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Advice from Previous Examinees
The Chemical PE exam is an 8-hour, all-objective test. It is administered
in two four-hour sections with a break for lunch. The exam consists of a total
of 80 multiple-choice questions, and examinees must work all of them.
Official Exam Topics (as of April 2003)
Note: NCEES states that the knowledge areas specified A, B, C, etc., are examples of kinds of knowledge, but
they are not exclusive or exhaustive categories.
- Mass/Energy Balances and Thermodynamics: approx. 24% of problems
- Mass Balances: approx. 11% of problems
- Material balances and stoichiometry
- Phase behavior
- Process variants: bypass, recycle, purge
- Combustion processes (e.g., water-free analysis,e xcess air, staged
combustion)
- Energy Balances and Thermodynamics: approx. 13% of problems
- Sensible heat (heat capacity)
- Latent heat (e.g., fusion, vaporization, sublimation)
- Heat of reaction (exothermic, endothermic)
- Heat of solution
- Estimation and correlation of physical properties
- Applications requiring combinations of sensible heat calculations,
latent heat considerations, heats of reaction, etc.
- Fluids: approx. 17% of problems
- Fluid Transport: approx. 3% of problems
- Physical properties (e.g., viscosity, density, surface tension)
- Pipe and tubing data (e.g., schedule number, surface roughness)
- Mechanical/Energy Balance: approx. 11% of problems
- Potential (e.g., elevation change) and kinetic energy (e.g., velocity)
- Friction: Reynolds number
- Friction: pressure drop (e.g., friction factor, pipes, valves, fittings,
expansion and contraction)
- Flow applications: single conduit, parallel and branched systems
- Flow applications: pumps, turbines, and compressors (e.g., work/energy
requirements, efficiency and performance curves)
- Flow applications: two-phase flow (e.g., slug flow)
- Flow applications: filtration
- Flow Measurement Techniques: approx. 3% of problems
- Pitot tube, orifice, and venturi, etc.
- Pressure differential measurement (e.g., manometers)
- Mass flow (e.g., Coreolis, vortex shedding, thermal)
- Permanent pressure drop (e.g., orifice, valve)
- Heat Transfer: approx. 16% of problems
- Mechanisms: approx. 6% of problems
- Physical properties (viscosity, density, heat capacity, etc.)
- Conduction (e.g., Fourier's Law in differential and integral form,
parallel and series arrangements, mean area)
- Convection: free (natural) convective heat-transfer coefficient
- Convection: forced convective heat-transfer coefficient (metallic
and nonmetallic)
- Phase change (e.g., vaporization, condensation, sublimation, crystallization)
- Combinations of mechanisms: (conduction, convection, and radiation
in series)
- Applications: approx. 10% of problems
- Insulation (e.g., type, sizing, and placement)
- Measurement instruments (thermocouples, thermometers, RTD, IR, etc.)
- Heat exchangers: overall heat-transfer coefficient, fouling factors,
Reynolds numbers
- Heat exchangers: mean temperature difference (LMTD, f-factor)
- Heat exchangers: types (e.g., double pipe, shell-and-tube, extended
surface, plate)
- Heat exchangers: design (e.g., area, configuration, pressure drop)
- Heat exchangers: evaluation of existing and new exchanger systems
(NTU method/pinch technology)
- Service use of heat transfer equipment (e.g., condensers, reboilers,
heat pumps)
- Radiant and convective transfer
- Mass Transfer: approx. 13% of problems
- Phase Equilibria: approx. 5% of problems
- Equilibrium data (e.g., VLE, LLE): equations of state
- Equilibrium data (e.g., VLE, LLE): Henry's Law and Raoult's Law
- Equilibrium data (e.g., VLE, LLE): non-ideal solutions (e.g., activity
coefficient)
- Equilibrium data (e.g., VLE, LLE): azeotrope systems
- Phase equilibrium calculations: bubble and dew points
- Phase equilibrium calculations: flash calculation
- Diffusion (e.g., purification, water treatment, chip manufacturing,
chemical vapor deposition)
- Mass Transfer Contactors (absorptions, stripping, distillation, extraction): approx. 7% of problems
- Continuous contacting (packed): minimum rate of flow of liquid (absorption),
vapor (stripping), solvent (extraction) and reflux (distillation)
- Continuous contacting (packed): minimum number of transfer units
or stages
- Continuous contacting (packed): height and number of transfer units
or stages
- Continuous contacting (packed): types of packing
- Continuous contacting (packed): flooding?calculation of minimum
vessel diameter
- Continuous contacting (packed): feed location for distillation column/tower
- Trayed contactors: minimum rate of flow of liquid (absorption),
vapor (stripping), solvent (extraction), and reflux (distillation)
- Trayed contactors: minimum number of stages
- Trayed contactors: theoretical stages?graphical methods
- Trayed contactors: flooding?calculation of minimum vessel diameter
- Trayed contactors: stage efficiency
- Trayed contactors: feed location for distillation column/tower
- Miscellaneous Separation Processes: approx. 1% of problems
- Drying
- Adsorption (e.g., PSA, water treatment)
- Kinetics: approx. 11% of problems
- Reaction Parameters: approx. 2% of problems
- Rate constant
- Chemical equilibria
- Activation energy
- Reaction Rate: approx. 2% of problems
- Rate equation
- Order of reaction
- Analysis of experimental data from reaction systems
- Reactor Design and Evaluation: approx. 5% of problems
- Batch reactor
- Continuous stirred-tank reactor to include recycle to the reactor
- Plug-flow reactor (e.g., gas phase reactor)
- Multiple reactors in series
- Yield and selectivity
- Heterogeneous Reaction Systems: approx. 2% of problems
- Multi-phase reactors: fluidized beds
- Multi-phase reactors: packed beds
- Stability/runaway reactions
- Mixing
- Plant Design and Operation: approx. 19% of problems
- Economic Consideration: approx. 2% of problems
- Equipment-cost correlations (e.g., cost indices)/economic calculations
- Operating costs
- Time value of money
- Design and Operation: approx. 6% of problems
- Process equipment design
- Process flow sheet development
- Design optimization
- Operating manuals (e.g., startup, shutdown, maintenance)
- Equipment testing, troubleshooting, and analysis
- Safety: approx. 5% of problems
- Emergency venting devices (e.g., safety valves, blowout walls)
- Performance of scheduled audits (e.g., testing safety valves, checking
rupture, disks)
- Flares and vents
- Plant layout considerations (e.g., equipment arrangement, pipe racks,
and layouts)
- Fire protection
- Emergency ingress and egress
- Process hazard analysis
- Environmental: approx. 2% of problems
- Evaluation and permitting of gas discharges and liquid discharges
- Solid waste management (non-hazardous and hazardous)
- Industrial hygiene (e.g., MSDS, TLV, noise control, ventilation,
personal protective equipment)
- Pollution prevention
- Materials: approx. 2% of problems
- Materials properties and selection
- Structural design considerations (e.g., temperature limits, pressure
limits, thermal expansion, pressure vessels per ASME Section VIII)
- Corrosion considerations
- Process Control: approx. 2% of problems
- Sensors (e.g., choice, location)
- Controller actions
- Feed-back/feed-forward actions
- Data interpretation
Chemical Engineering PE Exam FAQs
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