Study of dynamic behaviour of chemical plants by digital simulation

Abstract The paper contains a classification and solution of the partial differential equations derived from one dimensional models of devices working in a chemical plant in unsteady state. It is shown that, when the flow rates and the hold-ups are constant along an apparatus, the system of partial differential equations characterising the device is hyperbolic, and that in this case, the arising difference equations in explicit form are linear in the new values of the unknowns. An example of the calculation of the dynamic behaviour of a plant including temperatures and compositions controls is given as an application.