Isobutylene under control: Kuzbass students have found a solution to a difficult problem

Ten KuzSTU teams took part in the qualifying stage of the XIII season of the Student League of the International Engineering CASE-IN Championship in the direction of Petrochemistry. The guys were solving a problem from SIBUR.

The essence of the case was to develop technological solutions to reduce isobutylene losses in production. In the current mode of operation of the column, a valuable component was lost along with the cubic product.

The first place was taken by the Inertia team. Kristina Belousova, Mikhail Garadzha (IHNT), Sofya Gorpinich (IEU) and Captain Vladislav Chirva (IHNT) presented two decisions to the expert commission. The first is the change in the flow rate of the cubic part in the distillation column. In the second case, they suggested changing the boiler to a new one to increase the heat exchange surface.

"We spent four days mastering the DWSim program, ten days developing solutions and economics, and then 12 hours creating a presentation," Vladislav Chirva shared his training experience.

According to the captain of the Inertia, the key success factors were: team cohesion, well-developed visualization, knowledge of the strengths and weaknesses of the solution, and a lot of work.

"Surprisingly, the jury's questions were not difficult. We were well prepared and knew the strengths and weaknesses of our work. Besides, our unity helped. We met every day and solved the case for six hours, if not more. A detailed visual also helped. The presentation made it easier for us to speak and helped us better convey information to the experts," Vladislav explained.

Inertia also has an answer to the question of what qualities members of a strong team should possess. According to the captain, first of all, you need to have a vision, be able to work with information, find it efficiently and structure it. It is also important to be able to learn in case the skills are not enough.

"In addition, it is important to be able to work in a team and make it effective. It is necessary to support the team members at every stage. For example, to make them less worried before the performance," added the captain of the team.

The second place in the direction of Petrochemistry was taken by the Grapefruits team: captain Valeria Kolmogorova, Veronika Yamashkina, Kirill Bezuglov – INHT, Daria Neskorodyeva – IEU. The guys proposed a method for changing the temperature of the column and the mass of the feed of raw materials.

"This year, for the first time, we had to model our solution. Therefore, in my opinion, these skills should have already been there, so it was difficult to do everything yourself from scratch. That was the most difficult thing!" said Kirill Bezuglov.

The team "MILA" became the bronze medalist. IHT students: Captain Elizaveta Fil, Irina Dotsenko, Alexey Ivanov and Mikhail Luzin (IE) presented a comprehensive solution that includes equipment modernization and process automation. Last season, the team also achieved significant success, winning in the nomination "Best Video Visionary" and "Breakthrough Solution" in the finale of the main season of the CASE-IN championship.

Elizaveta Fil, the captain of the MILA, explained that there were difficulties with solving the case this year. The reason was the lack of skills in modeling and knowledge of relevant programs.

"I had to find the software on the Internet and take an accelerated course of study. In general, we have wonderful and incredibly smart guys in our team. I am grateful to them! We decided to keep the old name – "MILA" – these are the first letters of our names. Misha is a great IT specialist and designer, Ira is meticulous in a positive way and an excellent analyst, Lyosha is a cool technologist, and I am the coordinator of the work. To assemble a winning team, it is necessary that everyone has a desire to work. All my guys' eyes are on fire, and that's great," she said.

Vladislav Chirva, the captain of Inertia, shared the team's plans, saying that the guys plan to work on leadership skills, the ability to speak publicly and create presentations.

"This year's case was difficult, and the ability to solve complex problems will greatly help in professional development. The championship also teaches us how to share experiences. For example, I didn't know all the nuances of "economics," but thanks to "CASE-IN," I know more now than I did last year. The most important thing is that solving a case teaches you how to work in a team. In my opinion, this is still the most important thing!" emphasized Vladislav Chirva.

The guys from the Grapefruit team They believe that the championship provides an opportunity to discover both the skills of performing in front of a large audience and helps to look into the future.: "After all, it's important to understand which way you want to move on, where you want to work, and invent something."

Elizaveta Fil, the captain of MILA, plans to develop and lead her team further for new victories: "Solving cases can help in the work at the enterprise, as breakthrough solutions are in demand there. I would like to develop in this direction. And of course, become a TOP 1. I think the guys will support me. So we are waiting for next spring!"

It should be noted that the CASE-IN championship provides the winners with unique opportunities. Students can count on the opportunity of preferential admission to master's and postgraduate studies, internships in partner companies, and participation in industry youth forums.

Vyacheslav Solodov, Candidate of Technical Sciences, Head of Science and Innovative Technologies at Koks PJSC, noted the high level of training of the participants: "This year, I am especially pleased that students are actively trying to apply modern approaches – digitalization, programs for forecasting technological processes, etc. Some teams really understood the task in depth and offered comprehensive solutions."

The expert also believes that the winners of the qualifying stage should indicate their achievements in their resume, but it is important not just to write "winner", but to briefly explain that this is an engineering case championship, where their solution to a technological problem was recognized as the best.

"It is especially valuable for technology companies to see that a person already has experience analyzing production tasks," Vyacheslav Solodov added.

Reference. The expert commission of the qualifying stage of the XIII season of the Student League of the International Engineering CASE-IN Championship: Andrey Gadenov, Head of the Kemerovo Coal Expertise Center, Andrey Papin, Associate Professor of the Department of Solid Fuel Chemical Technology at KuzSTU, Evgeny Sivachev, Senior Engineer at KAO Azot, Vyacheslav Solodov, Head of Science and Innovative Technologies at Koks PJSC, Viktor Tikhonov, Director of the Institute of Chemical and Oil and Gas Technologies of KuzSTU, Vladimir Tretyakov, Head of the Department of Chemical Technology of Plastics, Organic Substances and Petrochemistry of KuzSTU.

The partner of the direction is PJSC SIBUR Holding, a global player in the global petrochemical market. The company sets really ambitious goals for itself and always strives for more.

By processing by-products of oil and gas production into plastics, rubbers and other products, SIBUR prevents about 7 million tons of pollutants from entering the atmosphere, which is comparable to the annual gross emissions of countries such as Malta, Cyprus, Iceland. The company's products are used in many sectors of the economy around the world: construction, food industry, medicine and pharmaceuticals, agriculture and others. For several years in a row, SIBUR has been ranked among the top employers by HeadHunter, FutureToday and Forbes, and its team brings together the best industry professionals who create breakthrough solutions for the petrochemical industry, integrating the experience of different generations, including young professionals. Currently, approximately 30% of the company's employees are specialists under the age of 27.

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