Robust scheduling of a pulp and paper mill considering flexibility provision from steam power generation

The production scheduling and flexibility provision analysis are of great importance for industrial facilities to provide support for the main power grid. This study proposes a comprehensive scheduling model for an industrial pulp and paper (P&P) mill that considers the flexibility provision from steam power generation. In this model, the internal relationships between the production and consumption of electricity, steam, and pulp in the operational processes of the P&P mill are investigated. Meanwhile, the available flexibility of steam power generation is quantified and further enhanced for participation in the manual frequency restoration reserve (MFRR) market. Furthermore, a robust scheduling model that uses support vector clustering (SVC) technology is proposed to assess the impact of uncertainties in steam temperature and pressure on the available flexibility of steam power generation, thereby reducing the probability of failing to provide the contracted flexibility for MFRR. Simulation results demonstrate that the comprehensive scheduling model significantly increases the available flexibility of steam power generation for MFRR, resulting in a daily revenue increase of $1839.8. Moreover, a balance between the revenue obtained from the MFRR market and the probability of economic penalties incurred for failing to meet the contracted flexibility is achieved by comparing different levels of conservatism in the robust scheduling model. • A comprehensive scheduling model managing steam power generation is proposed. • The available flexibility of steam power generation is enhanced. • Robust scheduling is conducted considering uncertainties in steam enthalpy. • The support vector clustering technique is employed to construct uncertainty sets.