However, the emerging discipline of process miniaturization will involve integrated knowledge from many areas; as examples, systems engineering and design, remote measurement and control using intelligent sensors, biological process systems engineering, and advanced manufacturing robotics, etc.
The economy of scale concept, as taught to chemical engineers, has led to the notion that one of the objectives of process development and design is to achieve “economy of scale” by scaling-up to the largest possible size processing plant so that the product cost can be economically affordable.
This disciplinary philosophy has been reinforced by example designs in the petroleum refining and petrochemical industries, where feedstocks have been transported as fluids in pipelines, large tanker ships, and railcars.
Process which can automatically self-optimize through advanced algorithms developed by microprocess engineers will be embedded, and only accessible to the knowledge-owner.
It will become more difficult to control intellectual property through the traditional method of patents; therefore, trademarks, brand recognition, and copyright laws will play a more important role in value security for knowledge-based businesses of the future.
The miniaturized process technology may simply involve transformation of solid biomass materials from multiple distributed microprocesses into more easily manageable fluids.
Small villages in India and other places in the world have learned to produce biogas from animal manure in what could be considered small-scale microprocesses for the production of energy.
Water, dissolved organic and inorganic compounds, and solid particulates of various size can be present in biomass processes.
It is perhaps the development of microbial fuel cells where the philosophical thinking of process miniaturization will play a wider role.
can create enormous innovations, given recent advances in membrane materials of construction, immobilized whole cell methodologies, metabolic engineering, and nanotechnology.
The challenges of microbial fuel cells relate mainly to finding lower cost manufacturing methods, materials of construction, and systems design.
However, even with existing designs which generate low power, there are applications in distribution of electrical recharging systems to remote areas of Africa, where smart phone, can enable access to the vast information of the internet, and to provide lighting.
[2] As discussed by Chu, the reactors would be manufactured in a factory-like situation and then transported, intact by rail or ship to different parts of the country or world.