CHEMICAL PROCESS CALCULATIONS

Course Code: CH21203

Even Roll-number: NR122

Rahul Ranjan
 Texts Books
• BASIC PRINCIPLES AND CALCULATIONS IN CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

• David M. Himmelblau and James B. Riggs

• Prentice Hall

• ELEMENTARY PRINCIPLES OF CHEMICAL PROCESSES

• Richard M. Felder and Ronald W. Rousseau

• John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
 Marks Distribution

 Mid Semester : 30 Marks

 End Semester: 50 Marks

 Teaching Assessment: 20 Marks [(10 Marks-Rahul)+(10 Marks-RM)]

Flowchart

An experiment on the growth rate of certain organisms requires an environment of humid

air enriched in oxygen. Three input streams are fed into an evaporation chamber to produce
an output stream with the desired composition.

A: Liquid water, fed at a rate of 20.0 cm3/min

B: Air (21 mole% O2, the balance N2)
C: Pure oxygen, with a molar flow rate one-fifth of the molar flow rate of stream B

The output gas is analyzed and is found to contain 1.5 mole% water. Draw and label a
flowchart of the process, and calculate all unknown stream variables.
Degree-of-Freedom Analysis
A stream of humid air enters a condenser in which 95% of the water vapor in
the air is condensed. The flow rate of the condensate (the liquid leaving the
condenser) is measured and found to be 225 L/h. Dry air may be taken to
contain 21 mole% oxygen, with the balance nitrogen. Calculate the flow rate
of the gas stream leaving the condenser and the mole fractions of oxygen,
nitrogen, and water in this stream.
 Single-Unit Process
1.
Calculations
Choose a basis

2. Draw and label the flowchart

3. Write expressions for the quantities asked in the problem statement

4. Convert mixed units to one basis

5. Perform degree-of-freedom analysis

6. Write system equations and outline a solution procedure

7. Calculate the unknowns

8. Calculate additional quantities requested in the problem statement

 40.0 kg/h
30.0 kg/h
0.900 kg A/kg
0.600 kg A/kg
0.100 kg B/kg
0.400 kg A/kg

1
I
2
II
100.0 kg/h 3
0.500 kg A/kg ṁ1 kg/h ṁ2 kg/h ṁ3 kg/h
0.500 kg B/kg x1 kg A/kg x2 kg A/kg x3 kg A/kg
1-x1 kg B/kg 1-x2 kg B/kg 1-x3 kg B/kg

30 kg/h
0.300 kg A/kg
0.700 kg A/kg
 Multiple Unit
A liquid mixture containing 30.0 mole% benzene (B), 25.0% toluene (T),
and the balance xylene (X) is fed to a distillation column. The bottoms
product contains 98.0 mole% X and no B, and 96.0% of the X in the feed
is recovered in this stream. The overhead product is fed to a second
column. The overhead product from the second column contains 97.0% of
the B in the feed to this column. The composition of this stream is 94.0
mole% B and the balance T.
Draw and label a flowchart of this process and do the degree-of-freedom
analysis to prove that for an assumed basis of calculation, molar flow
rates and compositions of all process streams can be calculated from the
given information. Write in order the equations you would solve to
calculate unknown process variables. In each equation (or pair of
simultaneous equations), highlight the variable(s) for which you would
solve. Calculate:
(a) the percentage of the benzene in the process feed (i.e., the feed to
the first column) that emerges in the overhead product from the second
An equimolar liquid mixture of benzene and toluene is separated into
two product streams inside a column, where a liquid stream flows
downward and a vapor stream rises. At each point in the column some
of the liquid vaporizes and some of the vapor condenses. The vapor
leaving the top of the column, which contains 97 mole% benzene, is
completely condensed and split into two equal fractions: one is taken
off as the overhead product stream, and the other (the reflux) is
recycled to the top of the column. The overhead product stream
contains 89.2% of the benzene fed to the column. The liquid leaving the
bottom of the column is fed to a partial reboiler in which 45% of it is
vaporized. The vapor generated in the reboiler is recycled to become
the rising vapor stream in the column, and the residual reboiler liquid is
taken off as the bottom product stream. The compositions of the
streams leaving the reboiler are governed by the relation
(a)Take a basis of 100 mol fed to the column. Draw and completely label a
flowchart, and for each of four systems (overall process, column, condenser,
and reboiler), do the degree-of-freedom analysis and identify a system with
which the process analysis might appropriately begin.

(b) Write in order the equations you would solve to determine all unknown
variables on the flowchart, highlighting the variable for which you would solve
each equation.

(c) Calculate the molar amounts of the overhead and bottoms products, the
mole fraction of benzene in the bottoms product, and the percentage recovery
of toluene in the bottoms product (moles toluene in bottoms/mole toluene in
feed X 100%).
 II

III
An
Recycle
evaporation–crystallization is used to obtain solid potassium sulfate
from an aqueous solution of this salt. The fresh feed to the process
contains 19.6 wt% K2SO4. The wet filter cake consists of solid K2SO4
crystals and a 40.0 wt% K2SO4 solution, in a ratio 10 kg crystals/kg
solution. The filtrate, also a 40.0% solution, is recycled to join the fresh
feed. Of the water fed to the evaporator, 45.0% is evaporated. The
evaporator has a maximum capacity of 175 kg water evaporated/s.

(a) Assume the process is operating at maximum capacity. Draw and label
a flowchart and do the degree-of-freedom analysis for the overall system,
the recycle–fresh feed mixing point, the evaporator, and the crystallizer.
Then write in an efficient order of the equations that you would solve to
determine all unknown stream variables. In each equation, highlight the
variable for which you would solve.
(b) Calculate the maximum production rate of solid K2SO4, the rate at
which fresh feed must be supplied to achieve this production rate, and the
ratio kg recycle/kg fresh feed.
(c) Calculate the composition and feed rate of the stream entering the
I II III
 Bypass
Fresh orange juice contains 12.0 wt% solids and the balance water, and
concentrated orange juice contains 42.0 wt% solids. Initially a single
evaporation process was used for the concentration, but volatile
constituents of the juice escaped with the water, leaving the concentrate
with a flat taste. The current process overcomes this problem by
bypassing the evaporator with a fraction of the fresh juice. The juice that
enters the evaporator is concentrated to 58 wt% solids, and the
evaporator product stream is mixed with the bypassed fresh juice to
achieve the desired final concentration.
(a) Draw and label a flowchart of this process, neglecting the vaporization
of everything in the juice but water. Then perform the degree-of-freedom
analysis for the overall system, the evaporator, and the bypass–
evaporator product mixing point, and write in order the equations you
would solve to determine all unknown stream variables. In each equation,
highlight the variable for which you would solve.
(b) Calculate the amount of product (42% concentrate) produced per 100
A stream containing 5.15 wt% chromium (Cr) is contained in the
wastewater from a metal finishing plant. The wastewater stream is fed to
a treatment unit that removes 95% of the chromium in the feed and
recycles it to the plant. The residual liquid stream leaving the treatment
unit is sent to a waste lagoon. The treatment unit has a maximum
capacity of 4500 kg wastewater/h. If wastewater leaves the finishing
plant at a rate higher than the capacity of the treatment unit, the excess
(anything above 4500 kg/h) bypasses the unit and combines with the
residual liquid leaving the unit, and the combined stream goes to the
waste lagoon.

(a) Without assuming a basis of calculation, draw and label a flowchart of

the process.
(b) Wastewater leaves the finishing plant at a rate 6000 kg/h. Calculate
the flow rate of liquid to the waste lagoon, and the mass fraction of Cr in
this liquid.