The study examines various approaches oriented towards conceptual and numerical reduction of first-principle models, data-driven methodologies for surrogate (black box) and hybrid (grey box) modeling, and addresses the prospect of using digital twins in chemical and process engineering. In the case of numerical reduction of mechanistic models, special attention is paid to methodologies in which simulation data are used to construct light but robust numerical models while preserving all the physics of the problem, yielding reduced-order datadriven but still white-box models. In addition to reviewing various methodologies and identifying their applications in chemical engineering, including industrial process engineering, as well as fundamental research, the study outlines associated problems and challenges, as well as the risks posed by the era of big data.

A simulation-based optimization approach to design of phase excitation tapers for linear phased antenna arrays is presented. The design optimization process is accelerated by means of Surrogate-Based Optimization (SBO); it uses a coarse-mesh surrogate of the array element for adjusting the array’s active reflection coefficient responses and a fast surrogate of the antenna array radiation pattern. The primary optimization objective is to minimize side-lobes in the principal plane of the radiation pattern while scanning the main beam. The optimization outcome is a set of element phase excitation tapers versus the scan angle. The design objectives are evaluated at the high fidelity level of description using simulations of the discrete electromagnetic model of the entire array so that the effects of element coupling and other possible interaction within the array structure are accounted for. At the same time, the optimization process is fast due to SBO. Performance and numerical cost of the approach are demonstrated by optimizing a 16-element linear array of microstrip antennas. Experimental verification has been carried out for a manufactured prototype of the optimized array. It demonstrates good agreement between the radiation patterns obtained from simulations and from physical measurements (the latter constructed through superposition of the measured element patterns).