ECTS credits ECTS credits: 6
ECTS Hours Rules/Memories Student's work ECTS: 99 Hours of tutorials: 3 Expository Class: 24 Interactive Classroom: 24 Total: 150
Use languages Spanish, Galician, English
Type: Ordinary Degree Subject RD 1393/2007 - 822/2021
Departments: Chemistry Engineering
Areas: Chemical Engineering
Center Higher Technical Engineering School
Call: First Semester
Teaching: With teaching
Enrolment: Enrollable
The design of industrial facilities and processes holds a central place in Chemical Engineering. This course brings together knowledge and skills from previous semesters for their applied integration in the transformation of a process idea into a viable and efficient plant, considering technical, economic, environmental, and safety aspects.
The full cycle of an industrial project will be addressed: from its initial formulation to start-up, with emphasis on equipment selection and design.
According to the curriculum, the contents of this subject are:
Basic Project: Formulation, market study, manufacturing processes, layout of units and buildings. Economic evaluation. Organizational structure of an industrial facility. Constructive project: Stages of the detailed design phase, development of project calculations. Selection of machine elements in the chemical industry. Legislation and standardization. Mechanical design.
BLOCK I – PROJECT FORMULATION AND MANAGEMENT
1. Introduction to engineering projects
Definition and objectives of an industrial project. Types of projects. Design phases. Market studies and technical and economic feasibility analyses. Initial considerations on safety and environmental impact.
2. Project documentation structure
Composition of a technical project: Report, drawings, specifications, budget, and appendices. Criteria for the drafting, editing, and professional presentation of documentation.
3. Economic evaluation of projects
Investment and operation costs. Estimation and distribution of costs. Economic and financial analysis: cash flows, profitability indicators (NPV, IRR), sensitivity analysis and decision-making.
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BLOCK II – DESIGN OF PLANTS AND EQUIPMENT
TOPIC 4. Construction materials and corrosion protection
Types of materials used in engineering. Relevant properties for design. Selection methods, technical standards and regulations.
TOPIC 5. Design of process and storage vessels
Mechanical design of tanks, pressure vessels, and storage. Applicable regulations. Technical and economic criteria. Cost estimation.
TOPIC 6. Fluid transport systems
Piping design: material selection, codes and standards. Types of valves and system layout. Design and selection of pumps and compressors. Hydraulic and mechanical criteria. Cost estimation.
TOPIC 7. Design of separation equipment
Fundamentals of design for separation columns (distillation, absorption, extraction). Operating and construction parameters. Associated cost evaluation.
TOPIC 8. Heat exchange and associated equipment
Design of heat exchangers: types, selection and materials. Thermal and mechanical design. Introduction to condensers, evaporators, boilers, and furnaces. Key technical aspects and indicative costs.
BASIC
• Sinnott, R. K., and Towler, G. P. Chemical Engineering Design, 6th edition, Butterworth-Heinemann, 2020.
Available as an electronic resource through BUSC: https://www.sciencedirect.com/book/9780081025994/chemical-engineering-d…
• Sinnott, R. K., and Towler, G. P. Diseño en ingeniería química, Reverté, 2012.
COMPLEMENTARY
• Seider, Warren D., et al. Product and Process Design Principles: Synthesis, Analysis and Evaluation, 4th edition, Wiley, 2017.
• Peters, Max S. Plant Design and Economics for Chemical Engineers, 5th edition, McGraw Hill LLC, 2003.
Available electronically via BUSC and McGraw-Hill's AccessEngineering.
• Green, Don W., et al. Perry’s Chemical Engineers’ Handbook, 9th edition, McGraw-Hill Education, 2019.
Available electronically via BUSC and McGraw-Hill's AccessEngineering.
• Hall, Stephen. Rules of Thumb for Chemical Engineers, 5th edition, Butterworth-Heinemann, 2012.
Available electronically via BUSC:
https://ebookcentral-proquest-com.ezbusc.usc.gal/lib/buscsp/detail.acti…
• Moran, Sean, and Maria Ines Cruz. An Applied Guide to Process and Plant Design, 1st edition, Butterworth-Heinemann, 2015.
Available electronically via BUSC:
https://www.sciencedirect.com/book/9780128002421/an-applied-guide-to-pr…
Previous editions are also equally useful in all cases.
Specific
• CI.7 – Knowledge of the principles of machine and mechanism theory
• CI.8 – Knowledge and use of the principles of strength of materials
• CI.12 – Knowledge and ability to organize and manage projects. Understanding the organizational structure and functions of a project office.
General
• CG.1 – Ability to draft, sign, and develop projects in the field of industrial chemical engineering involving the construction, renovation, repair, maintenance, demolition, manufacturing, installation, assembly, or operation of structures, mechanical equipment, energy installations, electrical and electronic systems, industrial plants, and manufacturing and automation processes.
• CG.2 – Ability to manage the activities covered by the engineering projects described above.
• CG.5 – Knowledge to carry out measurements, calculations, evaluations, appraisals, assessments, studies, reports, work plans and other similar tasks.
• CG.6 – Ability to handle specifications, regulations, and mandatory standards.
Transversal
• CT.7 – Decision-making
• CT.11 – Ability to communicate with experts from other fields
• CT.13 – Ability to apply knowledge in practice
• CT.14 – Adaptation to new situations
• CT.17 – Creativity
Teaching will be developed through lectures, seminars, tutorials, and autonomous work, with an approximate distribution of hours by blocks as follows:
• BLOCK I – PROJECT FORMULATION AND MANAGEMENT
– Lectures: 17 hours
– Seminars: 4 hours
• BLOCK II – DESIGN OF PLANTS AND EQUIPMENT
– Lectures: 20 hours
– Seminars: 8 hours
Students will be required to carry out and submit a basic design project in teams. The project will be defined at the beginning of the course. Teams will receive support from students of the Master in Chemical Engineering and Bioprocesses, who will act as supervisors.
Two group tutorials are scheduled: the first in weeks 8–9 and the second in weeks 11–12.
When feasible, a technical visit will be organized between weeks 9 and 15, depending on the availability of the visited site.
Competency mapping
• Lectures + Design Project: CI.12, CG.1, CG.2, CG.5, CG.6, CT.7, CT.11, CT.14, CT.17
• Seminars for problem-solving: CI.7, CI.8, CG.5, CT.13
The assessment elements are as follows:
• Final exam (50% of the total grade, mandatory)
• Project (40% of the total grade). The project will be done in teams and must include a consensus contribution statement signed by all members.
• Group tutorial (5%) and visit test (5%). If the visit cannot be carried out, a substitute activity with the same weight will be held during the tutorial.
A minimum score of 35% must be obtained in the exam.
A grade of "Absent" will be given to students who do not take the final exam.
If the course is not passed in the first opportunity, the student will be re-evaluated:
• On the exam, in every case
• Optionally on the project, if they did not achieve 50% in it during the first call
Competencies to be assessed:
• Project: CI.12, CG.1, CG.2, CG.5, CG.6, CT.7, CT.11, CT.14, CT.17
• Exam: CI.7, CI.8, CG.1, CG.5, CT.13
In case of fraudulent performance of any graded activity, the provisions of the "Normativa de avaliación do rendemento académico dos estudantes e de revisión das cualificacións" will apply.
• Lectures: In-person, 37 hours; Personal, 45 hours
• Seminars: In-person, 12 hours; Personal, 14 hours
• Group tutorials: In-person, 1 hour; Personal, 4 hours
• Individual tutorials: In-person, 2 hours; Personal, 8 hours
• Exam and review: In-person, 5 hours; Personal, 22 hours
Given the integrative nature of this subject, it is very important to have passed, among others, the subjects of Process Engineering and Machine Fundamentals and Strength of Materials, and it is recommended to have passed Mass Transfer, Heat Transfer, Chemical Reaction Engineering, and Chemical Reactors.
Attendance and active participation in class are highly recommended.
In the event of discrepancies between versions of this guide in different languages, the Galician version shall prevail.
The subject will be taught in Galician. Most bibliographic and online resources are in English.
The Campus Virtual (USC’s web platform) will be used as a teaching support tool.
Miguel Mauricio Iglesias
Coordinador/a- Department
- Chemistry Engineering
- Area
- Chemical Engineering
- Phone
- 881816800
- miguel.mauricio [at] usc.es
- Category
- Professor: University Lecturer
| Monday | |||
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| 17:00-18:00 | Grupo /CLE_01 | Galician | Classroom A3 |
| Tuesday | |||
| 17:00-18:00 | Grupo /CLE_01 | Galician | Classroom A3 |
| Wednesday | |||
| 17:00-18:00 | Grupo /CLE_01 | Galician | Classroom A3 |
| Thursday | |||
| 17:00-18:00 | Grupo /CLIS_01 | Galician | Classroom A3 |
| Friday | |||
| 17:00-18:00 | Grupo /CLIS_02 | Galician | Classroom A3 |
| 01.15.2026 16:00-20:00 | Grupo /CLE_01 | Classroom A3 |
| 01.15.2026 16:00-20:00 | Grupo /CLIS_01 | Classroom A3 |
| 01.15.2026 16:00-20:00 | Grupo /CLIS_02 | Classroom A3 |
| 01.15.2026 16:00-20:00 | Grupo /CLE_01 | Classroom A4 |
| 01.15.2026 16:00-20:00 | Grupo /CLIS_01 | Classroom A4 |
| 01.15.2026 16:00-20:00 | Grupo /CLIS_02 | Classroom A4 |
| 06.29.2026 09:30-14:00 | Grupo /CLE_01 | Classroom A2 |
| 06.29.2026 09:30-14:00 | Grupo /CLIS_01 | Classroom A2 |
| 06.29.2026 09:30-14:00 | Grupo /CLIS_02 | Classroom A2 |