Fluid Mechanics, Heat Transfer, Thermodynamics Design Project Production of Diethyl Ether

The feasibility of constructing a new, grass-roots, 50,000 tonne/y, diethyl ether plant is being investigated. As part of the feasibility study, some of the details of the proposed plant must be analyzed. Diethyl Ether Production Reactions For this analysis, it may be assumed that the only reactions occurring are
2C 2 H 5 OH (C 2 H 5 ) 2 O + H 2 O ethanol DEE

(1)

C 2 H 5 OH C 2 H 4 + H 2 O ethanol ethylene

(2)

For the purposes of this preliminary evaluation, it is assumed that the reaction occurs in an adiabatic packed bed of particles containing high-purity -alumina catalyst. Feed and Reaction Sections The PFD for the feed and reaction sections is given in Figure 1. The feed to the process is liquid ethanol at 25C and 1 atm. The reaction is exothermic, and the reactor is adiabatic. The reactor feed must be 200C and 1215 kPa. Following the reactor, the reaction products are cooled to 37C, the three-phase flash conditions. In the three-phase flash, ethylene is separated from the organics, but the liquid forms two, immiscible phases, which are fed to two different locations in the diethyl ether column. Diethyl ether and some remaining ethylene are separated in the first distillation column, which may be assumed to be a perfect separator for this semesters project only. Ethanol and water are separated in the second distillation column. The ethanol is recycled and the wastewater stream must is cooled to 35C to be sent to waste treatment.

Figure 1: Unit 1200 Diethyl Ether Production Process

3 Process Details Feed Stream Stream 1: Effluent Streams Stream 7: Stream 14: Stream 15: Stream 18: ethylene waste it can be burned for credit at its LHV ethylene waste it can be burned for credit at its LHV diethyl ether product must have < 0.1 mol% ethylene Wastewater stream to treatment must be at 35C ethanol liquid at 1 atm, 25C contains 70 mol% ethanol, 30 mol% water

Equipment Summary P-1201 A/B: Ethanol feed pumps outlet pressure of at least 1260 kPa V-1201: E-1201: R-1201: Feed drum liquid level may vary but output remains constant assume 10 kPa pressure drop Feed preheater reactor feed must be vapor at a minimum of 1215 kPa and 200C assume 35 kPa pressure drop Reactor adiabatic assume to have a pressure drop of 50 kPa the fractional conversion of ethanol is 0.8 the selectivity of the desired reaction to the undesired reaction is 80 moles DEE formed/mole ethylene formed this must be simulated using a stoichiometric reactor, which only accepts one reaction a single, overall reaction must be developed based on the stoichiometry, conversion, and selectivity Product cooler cools reactor outlet stream to 40C assume 35 kPa pressure drop Three-phase flash separator with outlet operating at a minimum of 1120 kPa and a minimum of 40C, as long as multiple phases exists produces an organic-water-gas three-phase mixture that is assumed to separate easily into three distinct streams the VLL option must be chosen in the thermodynamics menu screen so the presence of two liquid phases is calculated correctly Heats column feed to 80C 35 kPa pressure drop

E-1202: V-1202:

E-1203:

4 T-1201: Distillation column to produce diethyl ether product and ethanol for recycle the component separator in Chemcad should be used a perfect separator may be assumed (which is physically impossible) for this semester only, i.e., all diethyl ether and ethylene to the top and all ethanol and water to the bottom the column operates at 175 kPa, with a top temperature of 46C and a bottom temperature of 97C In a real distillation column, there can be feeds at different locations. This will be discussed next semester. However, the component separator in Chemcad only accepts one feed stream. Therefore, for this semester only, Streams 9 and 10 are to be mixed before entering the component separator. This would never occur in a realistic situation, because it makes no sense to mix streams that are already partially separated only to separate them again. While this is being done for the Chemcad simulation, the PFD should show the more realistic physical situation. T-1202: Distillation column to separate ethanol for recycle from wastewater the component separator in Chemcad should be used 99.75% of the ethanol and 9.4% of the water entering T-1202 return in the recycle stream cannot get high-purity ethanol due to the azeotrope the column operates at 170 kPa with a top temperature of 86C and a bottom temperature of 115C Cools and partially condenses the diethyl ether product stream prior to entering V-1203, with an outlet temperature of 37C Flash vessel allowing separation of volatile ethylene from the diethyl ether product stream Cools wastewater stream to 35C

E-1204: V-1203: E-1205:

P-1202 A/B: Pumps recycle to 1260 kPa Assignment The first task is to obtain base-case stream flows for the process using Chemcad. The remainder of the assignment consists of five mini-designs. 1. Fluid Mechanics (ChE 310) Optimization of the Feed Pump and the Three-phase Flash Effluents Pump P-1201 A/B should be sized. The optimum pipe size for Streams 6-10 should be determined. The objective function for the optimization is the Equivalent Annual Operating Cost (EAOC in $/y) of the pipe in Streams 7-10 and of P-1201 A/B. The EAOC is defined as:

5
A EAOC = CAP , i, n + annual operating costs for P - 1201 A/B P

(3)

where CAP = the installed cost of P-1201 A/B and the pipe in Streams 6-10, and
i(1 + i) A , i, n = (1 + i) n 1 P
n

(4)

where i = 0.15 (15% rate of return) and n = 10 (ten-year plant life). Raw-material costs or wastewater-treatment costs should not be included, so CAP only includes the installed cost of pipes and pumps, and operating costs include the electricity to run the pump. The pump must supply all pressure needed prior to the distillation column. It may be assumed that the pressure drop between the pump and V-1202 outlet is fixed at 1260-1120 = 140 kPa. Stream 7 contains 500 m of equivalent pipe length, and the destination pressure must be at least 1000 kPa. Stream 8 and 10 combined contain 30 m of equivalent pipe length, an elevation increase of 20 m, and there is the pressure drop of 35 kPa in E-1203. Stream 9 contains 20 m of equivalent pipe length and an elevation increase of 10 m. 2. Heat Transfer (ChE 311) Design of E-1205 The heat exchanger, E-1205, must be designed in detail for the base case. Assume the inlet pressure of the process stream is the same as Stream 17. The outlet pressure must be specified based on the heat-exchanger design. The utility here is cooling water available at 516 kPa and 30C. The cooling water must be returned at no less than 308 kPa and no hotter than 45C. Design for no more than 35 kPa pressure drop on the process side. For the heat exchanger design, the following information should be provided: Diameter of shell Thickness of shell wall Number of tube and shell passes (where applicable) Number of tubes per pass Tube pitch and arrangement (triangular/square/..) Number of shell-side baffles, if any, and their arrangement (spacing, pitch, type) Tube diameter, tube-wall thickness, and length of tubes Calculation of both shell- and tube-side film heat transfer coefficients Calculation of overall heat transfer coefficient (it may be assumed that there is no fouling on either side of the exchanger) Total heat-transfer area of the exchanger Shell-side and tube-side pressure drops (calculated, not estimated) Materials of construction for the shell and the tubes Approximate cost of the exchanger

6 The EAOC of the heat exchanger. In Equation 3, CAP becomes the cost of the heat exchanger, and the annual operating cost is the utility cost.

The maximum heat exchanger length is 6.1 m (20 ft.), and the shell diameter should be the minimum required for the stated duty. A detailed sketch of the exchanger should be included along with a set of comprehensive calculations in an appendix to the minidesign. 3. Thermodynamics (ChE 320) Optimization of V-1203 and thermodynamic package analysis You are to optimize the product flash, V-1203. The objective function for the optimization should be the Equivalent Annual Operating Cost (EAOC, $/y) for this section only, that is defined as:
A EAOC = CAP , i, n + AOC P

(5)

where CAP ($) is the capital investment for the equipment (includes any equipment that are affected by your optimization), AOC ($/y) is the annual operating cost (includes utility costs for E-1204 as well as the reactant feed cost and product revenue). Optimization variables can include, but are not limited to the flash pressure and temperature. The equipment and raw material costs, product value, and equipment efficiencies are found in the Appendix. Additionally, the thermodynamics of the water-ethanol-ethylene-diethyl ether mixture that enters the three-phase flash vessel, V-1202, must be modeled accurately. Inaccuracies in the thermodynamics of the vapor-liquid-liquid equilibrium of this mixture can lead to inaccurate calculations of the phase separation and the overall cost of the plant. Justify your choice of thermodynamics package based on an examination of the Txy diagrams of the pairs of components at a variety of possible operating pressures. Your recommendation must be based on more information than simply the Chemcad Wizard. 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 as well as the impact of any extreme process conditions. The purpose of the safety analysis report is to make management aware of risks to personnel due to extreme operating conditions as well as the flammability and toxicity of all chemicals consumed or produced in the process. As a minimum, the SDS (safety data sheets) for all chemicals in the process should be provided in an appendix, and a brief discussion of the major health and safety concerns for each chemical should be given as a separate section of the report. This discussion should include general concerns and concerns that are specific to the operating conditions in this process. In addition, a brief discussion of possible safety hazards for each piece of

7 equipment in your process should be provided. Finally, an aspect of your process design that addresses one of these safety concerns should be explained. 5. Chemcad/Process Improvements A Chemcad simulation of the base case of the process shown in Figure 1 should be provided. Process improvements that do not violate the laws of physics may be explored. An explanation of the rationale for such process improvements should be provided, including an economic analysis, if possible. For a process improvement involving additional equipment, use Equation 3, where CAP, is the cost of additional equipment and annual operating costs are the savings realized (hence a negative number). This is called an incremental analysis, and the EAOC for a good process modification should be negative, i.e., profitable. Other Information It should be assumed that a year equals 8000 hours. This is about 330 days, which allows for periodic shutdown and maintenance. Suggested Plan of Attack The safety analysis can begin as soon as the project is distributed. A good place to find MSDS sheets is http://siri.org. The Chemcad simulation can also be done immediately. Once the Chemcad simulation is done, the fluid mechanics optimization, the heat exchanger design, and the thermodynamics assignment can be completed. Deliverables Written Reports Each team must deliver a report written using a word processor. Three identical copies should be submitted, one for each instructor, unless an electronic copy is requested by the instructor after this document is distributed. The written project reports for all teams, regardless of presentation date, are due by 11:00 a.m. Friday, November 30, 2012. Late projects will receive a minimum of a one letter grade deduction. The report should be clear and concise. Guidelines are in 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 (example will be provided). The preferred software for preparing PFDs is Corel Draw. A PFD from Chemcad is unacceptable; however, it should be included in the appendix along with a Consolidated Chemcad Report for the base case. The Consolidated Chemcad Report should contain stream compositions, but not stream properties. 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 minidesign. These may be hand written if done neatly. Alternatively, Excel spreadsheets may be included, but these must be well documented with comments so that the reader can clearly

8 follow your thought process and interpret the results. In either case, the calculations should be clear and all assumptions made should be explained and justified. 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, which summarizes the main results of the design, emphasizing what was found, not what was done. There should also be an introduction that orients the reader to the all the mini-designs. Then, there should be a results section followed by a discussion section for each mini-design. A general conclusion and recommendation section should follow. At a minimum, there should be one appendix for each of the mini-designs, with detailed calculations that are clearly written and easy to follow. In order to evaluate each team members writing skills, the results and discussion sections for each mini-design should be written by a different team member. The authorship of each of these mini-reports should be clearly specified in the report. Although the individual written portions of the reports must be authored by a single team member, it is the intent of the instructors that team members should help each other in writing different sections. To this end, it is recommended that input be sought from your team members, including items such as proofreading and critiques. The reports will be evaluated as follows: course-specific technical content 50% oral presentation 20% written report 20% technical quality of general sections (safety, simulation, etc.) 10%

For a more detailed set of evaluation criteria that we will use, see the following web site (design project assessment, oral report assessment, written report assessment): http://www.che.cemr.wvu.edu/ugrad/outcomes/rubrics/index.php Each report will be assessed separately by each of the three instructors. A historical account of what each team did is neither required nor desired. Results and explanations should be those 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 team 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 team member must speak. Each team member should speak only once. A 5-10 minute question-and-answer session will follow, and all members must participate. Guidelines are in the document entitled Oral Reports. The oral presentations will be Monday, December 3, 2012, from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.; Tuesday, December 4, 2012, from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.; and on Wednesday, December 5, 2012, from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 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-

9 grade (per occurrence) from your project grade in ChE 310, ChE 311, and ChE 320. Anyone failing to present with his or her team is subject to a minimum one-letter-grade deduction from the project grade. Project Review There will be a project review at 11:00 a.m. on Friday, December 7, 2012. Attendance is expected. Teams This project will be completed in teams of 3 or 4. More details of team formation will be discussed in class. There will also be peer evaluations of team members, one midway through the project and one after the project is submitted. These will be done on-line, and there will be a window of time when the evaluation must be submitted. Anyone not completing either the interim or the final peer evaluation will lose one full letter grade in the design grade for all three classes for each evaluation not completed. The results of this evaluation may affect individual team members grades, so that each team member may not receive the same grade for the project. 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 the project proceeds, questions from the class will require revisions and/or clarifications. It is important to be aware that these revisions/clarifications may be forthcoming.

10

Appendix 1 Other Data

The equations for the log-mean-temperature-difference correction factor, F, for a 1-2, shelland-tube heat exchanger are: For R 1
1 P R 2 + 1 ln 1 RP F= 2 P R + 1 R 2 + 1 (R 1)ln 2 2 P R + 1 + R + 1

(5)

and for R = 1
F= P 2 (1 P )ln 2 2 P + P 2 2 2P P 2

(6)

where
P= tout tin Tin tin

(7)

R=

& tubeC p,tube Tin Tout m = & shell C p, shell tout tin m

(8)

11 the upper-case T is for the tube side and the lower-case t is for the shell side. It is understood that it does not matter which fluid is placed on which side, since the same value for F results for either configuration. For a 2-4 shell-and-tube heat exchanger, the equations are For R 1
1 P R 2 + 1 ln 1 RP

F=

2 P PR + 2 (1 P)(1 PR) + P R 2 + 1 2(R 1) ln 2 P PR + 2 (1 P)(1 PR) P R 2 + 1

(9)

and for R = 1
F= P 2 4(1 P) + P 2 2(1 P ) ln 4(1 P) P 2

(10)

For a 3-6 shell-and-tube heat exchanger, the equations are For R 1

(11)

and for R = 1
F= P* 2 (P * 1) ln 2 2 P * P * 2 2 2P * + P * 2

(12)

where

12

1 RP 1 3 1 P P* = 1 RP R3 1 P

(13)

13

Appendix 2 Economic Data

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 than the minimum, the minimum attribute value should be used 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, the price for multiple, identical, smaller pieces of equipment should be used. Pumps
log10 (purchased cost ) = 3.4 + 0.05 log10 W + 0.15[log10 W ]2 W = power (kW, 1, 300) assume 80% efficiency
log10 (purchased cost ) = 4.6 0.8 log10 A + 0.3[log10 A]2 A = heat exchange area (m2, 20, 1000) add 25% to the purchased cost for finned tubes

Heat Exchangers

Compressors

log10 (purchased cost ) = 2.3 + 1.4 log10 W 0.1[log10 W ]2 W = power (kW, 450, no limit) assume 65% efficiency log10 (purchased cost ) = 2.5 + 1.4 log10 W 0.18[log10 W ]2 W = power (kW, 75, 2600) all compressors require a drive in addition to the compressor log10 (purchased cost ) = 2.5 + 1.45 log10 W 0.17[log10 W ]2 W = power (kW, 100, 4000) assume 65% efficiency
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

Compressor Drive

Turbine

Fired Heater

Vertical Vessel

log10 (purchased cost ) = 3.5 + 0.45 log10 V + 0.11[log10 V ]2 V = volume of vessel (m3, 0.3, 520) log10 (purchased cost ) = 3.5 + 0.38 log10 V + 0.09[log10 V ]2 V = volume of vessel (m3, 0.1, 628)

Horizontal Vessel

14 Storage Tanks
log10 (purchased cost ) = 4.85 0.397 log10 V + 0.145[log10 V ]2 V = volume of tank (m3, 90, 30000)

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

Fittings (except valves)

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

Utility Costs

Low-Pressure Steam (618 kPa saturated) Medium-Pressure Steam (1135 kPa saturated) High-Pressure Steam (4237 kPa saturated) Natural Gas (446 kPa, 25C) Fuel-gas/Off-gas Credit Electricity Boiler Feed Water (at 549 kPa, 90C)

$13.28/GJ $14.19/GJ $17.70/GJ $11.00/GJ at LHV $0.06/kWh $2.45/1000 kg

Cooling Water $0.354/GJ available at 516 kPa and 30C return pressure 308 kPa return temperature is no more than 15C above the inlet temperature Refrigerated Water available at 516 kPa and 10C return pressure 308 kPa return temperature is no higher than 20C Deionized Water available at 5 bar and 30C Low-temperature Refrigerant $4.43/GJ

$1.00/1000 kg $7.89/GJ

15 available at -20C Very low-temperature Refrigerant available at -50C Wastewater Treatment

$13.11/GJ $56/1000 m3

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 = 10 100 - 200 atm, PF = 25 Carbon Steel MF = 0.0 Stainless Steel MF = 4.0
Raw Material Costs/Product Value Raw Material or Product ethanol diethyl ether price 1.15/kg 1.70/kg

does not apply to turbines, compressors, vessels, packing, trays, or catalyst, since their cost equations include pressure effects