Rules of Thumb for Chemical Engineers, Fifth Edition
This manual is a workhorse: for over 15 years chemical engineers have reached for Rules of Thumb to answer their process engineering problems and to help them get on with the job.
The most complete guide of its kind, this is still the favored handbook for chemical and process engineers who need a reliable and authoritative solution to their practical on the job problems. Includes all new material on new processing sectors, including biopharmaceuticals. The text is comprehensively revised and updated with new data and formulas. Rules of Thumb for Chemical Engineers solves process design problems quickly, accurately and safely, with hundreds of common sense techniques, shortcuts and calculations. Stephen Hall took over authorship for the 5th Edition; the previous editions were written by Carl Branan who passed away several years ago.
Key features
- Rules of Thumb for Chemical Engineers brings together solutions, information and work-arounds that engineers in the process industry need to get their job done.
- New material in the Fifth Edition includes physical properties for proprietary materials, six new chapters, including pharmaceutical, biopharmaceutical sector heuristics, process design with simulation software, and guidelines for hazardous materials and processes.
- Now includes SI units throughout alongside imperial, and now accompanied by online calculation tools and a searchable Rules of Thumb library
Click here for the spreadsheets that accompany Rules of Thumb
Click here for the current Errata sheet
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Chapter 1: Fluid Flow
Data Required … General Procedure … Recommended Velocity … Equivalent Length … Shortcut Equation for Pressure Drop Due to Friction … Reynolds number … Friction Factor … Incompressible Flow … Compressible Flow - Isothermal … Compressible Flow – Transmission Equations … Compressible Flow - Adiabatic … Visual Basic Subroutines for Pressure Drop Due to Friction … Orifices … Control Valves … Partially Full Horizontal Pipes … Two-Phase Flow
Chapter 2: Heat Exchangers
TEMA … Selection Guides … Design Recommendations … Process Data … Heat Exchanger Configuration and Area … Determining the LMTD Configuration Correction Factor … Tubeside Pressure Drop … Tube Side Film Coefficient … Shell Diameter … Ideal Shell Side Film Coefficient … Shell Side Film Coefficient Correction Factors … Overall Heat Transfer Coefficient … Shell Side Pressure Drop … Heat Transfer Coefficients … Fouling Resistances … Installation Recommendations … Thermal Conductivity of Metals … Vacuum Condensers … Air-cooled Heat Exchangers: Forced vs. Induced Draft … Air-cooled Heat Exchangers: Air Data … Air-cooled Heat Exchangers: Thermal Design … Air-cooled Heat Exchangers: Pressure Drop, Air Side … Air-cooled Heat Exchangers: Temperature Control
Chapter 3: Fractionators
Separation Factor … Relative Volatility … Vapor-Liquid Equilibrium … Activity Coefficients … Establishing the Column Pressure … Minimum Reflux - Binary … Minimum Reflux - Multicomponent … Minimum Stages … Relationship of Theoretical Stages to Reflux Ratio … Feed Location … Reflux-to-Feed Ratio … Actual Trays … Graphical Methods – The McCabe-Thiele Diagram … Plotting With Murphree Tray Efficiency … Tray Efficiency Rules of Thumb … Using the McCabe-Thiele Plot … Column Internals – Trays and Packing … Column Tray Spacing … Tower Diameter – Souders-Brown Correlation … Pressure Drop – Trays … Control Schemes … Reboilers … Packed Columns
Chapter 4: Absorbers
Hydrocarbon Absorber Design … Inorganic Absorbers … Packing Height for Mass Transfer in Packed Columns … Overall Mass Transfer Coefficient
Chapter 5: Pumps
Pump Types and Selection … Pump Testing … System Curves … Operating Point and Pump Selection … Flow Control with Throttling Valve … Charting Control Characteristics … Flow Control by Changing the Pump Speed … Affinity Laws … Power … Minimum Flow … Temperature Rise … Suction System NPSH Available … Suction System NPSH for Studies … Multiple Centrifugal Pumps in Parallel or Series
Chapter 6: Fans, Blowers and Compressors
Rules of Thumb … Fans … Fan Noise … Blower Types … Compressor Types … Surge Control … Performance Calculations … Affinity Laws … Power – Fan … Power – Reciprocating Compressor … Power – Centrifugal Compressor … Comparison with Manufacturer’s Data … Power with P-E Diagram … Cost of Compressed Air … Receiver Volume … Time to Pump System to Pressure
Chapter 7: Drivers
Electric Motors … Motors: Efficiency … Motors: Starter Sizes … Motors: Service Factor … Motors: Useful Equations … Motors: Relative Costs … Motors: Overloading … Air-Driven Motors … Hydraulic Motors … Steam Turbines: Steam Rate … Steam Turbines: Efficiency … Gas Turbines: Fuel Rates … Gas Expanders: Available Energy … Internal Combustion Engines: Fuel Rates
Chapter 8: Vessels
General Rules of Thumb for Vessels … Tank Dimensions … Liquid Volume at Any Fill Height … Time to Drain a Tank … Emissions from Storage Tanks … Load Cells … Liquid-Liquid Separators … Vapor-Liquid Separators … Liquid Surge Volume … Vapor Velocity in the Disengagement Section … Vapor-Liquid Separator Size … Vessel Specifications … Good Engineering Practices for Storage Tank and Vent Relief Design
Chapter 9: Boilers
Boiler Horsepower … Types of Packaged Boilers … Power Plants … Controls … Thermal Efficiency … Stack Gas Enthalpy … Deaerator Venting … Water Alkalinity … Source Water Impurities … Conductivity Versus Dissolved Solids … Silica in Steam … Caustic Embrittlement … Waste Heat … Boiler Feedwater … Blowdown Control … Best Practices – Burner System Piping
Chapter 10: Cooling Towers
Mechanical Draft Cooling Towers … Material and Energy Balance Calculations … Rating Nomenclature … Performance Calculations … Operations and Accessories … Water Quality Guidelines … Scale Prevention
Chapter 11: Refrigeration
Specifications … Indirect and Direct System Design … Horsepower Per Ton … Refrigerants … Refrigerant Containment … Steam Jet Ejectors … Ammonia Absorption Utilities Requirements
Chapter 12: Closed Loop Heat Transfer Systems
Selecting the Heat Transfer Fluid … Types of Heat Transfer Fluids … Heat Transfer Coefficient … System Design … Temperature Control … Physical Properties of Commercial Heat Transfer Fluids
Chapter 13: Biopharmaceutical Systems
Facility Design and Sterilization Best Practices … Contamination Root Causes … Contamination Investigation and Recovery … Microbiology Investigation … Risk Assessment … Validation
Chapter 14: Vacuum Systems
Vacuum Units … Conversion Between Mass Flow, Actual Volume Flow, and Standard Volume Flow … Comparison of Vacuum Equipment … Vacuum Jets … Liquid Ring Vacuum Pumps … Dry Vacuum Pumps … Typical Jet Systems … Steam Supply … Measuring Air Leakage … Time to Evacuate … Instrumentation and Controls
Chapter 15: Pneumatic Conveying
Flow Regimes … Types of Systems … System Design Procedure … Saltation Velocity … Pressure Drop … Prime Movers … Feed Systems … Conveyor Piping … Disengagement
Chapter 16: Blending and Agitation
Basics … Impeller Types … Dimensional Analysis … Blending … Solids Suspension … Gas Dispersion … In-Line Mixers … High Shear Mixers … Mixing Solids … Mechanical Design
Chapter 17: Process Evaluation
Accuracy of Cost Estimates … User Requirements … Block Diagrams … Process Flow Diagrams (PFDs) … Basis of Design … Block-Sequential Diagrams … Piping & Instrumentation Diagrams (P&IDs) … Data Sheets and Specifications … Capital Cost Estimates … Engineering
Chapter 18: Reliability
Initial Design … "Risk Analysis" … Sustainable Practices Risk Analysis
Chapter 19: Metallurgy
Cost Comparison … Embodied Energy … Embrittlement … Stress-Corrosion Cracking … Hydrogen Attack … Pitting Corrosion … Creep and Creep-Rupture Life … Naphthenic Acid Corrosion … Thermal Fatigue … Abrasive Wear … Pipeline Toughness … Common Corrosion Mistakes
Chapter 20: Safety
Process Safety Management (PSM) … Process Hazard Analysis (PHA) … Safe Design Practices … Emergency Vent Systems … Flash Point of Binary Mixtures … Deflagration Prevention or Control … Prevent Backflow … Equipment Purging … Electrical Area Classification … Causes for Loss of Containment … Dust Explosion Hazards
Chapter 21: Controls
Basic Nomenclature … Definitions of Control Modes … Cascade Control … Specifying Instruments to Measure Values … Control Ranges … Drawing Conventions … Artistic Expression … Safety Instrumented Systems … Enclosures: NEMA and IP
Chapter 22: Troubleshooting
General Troubleshooting Approach … Diagnostic Tools … Instruments … Control Valves (Process Control) … Shell-and-Tube Heat Exchangers … Plate-and-Frame Heat Exchangers … Fractionation Towers … Centrifugal Pumps … Compressors … Steam Jet Vacuum Systems … Refrigeration
Chapter 23: Startup
Startup Management … Change Control During Startup … Startup Cost … Systems Approach … Construction Quality … Startup Checklists … Operating Modes
Chapter 24: Energy Conservation
Calculating Steam Cost … Steam System Rules of Thumb … Equivalent Cost of Fuels … Steam Traps … Energy Efficient Design for Fractionators … Pinch Analysis … Insulation
Chapter 25: Process Modeling
Concepts and Terminology … Equipment Design … Mass and Energy Transfer … Flowsheet Simulation – Continuous Process … Flowsheet Simulation – Dynamic Process … Discrete Process Simulation … General Purpose Simulation Environments … Software List
Chapter 26: Conversion Factors and Constants
Significant Figures and Rounding … Gas Constant … Standard Gas Volume … Atmospheric Pressure … Irrigation Conversion
Chapter 27: Properties
Approximate Physical Properties … Vapor Pressure Equation … Liquid Viscosity … Relative Humidity … Surface Tension … Thermodynamic Properties of Water and Steam … Gas Diffusion Coefficients … Bulk Modulus … Water and Hydrocarbons … Compressibility Factor … Inorganic Gases in Petroleum … Foam Density … Equivalent Diameter
Hall, Stephen M., Rules of Thumb for Chemical Engineers, Fifth Edition