GATE 2026 Chemical Engineering (CH) Detailed Analysis
Analysis of the Exam held on Feb 7, 2026 | Afternoon Session
Overall Paper Difficulty
The GATE 2026 CH paper maintained a Moderate difficulty profile. Students reported that the paper was more application-oriented than theoretical. The Chemical Reaction Engineering and Thermodynamics sections were conceptually deep, while Process Calculations involved lengthy NAT (Numerical Answer Type) questions.
Aptitude: Easy
Maths: Moderate
Core: Moderate-Difficult
Subject-Wise Marks Weightage
Subject Domain
Marks (Approx)
Key Focus Topics in 2026
Chemical Reaction Eng. (CRE)
10-12 Marks
Non-ideal Reactors, Catalyst Deactivation, RTD.
Mass Transfer
8-10 Marks
Distillation (McCabe-Thiele), Absorption, Drying.
Heat Transfer
8 Marks
LMTD, Effectiveness-NTU, Radiation Shields.
Thermodynamics
8-10 Marks
VLE (Raoult’s Law), Fugacity, Solution Thermo.
Fluid Mechanics
7-9 Marks
Bernoulli’s Eq, Pipe Flow (Friction), Pumps.
Instrumentation & Control
6-8 Marks
Transfer Functions, PID Controllers, Stability.
Expected Qualifying Cutoff 2026
Based on the paper's difficulty and the 2025 cutoff (27.7 for General), the 2026 qualifying marks are expected to be in a similar range.
Category
2026 (Expected)
2025 (Actual)
2024 (Actual)
General (GEN)
25.0 - 28.0
27.7
25.2
OBC-NCL / EWS
22.5 - 25.0
24.9
22.6
SC / ST / PwD
16.5 - 19.0
18.4
16.7
IIT & PSU Admission Thresholds
Chemical Engineering remains a top choice for PSUs like IOCL, ONGC, and BPCL. Safe scores for 2026 admissions and recruitment are:
Short tests, one topic at a time, with every answer explained.
Double-checked questions Real exam pattern 1 free test every month, then ₹9 per test
Try before you buy free, no payment
SampleGATE Chemical Engineering · Free sample (4 questions)A few questions in the exact player you get after buying: the clock, the question palette, then your score and every answer explained.
#1
Ideal Gas Law Applications Fundamentals | GATE Chemical Engineering
Start here
10 Qs · ~10 min
Instant score, answer review and weak-topic diagnosis
#2
Non Isothermal CSTR Design Advanced Challenge | GATE Chemical Engineering
10 Qs · ~10 min
Instant score, answer review and weak-topic diagnosis
#3
Fugacity in Vapor Liquid Equilibrium Advanced Challenge | GATE Chemical Engineering
10 Qs · ~10 min
Instant score, answer review and weak-topic diagnosis
#4
GATE General Aptitude — Grammar and Vocabulary (GATE 2026 pattern)
10 Qs · ~10 min
Instant score, answer review and weak-topic diagnosis
#5
GATE General Aptitude — Statements and Logical Inference (GATE 2026 pattern)
10 Qs · ~10 min
Instant score, answer review and weak-topic diagnosis
#6
GATE General Aptitude — Arrangements and Puzzles (GATE 2026 pattern)
10 Qs · ~10 min
Instant score, answer review and weak-topic diagnosis
#7
GATE General Aptitude — Numbers, Algebra and Logarithms (GATE 2026 pattern)
10 Qs · ~10 min
Instant score, answer review and weak-topic diagnosis
#8
GATE General Aptitude — Counting, Probability and Geometry (GATE 2026 pattern)
10 Qs · ~10 min
Instant score, answer review and weak-topic diagnosis
