Planning Reports

Planning reports are an informal check to make sure students are making adequate progress to finish their final reports. This is our attempt to reduce “busy work” of writing multiple reports. Planning reports will be graded on completion of each component. We will contant teams if we are worried the materials provided don’t reflect adequate progress. Planning reports must include:

1. A short abstract. An overview of the process, what the targets are specified in the problem statement, identification of inputs and outputs, and general descriptions of the major sections of the process. This doesn’t need to be more than half a page in length.
2. Block-flow Diagram. This can be hand-written and doesn’t need to be made in Visio. No stream tables or equipment tables need be present, but an overall mass balance should be provided.
3. Initial kinetics data. These are the inputs necessary for a L2 reactor block in Aspen (reaction rates and activation energies). Most projects that are provided will include this reaction data, but if not, you may need to search the patent literature to find these.
4. A thermodynamics package. Based on the information discussed in class on package selection, students should pick a package appropriate for their system and provide the rationale for doing so.
5. An order of magnitude cost estimate of the design cost. Order of magnitude estimates of capital costs can be performed if you have information on an existing plant that uses a similar process, but that won’t be the case for most projects. Instead, ignore capital costs and just examine the inputs (raw materials) and outputs (products) on an annual estimate to check that there is a potential for a profit before taking into account other costs.

PFD

The next checkpoint for the projects will be a base case level 2 PFD made in Visio. This should include stream tables and an equipment summary. Students should also provide their simulation files and a screen shot of the process and the stream table to verify that they agree with the PFD. The simulation should converge without errors. It should also be noted that some “imaginary” streams or elements on the simulation should not be present on the PFD, such as splitters and mixers. As a level 2 simulation, distillation columns should use rigorous methods and stoichiometric reactors should be replaced with ones based on reaction kinetics.

Final Reports

Adapted from Turton

The format for presenting a written design report differs from that of a laboratory report. A laboratory report is more of a scholarly endeavor in which a scientific story is told starting with theory, proceeding through results, discussion, and conclusion. It is usually assumed that the reader will read the entire report. In a design report, the most important conclusions should appear early in the report, with more detail presented for the reader who reads further into the report.

The suggested report format is as follows:

Letter of Transmittal

This is a memorandum (if internal) or a letter (if external) to the appropriate person identifying the report. Teh report is actually an enclosure to this letter. Remember to refer to teh original memorandum or problem statement. In order to get the reader’s attention, writing several sentences summarizing the bottom line is essential. You should always sign or initial this memo or letter. This letter stands alone. It contains no figures or tables, and does not reference any figures or tables contained within the report.

Title Page

This must include the title, names of all contributors to the report, the business name (class number and name will suffice), and the date.

Abstract or Executive Summary

An abstract or executive summary should start on a new page and nothing else should appear on the same page.

An executive summary is essentially a long abstract. Whereas an abstract is usually less than one typed page, an executive summary may be several pages. An executive summary is usually reserved for a very long report, while an abstract is appropriate for shorter reports. Very long reports may have executive summaries approaching ten pages. It is probably best for the executive summary to be less than 10% of the total report length. For our reports, an abstract is appropriate.

At times, an entire report may be an executive summary plus appendices, usually if the report is short. This is essentially a short report without an abstract. In this case, the executive summary should have the same organization as a full report, without separate section headings. It should include key figures and tables, but need not include as much discussion as the full report. The results section may be abbreviated, with additional tables and figures well organized in the appendix. A key difference between an abstract and an executive summary is that an abstract stands alone. It contains no figures or tables, only rarely contains an equation, and does not refer to any figures or tables contained within the report.

Either an abstract or an executive summary should convey to the reader, in a rapid and concise manner, what you did, what you conclude, and what you recommend. This is for the reader who may not read any further or for the reader who is deciding whether or not to read any further. Summarize the bottom line; do not discuss computational details unless they are unique and applicable beyond the report at hand. In an executive summary (but not in an abstract), do not be afraid to use a few well chosen graphs, pie charts or histograms to emphasize your important points, but choose these wisely in order to keep the length of the executive summary down.

These instructions suggest that the contents of the abstract and letter of transmittal are similar. Since both sections are supposed to provide a summary of important conclusions, there will be significant repetition of content. The abstract usually contains more information than the letter of transmittal.

Remember the bottom line!

Table of contents

This is only necessary for longer reports. At the top of the page, the proper title is “Contents,” not “Table of Contents.” Regardless of whether you include a table of contents, all pages of your report should be numbered, preferably at the top right corner or top center (the latter permits easy two-sided copying). Number, indent, or otherwise indicate sections, subsections, etc.

Introduction

This is for the reader who continues past the abstract. The introduction is a one or two paragraph summary of what was assigned, what was done, and, (very briefly) how it was done. A summary of the constraints on the problem is appropriate, as well as some perspective on the specific problem in the context of the larger business picture. There should be no results or conclusions in the Introduction section.

Results

The following are essential components of a results section:

1. Labeled and dated process flow diagram (PFD).
2. Stream flow tables. These must include temperature, pressure, phase, total mass flow rate, total molar flow rate, and component molar flow rates for each numbered stream.
3. Manufacturing cost summary. Yearly revenue and expense (income from product sales, expenses for raw materials, utilities [itemized], equipment costs if calculated as an annual cost, personnel, etc.) must be included.
4. Investment summary. The cost to build and install plant now (if appropriate to goals of the problem). This should be itemized by piece of equipment.
5. Equipment summary. A listing of equipment to be purchased and installed, with specifications required. This could be combined with 4. if not too long.

The above should not appear without description. This section is held together by prose that provides the reader with a road map through the tables and figures of 1-5 above.

Mention the PDF early in the prose of this section and refer to it often.

Whichever you choose, figures and tables have a specific format. They are numbered in the order in which they appear in the report. They should appear on the pages immediately following where they are first cited in the prose. If a figure or table is not cited, it should appear in the report. Tables have a title at the top. Figures have a caption at the bottom, which, if a graph, should not simply repeat the axes (unacceptable: y vs. x; good: Plot illustrating…). Nothing should appear at the top of a figure. The fact that most software puts a figure title at the top is not a reason for you to have a title at the top. When you refer to a figure or figure or table, Figure #, Stream #, or Table # should be considered a proper name and, therefore, capitalized.

Figures can be scatter plots, bar charts, or pie charts. Use scatter plots when the independent variable (x-axis) is quantitative e.g. temperature. Use bar charts when a non-quantitative independent variable is being plotted, e.g. cost (y-axis) vs. case study number or piece of equipment (x-axis). Use pie charts when relative amounts of quantities are being compared, and the quantities form a whole e.g. distribution of capital costs between individual equipment.

When pie charts are used, the total quantity (corresponding to the whole pie) should be in a legend or outside the pie. Each slice should contain the percentage of the pie. When graphs are used, do not use “line charts” (where the x-axis has tick marks at irregular intervals) when the independent variable is numerical. Numbers on axes should all have the same number of decimal places. Increasing magnitude should always be to the right (x-axis) and up (y-axis).

Avoid using 3-dimensional bar charts or scatter plots, especially when only two variables are used, i.e., if there is only one independent variable. Three-dimensional figures are very difficult to read. That your software uses 3-d plots as a default option is not a good reason to use them.

For axes, use ranges in appropriately round numbers, i.e., from 0 to 20, not from 3.47 to 19.993. If possible, include zero in your scale for the proper perspective.

For plot axes and tables of figures, use the appropriate number of significant figures.

It is perfectly acceptable to use numbers in the written report. They are expected in a technical report, as are symbols. Learn to use the symbols in your word processor. For example, use 5°C, not five degrees C. Include lead zeroes in all numbers less than one, e.g., 0.25 instead of .25. When columns of figures are used (and these should be used sparingly), each figure in the column must have the same units. If a total is shown, it should be the sum of all numbers above it. Columns should be lined up by the decimal point or by where the decimal point would be.

When reporting large costs, millions of dollars, for example, present no more that three or four significant figures. Just because your spreadsheet reports ten or more significant figures is no reason to present all of them. It is ludicrous to present a preliminary design down to the penny. Remember that people do not expect dollar figures to be in scientific notation. One million dollars should appear as $1 million or $1,000,000.

Discussion

Now you go into more detail. This section is for the reader who still wants more information and is willing to read still further. Here you discuss the reasons for making choices and the reasons for discarding alternatives. This is where you discuss any optimization that was done. You might also discuss non routine or unique computational aspects.

Conclusions

Nothing new is presented in this section. You should reiterate your important conclusions, which may have already been stated in the abstract, the executive summary, and/or the letter of transmittal. Usually these will involve dollars and process modifications. Be concise and clear; avoid lengthy paragraphs. Once again, remember the bottom line!

Recommendations

This section includes recommendations for further action and/or further study. If there are few conclusions and recommendations, these two sections can be combined. Avoid recommendations that are “pie in the sky,” like finding a better catalyst.

References

References may be listed by number, and cited in the text by this number, either as a superscript or as a number in parentheses or in brackets (preferred). Another method is to cite the reference by the author and year. You should consult the end of a chapter or the end of the book in any of your chemical engineering texts for the correct citation format. No references should appear that are not specifically cited in the report. Software should never be referenced unless you use it as a source of data.

Other Sections

Sometimes, especially for longer reports, specialized additional sections are included, such as: Safety, Assumptions, Environmental Concerns, Risks, etc. The author should check with the prospective users of the document to determine the appropriate additional sections and what these sections should include.

Appendix

This section contains your detailed calculations, computer programs, etc. A specific Table of Contents for the appendix is essential so the reader can easily find a particular calculation. Therefore, pages in the appendix must also be numbered. This numbering may be continuous with the main report, or you may start over. You may also choose to start numbering over for each appendix. If you do the latter, be sure to use a letter indicating the appendix in which the page is contained (e.g., page B-5 means page 5 of Appendix B). Include a copy of the full Aspen report (including the flowsheet) for your final case at the end.

Equations

Equations may be used in different parts of a report, as needed. The proper format for equations is as follows. Equations are usually centered. All equations are numbered serially, with the equation number, usually right-justified. Only the number appears, either in parenthesis or in brackets. Just as with figures and tables, equations should be cited by number. Similarly, Equation # is a proper name and should be capitalized. It is not usual to refer to an equation by number before it appears.

How Engineering Reports are Used

An engineering report is essentially never read in its entirety by a single person. Most of the users of these documents are too busy to sit down and read every word. However, you must assume that each word will be read by someone, sometime, and that you will not be around to explain any ambiguous passages. Your report must be useful to the following types of readers:

1. The person who has only a few minutes to read the report. This is often an intelligent, non technical person who controls millions of dollars. You must be sure that this person can pick up your report, immediately find the important answers, i.e., the “bottom line,” and make the right decision. If the answer is not prominently presented in the Executive Summary or the Abstract, this type of reader will judge your report to be of little value. You cannot afford that judgment.

2. The technical manager. You may assume that this person is a chemical engineer, but you may not assume any specific technical knowledge about the details of your project. This person is busy but may have enough time to read most of the report (but not the appendices). Few engineers will sit down and read a report from beginning to end! One looks for the answers quickly. As soon as these answers are found, one makes a decision and stops reading. Sections might be read in the following order, for example, until the answers are found: Executive Summary, Recommendations, Conclusions, Results, Discussion, Introduction. Different readers will read the sections in different orders. You must, therefore, take special care to put the information in the correct sections. This is part of the reason why repeating important conclusions in several places in the report (letter of transmittal, abstract, conclusions) is a good idea.

3. The engineer who must use your design. This chemical engineer needs to find details of how you did your calculations and how you reached decisions. The appendices are of special interest to this reader. However, time is of the essence. This reader wants to be able to go immediately to that page or two in your appendices that deals with a specific detail. Without good organization and a good table of contents for the appendices, this is impossible. If this reader cannot find the right information, your effort has been wasted.

4. Others. Many others will try to read your report: mechanical engineers, chemists, environmental activists. Think about these people, too.

Class Presentations

Adapted from Turton

When presenting an oral report, it is important to remember that the audience cannot digest material in the same way as they can when reading a report. There will be no time for them to re-read a sentence or paragraph, or to study a table or figure. Therefore, it is incumbent on the speaker to emphasize the important points. The recommendations that follow, though written for any type of oral presentation, are written within the context of a design presentation.

A recommended outline for design presentations are as follows:

Title Page

Identify the report topic and contributors

Outline

Tell the audience what you are going to tell them, using a visual aid for reinforcement. This is usually an outline of the report. It is not sufficient to list the structure of the report e.g. introduction, results, discussion, conclusion. You should include a few words abstracting the contents of each section.

Early in your talk, describe the project, flowsheet, etc., in general, before getting into the details. Also early in your talk, mention the bottom-line conclusion.

Results

Follow the outline of the results section in your written report, with a few notes to remember. First, a detailed stream flow table will not be easily seen or understood by your audience. Second, what is effectively communicated in a table in a written report may be better expressed orally using a graph. Avoid complex tables and figures with small print. These can neither be seen in the back of the room nor digested by anyone.

I suggest working through each of the major elements of your design piece-by-piece e.g. first work through the reactor information and build outward to the separation process, the heat exchanger design, recycle loops, and any waste clean-up steps.

All of the results on figures and tables in the written design report section apply to oral presentations.

Discussion

Content similar to that described in the written report section.

Conclusions and Recommendations

Remind your audience of what you told them, usually as a list or outline. Remember to re-state the bottom line!

Examples and Grading Rubric

While I have no example reports that follow the above guidelines to the letter, you may find some very well done example design reports available through the University of Pennsylvania here.

A grading rubric for the final project can be found here.

A grading rubric for the final presentation can be found here