Design of environmentally friendly absorptioncooling systems via multi-objective optimizationand life cycle assessment

摘要

This paper proposes a systematic approach for the design of environmentally consciousabsorption cooling systems. The method presented relies on the development of amathematical formulation that simultaneously accounts for the minimization of totalcost and environmental impact at the design stage. The latter criterion is measured bythe Eco-Indicator 99 methodology, which follows the principles of Life CycleAssessment (LCA). The design task is formulated as a bi-criteria nonlinearprogramming (NLP) problem, the solution of which is defined by a set of Pareto pointsthat represent the optimal trade-off between the two objective functions. Thecapabilities of the proposed method are illustrated in a case study problem thataddresses the design of a typical absorption cooling system.