This 100th Column of K. Sahasranaman will be the last for now. In the last 100 months, month after month, this feature has really enlightened our readers on very topical issues ranging from energy, environment, materials, sustainability, safety to latest digital technologies amongst other topics. His column has provided valuable, well-researched knowledge inputs in very well-written, easily readable style, which made for compulsory reading. Our deep gratitude to Sahasranaman, for his invaluable contributions that have enriched the knowledge base of thousands of our readers.
– Editor
Chemical engineers have unique skills to solve the pressing problems of our time. While they possess the rigour to drill deep into complex systems, they are also equipped to adapt to evolving environmental and societal needs. Their training in diligent dissection and systematic synthesis puts them in a position to lead sustainable changes across
industries.
Why Chemical Engineering Matters Even More Today
C
hemical engineers who graduate from college are often employed as “process engineers.” This is more than a convenient job title; it reflects a powerful way of thinking. A process, after all, is a transformation — a series of steps that turns a set of inputs into a desired output. But this mindset of transformation isn’t limited to a chemical plant. It appears in the kitchen, where ingredients become a meal; in the human body, where food becomes energy; and even in the world of finance, where capital becomes profit. A chemical engineer sees the world as a set of interconnected systems, each capable of improvement, optimisation, and renewal.
This worldview has made chemical engineers valuable well beyond the factory floor. In fact, many find fulfilling and lucrative careers in investment banks, consulting firms, and tech companies — not in spite of their training, but because of it. And in today’s world, their unique blend of skills and mental models may be more relevant than ever.
Boxed Thinking: Inputs, Outputs, Constraints
A chemical engineer typically begins solving a problem by mentally drawing a box:
- The left side represents the inputs.
- The right side represents the outputs.
- The boundaries represent the constraints — such as cost, safety, efficiency, and sustainability.
This habit of boxed thinking is deceptively simple but deeply powerful. It forces clarity, structure, and accountability. What goes in? What must come out? And under what limitations?Inside this box, the chemical engineer balances equations, evaluates trade-offs, and identifies opportunities. It is here that mathematical precision meets chemical intuition. Chemical engineering is a harmonious marriage of mathematics and chemistry: the former offers rigour and structure, while the latter lends flexibility, creativity, and a talent for transformation. Together, they create thinkers who are uniquely trained to dissect complexity and synthesise solutions.
Three Distinctive Problem-Solving Skills
Certain problem-solving skills taught in chemical engineering stand out for their uniqueness and lasting relevance:
Material and Energy Balances
This is the bedrock of process engineering. Every gram of material and every unit of energy must be accounted for. It fosters discipline, clarity, and accountability — attributes vital not only in plant design but also in tackling environmental and energy problems.
Understanding and Managing Rates
Chemical engineers are trained to think in terms of rates — how fast something happens. Whether it’s a chemical reaction, a heat transfer, or a supply chain response, rate processes shape the efficiency and feasibility of any system. This thinking also translates into project execution, where identifying the critical path — the sequence of steps that determines the duration of a project — is essential.
Prioritisation Under Constraints
With limited time and resources, which steps do you accelerate? Where do you deploy capital for the biggest return? These are questions chemical engineers learn to answer early. In that sense, their training naturally overlaps with the thinking required in operations, strategy, and business management.
Bridging the Fear Gap
Yet many aspiring students are deterred from entering this field. Some are intimidated by the level of mathematics involved; others feel overwhelmed by the depth of chemistry. What they often don’t see is how these disciplines, though demanding, forge a way of thinking that is unmatched in clarity and power. Chemical engineers are not only trained to analyse systems in detail but also to synthesise complex information into actionable outcomes. This dual capability — of dissection and integration — is what makes them so adaptable and future-ready.
Educators and policymakers have a role to play here. The beauty and versatility of chemical engineering need to be better communicated, and introductory curricula must be made more welcoming without sacrificing rigour. If we are to build a generation equipped to solve grand challenges, we must inspire confidence in those standing at the threshold.
Dissection and Synthesis: The Twin Engines
What truly sets chemical engineers apart is their dual ability to dissect a problem into its components and to synthesise those components into workable, elegant solutions. They are system thinkers, trained to look at the whole, understand its parts, and then design interventions that improve performance, reduce waste, and enhance sustainability. This is not unlike the way nature works.
Nature, after all, is the original process engineer — recycling matter endlessly, balancing inputs and outputs, and operating with remarkable energy efficiency. The photosynthetic leaf, the self-healing skin, the carbon cycle — each offers inspiration. Chemical engineers are uniquely equipped to learn from nature and translate its wisdom into practice. Whether it’s designing biodegradable polymers, developing carbon capture technologies, or building circular economies, they can turn biomimicry into reality.
Relevance in Today’s World
As the world grapples with existential challenges such as climate change, resource depletion, plastic pollution, and the energy transition, chemical engineers find themselves at the heart of potential solutions. They are building the electrolysers that generate green hydrogen, redesigning materials to be recyclable, creating processes to convert waste into fuel, and enabling industrial decarbonisation at scale. They don’t just optimise existing systems; they invent new paradigms.
Chemical engineers are uniquely comfortable working across length scales — from molecular design to plant layout — and time scales, from milliseconds in reaction kinetics to decades in infrastructure lifespans. They think in terms of cycles, efficiencies, and feedback loops. In a world increasingly aware of its planetary boundaries, these habits of mind are no longer niche; they are indispensable.
Moreover, their versatility is unmatched. A chemical engineer can design a petrochemical complex one year and a specialty biotech plant the next. The mental agility to move across domains and sectors is rare — and trained, not accidental. From pharmaceuticals to renewable energy, from agrochemicals to nanomaterials, chemical engineers are not just present, but pivotal.
A Personal Reflection
A few weeks after my graduation, I met one of my father’s old friends. Curious, he asked me to explain chemical engineering. I couldn’t. He handed me a sheet of carbon paper and asked if I could set up a factory to make it. I was nonplussed. Years later, while working for an engineering design company, I finally understood. It wasn’t about carbon paper or any one material. It was about solving any problem — with method, creativity, and precision. It was about balancing inputs and outputs, thinking in terms of rate and constraint, and building sustainable, scalable systems. Chemical engineers solve problems that others cannot.
Epilogue
In a world that urgently needs better systems, smarter use of resources, and cleaner processes, chemical engineers offer more than equations and blueprints. They bring a mindset — analytical yet creative, structured yet flexible. They are the dissectors and the synthesisers, the box-drawers and the boundary-challengers, the translators of nature’s wisdom into human ingenuity.
To the student unsure of whether to pursue this path: the effort is worth it. To the policymaker charting a national course: invest in these thinkers. For the future will belong not just to those who can analyse problems, but to those who can also reimagine solutions. And that is why chemical engineering matters now more than ever.
Readers’ responses may be sent to: k.sahasranaman@gmail.com or chemindigest@gmail.com
