Energy Balances and Numerical Methods

Design Project

Production of Maleic Anhydride

Maleic anhydride is a chemical intermediate that is used to produce resins, surface coatings,
lubricant additives, and agricultural chemicals.

The purpose of this project is to continue a preliminary analysis to determine the feasibility
of constructing a chemical plant to manufacture 40,000 tonne/y maleic anhydride.

A suggested process flow diagram (PFD) is attached. You should use this as a starting point
only. Your primary task is to recommend operating conditions for the reactor that maximize the
equivalent annual operating cost, or EAOC (This term is defined below). Process improvements
that increase the EAOC are also required. Any change that you can justify, and that does not
violate the laws of nature, is allowed. Your assignment is to develop a “best” case, where “best”
is dependent upon economic considerations, i.e., EAOC. In reporting your best case, clearly
indicate the modified process and state not only the operating conditions for the (modified)
process but also the corresponding values for the single-pass conversion of benzene, the overall
conversion of benzene, and EAOC. Also, state any recommendations you have for additional
process improvements that you were not able to incorporate into the process calculations.

Chemical Reaction

The raw material is benzene. The primary reaction is one in which benzene is partially
oxidized to form maleic anhydride (Equation 1). There are two undesired side reactions, the
subsequent combustion of maleic anhydride (Equation 2) and the complete combustion of
benzene (Equation 3).

The chemical reactions are as follows:

C6 H 6 + 4.5O2 → C 4 H 2 O3 + 2CO2 + 2 H 2 O (1)

C 4 H 2 O3 + 3O2 → 4CO2 + H 2 O (2)

C6 H 6 + 7.5O2 → 6CO2 + 3H 2 O (3)

Process Description

The PFD for the (starting) process is given in Figure 1.

C-501 E-501 H-501 E-502 R-501 V-501 T-501 T-502 E-503 H-502
Air Feed BenzeneFeed Feed Fired Reactor Effluent Maleic Anhydride Dibutyl Phthalate Maleic Anhydride Maleic Anhydride Maleic Tower Maleic Tower
Compressor Vaporizer Heater Cooler Reactor Mixing Vessel Absorber Distillation Column Condenser Reboiler/Fired
Heater

Dibutyl Phthalate 13

E-501 V-501 Waste Gas

1 poc
10 11
Benzene lps 3

H-501

2 4 5 E-503
T-501 cw
Air 6
C-501 14

air ng Maleic
Anhydride
T-502
R-501 12

poc
cw

8
7 H-502
cw E-502
air ng

Figure 1: Maleic Anhydride Production Process

2
 3

Process Details

Feed Stream and Effluent Streams

Stream 1: Benzene – stored as a liquid at the desired pressure of the reaction. The cost
of benzene is $4.73/L (liquid).

Stream 2: Air or “pure” oxygen – present at 200% excess based on maleic anhydride
formation reaction (note: 100% excess is double the stoichiometric amount).
Consider air to have zero cost and to have 79 mol % N2, 21 mol % O2. The
cost for “pure” oxygen is $0.20/100 std ft3 (60°F, 1 atm). Oxygen is available
at 60°F and 1 atm.

Stream 9: Dibutyl phthalate solvent – make-up stream for amount lost in Streams 11 and
14. The cost is $1.72/kg.

Stream 11: Waste gas – contains unreacted benzene and O2, N2, CO2, and H2O, plus some
dibutyl phthalate – sent to treatment process, the cost of which may be
considered negligible.

Stream 14: Maleic anhydride product. Specifications for this stream are given below.
The product is to be sold at $1.08/kg of maleic anhydride in the stream.

Equipment

Compressor (C-501)

The compressor increases the pressure of the feed air or oxygen to the reactor pressure.
The compressor may be assumed to be adiabatic. In that case, the compressor work, Ws,
may be calculated as

Ws = 4.5 R(Tout − Tin ) (4)

where Ws is in [kJ/kmol] and the inlet and outlet temperatures, Tin and Tout, respectively
are in [K]. The outlet and inlet temperatures are related through:

0.286
P 
Tout = Tin  out  (5)
 Pin 

The cost of electricity to run the compressor is a utility cost.

Heat Exchanger (E-501)

 4

This heat exchanger vaporizes the benzene feed to 10°C of superheat at the stream
pressure. The cost of the heat source is a utility cost.

Fired Heater (H-501)

This heats reactor feed vapor to reaction temperature. Natural gas is used as the fuel, and
the amount needed is based on the LHV of natural gas. The cost of natural gas is a utility
cost.

Reactor (R-501)

This is where the reactions in Equations 1-3 occur. Details of the reactor are presented
below. There are two possible reactor configurations. The one illustrated in Figure 1
shows heat removal to maintain a constant temperature. In this case, the cost of the
medium to remove heat (cooling water, cw, in Figure 1) is a utility cost. The alternative
reactor configuration is an adiabatic reactor, in which there is no heat removal. The heat
generated by the reaction raises the temperature of the exit stream. The temperature
constraints described below must be obeyed.

Absorber (T-501)

The absorber runs at 1.5 atm and 100°C (outlet streams and Stream 8). In the absorber,
99% of the maleic anhydride in Stream 8 is absorbed into the solvent dibutyl phthalate.
For accounting purposes, all maleic anhydride in the recycle stream (Stream 13) may be
assumed to go to Stream 12. You should assume that 0.001% of the dibutyl phthalate in
Stream 10 is lost into Stream 11. This plus the dibutyl phthalate in Stream 14 is the
amount of dibutyl phthalate needed in Stream 9. The cost of Stream 9 is a raw material
cost.

Distillation Column (T-502)

This column runs at 1 atm. (The pressure is controlled by a valve in the product stream
from R-501.) Separation of maleic anhydride and dibutyl phthalate occurs in this
column. Of the maleic anhydride in Stream 12, 99% enters Stream 14. Similarly, 99% of
dibutyl phthalate in Stream 12 enters Stream 13.

Heat Exchanger (E-503):

In this heat exchanger, the contents of the top of T-502 are condensed from saturated
vapor to saturated liquid at the column pressure. It may be assumed that this stream
condenses at the boiling point of maleic anhydride at the column pressure. The flowrate
of the stream from T-502 to E-503 is three times the flowrate of Stream 14. (That is to
say, one-third of the condensate becomes Stream 14, and the remainder is returned to the
column.) There is a cost for the amount of cooling water needed; this is a utility cost.
 5

The cooling water leaving E-503 must always be at a lower temperature than that of the
stream being condensed.

Fired Heater (H-502):

In this heat exchanger, you may assume that the stream that has been vaporized and is
being returned to T-502 has the same flowrate as Stream 13. The stream from H-502 is
vaporized from saturated liquid to saturated vapor at the boiling point of dibutyl phthalate
at the column pressure. Natural gas is used as the fuel, and the amount needed is based
on the LHV of natural gas. The cost of natural gas is a utility cost.

Vessel (V-501)

In this vessel, make-up dibutyl phthalate and recycled dibutyl phthalate streams are
mixed.

Economic Analysis

When evaluating alternative cases, the objective function to be used is the Equivalent Annual
Operating Cost (EAOC), defined as

EAOC = -(product value - feed cost – utility costs – waste treatment cost - capital cost annuity)

A negative value of EAOC means there is a profit. It is desirable to minimize EAOC; i.e., a
large negative value of EAOC is very desirable.

Utility costs are those for steam, cooling water, boiler-feed water, natural gas, and electricity.

The capital cost annuity is an annual cost (like a car payment) associated with the one-time,
fixed capital cost of plant construction and installation. A list of fixed capital costs on an
installed basis (“installed cost”) for all pieces of equipment will be provided by mid-March.

The capital cost annuity is defined as follows:

i (1 + i ) n
capital cost annuity = FCI (6)
(1 + i ) n − 1

where FCI is the installed cost of all equipment; i is the interest rate; and n is the plant life, in
[y]. For accounting purposes, take i = 0.15 and n = 10.

Optimization

You will learn optimization methods in ChE 230. The objective function (EAOC) is defined
above. You should consider both topological and parametric optimization.
 6

Topological optimization involves considering different process configurations (such as air

vs. pure oxygen, adiabatic vs. isothermal reactor). Recall that you may alter the process
configuration in any way that improves the economic performance, as long as it does not violate
the laws of nature.

Parametric optimization involves determining the best operating parameters for the chosen
process topology. It is your responsibility to define appropriate decision variables. If there are
too many decision variables to do a reasonable parametric optimization, it is your responsibility
to determine, with appropriate justification, which ones most significantly affect the objective
function. Then you should focus on only those decision variables.

Reactor Information

The reaction conditions are as follows. Limit the temperature to between 450°C and 650°C.
The pressure is 2.5 atm. Table 1 gives conversion (X) and selectivity information for the reactor
for this range of conditions. Here the selectivity of maleic anhydride, S, is defined as follows:

S = moles of maleic anhydride / moles CO2 (7)

It should be observed that CO2, the undesired product, is also formed in the desired reaction.
Therefore, from Equations (1) – (3), the maximum possible value of S is 0.5.

Table 1: Reactor Conversions and Selectivities

T (°°C) X S
Conversion of Selectivity of maleic
benzene anhydride
450 17.5 0.257
460 21.6 0.252
480 31.8 0.238
500 44.5 0.229
520 58.8 0.219
540 63.0 0.208
560 85.0 0.197
580 93.3 0.185
600 97.7 0.175
620 99.47 0.163
640 99.92 0.152
650 99.97 0.147

It is suggested that you regress or curve-fit these data to obtain accurate interpolated values
for the conversion and selectivity.
 7

Utility Costs

Low-Pressure Steam (618 kPa, saturated, cost or credit) $7.78/1000 kg

Medium-Pressure Steam (1135 kPa, saturated, cost or credit) $8.22/1000 kg

High-Pressure Steam (4237 kPa, saturated, cost or credit) $9.83/1000 kg

Natural Gas or Fuel Gas (446 kPa, 25°C)

cost $6.00/GJ
credit $5.00/GJ

Electricity $0.06/kWh

Boiler Feed Water (at 549 kPa, 90°C) $2.45/1000 kg

(There is a cost for boiler feed water only if the steam produced enters process streams.
If, on the other hand, the steam produced is subsequently condensed, it can be made into
steam again. In that case, there would be no net cost for boiler feed water.)

Cooling Water $0.354/GJ

available at 516 kPa and 30°C
return pressure ≥ 308 kPa
return temperature should be no more than 15°C above the inlet temperature

Refrigerated Water $4.43/GJ

available at 516 kPa and 5°C
return pressure ≥ 308 kPa
return temperature should be no higher than 15°C

Process Water $0.067/1000 kg

available at 300 kPa and 25°C

Waste Water Treatment $56/1000 m3

 8

Data

Data for benzene, CO2, O2, N2, and H2O are available in your textbook.1 The following data
are provided for the other components.

Heat of Formation at 25°°C, [kJ/kg] – all in gas phase

maleic anhydride dibutyl phthalate

-4062 -2698

Heat of Vaporization [kJ/kmol] at normal boiling point, Tb [°°C]

maleic anhydride dibutyl phthalate

∆Hv 47191 80922
Tb 202 340

Vapor Phase Heat Capacity – use the following equation

2 2
 C/T   E/T 
C p = A + B  + D  , where T is in [K] and Cp is in [J/kmol/K]
 sinh(C/T )   cosh( E/T ) 

maleic anhydride dibutyl phthalate

A 165140 237300
B 68030 771600
C 1459.6 1950.7
D -6.732×10-7 632900
E 8.4765 848.5

Liquid Phase Heat Capacity – use the following equation

C p = A + BT + CT 2 , where T is in [K] and Cp is in [J/kmol/K]

maleic anhydride dibutyl phthalate

A 93670 461790
B 188.9 -616.04
C 0 2.2101

Vapor Pressure Equation Constants – use the following equation

ln [P*] = A – (B/T), where P* is in [mm Hg] and T is in [K]

maleic anhydride dibutyl phthalate

A 19.5146 21.2221
B 6094.8928 8924.6934
 9

Other Information

You should assume that a year equals 8000 hours. This is about 330 days, which allows for
periodic shutdown and maintenance.

You may receive a credit for steam produced in excess of any steam needed. You may burn
the waste gas and receive a credit at its LHV. The cost of steam assumes that it is returned to the
steam generation plant as condensate. The cost of cooling water assumes that it is returned to the
cooling-water plant within the specified temperature range.

Deliverables

Each group must deliver a word-processed report. It should be clear and concise. The
format is explained in a separate document. When presenting results for different cases, graphs
are superior to tables. The body of the report should be short, emphasizing only the results and
briefly summarizing computational strategies. The report appendix should contain details of
calculations that are easy to follow. Calculations that cannot be followed easily will lose credit.

The project is due April 26, 2004, at the beginning of class. There will be oral presentations
of project results on that day. Oral presentation guidelines will be provided in a separate
document.

Anyone not participating in this project will automatically receive an F for ChE 230,
regardless of other grades earned in this class.

Groups

You will work on this project in groups of 4. More details of group formation and peer
evaluation will be discussed in class.

Revisions

As with any open-ended problem; i.e., a problem with no single correct answer, the problem
statement above is deliberately vague. The possibility exists that, as you work on this problem,
your questions will require revisions and/or clarifications. You should be aware that these
revisions/clarifications may be forthcoming.

References

1. Felder, R. M. and R. W. Rousseau, Elementary Principles of Chemical Processes (3rd ed.),

Wiley, New York, 2000.
 Fluid Mechanics, Heat Transfer, Thermodynamics
Design Project

Production of Maleic Anhydride

We continue to investigate the feasibility of constructing a new, grass-roots, 40,000 tonne/y,
maleic anhydride facility. As part of the feasibility study, we would like you to investigate some
of the details of the feed section of the proposed plant and of the thermodynamics of the
components involved in the process.

Chemical Reaction

The raw material is benzene. The primary reaction is one in which benzene is partially
oxidized to form maleic anhydride (Equation 1). There are three undesired side reactions, the
subsequent combustion of maleic anhydride (Equation 2), the complete combustion of benzene
(Equation 3), and the formation of the by-product, quinone (Equation 4).

The chemical reactions are as follows:

C6 H 6 + 4.5O2 → C 4 H 2 O3 + 2CO2 + 2 H 2 O
(1)
maleic anhydride

C 4 H 2 O3 + 3O2 → 4CO2 + H 2 O (2)

C6 H 6 + 7.5O2 → 6CO2 + 3H 2 O (3)

C6 H 6 + 1.5O2 → C 6 H 4 O2 + H 2 O
(4)
quinone

Process Description

The PFD for the process is given in Figure 1. Note that this is the same PFD as you were
given last spring. It should be used as a starting point for this assignment. You are to focus on
the feed section, Streams 1-5.
C-501 E-501 H-501 E-502 R-501 V-501 T-501 T-502 E-503 H-502
Air Feed BenzeneFeed Feed Fired Reactor Effluent Maleic Anhydride Dibutyl Phthalate Maleic Anhydride Maleic Anhydride Maleic Tower Maleic Tower
Compressor Vaporizer Heater Cooler Reactor Mixing Vessel Absorber Distillation Column Condenser Reboiler/Fired
Heater

Dibutyl Phthalate 13

E-501 V-501 Waste Gas

1 poc
10 11
Benzene lps 3

H-501

2 4 5 E-503
T-501 cw
Air 6
C-501 14

air ng Maleic
Anhydride
T-502
R-501 12

poc
cw

8
7 H-502
cw E-502
air ng

Figure 1: Maleic Anhydride Production Process

2
Process Details

Feed Stream and Effluent Streams

Stream 1: Benzene – stored as a liquid at atmospheric temperature and pressure (with a

blanket of nitrogen gas)

Stream 2: Air – present at 200% excess based on maleic anhydride formation reaction.
Consider air to have zero cost and to have 79 mol % N2, 21 mol % O2.
Assume 100% overall conversion of the limiting reactant in determining the
amount of air needed.

Stream 9: Dibutyl phthalate solvent – make-up stream for amount lost in Streams 11 and
14.

Stream 11: Waste gas – contains unreacted benzene and O2, N2, CO2, and H2O, plus some
dibutyl phthalate – sent to treatment process, the cost of which may be
considered negligible.

Stream 14: Maleic anhydride product.

Equipment

Compressor (C-501)

The compressor increases the pressure of the feed air to approximately 12 atm. The
compressor may be assumed to be adiabatic with an efficiency of 75%. It may be
necessary to use staged compressors with intercooling.

Heat Exchanger (E-501)

This heat exchanger vaporizes the benzene feed to saturated vapor at the stream pressure,
which you must choose based on the optimization in mini-design #1.

Fired Heater (H-501)

This heats reactor feed vapor to reaction temperature. Natural gas is used as the fuel, and
the amount needed is based on the LHV of natural gas and the process heat load. The
cost of natural gas is a utility cost, and you should assume that the fired heater is 85%
efficient

Reactor (R-501)

This is where the reactions in Equations 1-4 occur.

 Process Conditions

In order to complete a material balance for this process, you are to assume that the
following process conditions apply.

For the reactions taking place, assume that

88.85 % of benzene of the benzene entering the reactor is converted to maleic anhydride
via reaction 1.
30.00% of the maleic anhydride formed by reaction 1 is combusted via reaction 2.
3.35% of the benzene entering the reactor is combusted via reaction 3.
1.66 % of the benzene entering the reactor forms quinone via reaction 4.

The reactor inlet conditions are set at 460°C and 11 bar and the reactor behaves
isothermally at the inlet temperature.

The waste gas, Stream 11, contains all the nitrogen, water, oxygen, benzene, and carbon
dioxide in Stream 8. In addition, 2% of the maleic anhydride and 70% of the quinine in
Stream 8 leave in Stream 11. Finally, Stream 11 also contains 0.1 % of the dibutyl
phthalate in Stream 13.

Stream 8 is cooled to 260°C in E-502.

The composition of the solvent recycle, Stream 13, is essentially pure dibutyl phthalate.
The mole ratio of Stream 13 to Stream 8 is 0.20.

The composition of Stream 14 is 95 mol% maleic anhydride. The production rate of

40,000 tonne/yr refers to Stream 14.

Stream 11 leaves the process at 84°C and Stream 13 leaves the process at 180°C.

Assignment
The assignment consists of four “mini-designs.”

1. Optimization of the Feed Section and Compressor (ChE 310, 320)

You are required to find the optimum pipe sizes and make the pressure drop calculations for
the feed section, which includes all piping, pipe fittings, and all heat exchangers between the
feeds and the fired heater inlet. Specifically, you should assume the following:

You should minimize the equivalent annual operating cost, EAOC, for the feed section of the
process with the following in mind:

• The air feed should be taken from the environment (1 atm and 20°C) and compressed.
 • Before compression, the air must flow through a drier/filter to remove any residual
moisture and particulates. The drier/filter is standard equipment, and the vendors
recommend that at the design flow a pressure drop of 3 psi be used.
• The air should pass through the shell side of any heat exchanger used to heat or cool
it.
• For any heat exchanger for which a detailed design is not performed (see the Heat
Transfer section), a pressure drop of 3 psi should be used, for the air-side.
• For each piece of equipment in the feed air line (compressors, heat exchangers,
drier/filter), isolation gate valves and a bypass line should be provided to allow for
use in the event of unscheduled maintenance. The sketch below illustrates this
arrangement.

Equipment

Gate valves Globe valve

(normally open) (normally closed )

Gate valve
(normally closed)

• Each piece of equipment will be separated by at least 10 ft of piping to allow for

maintenance.
• The piping between the last piece of equipment before the fired heater should consist
of 35 ft of straight pipe, 6 - 90° standard elbows, a gate valve, and an orifice meter
with a full scale reading of 100 inches of water pressure drop (the design flow should
be 50% of full scale). The orifice meter should have two isolation gate valves with a
bypass (similar to the arrangement for equipment shown in the sketch above).
• The benzene storage tank is located 200 m (equivalent length) from the maleic
anhydride process unit. The benzene level is 5 m above ground level.

The optimization for this mini-project should include the cost of the compressors, the cost of
pumps, the cost of the intercoolers, the cost of all pipe and fittings, the cost of cooling water,
and the cost of electricity. Raw material costs should not be included, so CAP (the capital
investment for equipment used in the equation for EAOC given below) includes only the
installed cost of pipes, valves, compressor stages, pumps, and heat exchangers, and operating
costs include the electricity to run the compressor stages and the cost of cooling water in the
inter-coolers, if used.

Calculations for the optimum pipe size should be included in an appendix for this mini-
project.
 You should also do a pressure analysis of the Streams 1 through 5 to make sure all pressures
balance. Valves, pumps, or compressors must be added as needed.

The objective function for the optimization is the Equivalent Annual Operating Cost (EAOC)
of the piping system including the pump ($/y). The EAOC is defined as:

A 
EAOC = CAP , i, n  + annual operating costs (5)
P 

where

i(1 + i)
n
A 
 , i, n =
[ ]
(6)
P  (1 + i)n − 1

where i = 0.15 (15% rate of return) and n = 10 (ten-year plant life).

Using your final design (the one that minimizes EAOC), determine the maximum and
minimum flowrates that the feed section can supply the process. For this part of the project,
you may assume that all pump and compressor curves follow the “standard” curves given
below:

7.1265
P  V& 
= 1.1 − 0.1 
&
Pdesign Vdesign 

where Pdesign is the pressure rise across the pump at the design volumetric flowrate of V&design ,
and V& is the volumetric flowrate at any pressure rise, P, across the pump.

The compressor curves are shown in Figure 2.

2. Heat Exchanger Design (ChE 311)

You should perform a detailed design of the benzene feed heat exchanger. You should
assume that steam is available at the conditions specified in the appendix of this problem
statement. For this heat exchanger design, you should report the following information, as
needed for the design:
• Diameter of shell
• Number of tube and shell passes
• Number of tubes per pass
• Tube pitch and arrangement (triangular/square/..)
• Number of shell-side baffles and their arrangement (spacing, pitch, type)
Figure 2: Manufacturer’s typical centrifugal compressor curves
 • Diameter, thickness, and length of tubes
• Calculation of both shell- and tube-side film heat transfer coefficients
• Calculation of overall heat transfer coefficient (you may assume that there is no
fouling on either side of the exchanger)
• Heat transfer area of the exchanger
• Shell-side and tube-side pressure drops
• Materials of construction
• Approximate cost of the exchanger

A detailed sketch of the exchanger should be included along with a set of comprehensive
calculations in an appendix to the mini-project.

3. Thermodynamics of components (ChE 320)

The separations section of this process involves dibutyl phthalate, maleic anhydride, maleic
acid, and quinone. It is necessary to understand the vapor-liquid equilibrium between
different pairs of these components. Specifically, you are to investigate the vapor-liquid
equilibrium between maleic anhydride and quinone, maleic anhydride and maleic acid, and
maleic acid and dibutyl phthalate. First of all, check different thermodynamics packages in
Chemcad to see if there are differences between the predictions of the packages. The term
thermodynamics package means the choice of K-value and enthalpy calculation methods. At
a minimum, you should investigate ideal, SRK, Peng-Robinson, UNIQAC, UNIFAC,
UNIFAC/UNIQAC, plus the recommendation of the expert system if it differs from those
listed above. Specifically, examine the T-xy diagrams of the pairs of components using the
same thermodynamics packages at a variety of possible operating pressures (1-10 atm) for
the separation section. The presence of azeotropes strongly affects the ability to do
separations. What do you observe? Compare the predictions of the different packages.
Explain and discuss reasons for any differences observed.

Additionally, there appears to be a discrepancy in the reported physical properties for some
of the components involved in this design. Specifically, the properties in the Chemcad data
base do not match those in other published data bases. Please investigate this problem in

depth and determine which information is correct. If the Chemcad data base is in error,
discuss how the vapor-liquid equilibrium results would be affected.

4. Safety Analysis Report

When designing a chemical process, it is important to know the properties of the chemicals
being consumed and produced in the process. The reactivity and toxicity of the reactants and
products will not only affect the design but will also affect the procedures that might be
implemented during an unscheduled event such as an emergency shutdown. The purpose of
the safety analysis report is to make management aware of risks to personnel due to the
flammability and toxicity of all chemicals consumed or produced in the process. As a
minimum, the MSDS (material and safety data sheets) for all these chemicals should be
provided in an appendix, and a brief discussion of the major concerns for each chemical
 should be given as a separate section of the report. In addition, briefly discuss possible safety
hazards for each piece of equipment in your process. Finally, a feature of your process
design that addresses one of these concerns should be explained.

5. Chemcad
A complete Chemcad simulation for the process shown in Figure 1 should be provided for
your optimized case. Use the results from all mini designs, including the recommended
thermodynamics package.

Other Information

You should assume that a year equals 8000 hours. This is about 330 days, which allows for
periodic shutdown and maintenance.

Deliverables
Written Reports

Each group must deliver a report written using a word processor. Three identical copies
should be submitted, one for each instructor. The written project reports are due by 1:00 p.m.
Thursday, December 2, 2004. Late projects will receive a minimum of a one letter grade
deduction.

The report should be clear and concise. For the correct formatting information, refer to the
document entitled Written Design Reports. The report must contain a labeled process flow
diagram (PFD) and a stream table, each in the appropriate format. The PFDs from CHEMCAD
are generally unsuitable unless you modify them significantly. Figure 1 should be used as a
template for your PFD. When presenting results for different cases, graphs are superior to tables.
For the optimal case, the report appendix should contain details of calculations that are easy to
follow. There should be separate appendices for each “mini-project.” These may be hand
written if done neatly. Alternatively, Excel spreadsheets may be included, but these must be well
documented so that the reader can interpret the results. Calculations that cannot be easily
followed and that are not explained will lose credit.

Since this project involves “mini-designs,” it is suggested that the report be organized as
follows. There should be a general abstract and introduction. Then, there should be a results
section followed by a discussion section for each “mini-design.” General conclusion and
recommendation sections should follow. At a minimum, there should be one appendix for each
of the “mini-designs.”

In order to evaluate each group members writing skills, the results and discussion sections for
each mini-design should be written by a different group member. The authorship of each of
these mini-reports should be clearly specified in the report. For groups with four members, the
member not authoring a mini-report should author the safety analysis report, which is described
below. The remainder of the report, namely the general abstract, general introduction, general
results (including Chemcad simulation), general conclusions, and general recommendations
sections should be a group effort.

Although the individual written portions of the reports must be authored by a single group
member, it is the intent of the instructors that group members should help each other in writing
different sections. To this end, we recommend that you seek input, such as proofreading and
critiques, from other members of you group. The reports will be evaluated as follows:

• section technical content – 50%

• oral presentation – 20%
• written report – 20%
• technical quality of general sections (safety, simulation, etc.) – 10%

A historical account of what each group did is neither required nor wanted. Results and
explanations should be what are needed to justify your choices, not a litany of everything that
was tried. Each mini-report should be limited to 4-5 double space pages plus figures and tables.

Oral Reports

Each group will give an oral report in which the results of this project will be presented in a
concise manner. The oral report should be between 15-20 minutes, and each group member
must speak. Each group member should speak only once. A 5-10 minute question-and-answer
session will follow, and all members must participate. Refer to the document entitled Oral
Reports for instructions. The oral presentations will be Thursday December 2, 2004, from 11:00
a.m. to 2:00 pm. Attendance is required of all students during their classmates’ presentations
(this means in the room, not in the hall or the computer room). Failure to attend any of the
above-required sessions will result in a decrease of one-letter grade (per occurrence) from
your project grade in ChE 310, ChE 311, and ChE 320.

Groups

You will work on this project in groups of 3 or 4. More details of group formation and peer
evaluation will be discussed in class.

Revisions

As with any open-ended problem; i.e., a problem with no single correct answer, the problem
statement above is deliberately vague. The possibility exists that, as you work on this problem,
your questions will require revisions and/or clarifications. You should be aware that these
revisions/clarifications may be forthcoming.
 Appendix 1
Economic Data
Equipment Costs (Purchased)

Note: The numbers following the attribute are the minimum and maximum values for that
attribute. For a piece of equipment with a lower attribute value, use the minimum attribute value
to compute the cost. For a piece of equipment with a larger attribute value, extrapolation is
possible, but inaccurate. To err on the side of caution, you should use the price for multiple,
identical smaller pieces of equipment.

Pumps log10 (purchased cost ) = 3.4 + 0.05 log10 W + 0.15[log10 W ]2

W = power (kW, 1, 300)
assume 80% efficiency

Heat Exchangers log10 (purchased cost ) = 4.6 − 0.8 log10 A + 0.3[log10 A]2
A = heat exchange area (m2, 10, 1000)

Compressors log10 (purchased cost ) = 2.3 + 1.4 log10 W − 0.1[log10 W ]2

W = power (kW, 450, no limit)
assume 70% efficiency

Compressor Drive log10 (purchased cost ) = 2.5 + 1.4 log10 W − 0.18[log10 W ]2

W = power (kW, 75, 2600)

Turbine log10 (purchased cost ) = 2.5 + 1.45 log10 W − 0.17[log10 W ]2

W = power (kW, 100, 4000)
assume 65% efficiency

Fired Heater log10 (purchased cost ) = 3.0 + 0.66 log10 Q + 0.02[log10 Q ]2

Q = duty (kW, 3000, 100,000)
assume 80% thermal efficiency
assume can be designed to use any organic compound as a fuel

Vertical Vessel log10 (purchased cost ) = 3.5 + 0.45 log10 V + 0.11[log10 V ]2

V = volume of vessel (m3, 0.3, 520)

Horizontal Vessel log10 (purchased cost ) = 3.5 + 0.38 log10 V + 0.09[log10 V ]2

V = volume of vessel (m3, 0.1, 628)
Additional Cost Information

Piping straight pipe $/m = 5.0 (nominal pipe diameter, in)(1+(sch #)/20)0.25
sch = schedule number for pipe
use the same sch number for fittings and valves

fittings (except valves) $/fitting = 50.0 (nominal pipe diameter, in)(1+(sch #)/20)0.25

Valves for gate (isolation) valves $100 (nominal pipe diameter, in)0.8 (1+(sch #)/20)0.25
for control valve use $1000 (nominal pipe diameter, in)0.8(1+(sch #)/20)0.25

Equipment Bypasses

Bypasses around equipment should consist of a minimum of 20 ft of pipe, 2 standard elbows, and
1 gate valve. There will also be a tee at each point where the by-pass connects to the main pipe.
Utility Costs

Low-Pressure Steam (618 kPa saturated) $7.78/1000 kg

Medium-Pressure Steam (1135 kPa saturated) $8.22/1000 kg

High-Pressure Steam (4237 kPa saturated) $9.83/1000 kg

Natural Gas (446 kPa, 25°C) $6.00/GJ

Fuel Gas Credit $5.00/GJ

Electricity $0.06/kWh

Boiler Feed Water (at 549 kPa, 90°C) $2.45/1000 kg

Cooling Water $0.354/GJ

available at 516 kPa and 30°C
return pressure ≥ 308 kPa
return temperature is no more than 15°C above the inlet temperature

Refrigerated Water $4.43/GJ

available at 516 kPa and 10°C
return pressure ≥ 308 kPa
return temperature is no higher than 20°C

Deionized Water $1.00/1000 kg

available at 5 bar and 30°C

Waste Treatment of Off-Gas incinerated - take fuel credit

Refrigeration $7.89/GJ

Wastewater Treatment $56/1000 m3

Equipment Cost Factors

Total Installed Cost = Purchased Cost (4 + material factor (MF) + pressure factor (PF))

Pressure < 10 atm, PF = 0.0
(absolute) 10 - 20 atm, PF = 0.6
20 - 40 atm, PF = 3.0
40 - 50 atm, PR = 5.0
50 - 100 atm, PF = 10
does not apply to turbines, compressors, vessels,
packing, trays, or catalyst, since their cost
equations include pressure effects

Carbon Steel MF = 0.0

Stainless Steel MF = 4.0
 Appendix 2
Other Design Data

Heat Exchangers

For heat exchangers that are not designed in detail, use the following approximations for
heat-transfer coefficients to allow you to determine the heat transfer area:

situation h (W/m2°C)

condensing steam 6000

condensing organic 1000

boiling water 7500

boiling organic 1000

flowing liquid 600

flowing gas 60
 Separations and Reaction Engineering
Design Project

Production of Maleic Anhydride from Benzene

Problem Statement

We are now prepared for you to complete a final design of a production facility for maleic
acid from benzene. You are to design a facility to produce 40,000 tonne/y of maleic anhydride.

Chemical Reactions

The raw material is benzene. The primary reaction is one in which benzene is partially
oxidized to form maleic anhydride (Equation 1). There are three undesired side reactions, the
subsequent combustion of maleic anhydride (Equation 2), the complete combustion of benzene
(Equation 3), and the formation of the by-product, quinone (Equation 4).

The reactions and reaction kinetics are:

k
C6 H 6 ( g ) + 4.5O2 ( g ) 
1 → C H O ( g ) + 2CO ( g ) + 2 H O ( g )
4 2 3 2 2 (1)
benzene maleic anhydride

k
C6 H 6 ( g ) + 7.5O2 ( g ) 
2 → 6CO ( g ) + 3H O ( g )
2 2 (2)
benzene

k
C4 H 2O3 ( g ) + 3O2 ( g ) 
3 → 4CO ( g ) + H O ( g )
2 2 (3)
maleic anhydride

k
C6 H 6 ( g ) + 1.5O2 ( g ) 
4 → C H O ( g ) + H O( g )
6 4 2 2 (4)
benzene quinone

where
− ri = kiCbenzene or − r3 = k 3C maleic anhydride (5)
and
k1 = 7.7 × 106 exp( −25,143/ RT ) (6)

k2 = 6.31 × 107 exp( −29,850 / RT ) (7)

k3 = 2.33 × 104 exp( −21, 429 / RT ) (8)

 2

k4 = 7.20 × 105 exp( −27,149 / RT ) (9)

The units of reaction rate, ri, are kmol/m3(reactor)s, the activation energy is given in cal/mol
(which is equivalent to kcal/kmol), the units of ki are m3(gas)/m3 (reactor)s, and the units of
concentration are kmol/m3(gas).

The catalyst is a mixture of vanadium and molybdenum oxides on an inert support. Typical
inlet reaction temperatures are in the range of 350-400°C. The maximum temperature that the
catalyst can be exposed to without causing irreversible damage (sintering) is 650°C. The catalyst
diameter is 5 mm, and the void fraction of the bed is 0.5.

Additional Constraints

• The LFL of benzene may not be exceeded in any stream

• No excess steam can be exported from the plant. Therefore, any steam generated within
the process must be used within the process.
• The following specifications for products must be met if a product is to be sold:
♦ Maleic Anhydride – purity >99.8 mass%
♦ Quinone – purity > 99 mass%
♦ Maleic Acid – purity > 99.8 mass%
• Any liquid organic stream may be burned in a fired heater as fuel, and a credit may be
taken for the fuel value (LHV) of the stream.
• All distillation columns must be simulated using rigorous unit operations (either TOWR
or SCDS in Chemcad). Failure to use rigorous algorithms in the final case will result in a
loss of credit. Preliminary screening using short-cut methods is acceptable.
• The ideal vapor pressure K-value and latent heat enthalpy options should be used for the
Chemcad simulation.

Hints

In performing your study, you may wish to consider the following suggestions regarding the
optimization.

• It is suggested that your first step be to synthesize a base-case process flowsheet.

• The air feed section should consist of a two-stage centrifugal compressor with inter-
cooler that cools the air to a temperature of 45°C prior to entering the second
compression stage.
• For the maleic anhydride process to have any chance of being profitable, the integration
of process energy must be carefully planned.
• Dibutyl phthalate is used to absorb maleic anhydride from the cooled reactor effluent.
This solvent absorbs the maleic anhydride, quinone, and small amounts of water. Any
water in the solvent leaving the bottom of the absorber reacts with the maleic anhydride
to form maleic acid, which must be removed and purified from the maleic anhydride.
One possible separation scenario is as follows. The bottom product from the absorber is
sent to a separation tower where the dibutyl phthalate is recovered as the bottom product
 3

and recycled back to the absorber. A small amount of fresh solvent is added to account
for losses. It should be noted that to obtain the desired separation in the absorber, a
reboiler and condenser are required. Therefore, the absorber behaves like a distillation
column with one of the feeds on the top tray and the other on the bottom tray. The
overhead product from the dibutyl phthalate recovery column is sent to the maleic acid
column, where 95 mol% maleic acid is removed as the bottom product. The overhead
stream is taken to the quinone column, where 99 mol% quinone is taken as the top
product and 99.9 mol% maleic anhydride is removed as the bottom product. It is this last
column that must be designed in detail.
• In order to limit excessive reboiler and condenser duties on towers, the recycle flowrate
of dibutylphthalate solvent should be limited. In addition, recovery and purification
specifications of this solvent should be carefully evaluated.
• For the by-products (quinone and maleic acid), the option of not purifying them but using
them for fuel credit should be considered. A comparison between the cost of separation
and the loss in revenue from pure by-products should be used to determine the optimum
strategy.

Specific Assignments

ChE 312

You are to determine the number of distillation columns required, their locations, their
sequence, and enough information for each column to determine their costs. The distillation
column that purifies the maleic anhydride should be designed in detail. A detailed design of a
tray tower includes number of trays, tray spacing, diameter, reflux ratio, active area, weir height,
top and bottom pressure specifications, and design of auxiliary equipment (heat exchangers,
pump, reflux drum, if present). A detailed design of a packed tower includes height, packing
size and type, and the same other specifications as in a tray tower. For all columns in this
project, you may assume that HETP = 0.6 m. For the distillation column, the better economical
choice between a packed and tray tower should be determined. For either a packed or a tray
distillation column, the optimum reflux ratio should be determined.

Note that a tower consists of a vessel with internals (trays or packing). The constraints on a
vessel are typically a height-to-diameter ratio less than 20. However, it is possible to extend this
ratio to 30 as long as the tower is less than about 3 ft (1 m) in diameter. For larger-diameter
towers, stresses caused by wind limit the actual height. Extra supports are needed for a height-
to-diameter ratio above 20, even for smaller diameter columns. Therefore, there is a capital cost
“penalty” of an additional 25% (only on the vessel) up to a ratio of 25, and a “penalty” of an
additional 100% up to a ratio of 30.

You must choose the operating pressures for each column subject to constraints of operating
temperature and available utilities. If vacuum columns are needed, pressure drop becomes a
significant concern. As an alternative to tray towers, packed towers with a low-pressure-drop
structured packing may be used. The packing factor as defined in Wankat1, p. 424, is that for
Koch Flexipac #2. Assume the HETP for the structured packing to be 0.6 m (see the definition
 4

of HETP in Wankat1, p. 418, and the relationship between HETP and HOG in Equation 19.36 in
Wankat1.), and that the pressure drop is 0.2 kPa/m (0.245 inch water/ft).

ChE 325

Several reactor types may be considered for use in this design. They are an adiabatic, packed
bed reactor (a series of these with interstage cooling, if needed), an “isothermal,” packed bed
reactor, and a packed bed reactor with heat exchange. An “isothermal” reactor is defined here as
one with a specified outlet temperature, not necessarily the inlet temperature, and some form of
heat exchange is needed to add or remove the heat of reaction to maintain constant temperature.
Chemcad will model the entire reactor as “isothermal” at that temperature. It must be understood
that this situation is not physically realistic. In a reactor with heat exchange, the temperature
along the length of the packed-bed reactor is not constant. The temperature can be controlled by
varying the temperature and flowrate of the heat-transfer fluid, heat-transfer area, and the
catalyst/inert ratio. The suggested heat-transfer fluid is molten salt, which is a mixture of 40 wt
% sodium nitrite and 60 wt % sodium nitrate. If a heat-transfer fluid is used, it is circulated in a
closed loop through the reactor where its temperature is increased (if the reaction is endothermic)
or decreased (if the reaction is exothermic). Then, heat is added (removed) from the fluid in a
heat exchanger (or fired heater, if needed). The heat-transfer fluid is then pumped back to the
reactor. Properties of the molten salt mixture can be obtained from Chemcad from a stream with
the appropriate composition.

For your best case, you should include a discussion of the temperature, pressure, and
concentration profiles obtained from Chemcad.

General

The entire maleic anhydride process should be optimized using decision variables of your
choosing. Decision variables should be chosen as the design variables most strongly affecting
the objective function. There are topological optimization and parametric optimization. In
topological optimization, which is usually done first, the best process configuration is chosen.
Parametric optimization involves varying operating variables and should be done after
topological optimization is complete. Some examples of parameters that can be used as decision
variables are reactor temperature, pressure, and conversion; absorber temperature and pressure;
and distillation column reflux ratio.

Economic Analysis

When evaluating alternative cases, the equivalent annual operating cost (EAOC) objective
function should be used. The EAOC is defined as

EAOC = -(product value - feed cost – utility costs – waste treatment cost - capital cost annuity)

A negative EAOC means there is a profit. It is desirable to minimize the EAOC; i.e., a large
negative EAOC is very desirable.
 5

The capital cost annuity is an annual cost (like a car payment) associated with the one-time,
fixed cost of plant construction.

The capital cost annuity is defined as follows:

i (1 + i ) n
capital cost annuity = FCI (10)
(1 + i ) n − 1

where FCI is the installed cost of all equipment; i is the interest rate (take i = 0.15) and n is the
plant life for accounting purposes (take n = 10).

Report Format

This report should conform to the Department guidelines. It should be bound in a folder that
is not oversized relative to the number of pages in the report. Figures and tables should be
included as appropriate. An appendix should be attached that includes sample calculations.
These calculations should be easy to follow.

The written report is a very important part of the assignment. Poorly written and/or
organized written reports may require re-writing. Be sure to follow the format outlined in the
guidelines for written reports. Failure to follow the prescribed format may be grounds for a re-
write.

The following information, at a minimum, must appear in the main body of the final report:

1. a computer-generated PFD (not a Chemcad PFD) for the recommended optimum case,

2. a stream table containing the usual items,

3. a list of new equipment for the process, costs, plus equipment specifications (presented
with a reasonable number of significant figures),

4. a summary table of all utilities used,

5. a clear summary of alternatives considered and a discussion, supported with figures, of

why the chosen alternative is superior,

6. a clear economic analysis which justifies the recommended case

7. a discussion section pertinent to each class plus a general discussion section for
optimization of the entire process

8. a Chemcad report only for your optimized case (in the Appendix). This must contain the
equipment connectivity, thermodynamics, and overall material balance cover pages;
stream flows; equipment summaries; tower profiles; and tray (packing) design
specifications (if you use Chemcad to design the trays (packing)). It should not contain
 6

stream properties. Missing Chemcad output will not be requested; credit will be deducted
as if the information is missing.

Other Information

Unless specifically stated in class, the information in this document is valid for this project
only. Any information in the sophomore projects not specifically stated in this document is not
valid for this project.

Deliverables

Each group must deliver a report (two identical copies, one for each professor) written using
a word processor. The report should be clear and concise. The format is explained in the
document Written Design Reports. Any report not containing a labeled PFD and a stream table,
each in the appropriate format, will be considered unacceptable. PFDs from Chemcad are
generally unsuitable unless you modify them significantly. When presenting results for different
cases, graphs are superior to tables. For the optimum case, the report appendix should contain
details of calculations that are easy to follow. There should be separate appendices for each
class, ChE 312 and ChE 325, each containing calculations appropriate for the respective class.
These may be handwritten if done so neatly. Calculations that cannot be easily followed will
lose credit.

Each group will give an oral report in which the results of this project will be presented in a
concise manner. The oral report should be between 15-20 minutes, and each group member
must speak once. Reports exceeding this time limit will be stopped. A 5-10 minute question-
and-answer session will follow. Instructions for presentation of oral reports are provided in a
separate document entitled Oral Reports. The oral presentations will be Wednesday, April 20,
2005, starting at 11:00 a.m. and running until approximately 3:00 p.m. Attendance is required of
all students during their classmates’ presentations (this means in the room, not in the hall or the
computer room). Failure to attend any of the above-required sessions will result in a decrease of
one letter grade (per occurrence) from your project grade in ChE 312 and ChE 325.

The written project report is due by 11:00 a.m. Wednesday, April 20, 2005. Late projects
will receive a minimum deduction of one letter grade.

In order to evaluate each team members writing skills, the results and discussion sections for
each specific assignment should be written by a different team member. The authorship of each
of these specific assignments should be clearly specified in the report. If a team has four
members, the member not authoring a specific assignment should author the cover
memorandum, abstract, introduction, and conclusion.

Revisions

As with any open-ended problem (i.e., a problem with no single correct answer), the problem
statement above is deliberately vague. The possibility exists that, as you work on this problem,
 7

your questions will require revisions and/or clarifications of the problem statement. You should
be aware that these revisions/clarifications might be forthcoming.

References

1. Wankat, P., Equilibrium Staged Separation Processes, Prentice Hall, Upper Saddle River,
NJ, 1988.
 8

Appendix 1
Chemcad Hints

In order to simulate the temperature profile in a packed bed reactor, the reactor is simulated
as a co-current, packed bed kinetic reactor, with a molten salt stream as the utility.

Any water absorbed into the dibutyl phthalate will react completely in the absorber with
maleic anhydride to produce maleic acid. Simulation of this reaction should be done by adding a
stoichiometric reactor after the absorber. However, this bogus piece of equipment should not
appear on your process flow diagram
 9

Appendix 2
Raw Material Costs

Chemical Price/Cost, $/kg

Dibutyl phthalate 1.72

Benzene 0.45
Maleic Anhydride 0.93
Maleic Acid 0.90
Quinone 0.70
 10

Appendix 3
Cost Information

Equipment Costs (Purchased)

Note: The numbers following the attribute are the minimum and maximum values for that
attribute. For a piece of equipment with a lower attribute value, use the minimum attribute value
to compute the cost. For a piece of equipment with a larger attribute value, extrapolation is
possible, but inaccurate.

Pumps log10 (purchased cost ) = 3.4 + 0.05 log10 W + 0.15[log10 W ]2

W = power (kW, 1, 300)
assume 80% efficiency

Heat Exchangers log10 (purchased cost ) = 4.6 − 0.8 log10 A + 0.3[log10 A]2
A = heat exchange area (m2, 10, 1000)

Compressors log10 (purchased cost ) = 2.3 + 1.4 log10 W − 0.1[log10 W ]2

W = power (kW, 450, 3000)
assume 70% efficiency

Compressor Drive log10 (purchased cost ) = 2.5 + 1.4 log10 W − 0.18[log10 W ]2

W = power (kW, 75, 2600)

Turbine log10 (purchased cost ) = 2.5 + 1.45 log10 W − 0.17[log10 W ]2

W = power (kW, 100, 4000)
assume 65% efficiency

Fired Heater log10 (purchased cost ) = 3.0 + 0.66 log10 Q + 0.02[log10 Q ]2

Q = duty (kW, 3000, 100,000)
assume 80% thermal efficiency
assume can be designed to use any organic compound as a fuel

Vertical Vessel log10 (purchased cost ) = 3.5 + 0.45 log10 V + 0.11[log10 V ]2

V = volume of vessel (m3, 0.3, 520)

Horizontal Vessel log10 (purchased cost ) = 3.5 + 0.38 log10 V + 0.09[log10 V ]2

V = volume of vessel (m3, 0.1, 628)

Catalyst $2.25/kg

Packed Tower Cost as vessel plus cost of packing

 11

Packing log10 (purchased cost ) = 3 + 0.97 log10 V + 0.0055[log10 V ]2

V = packing volume (m3, 0.03, 628)

Tray Tower Cost as vessel plus cost of trays

Trays log10 (purchased cost ) = 3.3 + 0.46 log10 A + 0.37[log10 A]2

A = tray area (m2, 0.07, 12.3)

Storage Tank log10 (purchased cost ) = 5.0 − 0.5 log10 V + 0.16[log10 V ]2

V = volume (m3, 90, 30,000)

Reactors For this project, the reactor is considered to be a vessel.

It may be assumed that pipes and valves are included in the equipment cost factors. Location
of key valves should be specified on the PFD.

Equipment Cost Factors

Total Installed Cost = Purchased Cost (4 + material factor (MF) + pressure factor (PF))

Pressure < 10 atm, PF = 0.0
(absolute) 10 - 20 atm, PF = 0.6
20 - 40 atm, PF = 3.0
40 - 50 atm, PR = 5.0
50 - 100 atm, PF = 10
does not apply to turbines, compressors, vessels,
packing, trays, or catalyst, since their cost
equations include pressure effects

Carbon Steel MF = 0.0

Stainless Steel MF = 4.0
 12

Utility Costs

Low Pressure Steam (618 kPa saturated) $7.78/1000 kg

Medium Pressure Steam (1135 kPa saturated) $8.22/1000 kg

High Pressure Steam (4237 kPa saturated) $9.83/1000 kg

Natural Gas (446 kPa, 25°C) $6.00/GJ

Fuel Gas Credit $5.00/GJ

Electricity $0.06/kWh

Boiler Feed Water (at 549 kPa, 90°C) $2.45/1000 kg

Cooling Water $0.354/GJ

available at 516 kPa and 30°C
return pressure ≥ 308 kPa
return temperature is no more than 15°C above the inlet temperature

Refrigerated Water $4.43/GJ

available at 516 kPa and 10°C
return pressure ≥ 308 kPa
return temperature is no higher than 20°C

Deionized Water $1.00/1000 kg

available at 5 bar and 30°C

Waste Treatment of Off-Gas incinerated - take fuel credit

Refrigeration $7.89/GJ

Wastewater Treatment $56/1000 m3

Any fuel gas purge may be assumed to be burned elsewhere in the plant at a credit of
$2.50/GJ. Steam produced cannot be returned to the steam supply system for the appropriate
credit. Steam produced in excess of that required in this process is purged with no credit.
 13

Appendix 4
Other Design Data

Heat Exchangers

For heat exchangers, use the following approximations for heat-transfer coefficients to allow
you to determine the heat transfer area:

situation h (W/m2°C)

condensing steam 6000

condensing organic 1000

boiling water 7500

boiling organic 1000

flowing liquid 600

flowing gas 60