DESIGN PROJECT ASSIGNMENT

An investor in the sector of agro processing, wishes to extend business to Uganda and through
preliminary locational studies, has acquired land adjacent to the shores of lake Victoria, Jinja with the
aim of constructing agro processing plants, including ethernol (C 2H5OH) manufacturing plant using
molasses procured from the nearby Kakira Sugar Factory. The molasses will be delivered in 200L drums
on lorries.

From the earlier back ground discussions with your marketing team regarding terms and conditions, the
investor has already made an initial deposit of 10,000 USD

The agro processing company (client) has written to your Projects Design Firm based in Tororo, asking
you to outline the capacity of your firm as a plant design group and also to submit to them a preliminary
plant design for their proposed factory to produce 1700 tons of spirit annually. They expect to run for
340 days /year.

Feed: Molasses at 250 C 650 brix

Water at 250 C, pure

Yeast in abundance

Product: Ethanol, 95% alcoholic content, rest water

By product: Tail (wastes) of 6% alcoholic content, the rest impurities

Utilities available: Steam for the saturated dry, 1400C

Electricity 440V, 50Hz, 3 phase

The Process:

Molasses of 650 Brix is off loaded in drums at the raw materials storage facility, it is then mixed with
process water in a motor driven mixing tank to form a dilute solution of molasses in water of 25 0 brix.

The dilute molasses solution is then sent to the fermenting tanks where its mixed with yeast (in excess)
and kept at room temperature for 3 days to ferment to alcohol (ethanol).The fermented solution is then
filtered and heated to about 60 0C (saturation temp of alcohol) before its feed to a distillation column.
The distillate produced is 95% ethanol and the bottom (waste) is 6% ethanol The condenser at the top of
the column refluxes a saturated alcohol at a reflux ratio of 1.2 and the distillate is packed in drums of 50
Liters each and stored in warehouse until a month’s production then transported by rail to Mombasa
for export. The waste is discarded in to lake Victoria.

Process Factors

Conversion/yield in fermenters = 95%

Density of mixed and fermented juice= 1200Kgm -3

Density of distillate=900Kgm-3

Loses in filter=3% of fermented juice

Temperature of fermented juice=25 0C

Number of shifts/day= 3 each of 8 hours

Questions
Part I

a) Write to the client briefly outlining the organization structure of your projects development firm
indicating the different sections and their functions in your firm.

Our project design firm for proposed agro processing plant project in jinja has a well-established
organizational structure with various departments and functions that work together to ensure a
successful completion of projects.

Below is an illustration of the organizational structure of the firm

Management Department

Documentation and
Engineering Projects reporting department
Procurement Quality control Health and safety
Department Department
Department department department
Chemical engineer procurement manager projects manager quality assurance manager doctor editors

Mechanical engineer field officers Business Analyst lab technician Nurses publishers

Electrical engineer team members food and safety specialist

Civil engineers
Part II

a) State the overall objective of the project

To design and construct an Agro processing plant that will produce 1700 tons
of ethanol annually from molasses produces from nearby Kakira sugar factory
b) Write the scope of the project

The scope of the project includes the design, construction and commissioning a
plant with capacity of producing 1700 tons of spirits annually, running for 340
days per year using molasses as feed stock. It also includes the supply and
installation of all necessary equipment’s and as well as training support for
clients.

Part III

a) Prepare a suitable flow diagram for the clients proposed process of ethanol manufacture

Molasses, M at 250C, Xm = 650 brix

MIXING TANK
Pure water at 250C

Xmb= 250 brix Dilute molasses solution, Md

Losses due to gaseous by- product, FL

FERMENTATION
TANK, 230C
FL = 5% of Md

Fermented juice, FJ FJ = 95% of Md

FILTRATION
Losses due to filtration, LfJ = 3% of FJ

Filtered fermented juice, FFJ at 25oC

HEATING, 600C
Steam 1400C condesate

Filtered fermented juice, FFJ at 60oC

DISTILATION
COLUMN
Bottom waste W, ethanol – 6%

Liquid reflux, LR = 1.2D k = LR + D = 2.2D

CONDENSER

Distillate, D
 Ethanol – 95%

Reflux Ratio, R.R = LR /D = 1.2

Density of the distillate, PD = 900 kg/litre

Density of the mixes juice and fermented juice, PMD = ΡFJ = 1200kgm -3

Assume the density of the molasses of 650 brix, Ρm = 1400kg m -3 = 1.4kg/litre

Take the density of pure water at 250C ,Ρp= 0.997kg/liter

Assume the maximum percentage of ethanol after fermentation is 15% and

equal to that in the filtered fermented juice.
b) Carry out a complete material balance on this process.

Taking the basis of one drum of molasses of volume , Vm = 200 litres for a shift operator

For mass balance

1. Mixer
M + P = Md
Ρm Vm + ΡMd Vmd
1.4*200 + 0.997 * Vp = 1.2 * Vmd
………………………………………………… 1
Material balance on soluble solutes for mixer
65/100 * M = 25/100 * Md
65*1.4*200 = 25 * 1.2 * Vmd
Vmd = 606.67L
From 1
Vp = 449.35L
Mc =280kg , Md = 738kg, P = 448kg
Fermentation tank
FL = 5% of Md
= 5/100 *728 = 36.4 kg
FJ = md - FL = 728 – 36.4 = 691.6 kg
Filter
LFJ = 3% of FJ = 3/100 * 691.6 = 20.748kg
FFJ = FJ - LFJ = 691.6 - 20.748 = 670.852kg
 Distillation column

c) Obtain a scaling up factor

Part IV

a) Size all the vessels, filters and pumps (use an overdesign factor of 20%), tank diameter to be
70% of the height where necessary
b) Prepare an equipment specification sheet for the plant

Part V

a) Prepare a flow sheet for the above process

b) Detail the automatic control system for:
i) Maintaining a fixed flus ratio at top of the distillation column
ii) evel contols of process tanks