Process Design and Optimization

Our group aims to optimize the design and operation of chemical processes considering resource management from a holistic and integrated conception of processes.

Chemical and process industries are highly complex systems involving multiple businesses, sites and process units whose scale ranges from the enterprise to the molecular level. Chemical processes consist of interlinked tasks which transform certain raw materials into both desired and waste products by consuming specific resources, such as energy, water or human labour (Figure 1).

Our research efforts aim to identify the optimal organization and exploitation of such resources according to sustainability principles and lead to an improved realization of processes. Much of our work highlights the reality that processes are normally not isolated entities from other processes and the environment. Their actual boundaries are usually diffuse and often merge, and multiple interactions and resource transfers occur among chemical processes and with their environment.

Enlarged view: Production process
Figure 1. General input-output scheme of chemical production processes.

Learn more about process modeling and optimization

If you have any question about our research or if you would like to join us for a research project (internship or Master Thesis) please contact Dr. Elisabet CapónGarcía directly.