Process Modeling and Simulation in Argentina

IRIBARREN, OSCAR

San Marino, Italia

Workshop; Workshop on Process Simulation and Sustainable Industrial Development; 2004

ICS - UNIDO

The presentation reports process modeling and simulation examples in Argentina, focusing on process simulation usage in different places: Chem Eng schools, research institutes, consulting companies and industry. Most Chem Eng schools (about 30 in total) have some process simulation package but simulation training is usually optional for students, e.g. as extra credits given by a workshop, and seldom used in the ?Final Project? required for graduation. Chem Eng Ph D programs are running at only two locations: University of Litoral in Santa Fe, and University of the South in Bahia Blanca, which are also Conicet research institutes. There simulation training is acquired in Process Design courses, which do not provide core credits, but are taken by students that will work on Process Engineering thesis. The training is not through a course or workshop, but auto learning is mandatory for doing the home assignments. Most of these thesis include developing process models and or simulation packages, which are afterwards internally used but did not reach a commercial status. Consulting companies and industry related to gas and oil do use process simulation intensively: refineries, upstream and petrochemical. Some consulting companies are also the vendors of simulation packages, develop related application software, and teach training courses. This picture comprises mainly steady state simulators used for internal projects, e.g. for adapting the process to a changing feed, or design a new facility, etc. Dynamic simulation packages are scarcely in use and considered to be too expensive by the same users of steady state packages, even if there are some exceptions. Consulting companies and industry not related to petroleum (edible oil, dairy products, pharmo chemical and food are economically important) rarely use process simulation, even if there are some exceptions. Cases where process simulation was used in conjunction with computational fluid mechanics or environmental simulation packages are rare and mostly in research institutes. Price of commercial simulation packages is a barrier for smaller would to be customers, but also the limited applicability of commercial packages outside from petroleum processes. Several examples illustrating the above mentioned issues will be presented