Summer University at DTU Chemical Engineering

Take your chemical engineering skills beyond the classroom at DTU Chemical Engineering’s Pilot Plant. Join international students at our Lyngby Campus in June and July 2027 for an intensive Summer University course in Large-Scale Chemical Unit Operations, combining academic insight with hands-on experience using industrial-scale equipment.

DTU Chemical Engineering's Summer University offers an ambitious and unique program with practical exercises covering a wide range of unit operations at our large and modern pilot-plant facility. By performing experiments on large-scale pilot equipment, you will combine theoretical knowledge with hands-on experience and data analysis. This will deepen your understanding of the unit operations and processes used in the chemical, biochemical, pharmaceutical and food industries.

Learning objectives

The main learning objectives are to explore the opportunities, challenges and interpretations involved in applying theory to large-scale experiments. You will also become familiar with equipment similar to that used in industry and gain hands-on experience operating it.

DTU Chemical Engineering’s pilot plant facility is considered one of the largest of its kind in the world. It comprises more than 30 large-scale pilot plant set-ups, representing most of the unit operations used in the modern chemical, biochemical, pharmaceutical and food industries.

As a DTU Summer University student, you will strengthen your theoretical understanding, practical skills and process knowledge through six half-day or full-day experiments. In teams of two students you will plan the experimental work, carry out a thorough safety assessment, prepare the utilities and equipment, operate the set-up, analyse relevant samples and respond to changing process parameters. After each experiment, you will prepare a scientific report based on theory and the data you have collected. You will calculate and analyse the results, draw well-founded conclusions and discuss your findings critically, giving you a deeper academic understanding of each unit operation. By the end of the course, you will have gained valuable insight into how process engineers approach and solve practical engineering challenges.

"This program is unique in offering an outstanding experience with equipment at pilot plant scale, phenomenal staff, as well as the opportunity to explore Denmark." Isabel Weinhofer, Case Western Reserve University, attended Summer University in 2023

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Time and date

28 June to 22 July 2027

The course “Large Scale Exercises in Process Technology and Chemical Unit Operations” is specially designed for international non-DTU students.

The main objective of the course is to give students hands-on experience with practical chemical unit operations using large-scale process equipment under conditions that are as close as possible to those found in the chemical, biochemical, food and pharmaceutical industries.

The course focuses on the students’ ability to operate, align and control process equipment during experimental work. Students will become familiar with the practical operation of industrial equipment and its associated utilities. Data acquisition for most exercises is performed automatically.

For each exercise, students will prepare a report that demonstrates general engineering and scientific standards. The reports should analyse the experimental results and compare them with the relevant theory of the unit operation.

Over the course of four weeks, students work in teams of two and perform six practical exercises, each followed by a written report. DTU offers a broad selection of more than 30 practical unit operations within the areas of basic transport phenomena, traditional chemical engineering unit operations and biotechnological unit operations. Each practical exercise lasts from half a day, one day and up to two consecutive days

See the selection of unit operations and a short description of the equipment and exercises at the following link: Course exercises and equipment

Your home university may have specific requirements or restrictions regarding which exercises you are allowed or required to select.

Comprehensive instruction manuals are provided for all exercises. The manuals include a short description of the unit operation and equipment, step-by-step instructions for performing the exercise, report questions and a relevant theory section. Many of the exercises also provide separate video instructions to support the students’ preparation.

All practical exercises are facilitated by DTU teachers. Report assessment, grading and feedback may be carried out by a grader from the student’s home university if such a person is present. Otherwise, these tasks will be carried out by DTU teachers.

In addition to the six technical exercises, each team will give an oral presentation at the end of the course on a non-technical subject related to Danish or Scandinavian culture. Possible topics include political, historical, social or artistic aspects of Danish or Scandinavian culture.

Upon completion of the course, each student will receive an official course transcript showing the final grade for the entire course. The course is worth 8 ECTS credits.

Please see the “Requirements” subpage for the academic requirements of the course.

The course is intensive and demanding, and students should expect to spend time working on their reports during weekends. Extended tourist activities should therefore be planned either before or after the course.

You can read also about the course in the official DTU course database here:

28123 Large Scale Exercises in Process Technology and Chemical Unit Operations - 4 weeks Summer University for International students

Jacquelin Stanberry, Crimson University

"While I was taking the Unit Operations Laboratory class abroad, I learned how to effectively get work done within a condensed timeline. I have since been able to improve my time management and study skills and have seen the pay-off of, not only in the Unit Operations course, but in courses I have taken since then."
Attended in 2023

Quick facts
Dates	Monday 28 June to Thursday 22 July 2027
Experiments and reports	Working in pairs, students will complete six practical chemical unit operation exercises. Each practical experiment lasts approximately half a day to one day (fermentation exercise is two days), and each report takes approximately two days to prepare. All exercises are facilitated by DTU teachers.
Laboratory hours	Monday – Friday, 8:30 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Safety equipment	We recommend that students bring their own lab coat and safety glasses, however personal protective equipment may be provided by DTU. Closed-toe shoes and long trousers are mandatory during all experimental work.
Oral presentation	Each team gives a short oral presentation on a non-technical topic related to Danish or Scandinavian culture, such as politics, history, society or art.
Assessment	Report correction, grading and feedback are supervised by the accompanying grader from the student’s home university. If the university does not provide a travelling grader, DTU teachers will undertake this work.
Transcript and credits	Upon completion, each student receives an official DTU transcript of participation stating the final grade for the course on the American grading scale. The course is worth 8 ECTS credits.
Workload	The course is intensive and demanding, and students should expect to work on reports during weekends. Extended tourist activities should be planned before or after the course.

Agathe Hellich, University College London

The course is well-organised and intense, with a competent and committed pedagogical team. You get to learn on the theory, see the hands-on operation, and analyse the data that you get out, to relate it back to the theory. This full loop approach made me adopt a true engineering mindset, i.e. contrasting expectations of the process to real life situations you have to deal with.
Attended in 2023

Undergraduate level knowledge of chemical engineering
Undergraduate-level knowledge of inorganic and organic chemistry, mass and energy balances and general chemical analytical methods and calculations is required. Students must also have a basic understanding of Process & Instrumentation diagrams (P&I diagrams).
The required level of theoretical knowledge of unit operation is equivalent to that covered in the textbook by McCabe et al. "Unit Operations of Chemical Engineering".
Fluency in spoken and written English is required.
Students must have received approval from their home university through the application registration form. (See Registration section)

To register, please complete the application agreement form. Your home university must approve your participation. Registration is final only when DTU has received your payment.

Payment and Registration due date

The course fee is USD 3,300. This amount covers tuition, educational materials, and DTU offered social events and excursions.

For accommodation options, please see the Accommodation section below.

Registration is not valid until payment has been received. A maximum of approximately 80 students can be accepted.

Cancellations made by 1 June are eligible for a refund of the course fee, subject to an administrative fee of USD 100. For cancellations made after 1 June, a fee of USD 500 will apply.

Hotel or BaseCamp cancellation fees are subject to the respective provider’s terms and conditions.

Enrolled participants will in due time receive a detailed study program and practical information about transport, sightseeing, shopping and other relevant matters.

Please note that your application is not accepted until the course fee has been paid.

To reserve a place on the course, please send your filled out registration form by email to: kt-summer-university@kt.dtu.dk. Your reservation must be confirmed afterwards by payment of the course fee no later than 31 March.

Payment details

Please pay via the following link: The payment link is not yet available and will be added soon.

Please note: American Express cannot be used to pay the tuition fee.

Our Address

Technical University of Denmark
Building 228A
Søltoft Plads
2800 Kgs. Lyngby

Questions

Should you have any questions, please feel free to contact course responsible Pilot Plant Manager Steen Larsen, (stelar@kt.dtu.dk) or coordinator Janne Møller Karkov, (jmoka@kt.dtu.dk) who can assist you with the practical questions.

Housing and course start

The course runs from Monday 28 June to Thursday 22 July 2027

Students or their home universities are responsible for arranging and paying for accommodation. We recommend the following options:

Four Points Flex by Sheraton, Lyngby

Four Points Flex by Sheraton Lyngby is the hotel closest to DTU and is within reasonable walking distance of the campus. For current rates and booking enquiries, please call +45 70 235 635.

BaseCamp

We have negotiated a special rate for Summer University participants at the modern BaseCamp student residence in Lyngby.

The price includes accommodation in a studio apartment from 26 June to 25 July 2027, including utilities, bed linen and a towel. The 2027 rate will be added as soon as it is available.

Each studio is a self-contained apartment with a kitchenette and private bathroom. BaseCamp offers several room types that vary in size and layout. Rooms are allocated at random, so a specific room type cannot be requested or guaranteed. However, all rooms include a private bathroom and kitchenette, and the price is the same regardless of the room allocated.

If you would like to reserve a studio apartment at BaseCamp, please contact the course coordinator, Janne Møller Karkov, at kt-summer-university@kt.dtu.dk and pay the accommodation fee together with the course fee no later than 31 March 2027.

We cannot guarantee a reservation at BaseCamp unless payment is received by this deadline.

BaseCamp is approximately a 30-minute walk from the DTU campus. Alternatively, students may travel by train and bus or rent a bicycle.

In accordance with BaseCamp’s cancellation policy, cancellations made after 1 May will incur a charge of 50% of the accommodation fee, while cancellations made after 1 June will incur a charge of 100%.

Arrival

Please arrive at your accommodation no later than Sunday, 27 June, as the course starts at 9:00 a.m. on Monday, 28 June. The course ends on the afternoon of Thursday, 22 July.

For accompanying university graders, we may be able to offer on-campus accommodation at special rates. Please contact us for further information.

The Pilot Plant digitalization project started in 2021 and consists of two main pillars: A virtual reality (VR) environment to help students in the preparation and operation of the unit operations and web-based user interfaces for monitoring and controlling the setups. Both pillars are under continuous development but were deployed for the first time during the 2022 Summer University. The students are provided with tablets to access the VR environment during the exercises and operate the units via the web-based user interface.

The VR environment is freely available. Simply download the present4D app, either from your app store or the download section of the present4D website. Once installed, enter the portal key TYJ-QJN. Afterwards, you will see for which unit operations the VR can be downloaded.

The new web-based user interface, also referred to as supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) system, allows users to monitor and control unit operations from a tablet (provided by Pilot Plant) or any device with a web-browser and without the need to install any additional software. Besides executing experiments, the system is also used to log data and automatically forward it to an SQL database for future data science projects.

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Another aspect of the digitalization project are virtual lab tours and 360 panorama videos and pictures. See below.

Grant van Horn, Virginia Tech

'DTU's Summer University provided me with an unmatched opportunity to collaborate with exceptional faculty and student peers from all over the world. Working with world-class equipment in an open, international setting has given me social, academic, and professional perspective that has guided me in all of my endeavors since.'
Attended the course in 2022