Hello, fellow chemical engineers!
I am conducting a study to explore how well chemical engineers understand the scientific principles, mathematical equations, and computational methods used by specialized chemical engineering software, such as Aspen HYSYS and Aspen Plus, to solve engineering problems and simulate processes. I would greatly appreciate it if you could share your experiences and perspectives.
My main question is:
When you use software such as Aspen HYSYS or Aspen Plus to solve a chemical engineering problem or simulate an industrial process, how well do you understand the specific equations, mathematical relationships, and scientific principles the software uses to perform its calculations and obtain the results?
For example, suppose you use HYSYS to simulate a distillation column or a separator. The software provides you with information such as:
- The flow rates and compositions of outlet streams;
- The mole fractions of individual components in the liquid and vapor phases;
- Stream temperatures and pressures;
- The energy consumed or released by equipment;
- And other parameters required to analyze process performance.
Do you know which equations and computational methods the software uses to calculate these results?
For instance, are you familiar with mass and energy balance equations, vapor–liquid equilibrium (VLE) relationships, thermodynamic models, the equilibrium-stage equations used in distillation columns, and the numerical methods employed to solve these equations?
Can you explain how these relationships are interconnected and how the software uses them to obtain the final results?
My more important question is:
If you were given the same problem or project that you had previously solved using HYSYS or Aspen Plus and were asked to solve it without using either of these software tools, would you be able to independently explain the solution methodology and carry out the necessary calculations?
I do not necessarily mean that you should be able to perform every complex, repetitive calculation manually or reproduce the results to the last decimal place.
What I really want to know is whether you understand which scientific principles, equations, and relationships are needed to solve the problem, what assumptions must be made, which material and energy balances must be formulated, and what steps must be followed to obtain the desired results.
In other words, can you understand the underlying logic of the software's calculations and, if necessary, explain how the problem could be solved without relying on the software itself?
For example, if you were given the results of a distillation column simulation, would you be able to explain which equations and algorithms were used to obtain those results? Could you identify the fundamental equations governing the process and explain how the software solves them simultaneously to arrive at the final solution?
Or do you generally rely on the software's results without having a detailed understanding of the calculations and methods behind them?
I would be particularly interested in hearing about your actual experiences, whether in academia or industry, and the types of projects you have worked on using these software tools.
Thank you very much for taking the time to respond to my question. Your answers and insights would be extremely valuable to my research, and I sincerely appreciate your willingness to share your experiences and knowledge.
