Download Chemical Engineering Electives 3rd Level CHE3067S Design and

Chemical Engineering Electives
3rd Level
CHE3067S Design and Operation of Catalytic Reactors
The course focuses on the fundamental aspects of heterogeneously catalysed reactions with the aim to design
reactors for catalytic reactors. The course will introduce Langmuir-Hinshelwood kinetics together with internal and
external mass transport limitations to describe the rate of the process, from which catalytic reactors will be
designed. Students will be expected to develop their own code to design reactors. Catalyst deactivation will be
modelled. Catalyst regeneration will be modelled using classical solid-fluid models such as the shrinking core
model.
CHE3068S Bioprocess Engineering
The course aims to develop an advanced understanding of the fundamental engineering science of
bioprocess engineering. The course will build on an adequate understanding of life sciences to
address the process requirements of microbial and enzymatic processes. The fundamentals of
biokinetics and bioreactor systems will be addressed. Sterilisation, aseptic operation and clean room
technology will be covered, as will downstream processing for product recovery. Study of
important bioprocesses will be included, with examples drawn from those of significance to South
Africa. The course includes selected case studies and visits to local bioprocess industries.
CHE3069S Mineral and metallurgical processes
This course aims to develop an understanding of the processes involved in the beneficiation of
minerals, and will include the principles involved in comminution, classification, flotation,
hydrometallurgy, pyro-metallurgy, crystallisation and precipitation. The course begins with a
multimedia-based introduction to the field of mineral and metallurgical processing, from the mining
operation to environmental rehabilitation. Students will be required to perform experiments and
analyse data from a closed circuit comminution operation and batch or pilot scale flotation tests, and
complete practicals using pilot scale leach cell and DC plasma-arc furnace units, respectively.
CHE3070S Numerical Simulation for Chemical Engineers
This course aims to develop an advanced understanding of computer arithmetic, application of
similarity transforms to reaction-diffusion and rate based mass transfer; data fitting by linear leasts
squares regression; application of non-linear equations techniques in mass and energy balances
(VLE); application of ODE solvers, BVP solvers and the method of lines in reaction and mass
transfer systems described by ODEs and PDEs; stiffness ratio; non-linear leasts squares estimation
of model parameters with variance; formulate objective functions and minimisation/maximisation of
process operating models; and embedded systems.
Level 4
CHE4067F: Heterogeneous Catalysis
This course includes: basic principles in heterogeneous catalysis; diffusion and adsorption; catalyst testing
(reactions, product analysis); catalyst preparation (zeolites; metal-based catalysts); catalyst characterisation;
catalysed reactions: acid catalysed reactions, metal catalysed reactions, bi- functional catalysis, oxidation
catalysis and important chemical processes based on heterogeneous catalysis.
CHE4068F: Bioprocess Design
The aims of this course build on the fundamental bioprocess technology and engineering principles related to
upstream and downstream processing. Specifically, this course is concerned with the use and application of
bioprocessing skills and expertise to understand, develop and design processes for the manufacture biotechnology
products taking into account aspects of process synthesis, techno- economics, scheduling, environmental
assessment and biosafety.
The objective of the Bioprocess Engineering Design course is to give students an opportunity to apply all of
their acquired knowledge of the fundamentals of bioprocess engineering and biotechnology to the
integrated design of a complete bio manufacturing plant.
CHE4069F: Mineral and Metallurgical Processing II
The main aim for this course is to equip students with knowledge required to model and simulate mineral
beneficiation processe. The content of the course will cover the principles involved in modelling comminution,
classification, flotation, hydrometallurgy, crystallisation and precipitation processes. The course will begin with
an overview of the geo-metallurgy model affects the design and operation of the mine. The principles involved
in modelling comminution, classification and froth flotation activities will be covered used the simulators
commonly applied in designing and optimising mineral processing circuits. Students will then be required to
model and simulate comminution and flotation circuits separately. Modelling of hydrometallurgical flowsheets
will be considered and the student will perform a project involving modelling of leach cell. The crystallisation
and precipitation will cover the modelling concepts of supersaturation; basic mechanisms of nucleation,
growth, aggregation, breakage and dissolution for crystallisation and precipitation systems applied in minerals
beneficiation flowsheets.
CHE4057F
This elective course aims to introduce 4th year chemical engineering students to the field of
industrial ecology, its main topics of enquiry, the associated analysis tools, as well as the emerging
practise resulting from it. Topics covered start from the biological metaphor and the systems
dimension of biomimicry: interplays of producers, consumers, degraders; metabolism; symbiosis;
young vs. mature eco-systems; signalling in nature. Applications covered include industrial
symbiosis, material flow analysis, the circular economy, resource efficiency. Assessment is by
means of one term-time assignment (40%), applying learnings to a current topic, and by a final
written examination (60%).
CHE4058Z
This course aims to familiarise students with the environmental assessment tool known as Life
Cycle Assessment, the history of its development, its diverse uses, the ISO norms, the science
behind some of its key impact categories (beyond carbon and water), its use to support decisionmaking
in product systems, process systems or in policy-making. Furthermore, to develop skills and
insights in the important steps of goal and scope definition, inventory modelling, data quality
assessment, choice of impact assessment categories, interpretation and uncertainty propagation,
partly by working with LCA software and databases. Assessment is by project 50% and written final
examination 50%.