One of the riskiest and expensive stages in chemical engineering is the scale up process. Evidence shows that the expense and peril in the scale up process is due to the application of different equipment used in the processing of materials and the scale up methodology. This equipment has geometrical variations that can typically result in the exchange of mass and heat (Dutta, 2009; Holman, 2010).

Scale-up activities are costly and are performed in enormous reactors that require large volumes of materials and solvent for the formation of products. There can be a total failure in running operations in the chemical industry when workers put a demand on high quality and quantity. Indeed, one of the biggest reasons for failure is that workers can make bad choices about the selection of raw materials and equipment used in operational procedures.
Good data are required for the scale-up method. These data are obtained via a combination of experimental data and data from computational facilities. Here, the key concept is to gather information from bench-scale equipment and then apply this information via the application of commercial-scale process design by exploiting knowledge of mathematics and computing (Berty & JM, 1979). This can be done after performing bench-scale experiments and doing the calculations. In the last crucial step, it is possible to fine-tune and design the commercial process; however, simulation is required to keep hydrodynamic parameters in balance while also saving time and optimizing the yield (Basu, Mack, & Vinson, 1999).

References

Basu, P. K., Mack, R. A., & Vinson, J. M. (1999). Consider a new approach to pharmaceutical process development. Chemical engineering progress, 95(8), 82-90.
Berty, J., & JM, B. (1979). The changing role of the pilot plant.
Dutta, B. K. (2009). Principles of mass transfer and separation processes. The Canadian Journal of Chemical Engineering, 87(5), 818-819. doi:https://doi.org/10.1002/cjce.20228
Holman, J. (2010). Heat Transfer; Mc Graw Hill: New York City, NY, USA, 2010. Mc Graw Hill.