OVERVIEW

The course provides the knowledge and analysis tools for the design and selection of unit operations for physical separations and chemical reactors (homogeneous and heterogeneous). We will examine less common unit operations (mixing, adsorption, sedimentation, flotation and filtration), we will analyze the behavior of non-ideal reactors by studying the effects of the residence time distributions on reactor performance. The basic knowledge for the study and analysis of activated sludge plants will be provided too.

AIMS AND CONTENT

LEARNING OUTCOMES

The course aims to deepen the knowledge on unit operations (physical separation) and chemical reactors by providing the basic tools for their design and selection for applications of interest to the chemical process industry and the environment. The basic knowledge acquired in the teaching of the Degree Course in Chemistry and Chemical Technologies will be used to formulate the design equations of the main physical separation operations and the most common reactors (ideal and non-ideal) of the chemical process industry. Furthermore, a solid theoretical-practical basis will be provided to address the resolution of pollution problems (industrial and otherwise) in the water sector.

AIMS AND LEARNING OUTCOMES

The objective of this course is to provide students with the knowledge and tools for analyzing the elementary phenomena that govern the unit operations of both the chemical process industry and the chemical-physical treatment industry in the water sector. In particular, we will examine in depth:

• the kinetics of homogeneous, heterogeneous, catalytic (fluid-solid) and biological reactions;
• the mixing phenomena in agitated systems;
• the transport phenomena in porous matrices;
• the operating principles of some less common unit operations: adsorption (industrial chromatography), sedimentation, flotation and filtration;
• chemical reactors.

At the end of the course the students will be able to:

• formulate conceptual models that describe the phenomenology of chemical-physical processes of interest;
• plan experimental campaigns on the laboratory scale to obtain the information necessary for sizing industrial equipment;
• govern the scale-up process from the laboratory scale to the industrial one;
• formulate the design equations for sizing the equipment used in physical separations;
• formulate the design equations for the sizing of chemical reactors (homogeneous, heterogeneous, ideal and not ideal);
• formulate the design equations for sizing of the unit operations typical of the water sector (sedimentation, flotation, filtration, and activated sludge plants);
• select the most appropriate unit operations for the specific application;
• acquire the ability to express ourselvers with appropriate technical terminology.

PREREQUISITES

There are not specific prerequisites.

TEACHING METHODS

Teaching is provided through lectures for a total of 80 hours (equivalent to 10 ECTS).

During the year, homework assignments will be assigned to help students to acquire the concepts covered in class.

The didactic material  will be made available through AulaWeb

SYLLABUS/CONTENT

Part 1 (T, 5CUF)

• Transport  phenomena: critical analysis of the correlations available for the estimation of the transport coefficients - material and thermal - in two-phase systems (gas-liquid and gas-solid) and in three phases (gas-liquid-solid). Stefan Maxwell diffusion model; transport models in porous matrices.
• Traditional unit operations: rigorous solution of a binary distillation column (Ponchon-Savarit method); design kinetic equation for continuous contact equipment - packed bed columns -.
• Mixing: introduction to the selection and design of agitation systems.
• Adsorption processes: introduction to the adsorption process in packed beds; introduction to linear and non-linear theories of adsorption processes; moving bed and simulated moving bed separations; ion exchange processes.
• Issues related to scale-up: similarities, concepts of operating regime, research at the laboratory scale, pilot plant and demonstration unit.

Optional topics

• Introduction to the problems of process control and monitoring.
• Introduction to the concepts of risk analysis (Process Safety)

Part 2 (T, 3CUF)

• Review of ideal discontinuous reactors, ideal continuous piston flow reactors (PFR), continuous ideal mixing reactors (CSTR).
• Non-ideal fluid motion: distribution of residence times.
• Non-ideal flow models: dispersion model, series reactor model, multi-parameter models.
• Mixing of fluids.
• Fluid-particle reactions: model of the non-reactive nucleus for particles of invariable size, reaction speed for spherical particles of decreasing size.
• Fluid-fluid reactions: study of kinetic expression. Suspended reactions.
• Reactions catalysed by solids.
• Catalytic reactors.

Part 3 (T, 2CUF)

• Introduction to water treatment processes, definitions and parameters and general information on integrated water purification processes.
• Review on sedimentation, flotation and filtration.
• Biological treatments: definitions, growth curve, microbial growth kinetics, suspended biomass and adherent biomass treatment processes. Aeration. Material balances for activated sludge process, hydraulic retention time and sludge age. Notes on biological nitrogen removal. Membrane bioreactors.

RECOMMENDED READING/BIBLIOGRAPHY

Textbooks

W.L. McCabe, J.C. Smith, and P. Harriot, Unit Operations of Chemical Engineering, 7th edition, McGraw-Hill (2005).

Metcalf & Eddy, Wastewater Engineering: Treatment and Reuse, 4th Edition, McGraw-Hill, New York (2013)

H.S. Fogler, Elements of Chemical reaction Engineering, 4th edition, Prentice Hall (2006).

R.E. Treybal, Mass-Transfer Operations, 3-rd edition, McGraw-Hill Book Co., 1980 (International Edition, softcover) (alternativo al McCabe)

Reference books

R.B. Bird, W.E. Stewart, and E.N. Lightfoot, Transport Phenomena, 2nd edition, John Wiley (2007)

P.C. Wankat, Rate-Controlled Separations, Elsevier Applied Science (1990).

NB: the copies of lesson slides are not sufficient for a good preparation of the exam, it is strongly recommended to use textbooks and reference books.

TEACHERS AND EXAM BOARD

Exam Board

ALBERTO SERVIDA (President)

ANTONIO COMITE

CAMILLA COSTA

PAOLA COSTAMAGNA

ORIETTA MONTICELLI

MARCELLO PAGLIERO

LESSONS

LESSONS START

The lessons will start from 16th October, 2023

EXAMS

EXAM DESCRIPTION

Oral examination only. Oral admission is subordinated to the reception of the home project assigned during the year.

The project consists in the design of an equipment for physical separation (absorption, distillation or water cooling tower) or of an isothermal heterogeneous catalytic reactor. The exam requires each co-teacher to ask at least one question on the part of the program for which they are responsible.

The registration must be done by registering online and sending an e-mail to the teacher within the 7 days before the exam date. On-line registration can be made from the web page: https://servizionline.unige.it/studenti/esami/prenotazione.

ASSESSMENT METHODS

The Commission consists of at least two members of which (at least) one is co-teacher of the course; the oral examination lasts at least 30 minutes. With these methods, the Commission is able to verify the achievement of the knowledge of:

• the kinetics of homogeneous, heterogeneous, catalytic (fluid-solid) and biological reactions;
• the mixing phenomena in agitated systems;
• the transport phenomena in porous matrices;
• the operating principles of some less common unit operations: adsorption (industrial chromatography), sedimentation, flotation and filtration;
• chemical reactors.

The overall assessment also takes into account the ability to apply theoretical knowledge in solving problems of industrial interest.

Exam schedule