Including sustainability and environmental impact assessment into process design education: A case study example

A simple methodology for incorporating sustainability and environmental impact assessment into typical student design problems is proposed. The case study example considered to illustrate this technique is based on developing processes for the manufacture of industrial chemical products from the glycerol generated as a byproduct of the manufacture of biodiesel. In terms of energy production, biodiesel is shown to have an overall positive lifecycle energy balance. By using the proposed methodology, the choices made during conceptual process development can include sustainability and potential environmental impacts, while not neglecting the important economic considerations typically used to guide the selection of the preferred process option. The environmental impacts of the inclusion of heat integration using thermal pinch analysis are also considered. Using the case study example, a true optimum based on energy, economics and environmental considerations can be achieved by including environmental considerations during heat integration activities. This is an abstract of a paper presented at the 2007 AIChE Annual Meeting (Salt Lake City, UT 11/4-9/2007).