Integrating Python and Microsoft Excel in teaching parametric optimization in Process Engineering
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.35699/2237-5864.2025.52342Keywords:
parametric optimization, didactic methodology, Microsoft Excel, Python, Chemical EngineeringAbstract
This study presents a teaching methodology for parametric optimization in a Chemical Engineering class at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte (Brazil), using Microsoft Excel and Python. The methodology was organized into three progressive phases. In the first, a questionnaire was applied to assess the students' prior knowledge. In the second, more realistic optimization problems were discussed in class, highlighting the limitations of traditional analytical approaches and presenting the basic functionalities of the tools adopted. In the final phase, students were challenged to solve a complex optimization problem involving a network of heat exchangers, using the two tools mentioned. Although 57.14% of the students opted for non-computerized analytical methods in the questionnaire proposed in the initial phase, the problem in the final phase was successfully solved, resulting in a score of 8.0 in the numerical assessment. This reflects the success of the intervention carried out during phase 2, guided by the results obtained in phase 1 of the research. Python and Excel have proven to be effective tools for teaching parametric optimization, even in small and heterogeneous classes.
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