Synthesis and heat integration of thermally coupled complex distillation system

Based on stochastic optimization strategy and pinch technique, a method is proposed for optimal synthesis and heat integration of thermally coupled complex distillation column systems comprising simple columns, complex columns with side rectifier and/or side stripper as well as partially or fully thermally coupled (Petlyuk) columns with pre-fractionators. Three example problems for five-component mixtures separation have been solved and the optimized parameters and economic benefits of different optimal schemes have been analyzed and compared. The results demonstrate that the annual total cost in energy consumption and investment can be effectively reduced by using the heat-integrated complex distillation configuration. The solutions of example problems also demonstrate that the proposed method is efficient for the heat-integrated complex distillation synthesis problem. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.