Spring Semester

Unit(s) of Assessment	Weighting Towards Module Mark (%)
Coursework – Report on capital cost estimation of a chemical process.	25%
Coursework – Report on operating cost estimation and profitability analysis of a chemical process.	25%
Coursework - Report on the sustainability of a process design (80 %), oral presentation and discussion (20 %).	50%
Qualifying Condition(s)    A weighted aggregate mark of 40% is required to pass the module.

This module aims to:

·         Review the commoner measures of economic viability and discuss some of the methods of estimating capital and operating costs;

·         Allow BEng students to apply the above in the context of their Design of a Chemical/Biological Process;

·         Make BEng students critically review their Design of a Chemical/Biological Process against the appropriate sustainability criteria using the IChemE Sustainability Metrics.

Upon successful completion of the module, you will be able to:

·         Estimate the installed capital requirement of a chemical process from a flow-sheet and equipment list by:

-  Evaluating the historic delivered capital cost of each item of equipment and inflating this using an appropriate engineering index;

-  Applying the appropriate Lang factors to the total delivered equipment costs;

-  Suggesting an appropriate capital spend profile.

·         Perform an economic evaluation of a chemical process by:

- Estimating the revenue and fixed and variable operating costs to determine the operating profit;

- Analysing the profitability using both capital and operating costs, the capital spend profile and accounting for both depreciation and taxation.

·         Identify the need to continually revise the factors affecting the financial viability of a project throughout the design and construction of the process.

·         Critically review a process design against sustainability criteria and propose and implement the necessary design modifications.

Process Economics

Nature of projects, factors for success, project development

Capital cost estimation and Lang factors

Time value of money and profitability measures

Recurrent and operating costs

Criteria for comparative profitability

Discounting, DCF and NPV evaluation

Project profitability profiles

Sustainable Design

Revision of sustainability and its implication to process design

IChemE Sustainability Metrics

Application of IChemE Sustainability Metrics to process design

GHG emissions and the impact of the cost of carbon (from the EU Emissions Trading Scheme)
Implementation of design changes

Total student learning time 100 hrs.

Essential Purchase

 

Coulson JM, Richardson JF & Sinnott RK, Chemical Engineering, 6, 2^nd ed (revised), Butterworth-Heinemann, 1996.  (ISBN 07506 25570)

Gerrard M, Capital Cost Estimation, Institution of Chemical Engineers, 2000.  (ISBN 08529 53992)

Essential consultation

 

Holland FA, Watson FA & Wilkinson JK, Introduction to Process Economics, Wiley, 1974.  (ISBN 04714 06139)

Kharbanda OP & Stallworthy EA, Capital Cost Estimation for the Process Industries, Butterworth, 1988.  (ISBN 04080 2660X)

Ulrich GD, A Guide to Chemical Engineering Process Design and Economics, Wiley, 1984.  (ISBN 04710 82767)

IChemE Sustainability Metrics – compact disk will be supplied

DEFRA and DECC websites for information on CO₂ emissions and climate change

20 October 2009