Скачать или смотреть Degree-of-Freedom Analysis (Material and Energy Balances Episode 12)

I like to compare a "Degree-of-Freedom (DoF) Analysis" to counting the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle before you start solving it. If you don't have the correct number of pieces from the beginning, you shouldn't spend your time in the hopes of completing the puzzle!

Material and Energy Balance problems are similar—in order to be solved, we need an equation for every unknown. Making sure this condition is satisfied can help you to avoid frustration and confusion as you are solving.

Sophomore Chemical Engineering students tend to believe that every "textbook" problem is appropriately specified. And, while this is somewhat true, learning how to perform a degree-of-freedom analysis is incredibly important for "real-world" problems, which may not always be quite so well-defined.

A DoF has some practical benefits for students as well. As problems increase in complexity, the DoF provides a "road map" for what to do next.

Recommended Textbook Reading: Felder, Rousseau, and Bullard (4th Ed.) section 4.3d