Cyclohexane Process Design

Overview

Our senior design team needed to prove a cyclohexane production plant wasn't just technically feasible but actually buildable, so I helped design a process that hit 99%+ purity while clearing its own economic and safety hurdles.

The challenge

A process design only matters if it's buildable. Hitting purity targets in simulation isn't enough. The plant also had to clear its own economic hurdle rate, hold up under a formal hazard analysis, and account for its environmental footprint. All of this had to be grounded in real thermodynamics and reaction kinetics, not simplified assumptions.

What I did

1. 1

   Researched the chemistry

   Studied the reaction mechanism and thermodynamic properties behind benzene hydrogenation to support the team's kinetic modeling.

2. 2

   Built equipment specifications

   Documented equipment tables and specifications for the reactor and separation train.

3. 3

   Modeled environmental and release scenarios

   Ran worst-case chemical release modeling using ALOHA and MARPLOT to support the plant's environmental and safety case.

4. 4

   Contributed to the safety analysis

   Supported the HAZOP and safety review process for the plant design.

5. 5

   Contributed to reporting

   Helped write weekly progress reports and sections of the final technical report covering methodology, chemistry, and assumptions behind the design.

6. 6

   Presented the work

   Presented findings in weekly team meetings, the end-of-year presentation, and a poster presentation.

Impact