Scale-Up in Chemical and Bioprocess Engineering

Abstract

Scale-up in the chemical and bioprocessing industries is the process of applying the knowledge acquired at the laboratory scale—e.g., in test tubes, Petri dishes, flasks, small reactors, and laboratory-scale fermenters—to a large scale, e.g., in pipes, filters, reactors, and fermenters, in an efficient and economical way. Scale-up is an economic, engineering, and scientific discipline. Although the practical application of scaling up grew only after the First World War, in 1912, a prominent chemical engineer, J. Whiting, defined the scaling process as follows: (1) laboratory stage, (2) small-scale model, (3) large-scale or development unit, (4) semicommercial plant, and (5) commercial plant. Since that time, the field has seen many advances, and the scaling-up process has been systematized. Even the field of chemical engineering has evolved and today includes bioprocess engineering. The advances in scale-up transformed the chemical industry in the twentieth century and, in addition, led to the creation and development of the bioprocess industry of our era.

This is a descriptive chapter. Three general topics and seven advanced topics are presented for analysis and discussion.

Scientists dream about doing great things. Engineers do them.

James A. Michener

Engineering is a great profession. There is the satisfaction of watching a figment of the imagination emerge through the aid of science to a plan on paper. Then it moves to realization in stone or metal or energy. Then it brings homes to men or women. Then it elevates the standard of living and adds to the comforts of life. This is the engineer’s high privilege.

Herbert Hoover