Synthesis of Mass Integrated Processes

摘要

A hierarchical decision procedure is proposed for the synthesis of processes, massrnintegrated to an existing industrial environment. The procedure takes as input therninformation about the processes already installed, so that the decisions required torncomplete the design of the new process, are made considering this environment.rnThe procedure decides among alternative technologies for producing the new product,rnthe utilization of output streams from the environment as inputs to the new process andrnvice versa. Also decides if this utilization should be done through new processingrnfacilities to condition these streams.rnThe hierarchical decision procedure described by Douglas was adapted to include thesernmass integration decisions, as well as to resort to Mass Exchange Network Synthesisrnand Source Sink Assignment procedures at the appropriate level of the hierarchy.rnThe procedure is illustrated designing a new biodiesel process, integrated to the agrornindustrial network already existing in the neighborhood of the city of Reconquista. Thernpaper discusses the tradeoff between implementing mass exchangers or separationrnprocesses in the case of methanol added in excess and alkali added as a catalyst in thernreaction step, the adaptation of the standard source sink assignment approach addingrndiet problem constraints and the order of the decisions in the hierarchy.rnAnalysis of the results shows that both the economic and environmental performance ofrnthe biodiesel process is significantly improved when taking into account the localrnindustrial environment to integrate the new plant to it.