Introduction to chemical engineering

Historically, chemical engineering has been primarily concerned with process engineering, which can generally be divided into two complementary areas: chemical reaction engineering and separation processes. The modern discipline of chemical engineering, however, encompasses much more than just process engineering. Chemical engineers are now concerned in the development and production of a diverse range of products, as well as in commodity and special chemicals. These products include high-performance materials needed for aerospace, automotive, biomedical, electronic and environmental applications, including waste and water treatment. The objective of the course is therefore to provide an introduction to chemical engineering and, in particular, to present the basic notions and tools that will be used in the more advanced courses of the S8 and S9 programmes.