Chemical Engineering is one of the “BIG FOUR” disciplines of the Engineering Science, the rest being Civil, Mechanical, and Electrical. It is also the youngest of the basic branches of the engineering discipline. A chemical engineer works in a place like the one seen in the image above. They are responsible for converting any raw material to a finished product, may it be petrol from crude oil, synthetic rubber from rubber sap, tea bags from tea leaves, sugar from sugarcane, the list goes on.
Having a humble origin in 1888, under the vision of Gorge E Davis, Chemical Engineering has come a long way over the century. The chemical engineers, have provided solutions to global food problems, the environmental pollution problems, energy needs (in terms of gas and gasoline), the longevity of human health and so on. It is a dynamic discipline whose products reach and affect all life. Right from when you wake up to you go to bed, chemical engineering is always there with you, making your life that a bit more comfortable.
Over the last century the discipline has changed a lot of focus. Chemical Engineering, has moved from its traditional forte of Oil and Gas now to Pharmaceuticals to Biological production. All this is possible because a chemical engineer is trained in physics, chemistry, mathematics and economics including biological and environmental sciences. They are now being called for to make life simple and solve the challenges that haunt the country today, may it be the issue of air pollution near the capital area, valorization of solid waste generated in major metropolitan, solving the water pollution and provide safe drinking water, better power generation devices, better medical devices and infrastructure and so on. I would urge you to have a look at the following video that has a brief idea of what chemical engineers do.
A chemical engineering graduate has ample of opportunities to work with many national and international companies. All over the world there is always a shortage of good chemical engineers. To say, three of the top ten Fortune 500 companies are chemical companies and chemical companies always make into this list under every odd. A graduate can choose from avid number of areas in chemical engineering to build their careers, may it be petroleum or petrochemical, polymers, water and wastewater, fine/bulk chemicals, pharmaceuticals, natural products, pulp and paper, food and beverages, nuclear energy, biomedical devices, paints and dyes, the list just goes on. A chemical engineer grows higher financially as they gain experience, in majority of the cases the growth is exponential.
- https://www.flickr.com/photos/jsjgeology/48916278253 (used under creative commons license)