Using Mathematica to Teach Process Units: a Distillation Case Study

The question addressed here is how to integrate computational tools, namely interactive generalpurpose platforms, in the teaching of Process Units. Mathematica has been selected as a complementary tool to teach distillation processes, with the main objective of leading students to achieve a better understanding of the physical phenomena involved and thereafter design the corresponding equipment. This strategy has mutual benefits, allowing a good and wide understanding of the process units studied and, simultaneously, providing a perceptive way of learning how to use a computational platform to solve engineering problems. It is claimed that this methodology represents an improvement to the more traditional strategy of teaching process units and computational tools as separate courses.