An example of project‐based learning with the support of a process simulator applied to the chemical engineering final course project

Abstract

As the culmination of the Chemical Engineering curriculum, students face the challenging and stimulating elaboration of a whole design project that integrates all the knowledge gained throughout the course. The subject is divided into two parts, gaining a theoretical background in the ninth semester and a proposed teamwork project design with the aid of a process simulator in the tenth semester. This paper presents the challenge of designing a whiskey distillery elected by a group of students applying the project‐based learning methodology. As a strategy for a more efficient design, the process is divided into three blocks: prefermentation, fermentation, and distillation. Calculations involve mass and energy balances and the design of the different units, including the optimization of a distillation column assisted by the ASPEN HYSYS® simulator. Students must publicly present their results in front of the class and a jury formed by chemical engineers. A survey was carried out to assess the student's satisfaction and feedback. The results manifested the significance of the subject for the future and the satisfaction of the proposed teaching strategy.

Research on the Application of Project Teaching Method in the New Model of Software Engineering Course

“…Students needed to complete the three processes of pre-fermentation, fermentation and distillation in a group cooperation way, and finally report the results before the auditors. In this design project, students and teachers were highly satisfied with the proposed teaching plan [8]. To improve the operation ability of civil engineering students in the actual project design and construction, AMR Pasanda and others carried out optimization experiments on the traditional civil engineering teaching mode.…”