Chemical Engineering

The chemical reactions engineering lab covers experiments that deal with chemical reactions in batch and continuous modes. The lab is equipped with a continuous reactor array unit. Different reactor technologies can be studied thanks to the continuous reactor array unit: i) perfectly-stirred reactor; ii) the cascade reactor (two reactors in series) of equal volumes; iii) the spiral reactor (or plug-flow reactor with strong axial dispersion): a tubular reactor with a small internal diameter but long length called a coil reactor; iv) the plug-flow reactor with weak axial dispersion: tubular reactors with internal packing. Different calculations and experimentations are performed on different types of reactors in homogeneous phase as well as in heterogeneous phase.

The experiments in the process control lab permit the understanding of the basic principles of process control; and the specification of the required instrumentation and elements to ensure that well-tuned control is achieved. The lab is equipped with four machines: i) temperature control, ii) flow control, iii) pressure control and iv) pH control. The experiments on the four machines allow the collection and analysis of data to determine the type of control loop used and to calculate the different loop parameters.

The Unit Operations Laboratory offers to chemical engineering students the opportunity to observe, analyze and apply their engineering knowledge to the operations commonly found in many chemical industries. The lab allows the study of the following units: i) batch continuous distillation unit, ii) gas liquid absorption unit, iii) ion exchange resins unit, iv) continuous crystallization unit.

Bioanalytical chemistry is a subdiscipline of analytical chemistry that involves the separation, detection, identification and quantification of biological samples in different settings. It often involves the study of molecules such as proteins and peptides. The experiments include: Ninhydrin reaction, Xanthoproteic reaction, Biuret test, precipitation of proteins, quantitative study of total protein, emulsion stabilization test, detection of fatty acids by saponification, detection of unsaturated fatty acids by iodine fixation, detection of cholesterol by reaction with Liebermann Burchard and by reaction with Salkowski, acid number of a lipid test. The experiments involve also Molisch test, Seliwanoff test, Fehling test and test for polysaccharides.

Instrumental Chemistry is a field of analytical chemistry that investigates the molecular structure, concentration, and impurities in substances, enabling to obtain precise and comprehensive data about various materials, using scientific instruments. The lab experiments cover a wide range of techniques including spectroscopic analysis, spectrophotometry, atomic absorption spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, spectrofluorimetry, HPLC analysis, flame photometry, optical activity, colorimetric analysis.