Single Unit Balance

1. Choose a basis of calculation (amount or flow rate)

If no amount or flow rate is given, pick the streams with known composition,
set 100 kg or 100 kg/h if mass fractions are known; 100 mol or 100 mol/h if
mole fractions are known.
2. Draw and label a flow chart
Fill all known variables, and label unknown variables
(a) Total mass, and mass fractions
(b) Total moles, and mole fractions
(c) For each component, mass or mass flow rate, moles or molar flow rate
Try to incorporate the given relationships between unknown variables in the
labeling, n1, 2n1
Label volumetric quantities only if they are given in the problem, or you are
asked to calculate them.
You will write mass or mole balances, not volume balances.





Single Unit Balance
3. Express what the problem statements ask you to determine
Know the target for the problem solving
4. If you are given a mixed mass and mole units for a stream
Convert all quantities into one basis
5. Do the degree-of-freedom analysis
Count the unknowns and the equations; if there are more unknowns than
equations , figure out what is wrong.
6. If there are the same numbers of unknowns and equations, write the
equations in an efficient order.
Start with the equations that only involve one unknown variable
7. Solve the equations and calculate the quantities required by the problem
statement.
8. If there is a scale factor, scale the balanced process to obtain the final
results.



Single Unit Balance
Consider a distillation column used as part of a separation process for
three species A, B and C. There are two feed streams to the column and
three outlet streams. One feed stream, F1, is 3 % B and 97 % C. The other
feed stream, F2, is 5300 kg/h and contains only species A and B. The
distillate stream, D, from the column is pure species A, there is one side
stream, S, that is 1200 kg/h with an A mass fraction of 0.7 and the bottom
stream, B, is 60 % B and 40 % C.

1. Draw a sketch of this unit with all available data labeled.
2. Perform a degree of freedom analysis for this process and identify how
many more variables must be specified for this to be solvable.
3. If you were given F1 = 2000 kg/h and XA in F2 = 0.5, write all of the
mass balances for this process.

F1
0.03 B
0.97 C
F2=5300 kg/h
XA A
1-XA B
0 C
D
1.00 A
S=1200 kg/h
0.7 A 0.3-Xs C
Xs B
B
0.6 B
0.4 C
Multiple Unit Balance
1. Draw and label a flow chart.
2. Identify the subsystems and overall system.
3. Do DOF analysis to determine where to start: overall system? Subunit?
4. Perform the balance on the selected subsystem in the same way as
single unit balance. (write the equations) Check DOF to determine the
next subsystem.
5. Recycle and bypass are special cases of multiple units.
A liquid mixture containing 30 mole % benzene (B), 25 % toluene (T) and
the balance xylene (X) is fed to a distillation column. The bottoms product
contains 98 mole % X and no B, and 96 % of the X in the feed is recovered
in this stream. The overhead product is fed to a second distillation
column. The overhead product from the second column contains 97% of
the B fed to this column. The composition of this stream is 94 mole % B
and the balance T.
Show that this problem is solvable if a basis is chosen.
Perform and verify the mole balance equations.
Relation for Column 1: 96 % of the X in the feed is recovered in
this stream.
96% (100*0.45)=n3*0.98
Relation for Column 2: The overhead product from the second
column contains 97% of the B fed to this column.
0.94*n4=97%(n2*x
B2
)

Balance With Chemical Reactions
Methane and oxygen can react in the presence of a catalyst to form
formaldehyde. The methane can also be oxidized to form carbon
dioxide and water. Consider a situation in which an equimolar
mixture of methane and oxygen at a rate of 100 moles/s is fed to a
reactor. The fractional conversion of the methane is 0.9 and the
fractional yield of formaldehyde is 0.88. Calculate the composition
of the stream leaving the reactor and the selectivity for
formaldehyde production relative to carbon dioxide production.
Balance With Chemical Reactions
Balance With Chemical Reactions
You also can balance with atomic species:
Input=Output

The number of the equations is equal to the number
of the atomic species.

Understand what % excess means