Importance of unit operations within engineering
Introduction
Greetings friends steemians and especially to the community of #steemstem and #sndbox.In this opportunity I want to highlight the importance of applying a methodology in the given processes within some industries that need the help of engineering as a fundamental branch of knowledge, this methodology involves applying a series of operations called unit operations, which are classically used in chemical engineering, but if analyzed well, can be applied to other engineering. That is why I present the following publication where he highlighted some examples and considerations that can be deepened, and make engineering a fundamental tool in scientific and technological production.
Processes given in some industries and their relationship with engineering
There are a series of processes that describe and give added value to certain activities carried out by each of the engineering we know today, engineering such as chemistry, mechanics, industry, petroleum, apply within their activities processes in which the material premium is transformed with the intention of being used for other more complex processes, or simply be brought to final products.
That is why the engineer has to develop, design and carry out the supervision of all these processes, it is a direct implication where the knowledge acquired within our professions are framed and linked to knowledge about physics, chemistry and mathematics, of course Within each of these large branches are involved other sub branches such as static, dynamic, thermodynamic, fluid mechanics, thermo fluids, physicochemistry, infinitesimal calculus among others. For the execution of the successive processes it is necessary to record with all the knowledge that can help the engineer to be able to choose the best tools, raw material, mathematical models to apply in the design, all this together adding all the necessary efforts to operate the plants effectively, where the flags of the project are security and economy.
Engineering in general is an art and a science. The engineer will use science whenever it allows him to solve his problems. However, in most cases, science is not able to provide a complete solution, and then you will have to resort to experience and your good judgment. Your professional ability depends on this ability to combine all sources of information in order to obtain practical solutions to the problems that arise.
The breadth and variety of the processes in the industries in general, be they textile, hydrocarbon, food production, iron and steel, metal-mechanic industries, among others, demand the services of engineers since their activities are very large. The processes described in the academic formations in our universities, and in the operational manuals in the processes of many industries allow to have a fairly complete idea of the field that encompasses engineering in its great diversity.
The processes involved in the fundamental tasks given in the various branches of engineering, usually occur in a set of operations, this set of operations are usually called unit operations, these operations arise due to the need to address the modern processes that Nowadays they understand some engineering, for that it is about making a division in the sectors where the most fundamental processes of engineering are executed.
Unit operations in engineering
Although the number of individual processes within the engineering is very large, each of them can be divided into a series of stages, called operations, that are repeated throughout the different processes. Individual operations have common techniques and are based on the same scientific principles. For example, in most processes it is necessary to move solids and fluids, transmit heat or other forms of energy from one substance to another. For this I want to cite some examples that involve several engineering in the same process:
"Take the drilling of an oil well as an example"
Oil Engineering: Engineers in this area must be prepared to address the following processes that are repeated continuously and that in turn merit only the knowledge that their profession provides them:
- Pump drilling mud from the mud tanks to the bottom of the well.
- Clean the cuttings from the drilling with the drilling mud passing through the annular space of the well, until arriving through the sieve where the larger solids are removed, until it reaches the tanks again and the process is continued . This process is supervised by an oil engineer specialized in drilling fluid where control points must be established to be able to evaluate: the well, the fluid together with its properties, all this suggests a series of unit operations as mentioned above.
Mechanical engineering: The mechanical engineer is in charge of carrying out the maintenance activities of the machinery used in the drilling of the well, including the top-drive, wash pipe, electricity generators among others. Now in the well drilling there are pieces that work as consumable material, that is, they have a time to complete their useful life, all this makes us think about unit operations that have to be fulfilled, for example in control points in each depth reached can be changed and maintenance of these parts.
Engineering in geology: The geological engineers are in charge of carrying out the operations of evaluation of the geological samples in the cuttings of the drilling, for this it is necessary to establish a series of unit processes that will be established every certain amount of feet of depth while advancing the perforation, by concern will make that process is repetitive, whose only variation may be the type of sample to be evaluated.
Objectives pursued by unit operations within engineering
By means of the systematic study of these operations within the engineering, it is sought to optimize the processes that evidently constitute the fabric of the industry and to unify the results obtained with the treatments carried out in all the processes that are the object of production.
Within Chemical Engineering the strictly chemical aspects of the processes are studied within a parallel field of chemical engineering called reaction kinetics, or engineering of chemical reactions. The basic operations are widely used in the realization of the physical stages of preparation of reactants, separation and purification of products, recirculation of unconverted reactants and control of energy transfer to or from chemical reactors.
Unit operations are equally applicable to physical and chemical processes.
For example, the manufacture of common salt consists of the following series of basic operations: transport of solids and liquids, heat transfer, evaporation, crystallization, drying and sieving. In this case, chemical reactions do not intervene.
On the other hand, oil cracking, with or without catalysts, is a typical chemical reaction carried out on a large scale. Here, too, the unit operations - transport of solids and fluids, distillation and various mechanical separations - are of vital importance and the cracking reaction could not be carried out without them. The strictly chemical stages are carried out by controlling the flow of matter and energy to and from the reaction zone.
In conclusion, the basic operations within the industries can be addressed by engineering applying unit operations in their processes, these are also based on science and experience. You have to combine theory and practice to design the equipment, build it, assemble it, make it work and keep it. For a balanced study of each operation, it is necessary to consider theory and appliances together, which is the objective of the study, understanding and application of unit operations in the different branches of engineering.
Bibliographic source consulted: Unit operations in Chemical Engineering. Fourth edition. Author: Warren L. McCabe, Julian C. Smith and Peter Harriott. Publisher: Mc Graw Hill
Note: all images were extracted from pixabay.