The optimal solution of the chemical dynamic optimization problem is the basis of automatic control operation in the chemical process, which can reduce energy consumption, increase production efficiency, and maximize economic benefit. In this paper, a modified sailfish optimizer (MSFO) combined with an equal division method is proposed for solving chemical dynamic optimization problems. Based on the basic sailfish optimizer, firstly, the tent chaotic mapping strategy is introduced to disturb the initialization of sailfish and sardine populations to avoid the loss of population diversity. Secondly, an adaptive linear reduction strategy of attack parameters is proposed to enhance the exploration and exploitation ability of sailfish. Thirdly, the updating formula of sardine position is modified, and the global optimal solution is used to attract all sardine positions, which can avoid the premature phenomenon of the algorithm. Eventually, the MSFO is applied to solve six classical optimization cases of chemical engineering to evaluate its feasibility. The experimental results are analyzed and compared with other optimization methods to prove the superiority of the MSFO in solving chemical dynamic optimization problems.