical engineering program in England at the University College London(UCL).[13]
Chemical engineering applicationsThe process design, operation and management of large-scale industrial facilities such as:
Petroleum refining processesproducing LPG, gasoline, diesel oil, fuel oils, asphalt, lubricants, waxes, etc.Natural gas plantsthat process raw natural gasto become suitable for consumer use by removing impurities and by-product natural gas liquids(NGL).Petrochemicaland chemical plantsproducing plastics, synthetic fibers, elastomers, agricultural chemicals (fertilizers, insecticides, herbicides), detergents(soap, shampoo, cleaning solutions), fragrances, explosives, widely used industrial chemicals (such as sulfuric acidand ammonia) and many others.Pulp and paper millsproducing paper products.Fossil fuel power plantsfueled by natural gas, fuel oil or coal.Nuclear power plantsDesigning processes and facilities for:
Industrial plants that produce all types of paints and coatings.Food and drink processing plants that process foodstuffs and drinks of all kinds.Pharmaceutical facilitiesfor producing new drugs.[14]Biochemicaland bioengineeringfacilities involving fermentation, enzymetechnology, and biological waste treatment.[14]The production of all manner of adhesives and composite materials for automobiles as well as the aerospaceindustries.Industrial plants producing glass and ceramics.Environmental engineeringtasks such as the design of air pollutionand water pollutioncontrol and mitigation facilities, performing environmental impact studies and air pollution dispersion modelingstudies, and selection or design of facilities to comply with governmental environmental protection regulations.
Safety engineering work such as performing hazardous operation studies(Hazops), risk analyses, and establishing and implementing safe operating procedures for industrial facilities.
Research and development in the fields of fuel cells, nanotechnologydown to the cellular level, computer chips, and other leading edge technologies.
In all of the above fields of endeavor, chemical engineers may also function as consultants, lawyers reviewing new technology patents, sales engineers, instrumentation and control engineers, and equipment manufacturers.
Chemical and Biomolecular EngineeringIn recent years, chemical engineering has become more and more involved in biomolecular engineering. At a 1992 meeting of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), they defined the term, "Biomolecular Engineering," as Research and development at the interface of chemical engineering and biology with an emphasis at the molecular level.[15]
Many universities now offer degree programs in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering.[15][16][17][18]In the future, chemical engineering will not only encompass design work at large scales (e.g., petroleum refineries and petrochemical plants) but will also encompass work at very small scales down to the cellular level.[19]
Professional societies and organization
Argentina: Argentinian Association for Chemical EngineersAustralia: Royal Australian Chemical Institute (RACI)Brazil: Brazilian Association of Chemical Engineering (ABEQ)Canada: Canadian Society for Chemical Engineering (CSChE)Europe: European Federation of Chemical Engineers (EFCE)Germany: Society for Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology (DECHEMA}India: Indian Institute of Chemical Engineers (IIChE)Israel: Israel Institute of Chemical Engineers(IIChE)
Japan: Society of Chemical Engineers, Japan (SCEJ)Korea: Korean Institute of Chemical Engineers (KIChE)Mexico: Mexican Insititute of Chemical Engineers (IMIQ)Pakistan: Pakistan Institute of Chemical Engineers(PIChE)South Africa: South African Institution of Chemical Engineers (SAIChE)Thailand:Thai Institute of Chemical Engineering and Applied Chemistry (TIChE)United Kingdom: Institution of Chemical Engineers (IChemE)United States: American Institute of Chemical Engineering (AIChE)
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