FE Chemical · reference handbook
The FE Reference Handbook for chemical engineers
There is one FE Reference Handbook for all FE disciplines, on screen during the exam. The chemical specification tells you which data in it you are expected to read; this page turns that into a drill list.
FE Chemical practice test Exam facts
Updated Oct 29, 2026 · Not affiliated with NCEES.
- ExamFE Chemical
- supplied on screenFE Reference Handbook
- design standards suppliedNone
- Checked
What you get on exam day
| Fact | Detail | Source | Checked |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reference supplied | FE Reference Handbook, on screen as a searchable PDFThe current version is free in your MyNCEES account; on exam day search with the box on the left (Ctrl+F does not work); no personal copies. | NCEES Examinee Guide, May 2026 (PDF) · NCEES: FE exam [1][2] | |
| Design standards supplied | None | NCEES Examinee Guide, May 2026 (PDF) [1] | |
| Units | SI and USCS | NCEES: FE Chemical specifications, July 2020 (PDF) [3] | |
| Calculator | Any Casio fx-115 or fx-991 model, the HP 33s or HP 35s, or any TI-30X or TI-36X model; one in the room, plus an on-screen TI-30XSThe list is reviewed every year; spares stay in your locker. | NCEES: calculator policy (2026 list) · NCEES Examinee Guide, May 2026 (PDF) [1][4] |
Data the specification expects you to read
The Thermodynamics area of the chemical specification names the property data outright: steam tables, psychrometric charts, T-s, P-h, x-y and T-x-y diagrams. Every one of them is a reading skill, not a formula, and each costs time if you meet it first on exam day.
- Steam data: read saturated properties by temperature and by pressure and superheated properties, interpolating once in each.
- x-y and T-x-y diagrams: read a bubble point and a dew point, and the composition of a vapor in equilibrium with a given liquid.
- P-h and T-s diagrams: follow a constant-entropy line and read enthalpy at both ends.
- Psychrometric chart: humidity ratio and wet-bulb temperature for a dryer or humidifier.
Two charts NCEES has corrected
The friction chart is titled "Moody, Darcy, or Stanton Friction Factor Diagram" in the NCEES errata notice of June 2021, so it reads the Darcy factor; what that means if you learned Fanning is under fluid mechanics traps. The same notice corrected the Mollier (h-s) diagram for steam, whose enthalpy scale is in Btu/lb. Practice from the current MyNCEES download, not an older print.
A search drill per section
On exam day you search with the box on the left of the PDF; Ctrl+F does nothing. Before then, open your MyNCEES copy and test one term per area, noting which word lands on the right page and which lands on another discipline’s chapter:
- Balances: combustion, recycle, enthalpy of formation.
- Thermodynamics: Raoult, fugacity, activity coefficient, Gibbs.
- Heat transfer: log mean, effectiveness, fouling.
- Mass transfer: McCabe, HETP, Henry, drying.
- Fluids: Ergun, orifice, NPSH, power law.
- Reactions: Arrhenius, CSTR, plug flow, selectivity.
- Control and safety: first-order, PID, LEL, TLV.
A term that returns nothing tells you what to memorize, or to work out from first principles, rather than look up.
More on FE Chemical
- FE Chemical overviewWhat FE Chemical covers, how it is scored, its pass rate and the path to a PE
- FE Chemical practice testProblems weighted like the July 2020 Chemical outline, every option explained
- FE Chemical exam info and pass rateFormat, rules, reference and eight half-years of pass rates
- FE Chemical costNCEES fee, expected attempts, board fees and practice materials
- FE Chemical study guideA study plan by the July 2020 weights, plus the costly traps
Source notes
- NCEES Examinee Guide, May 2026 (PDF) ncees.org · checked Oct 29, 2026
- NCEES: FE exam ncees.org · checked Oct 29, 2026
- NCEES: FE Chemical specifications, July 2020 (PDF) ncees.org · checked Oct 29, 2026
- NCEES: calculator policy (2026 list) ncees.org · checked Oct 29, 2026
Handbook questions from chemical engineers
Do chemical engineers get their own handbook?
No. All FE disciplines use the same FE Reference Handbook; the chemical specification decides which parts of it you need.
May I bring a printed copy into the test center?
No personal copies are allowed. The exam supplies the current version on screen, and the same version is a free MyNCEES download for practice.
Handbook-style problems on your phone
FE Chemical questions, answers and worked solutions in a study app.
Not affiliated with NCEES.