Debalina Sengupta
Associate Director, TEES Gas and Fuels Research Center Food, Energy, Water Nexus Coordinator, Texas A&M Energy Institute
Perspectives for Integrating Sustainability and Resilience for the Future of Process Development
Dr. Sengupta's talk highlights the critical role of Process Systems Engineering (PSE) in advancing sustainable process development for manufacturing and beyond. Over the past 50 years, it has become evident that scientific and technological progress must align with societal and ecological needs. This interconnectedness is essential for the sustainability of linked systems involving technology, ecology, and society.
Current trends in process development need to incorporate an “all energy mix” approach for feedstock and utilities. This also emphasizes the need for advanced process analytical methods to evaluate future energy systems and integrate these methodologies into engineering disciplines. Her talk covers complex systems analysis through data analytics, life cycle assessment, and optimization methods. Her case studies will include resource conservation (e.g., regional water systems modeling), low carbon technologies (e.g., advanced reforming technologies with carbon sequestration, electrification), and energy mix (e.g., pros and cons of biofuels and other renewable energy systems).
The sustainability of systems is closely tied to the resilience of technological, economic, social, and ecological systems. Recent shocks to enterprises and infrastructure due to natural disasters underscore the importance of resilience. Traditional disaster resilience research and policy have focused on physical infrastructure, but social infrastructure needs are often overlooked. Developing resilience in technical systems differs from economic or social systems, yet meticulous design and operation can enhance the resilience of interconnected systems. Enhanced disaster resilience indicators are needed to assess community capacity for resilience. In this regard, a reevaluation of manufacturing process design, introducing convergence research, sustainability metrics, and the 12 principles of disaster resilient design will be explored.