This work reports the results of an investigation on industrial requirements for thermodynamic and transport properties carried out by the Working Party on Thermodynamic and Transport properties () of the European Federation of Chemical Engineering, EFCE (). A carefully designed questionnaire was sent to a number of key technical people in companies in the oil and gas, chemicals, and pharmaceutical/biotechnology sectors. Twenty-eight companies have provided answers which formed the basis for the analysis presented here. A number of previous reviews, specifically addressed to or written by industrial colleagues, are discussed initially. This provides the context of the survey and material with which the results of the survey can be compared. The results of the survey have been divided into the themes: data, models, systems, properties, education, and collaboration. The main results are as follows. There is (still) an acute need for accurate, reliable, and thermodynamically consistent experimental data. Quality is more important than quantity. Similarly, there is a great need for reliable predictive, rather than correlative, models covering a wide range of compositions, temperatures, and pressures and capable of predicting primary (phase equilibrium) and secondary (enthalpy, heat capacity, etc.) properties. It is clear that the ideal of a single model covering all requirements is not achievable, but there is a consensus that this ideal should still provide the direction for future development. The use of new methods, such as SAFT, is increasing, but they are not yet in position to replace traditional methods such as cubic equations of state (especially in oil and gas industry) and the UNIFAC group contribution approach. A common problem with novel methods is lack of standardization, reference data, and correct and transparent implementations, especially in commercially available simulation programs. The survey indicates a great variety of systems where further work is required. For instance, for electrolyte systems better models are needed, capable of describing all types of phase behavior and mixtures with other types of components. There is also a lack of data and methods for larger complex molecules. Compared with the previous reviews, complex mixtures containing carbon dioxide associated with a wide range of applications, such as capture, transport, and storage are becoming interesting to a number of survey participants. Despite the academic success of molecular simulation techniques, the survey does not indicate great interest in it or its future development. Algorithms appear to be a neglected area, but improvements are still needed especially for multiphase reactive systems (simultaneous chemical and physical equilibrium). Education in thermodynamics is perceived as key, for the future application of thermodynamics in the industry. A number of suggestions for improvement were made at all three levels (undergraduate, postgraduate, and professional development) indicating that the education is correctly percei...

This paper reports the results of an investigation of industrial requirements for thermodynamic and transport properties carried out during the years 2019–2020. It is a follow-up of a similar investigation performed and published 10 years ago by the Working Party (WP) of Thermodynamics and Transport Properties of European Federation of Chemical Engineering (EFCE).1 The main goal was to investigate the advances in this area over the past 10 years, to identify the limitations that still exist, and to propose future R&D directions that will address the industrial needs. An updated questionnaire, with two new categories, namely, digitalization and comparison to previous survey/changes over the past 10 years, was sent to a broad number of experts in companies with a diverse activity spectrum, in oil and gas, chemicals, pharmaceuticals/biotechnology, food, chemical/mechanical engineering, consultancy, and power generation, among others, and in software suppliers and contract research laboratories. Very comprehensive answers were received by 37 companies, mostly from Europe (operating globally), but answers were also provided by companies in the USA and Japan. The response rate was about 60%, compared to 47% in the year 2010. The paper is written in such a way that both the majority and minority points of view are presented, and although the discussion is focused on needs and challenges, the benefits of thermodynamics and success stories are also reported. The results of the survey are thematically structured and cover changes, challenges, and further needs for a number of areas of interest such as data, models, systems, properties, and computational aspects (molecular simulation, algorithms and standards, and digitalization). Education and collaboration are discussed and recommendations on the future research activities are also outlined. In addition, a few initiatives, books, and reviews published in the past decade are briefly discussed. It is a long paper and, to provide the reader with a more complete understanding of the survey, many (anonymous) quotations (indicated with “...” and italics) from the industrial colleagues who have participated in the survey are provided. To help disseminate the specific information of interest only to particular industrial sectors, the paper has been written in such a way that the individual sections can also be read independently of each other.

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Thermodynamics is the science of the interactions between energy and matter. It was formalized in the late 19th century and remains an essential piece in solving many technological challenges that society faces today. Yet, it is often considered complex and challenging, perhaps because it is often taught within a rigid mathematical framework, without highlighting the extensive range of applications and the tools that it offers for understanding and elaborating a sustainable future. The authors of this paper have performed an industrial survey (Kontogeorgis et al., Ind. Eng. Chem. Res., 2021, 60, 13, 4987-5013), which pointed out that thermodynamics is indeed a cornerstone of many processes in a large range of industries, but that as of today, many questions and needs remain unanswered. Some missing answers are caused by a lack of knowledge of the existing tools (educational issue), some by the unavailability of models, parameters or by the lack of transferability of the concepts from one system to another. In other cases, simply, no generally accepted approach exists, and fundamental research is required for understanding the phenomena. In all cases, data are needed, either to understand, develop, or validate the models. Specific recent examples of applied thermodynamics research relevant to industrial practice are discussed. This manuscript aims not only at promoting research but also at encouraging highly trained professionals to engage in education, laboratory work, fundamental developments, and/or model validation. Such professionals should find positions both in academia and in industry, as well as with software vendors. Collaboration between academia, industry, and software vendors is essential in order to foster new developments and serve the goals of sustainable development and circular economy.

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