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As the chemical industry changes and becomes more integrated worldwide, there is a need for information exchange. This must include not only principles of operation but practical knowledge transfer. That’s why I have agreed to edit a new book for Elsevier, “Integration and Optimization of Unit Operations.”

As my readers know, in 2015, I published the “Handbook of Solid-Liquid Filtration” with Elsevier, UK. This new project offers up-to-date and practical information on chemical unit operations from the R & D stage to scale-up and demonstration to commercialization and optimization.  

For this exciting and unique book to work, I need your help. I’m currently seeking contributing authors who have skills at each stage of the process from lab-scale/R&D, through pilot plants to full-scale production and finally optimization or as I call it, Putting-It-All-Together, for actual case histories / war stories.  We will also cover decommissioning of plants.

Currently, most books look unit operations, each in a silo.  In this book, at each stage, the information presented differs as the technology and issues faced at the lab scale differ through commercialization and optimization. So, we will move from a silo approach to an integrated – holistic approach.

Why this Unit Operations Book is Needed

This book addresses a need for engineers with a broader training background. In the early 70’s, companies wanted staff with an I-shaped skill level. Someone with I-Shaped Skills is a person with a deep (vertical) expertise in one area and practically no experience or knowledge in other areas. This person is typically known as a specialist.  

Then, in the 1980s, the industry wanted T-shaped professionals. The vertical bar on the T represents strong knowledge in a specific discipline. The horizontal bar represents a wide (horizontal) yet shallow knowledge in other areas. This allows the person to be able to collaborate across other disciplines and acquire new skills or knowledge. 

Yet what we need today, with the rapid proliferation of technological advances and the cross- disciplinary nature of our work, is key-shaped engineers who can address several areas of expertise with varying degrees of depth.  

This book aims to address the needs of engineers who want to increase their skill levels in various disciplines so that they are able to develop, commercialize and optimize processes. The engineers must be able to ask questions of experts to develop creative solutions.

What Can You Contribute?

Contributing authors should be able to discuss unit operations at each stage and then relate how these technology/process decisions impacts the next stage. I am targeting the first draft by the end of the year. I will provide technical guidance and assistance as well as from my associate who is skilled in technical writing along with the Elsevier requirements.

The book will be listed on ScienceDirect, Elsevier and others and chapters will receive individual indexing so they can be searched.

I hope you’re as excited about this opportunity to share knowledge about unit operations as I am! I look forward to hearing from you.

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