Republic of the Philippines

BATANGAS STATE UNIVERSITY

Pablo Borbon Main II, Alangilan Batangas City
College of Engineering, Architecture & Fine Arts
www.batstate-u.edu.ph Tel. No. (043) 425-0139

Chemical and Food Engineering Department

IMPACTS OF
ENGINEERING AND
REAL WORLD
CONTRIBUTIONS
OBJECTIVES

• Students will recognize the impacts of engineering in the society

• Students will acquire knowledge about the ethics in engineering
• Students will recognize the real world contributions of engineering

TOPICS TO BE DISCUSSED

• Impacts of Engineering
• Impacts of Chemical Engineering
• Code of Ethics in Engineering
• Code of Ethics in Chemical Engineering
• Accidents/Disasters in Chemical Engineering
• Real world Contributions of Chemical Engineering

INTRODUCTION

Engineering solutions have always had a major impact upon society. In some cases, this
impact has been clearly positive, such as in the case of house appliances and water purification.
In others, the impact has been negative, as in the case of bombs with ever increasing destructive
power. In many cases, the impact of engineering products has been both positive and negative,
as in the case of the automobile. Engineers usually give the proper attention to the safety and
cost of their products, two aspects that affect all users of engineering products and, therefore,
society as a whole.

More recently, engineers have also become more sensitive regarding the environmental
impact of their products. On the other hand, there have been many cases where the engineers
involved in the creation of a particular solution, constrained with a limited view of the situation they
were trying to address, were not aware or could not possibly imagine the impact that their product
would later have on society as a whole (for example, CFCs that have wrecked the ozone layer).

In the era of market and workforce globalization, engineers need to have a solid
understanding of the impact that their products will have locally, as well as globally, so that they
can make a sound evaluation of the pros and cons.

IMPACTS OF ENGINEERING

Engineers have completely changed the world we live in, from modern homes, bridges,
space travel, cars and the latest mobile technology. Innovative ideas are at the heart of what
engineers do, and they use their knowledge to create new and exciting prospects and solve any
problems that may arise.

1. HEALTH
The health industry has hugely benefitted from engineering. Advances in medical
technology is solely down to engineers, and without it, doctors would not be able to treat
patients the way they do today; with fantastic success rates. Engineering has essentially
allowed us to understand the medical issues in today’s society.
 2. TECHNOLOGY
Engineers are the reason for the phenomenal growth in technology of every
generation. Just think about what the technological advances that are in our everyday
lives; not only can we access the world with our fingertips, engineers have also allowed
us to build satellites and machines that help us to understand the world we live and shape
our lives on a daily basis.

3. COMMUNICATION
Whilst on the subject of technology, the way we communicate has also vastly
improved due to engineering. We can now get in touch with people at any time of the day
in any part of the world. This has greatly improved the way we do business and how we
talk to our friends, family and strangers on a daily basis.

4. DEVELOPMENT
Steam engines, jet engines and aeroplanes are all down to hard work from
engineers, and it has allowed businesses to work smarter and faster than ever before.
Improvements to travel have changed the way humans connect with one another, opening
trades for business and allowing us to literally travel to the other side of the planet in a
mere 24 hours.

5. SPACE
Visiting Space may have been a mere dream in the past, but not anymore. The
International Space Station is the largest and most complex science undertaking ever. It
allows scientists, analysts and engineers from all over the planet to come together and
conduct research that cannot be done elsewhere, finding answers to queries that have
been unquestioned for years.

PROS AND CONS OF ENGINEERING (SOCIALLY, ECONOMICALLY. AND

POLITICALLY)

POSITIVE IMPACTS NEGATIVE IMPACTS

Civil engineers have created beautiful structures People have created chemical weapons in
and roads that help countries become safe and chemical engineering. These chemical weapons
strong. have caused massive destruction.

Genetic engineers produce more food by Genetic engineering (cloning) is unnatural and
developing ways to enlarge fruits, vegetables, and causes many problems in the clones, and can
other crops. create birth defects.
Genetic engineering will help us to understand Experiments in genetic engineering can be
things like mutations in genetics, DNA, the human extremely dangerous, life-threatening, mutating,
genome, etc. and have horrifying consequences. Also, the
healthiness of genetically modified (GM) foods is
the subject of much debate.

Machines that transport can make our lives much Several of the advancements made by
simpler, such as the automobile and airplane. engineering such as the automobiles have
detrimental effects on the environment, as they
cause pollution.

IMPACTS OF CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

► Formulates low fat products for improved health

► Creates technologies for a greener pharmaceutical industry

► Makes oil recovery safer and more environmentally friendly

► Removes arsenic from ground water for community use

► Creates cutting edge modelling processes

► Creates novel approaches for environmentally friendlier industries

► revolutionizes the way diabetics monitor their blood glucose

► improves the biomass efficiency

► improves kitchen sinks

ENGINEERING ETHICS

Ethics refers to the study of morality and the moral choices that we all have to make in our
lives. Professional societies, such as medical and engineering, have long established guidelines,
standards, and rules that govern the conduct of their members. These rules are also used by the
members of the board of ethics of the professional organization to interpret ethical dilemmas that
are submitted by a complainant.

Engineers uphold and advance the integrity, honor, and dignity of the profession by using
their knowledge and skills for the enhancement of human welfare, by being honest and impartial,
by serving with fidelity to public, their employers and clients, by striving to increase the
competence and prestige of the engineering profession, and by supporting the professional and
technical societies of their disciplines.

CODE OF ETHICS FOR ENGINEERS

 Engineering profession is a public service and the Engineering Codes of Ethics are an
extensive guideline to professional demeanor. Understanding the engineering ethics guidelines
are no more a choice for engineers but it is imperative for engineers to understand and execute
them throughout their professional career.

PREAMBLE

Engineering is an important and learned profession. As members of this profession,

engineers are expected to exhibit the highest standards of honesty and integrity. Engineering has
a direct and vital impact on the quality of life for all people. Accordingly, the services provided by
engineers require honesty, impartiality, fairness and equity, and must be dedicated to the
protection of the public health, safety and welfare. Engineers must perform under a standard of
professional behavior which requires adherence to the highest principles of ethical conduct.

FUNDAMENTAL CANONS

Engineers, in the fulfillment of their professional duties, shall:

1. Hold paramount the safety, health and welfare of the public.

2. Perform services only in areas of their competence.

3. Issue public statements only in an objective and truthful manner.

4. Act for each employer or client as faithful agents or trustees.

5. Avoid deceptive acts.

6. Conduct themselves honorably, responsibly, ethically, and lawfully so as to enhance the

honor, reputation and usefulness of the profession.

ENGINEER’S CREED

The engineer’s creed, which was adopted by NSPE in 1954, is a statement of belief, similar to
the Hippocratic oath taken by medical practitioners. It was developed to state the engineering
philosophy of service in a brief way. The NSPE engineer’s creed is:

► To give the utmost of performance

► To participate in none but honest enterprise

► To live and work according to the laws of man and the highest standards of professional
conduct

► To place

▪ service before profit

▪ the honor and standing of the profession before personal advantage, and

▪ the public welfare above all other considerations

AIChE CODE OF PROFESSIONAL ETHICS

FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES

Engineers shall uphold and advance the integrity, honor and dignity of the engineering profession
by:

► using their knowledge and skill for the enhancement of human welfare

► being honest and impartial and serving with fidelity the public, their employers, and clients

► striving to increase the competence and prestige of the engineering profession

Members of the American Institute of Chemical Engineers shall uphold and advance the
integrity, honor and dignity of the engineering profession by: being honest and impartial and
serving with fidelity their employers, their clients, and the public; striving to increase the
competence and prestige of the engineering profession; and using their knowledge and skill for
the enhancement of human welfare. To achieve these goals, members shall:

1. Hold paramount the safety, health and welfare of the public and protect the environment
in performance of their professional duties.
2. Formally advise their employers or clients (and consider further disclosure, if warranted)
if they perceive that a consequence of their duties will adversely affect the present or
future health or safety of their colleagues or the public.
3. Accept responsibility for their actions, seek and heed critical review of their work and
offer objective criticism of the work of others.
4. Issue statements or present information only in an objective and truthful manner.
5. Act in professional matters for each employer or client as faithful agents or trustees,
avoiding conflicts of interest and never breaching confidentiality.
6. Treat all colleagues and co-workers fairly and respectfully, recognizing their unique
contributions and capabilities by fostering an environment of equity, diversity and
inclusion.
7. Perform professional services only in areas of their competence.
8. Build their professional reputations on the merits of their services.
9. Continue their professional development throughout their careers, and provide
opportunities for the professional development of those under their supervision.
10. Never tolerate harassment.
11. Conduct themselves in a fair, honorable and respectful manner.

PIChE CODE OF ETHICS

Section 1. The chemical engineer shall be guided in all his relations by the highest standards of
honor and integrity and shall act with fairness and impartiality to all.
Section 2. The chemical engineer shall uphold at all times the dignity of the chemical engineering
profession and shall protect it from misrepresentation.

Section 3. The chemical engineer shall avoid being associated with any enterprise which is of
questionable character or is contrary to law or public welfare.

Section 4. The chemical engineer shall express a professional opinion only when he is
adequately informed of the facts related thereto and the purposes for which the opinion is asked.

Section 5. The chemical engineer shall not issue statements, criticism or arguments on matters
of public concern which are inspired or paid for by private interests, unless he indicates in whose
behalf, he is making the statement.

Section 6. chemical engineer shall not indulge in self-laudatory advertisement nor make
exaggerated, untrue, or misleading statements in media or any public forum.

Section 7. chemical engineer shall be mindful of the safety and convenience of the public at all
times and shall make every effort to remedy or bring to the attention of his client or employer any
dangerous defect in equipment or structures or dangerous conditions of operation which come to
his knowledge.

Section 8. The chemical engineer shall consider it his professional obligation to protect the
interest of his client, employer or any person of responsibility and he shall act accordingly as long
as it does not conflict with law, public policy, and welfare.

Section 9. The chemical engineer shall make known to his client or employer all his other
professional obligations, financial interests, or other considerations which might restrict or
interfere with his meeting the legitimate expectations of his client or employer before undertaking
an engagement.

Section 10. The chemical engineer shall not accept compensation, financial or otherwise form
more than one client or employer who is in the same line of business or has conflicting interest
with the others, without the consent of all parties; he shall not accept compensation directly or
indirectly from parties dealing with his client or employer except with the consent of his client or
employer.

Section 11. The chemical engineer shall present clearly the consequences or risk that will arise
if his professional judgment or work, for which he is responsible, is overruled.

Section 12. The chemical engineer shall not hesitate to engage, or advise his client or employer
to engage the services of other experts or specialists on problems on which his information or
experience is inadequate.

Section 13. The chemical engineer shall regard as the property of his client or employer any plan,
design, or other record which results from the use of information which is not common knowledge
or public property, but which information is obtained from his client or employer.

Section 14. The chemical engineer shall exchange general information and experience with his
fellow chemical engineers, contribute to the work of engineering societies and schools, and
cooperate in such other endeavors as will enhance the effectiveness of the chemical engineering
profession.

Section 15. The chemical engineer shall encourage and provide opportunity for the professional
development or advancement of chemical engineers in his employ.

Section 16. The chemical engineer shall recognize the view that inadequate compensation for
professional services tend towards inferior and unreliable work and shall not accept compensation
beneath the generally accepted level of professional fee.

Section 17. The chemical engineer shall not compete with another engineer unfairly, such as
reducing his usual professional charges for work after having been informed of the charges asked
by others.

Section 18. The chemical engineer shall not injure or attempt to injure falsely or maliciously,
directly or indirectly, the professional reputation, competence, capability, prospects, or practice of
another professional.

Section 19. The chemical engineer shall endeavor at all times to give credit to those to whom
credit is properly due.

Section 20. The chemical engineer shall not review the work of another chemical engineer for
the same client or employer without the prior knowledge and consent of such engineer when the
client or employer relation of such chemical engineer has already been terminated, prior notice is
sufficient.

Section 21. The chemical engineer shall report any infraction of any rules of professional conduct
to the Philippine Institute of Chemical Engineers (PICHE) for proper appraisal and shall be ready
to testify, if necessary.

Section 22. This Code shall take effect after fifteen (15) days following its publication in the Official
Gazette.

ACCIDENTS/DISASTERS IN CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

FLIXBOROUGH (NYPRO UK) DISASTER

June 1, 1974, the Nypro (UK) site at Flixborough was

severely damaged by a large explosion. Twenty-eight
workers were killed and a further 36 suffered injuries. It is
recognized that the number of casualties would have been
more if the incident had occurred on a weekday, as the main
office block was not occupied. Offsite consequences
resulted in fifty-three reported injuries. Property in the surrounding area was damaged to a varying
degree.

During the late afternoon on 1 June 1974 a 20 inch bypass system ruptured, which may
have been caused by a fire on a nearby 8 inch pipe. This resulted in the escape of a large quantity
of cyclohexane. The cyclohexane formed a flammable mixture and subsequently found a source
of ignition. At about 16:53 hours there was a massive vapor cloud explosion which caused
extensive damage and started numerous fires on the site.

BHOPAL GAS TRAGEDY

Bhopal is known for its historical records, artificial lakes

and greenery but most of all, the city is remembered across the
globe for the worst industrial mishap of the world.

On December 3, 1984, poisonous gas that leaked from

the factory of Union Carbide in Madhya Pradesh capital Bhopal
killed thousands of people directly. The incident is now known
as the Bhopal disaster or Bhopal gas tragedy.

As per official records, the Bhopal gas tragedy killed 3,787 people. The figures were
updated by the Madhya Pradesh government later as the immediate official estimate had put the
death toll due to gas leak from Union Carbide factory at 2,259.

SEVESO DIOXIN CLOUD

In July, 1976, at a chemical plant in the suburbs of

Milan, Italy, an accident occurred that caused diffusion of
dioxin which is a deadly poison. After batch work, operators
stopped the operation in an incorrect way, disregarding
operating instructions. Therefore, the temperature rose, a
large amount of dioxin was generated by a runaway
reaction, a rupture disk operated, and contents including dioxin diffused into the atmosphere. The
soil of 1800 hectares of land was contaminated, and 220000 persons were injured, suffering from
sequelae.

BP Oil Spill

The Deepwater Horizon oil spill (also referred to as

the BP oil spill, oil leak, or oil disaster; the Gulf of Mexico
oil spill; and the Macondo blowout) was an industrial
disaster that began on April 20, 2010, in the Gulf of
Mexico on the BP-operated Macondo Prospect,
considered to be the largest marine oil spill in the history of
the petroleum industry

• In the BP Oil Spill, more than 200 million gallons of crude oil was pumped into the Gulf of
Mexico for a total of 87 days, making it the biggest oil spill in U.S. history
• The initial oil rig explosion killed 11 people and injured 17 others.
• Over 8,000 animals (birds, turtles, mammals) were reported dead just 6 months after the
spill, including many that were already on the endangered species list.
 • Over 30,000 people responded to the spill in the Gulf Coast working to collect oil, clean
up beaches, take care of animals and perform various other duties. As of 2012, the Gulf
was still polluted with oil.

REAL WORLD CONTRIBUTIONS OF CHEMICAL ENGINEERING

1. George E Davis

George E Davis is often regarded as the ‘founding father’

of chemical engineering. George shaped the world of chemical
engineering as it emerged in the late 1800s;
with George coining the term ‘chemical engineering’. The first
chemical engineering course was delivered by George at the
University of Manchester in 1887 in the form of 12 lectures
covering various aspects of industrial chemical practice – this kick
started the revolution that spawned generations of world-
changing chemical engineers.

2.Arthur D Little

Arthur D Little is often thought of as the ‘American father’ of

chemical engineering. Not only did he found the international
consultancy firm that bears his name, he also developed the concept
of unit operations (a basic step in a process that involves a physical
change or chemical transformation like evaporation or filtration), and
used it to define the role of chemical engineering and explain
industrial chemical processes. However, it was Arthur’s passion for
researching and improving processes that made him and his
company such as success. He was an advocate of the benefits of
science and its capacity to transform life for the better – that chemical engineers really can make
a difference.

3. Carl Bosch

In 2011, the readers of tce (The Chemical Engineer)

magazine voted Fritz Haber and Carl Bosch the most influential
chemical engineers of all time. The Haber-Bosch process was
developed by industrial chemist Fritz Haber, and scaled up by
chemical engineer Carl Bosch. It takes nitrogen from the air and
converts it to ammonia. This work made it possible to produce
synthetic fertilizers and thus produce enough food for the Earth’s
growing population. Without it, we would only be able to produce two-thirds the amount of food
we do today.

4. Margaret Hutchinson Rousseau

Mass production of penicillin was a key moment in history;

not only for the billions of lives it saved and still saves today. She
is one of the important penicillin pioneers. Margaret was not only
the first women to receive a chemical engineering doctorate from
MIT, but she also designed the first commercial penicillin
plant. Margaret developed the process of deep-tank fermentation
which enabled large-scale production of penicillin.

5. Dermot Manning

It is hard to imagine a world without plastic.

The discovery of polyethylene (or polythene) was actually made
twice, initially by German chemist Hans von Pechmann in 1898,
and then again by two research chemists – Reginald Gibson and
Eric Fawcett from ICI in 1933. A third ICI chemist, Michael
Perrin, made the crucial breakthrough in understanding
polythene and its production that turned plastic into a possibility.
However, it took a chemical engineer, Dermot Manning, to make
the experiment possible by building a high-pressure reactor.
Dermot also enabled polythene to move from pilot, to demonstration, to full-scale production.

6. John H. Perry

Perry’s is the go-to handbook for chemical engineers. However,

this book would have been possible without John H. Perry for whom
the book is named – as he edited its first edition – published in 1934.
John went on to edit two more editions of Perry’s, until his son, Robert
H. Perry, took over the family tradition for the fourth edition in 1963,
until his death.

John was a physical chemist and chemical engineer and was

known for his development of improved catalysts for sulfuric acid
production. However, it is his book that truly shaped the world and has been the key source of
knowledge chemical engineers for over 70 years.
7.George Rosenkranz

In 1951, George Rosenkranz, a chemical engineer at the

Mexican chemicals company Syntex, with Luis Miramontes and
chemist Carl Djerassi, led the development of a substance they
called norethindrone – or progesterone – which they used to
make one of the first two combined oral contraceptive pills. Their
work was started by Russell Marker who succeeded in
revolutionizing the progesterone production process. However,
after Russell left Syntex, George and his team had to recreate
Russell’s process and re-start the large-scale production of
progesterone. George was also a pioneer of steroidal pharmaceuticals and his discoveries are
still used today.

8. Trevor Kletz

Trevor Kletz, known as the father of inherent safety, was

a true pioneer of process safety. Trevor passed away in
2013 after a long and fruitful career working to ensure improved
safety in the chemical process industries. He was a thought
leader who never shied away from confronting problems head
on – for example in 2011 he said that the industry’s ‘macho
culture’ was one of the main causes of recent accidents. Trevor
wrote eleven books and well over a hundred peer-reviewed
papers on process safety and loss prevention.

9. Robert Langer

Robert Langer is known as the father of Tissue Engineering

and has over 1,100 issued and pending patents. He is known
for his contributions to medicine and biotechnology and has
invented new technologies, especially in the drug delivery
systems. He is the most cited engineer and currently the
David H. Koch Institute Professor at MIT
10. Thomas Chilton

Known as the father of modern Chemical Engineering

Practices, Chilton and Allan P. Colburn developed what is
known as the Chilton-Colburn analogy. This analogy is widely
known and used in courses like mass and heat transfer. He
worked as a Chemical Engineer at DuPont for 35 years and
contributed to understanding the chemical phenomena behind
heat and momentum.

11. Vladimir Haensel

Holding nearly 150 patents and more than 400 foreign

patent, Vladimir is famous for inventing the platforming process.
This is a process where platinum is used as a catalyst to produce
clean, low-cost gasoline, containing a higher energy content. This
process has also helped in the removal of lead from gasoline and
is also a role model for different catalytic reforming processes.
Vladimir worked in the University of Massachusetts Amherst as a
Professor in Chemical Engineering from 1980-till his death.