Final draft

Chemical Engineering


The four major engineering fields consist of electrical, mechanical, civil, and chemical engineering. Normally, chemical engineers concern themselves with the chemical processes that turn raw materials into valuable products. Of these, chemical engineers are the less in number. The depth of scientific and technical knowledge used in the chemical engineering occupation has caused some to express the view that the chemical engineer is the universal engineer. Regardless of a title that suggests an occupation composed of slight specialists, chemical engineers are actually extremely all-around and able to handle a large range of technical problems. It is the chemical engineer alone who uses the enormous and powerful science of chemistry to solve a world of problems. On the other hand, chemical engineers are the highest paid of the major four, on average. (http://www.pafko.com/history/h_whatis.html)
Chemical engineering evolved from two main roots. The earlier was industrial chemistry, in which the work of the chemical engineer emerged from what was previously done by a team of chemists and a mechanical engineer. The other main root came around because of the great innovations from the US, which consisted of a connected approach to unit operations. These were physical separations such as absorbtion, distillation and extraction in which the principles of mass transfer, fluid dynamics, and heat transfer were combined in equipment design. The basics of the modern field of chemical engineering were laid out during the regeneration, when experimentation and the inquiring of accepted scientific theories became prevalent. This period saw the development of many new chemical processes, such as those for sulfuric acid (for fertilizers and textile treatment) and alkali (for soap). The atomic theories of John Dalton and Amedeo Avogadro, developed in the early 1800's, became an important theoretical support for both chemistry and chemical engineering. In the twentieth century chemical engineers were employed in increasing numbers to design new and more well-organized ways to process chemicals and chemical products. In the US, chemical engineers were especially important in the expansion of petroleum-based fuels for the automotive industry. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_chemical_engineering)
The achievements of chemical engineers from large scale production of plastics, antibodies (including penicillin), and synthetic rubbers to the development of high octane gasoline have greatly affected our daily lives. (http://www.eng.uwo.ca/people/aray/CHENG10.pdf)
Chemical engineers rely on their knowledge of mathematics and science particularly chemistry to overcome technical problems safely and economically. They use and apply their engineering knowledge to solve any technical challenges they may come upon. Their capability is also applied in the areas of law, publishing, education, finance, and medicine, as well as in many other fields that require technical training. (http://www.princetonreview.com/Careers.aspx?cid=33)
Moreover, we conclude that important personal characteristics for the chemical engineer are objectivity, acurraccy and firmness. Chemical engineers should be inquisitive, inquiring, open minded, creative, and flexible, with problem solving ability. To be aggressive in the job market, a master of chemistry, a mixture of science knowledge, are necessary. Chemical engineering major is developing day by day and it is the best choice to get into nowadays due to the circumstances we’re facing and due to the development of this major which is considered as universal engineering.


Bibliography
http://www.pafko.com/history/h_whatis.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_chemical_engineering
http://www.eng.uwo.ca/people/aray/CHENG10.pdf
http://www.princetonreview.com/Careers.aspx?cid=33