Design And Optimization Of Energy Efficient Complex Separation Networks

Separation processes account for about 50% percent of capital and operating costs. Separations also require the highest energy demand in the chemical industry. Rising energy consumption combined with the environmental impact increases the need for energy saving separation processes. Fortunately complex column networks have the potential for major energy savings estimated to range between 30 to 70% over simple column configurations. In this paper, a computer-aided synthesis method is introduced to create optimal complex column arrangements which encode the cost and states of global solutions with minimum user input. A robust feasibility test helps to ensure realizable operation of systematically generated networks. This method builds on thermodynamic transformations entitled Temperature Collocation which provides crucial advantages to determine the operating conditions, structure, and size of the separation network for achieving the desired product cuts. The computational approach guarantees realizable column profiles validated with industrially accepted simulation software such as Aspen HYSYS.