Modular Manufacturing:  Overcoming Cost and Reliability Barriers for Intensified Chemical Process Equipment

A growing trend in the chemical process industry for reducing capital costs and accelerating chemical plant builds involves building plants on site by assembling together modules, consisting of one or more unit operations, produced at a centralized manufacturing facility. The use of intensified chemical process equipment (ICPE), for reducing the size and weight of unit operations, is consistent with modular manufacturing needs to reduce the costs of producing, shipping and installing modules. However, the cost and reliability of ICPE technologies remains a barrier to the use of these technologies by module manufacturers. Recent manufacturing cost studies show that ICPE heat exchanger technology can be cost competitive with conventional technologies. Further, computational methods are being used to anticipate and overcome reliability challenges. Finally, new manufacturing process technologies will be discussed for further reducing the cost of ICPE.