The lucky team put its interest in process intensification (PI) and process systems engineering (PSE) for higher energy efficiency, both academically and industrially, which is now strongly supported by China‘s policy on carbon neutrality and carbon reduction today. With research materials from on-site data resources and requirements, the current 3 Ph.D. candidates and 8 Postgraduates in team are contributing progresses in PI, PSE, CFD, nano syntheses & pyrolysis serving for green biofuel refinery, in form of papers and patents. As projects rapidly increase year by year in both number and complexity, the team notices the importance of machine learning & intelligent optimization and controlling algorithms and use the academic results in separations in petroleum, synthetic rubber, coal chemical, organic silicon and Nylon6/66 and other processes for bulk chemicals. Algorithms are investigated for fast distillation sequencing and optimum operating parameters, such as improved transient continuation models for complex processes, stochastic algorithms of parallel strategy based on population distribution, adaptive multi-objective differential evolution. The ongoing research uses surrogate models to replace traditional process solvers for quicker decisions. Efforts on process control include double liquid-only side stream prefractionation in place of vapor splitting in dividing wall columns for easier control; effectively controlled complex Kaibel columns for quaternary systems. These results then give rise to approaches in detailed frequency domain dependent open loop controllability in the aspect of set-point tracking and load rejection performance, as well as closed-loop validation in time domain. Other efforts on the way are intelligent optimization on coal to ethanol and ethylene glycol, isoprene from cracking C5, methylamine, diesel separation and an innovated direct vapor condensation in petroleum distillation.

Another part of the team are 7 engineers who serve the industrial community with process package, consultation, design, troubleshooting & debottlenecking, lab verification, and other technical supports. Industrial partners are from petroleum petrochemical, fine chemical and coal chemical enterprises and equipment manufacturers. We are the patentee on energy-efficient distillation systems for coal-based methanol/ethanol/glycol, caprolactam, cracking C5 for isoprene, petroleum distillation for narrow cut lubricants, solvent naphtha, white oil, etc. Amongst yearly enquiries of over 1000 columns, around 200 of which will come to design stage after bidding or direct commercial negotiation. The technologies we have mastered in the industry are Direct Vapor Condensation in Petroleum Distillation, Organic Silicone monomer, Caprolactam Cyclohexanone units, Methanol Distillation, DMF Extractive Distillation for Isoprene, Adiponitrile, Hexanediamine, Adipic Acid, Column Internal Design.