Process Equipment Design, Applications, Maintenance and Troubleshooting: Rules of Thumb for Process Engineers
Introduction
Process Equipment Design, Applications, Maintenance and Troubleshooting: Rules of Thumb for Process Engineers
This 5-day training course provides chemical and process engineers with practical shortcuts, heuristics, and design guidelines for sizing, operating, and troubleshooting major process equipment. The course focuses on enhancing efficiency, safety, and reliability through rules of thumb for fluid flow, heat transfer, separation, and equipment maintenance.
Course Outline Overview
1. Introduction to Rules of Thumb & Process Design
- Purpose: Using shortcuts to save time and evaluate design proposals.
- Process Data & Physical Properties: Estimating fluid properties and identifying "rule of thumb" correlations for chemical properties.
- Safety Aspects: Incorporating safety standards into design.
2. Fluid Flow & Piping Design Rules
- Piping Systems: Sizing rules for liquids and gases (e.g., 1–3 m/s for liquids).
- Pressure Drop Calculations: Quick estimations for piping, valves, and fittings.
- Pump & Driver Selection: Selection criteria, cavitation prevention, and NPSH considerations.
3. Heat Transfer Equipment
- Heat Exchangers: Rules for overall heat transfer coefficients (\(U\)-values), tube length/diameter, and shell diameter sizing.
- Reboilers & Condensers: Thermal design practices.
- Cooling Towers: Performance monitoring and efficiency rules.
4. Separation & Unit Operations
- Separators/Accumulators: Vertical and horizontal separator sizing.
- Fractionators & Absorbers: Estimating tray spacing, tower diameter, and height.
- Heterogeneous Phase Contacting: Gas-Liquid and Liquid-Liquid system guidelines.
5. Maintenance, Troubleshooting & Revamping
- Troubleshooting Approach: Structured methods (e.g., engage-define-explore-plan-do-check).
- Common Equipment Failure: Identifying causes of failure in pumps, heat exchangers, and vessels.
- Maintenance & Reliability: Preventive maintenance strategies and troubleshooting case studies.
- Equipment Revamp: Methods for evaluating existing equipment for increased capacity or changed service
6. Case Studies & Workshops
- Practical workshops covering sizing calculations for separators and exchangers.
- Interactive troubleshooting of plant systems