Retrofit design of multipurpose batch plants with multiple production routes

Abstract

This work analyzes possible alterations of configuration of an existing multipurpose batch plant for which new production targets and selling profits have been specified. New equipment can be added to the batch plant in the form of a retrofit in order to become a more economical and optimal design. The retrofit problem is posed as a mixed-integer formulation (MILP). The application of the proposed model is illustrated using three examples where can be verified that the method is efficient and of easy application, when compared of the others strategies to solve the retrofit problem

Integrated batch process development based on mixed-logic dynamic optimization

“…Regarding the solution procedures, several approaches have been applied in this case: (i) optimization-based approaches where the problem was represented by MILP and MINLP models (Vaselenak et al, 1987, Wellons, 1989, Fletcher et al, 1991, Papageorgaki et al, 1992, Papageorgaki & Reklaitis, 1993, Barbosa-Póvoa & Macchietto, 1994b, Subrahmanyam et al, 1994, Georgiadis et al, 1997, Yoo et al, 1999, Carvalho & Soletti, 2000, Montagna, 2003, Goel et al, 2004, Pinto et al, 2005, by stochastic optimization models (Petkov & Maranas, 1998, Dedieu et al, 2003, Dietz et al, 2008, or by disjunctive optimization models (van den Heever , García-Ayala et al, 2012, (ii) heuristic strategies (Espuña & Puigjaner, 1989), and (iii) combined approaches that included heuristic rules and optimization techniques (Lee et al, 1993(Lee et al, , 1996. The typical decisions considered in these works are the following:…”