Decoding: Chemical Engineering
What is Chemical Engineering?
Chemical Engineering is a broad discipline that applies the knowledge of engineering, sciences and economics to either improve the existing processes or to develop new processes for the manufacturing of useful chemicals. It includes the production, transportation, processing and usage of chemicals. Chemical Engineers find a better ways of using material and energy balances more economically.
Myth - Chemical Engineering is all about chemistry
Fact - Chemical Engineering is a lot more than chemistry. Like any other branch of engineering, chemical engineering requires a basic knowledge of the fundamentals of physics, chemistry, mathematics and computer science. Chemists tend to work in a laboratory performing research and development of products. Chemical Engineers besides working in laboratory, scale up the technology developed in the laboratory to an industrial level. They are more diverse than chemists. It is noteworthy to say, chemists and chemical engineers work in collaboration to develop a successful technology.
Myth – Chemical Engineer can’t code
Fact – “Computers to chemical engineer are like brushes to an artist” – Anonymous Chemical Process Simulation has now-a-days become a powerful tool for chemical process simulation, control and optimization. Python, MATLAB, Aspen HYSYS, FLUENT, COMSOL, and Aspen Plus are the major computational tools widely used by chemical engineers to perform simulation and to do parametric analysis.
Role of a Chemical Engineer
Chemical Engineers are also known as the ‘Universal Engineers’ as they are involved in every sector be it chemicals, food, pharmaceuticals, energy, environment, biotechnology, process control or information technology. A chemical engineer applies the fundamentals of heat, mass and momentum transfer to design, create and optimize the process. They play a crucial role in making an industry more safe, more economic and more clean.