Process simulation in polymer manufacturing

A prototype simulator for applications in polymer manufacturing is presented. This prototype results from the integration of extensive development and application efforts in modeling a wide range of commercial polymerization processes using ASPEN PLUS™, a well-established process flowsheet simulator with a graphical user interface called ModelManager™. The main issues in the application of simulation technology to polymer processes and in the development of the prototype simulator, specifically in the areas of polymer component characterization, polymerization kinetics, and thermodynamic property requirements, are described in this paper. Examples taken from commercial applications will be used to demonstrate the approaches used for handling the different issues.