Tasks of a Chemical Engineer:
 
I.  Design Processing and Manufacturing Facilities

1.  Design a process flow diagram
2.  Perform a mass and energy balance
3.  Develop and validate model
4.  Establish and specify unit operations
5.  Model processes using computer simulation and interpret the results
6.  Perform a safety analysis
7.  Specify process instrumentation and contorl systems
8.  Perform a formal process hazard analysis
9.  Estimate the environmental constraints
10.  Perform an environmental impact analysis
11.  Apply for enviornmental license
12.  Perform economic analysis
13.  Specify geographic plant location
14.  Specify plant layout for construction and operation
15.  Specify equipment layout

II.  Equipment Specifications

16.  Write and review process specifications for equipment
17.  Develop and review mechanical/purchasing specifications for equipment
18.  Design equipment
19.  Specify process control loops
20.  Specify instrumentation
21.  Specify materials of construction
22.  Specify safety and fire protection items

 III.  Research and Development

23.  Develop new processes
24.  Scaleup form laboratory to production operation
25.  Devlop new products
26.  Develop basic data

IV.  Operations

27.  Prepare, review and./or update operating material.
28.  Direct the startup, maintenance, and shutdown of process facilities
29.  Optimize and evaluate processes through computer simulations
30.  Coordinate the design, construction and startup of specific processes in a facility
31.  Test and troubleshoot operation of equipment
32.  Conduct routine monitoring
33.  Conduct safety audits of existing equipment
34.  Train employees in the operation of production equipment
35.  Investigate and assess environmental, safety, and health related aspects of processing facilities
36.  Modify plants for process changes and document those changes
37.  Provide technical support to planr processing operations
38.  Consult with internal and external customers.
 

Knowledge Areas of the PE Examination:
 

I.  Mass/Energy Balances and Thermodynamics
Mass balances
      1. Stoichiometry
      2.  Process behavior
      3.  Process variants
      4.  Combustion processes
Energy balances
      5.  Sensible heat
      6.  Latent heat
      7.  Heat of reaction
      8.  Heat of solution
Thermodynamic considerations
      9.  Power cycles
      10.  Refrigeration cycles 
      11.  Estimation and correlation of physical properties		 II.  Fluids
Fluid transport
      12.  Physical properties
      13.  Pipe and tubing data
Mechanical energy balance
      14.  Potential
      15.  Friction
      16.  Flow applications
Flow measurement techniques
      17.  Pitot tube, orifice, and venturi
      18.  Pressure differential measurement
      19.  Mass flow
      20.  Permanent pressure drop		 III.  Heat Transfer
Physical properties
      21.  Physical properties
Mechanisms
      22.  Conduction
      23.  Convection
      24.  Radiation
      25.  Phase change
Applications
      26.  Insulation
      27.  Measurement instruments
      28.  Heat exchangers
      29.  Service use of heat transfer equipment
      30.  Evaporators
      31.  Furnaces, regenerators, and recuperators
IV.  Mass Transfer
Phase equilibria
      32.  Equilibrium data
      33.  Phase equilibrium calculations
      34.  Diffusion
      35.  Convective mass transfer-coefficients
Mass transfer contactors (absorption, stripping, distillation, extraction)
      36.  Continuous contacting
      37.  Trayed contactors
 Miscellaneous separation processes
      38.  Batch distillation
      39.  Non-trayed contactors
      40.  Leaching
      41.  Humidification
      42.  Drying
      43.  Adsorption
      44.  Membrane separation, reverse osmosis

V.  Kinetics
Reaction parameters
      45.  Rate constants
      46.  Chemical equilivria
      47.  Activation energy

Reaction Rate
      48.  Rate equation
      49.  Order of reaction
      50.  Analysis of experimental data
 

 Reactor design and evaluation
      51.  Bioreactors
      52.  Batch reactors
      53.  Continuous stirred tank reactors
      54.  Plug flow reactors
      55.  High pressure reactors
      56.  Multiple reactors in series
      57.  Scheduling of reactor operations
      58.  Yield and selectivity

Heterogenous reaction systems
      59.  Catalysis
      60.  Multiphase reactors
      61.  Stability/Runaway reactions
      62.  Mixing
      63.  Electrochemistry
      64.  Photochemistry

VI.  Plant Design and Operation
Economic considerations
      65.  Equipment cost correlations
      66.  Operating cost
      67.  Time value of money 
Design and operation
      68.  Process flow sheet development
      69.  Design optimization
      70.  Knowledge and use of SI units system
      71.  Knowledge and use of US customery unit     system
 

       72.  Operating manual
      73.  Equipment testing, troubleshooting and analysis 

Safety
      74.  Emergency venting devices
      75.  Performance of scheduled audits
      76.  Flares and vents
      77.  Plants layout configuration
      78.  Fire protection
      79.  Fault tree analysis
      80.  Emergency egree and ingress
      81.  Dispersion analysis
      82.  Process hazard analysis 
      83.  Ergonomic
Environmental
      84.  Evaluation and permitting of gas discharges
      85.  Solid waste management
      86.  Regulatory requirement
      87.  Industrial hygiene
      88.  Pollution porevention
Materials
      89.  Material property and selection
      90.  Structural design considerations
      91.  Corrosion considerations
Process Control
      92.  Sensors
      93.  Controller actions
      94.  Cascade controllers
      95.  Feedback/feedforward action
      96.  Data interpretation