Rigorous algorithmic targeting methods for hydrogen networks—Part I: Systems with no hydrogen purification

Hydrogen utility consumption minimization is one of the key strategies for reducing refinery operating costs. Process integration techniques have been widely accepted as an effective tool for reducing hydrogen consumption. To date, various pinch based conceptual methods have been developed. Applying the pinch analysis is simpler than solving the mathematical model. However, the relationship between the pinch simplification and the mathematical model has seldom been addressed. In addition, existing pinch analysis paid little attention to the rare but realistic cases of threshold problem. In this article, the original mathematical model is associated with the pinch concept by proving simplified equivalent formulations. A mathematically rigorous systematic targeting approach is then obtained by mathematical deduction. The proposed method combines pinch insight with a rigorous mathematical optimization technique. The proposed method addresses both threshold and pinch problems, and initially the analysis is restricted to systems with no purification unit.     

简捷法确定提纯回用氢网络目标值

与只考虑直接回用的氢网络相比,具有提纯单元的氢网络能显著减少新鲜氢气的消耗量,但其设计及求解提纯目标值过程均更为复杂。对于单杂质、提纯单元采用固定浓度模型的提纯回用氢网络,结合此类网络的特点,提出了一种简捷法确定网络目标值。首先假设提纯后氢物流量足够大,由此得出初始提纯夹点。当初始夹点估算正确时,由夹点之下的需求物流和源物流的流量与杂质质量衡算即可得出提纯回用氢网络的目标值;当初始夹点估算不正确时,可以第一次计算结果为基础判断得出正确夹点,再增加一步简单计算,也可得到提纯回用目标值。计算实例表明本文方法计算简单且有效。     

A unified graphical method for integration of hydrogen networks with purification reuse

Introducing purifiers into hydrogen network can enhance the recovery and reuse of hydrogen in refineries, further reducing the consumption of fresh hydrogen. Based on previous graphical methods, this work proposes a simple and unified graphical method for integration of hydrogen networks with purification processes. Scenarios with different hydrogen concentrations of purified product can be analyzed by the unified procedure. As a result, the maximum hydrogen saved by purification reuse can be identified and the corresponding purification process can be optimized. The proposed method is easy and non-iterative, and it is valid to purification processes with any feed concentration. A conventional hydrogen network is analyzed to test the effectiveness of the proposed method.     

A novel graphical method for the integration of hydrogen distribution systems with purification reuse

Increase in refining demand and tighter environmental regulations have led to sharp increases in hydrogen consumption of oil refineries. Hydrogen conservation and effective use are of interest to refineries whose operations and profitability are constrained by hydrogen. Purification is widely used in hydrogen networks of refineries to reduce hydrogen production load. To minimize hydrogen utility consumption, it is necessary to optimize the hydrogen network with purification as a whole. In this paper, for hydrogen purification process, a triangle rule (which can be generalized to polygon rule) is proposed for graphical representation of its mass balance. The proposed procedure treats the product concentration and recovery rate of the purification process as adjustable parameters. An ensuing graphical method is developed for targeting the pinch point and minimum utility consumption of the hydrogen system with purification reuse. This graphical method can be used for any purification devices and in systems with any utility concentration. A refinery case is studied to demonstrate the optimization method.     

Novel method for targeting the optimal purification feed flow rate of hydrogen network with purification reuse/recycle

The purification reuse/recycle is one effective resource conservation strategy. In this article, a novel conceptual method is proposed to identify the optimal purification feed flow rate (PFFR) and the corresponding maximum hydrogen utility savings (HUS) of the hydrogen network with purification reuse/recycle. In this method, the sources and sink‐tie‐lines are divided into three regions according to the purified product and purification feed. The quantitative relationship between the HUS and the PFFR is analyzed for the sink‐tie‐lines and sources of each region. With the quantitative relationship line between the HUS and the PFFR of each source plotted, the quantitative relationship diagram can be obtained and can be used to identify the pinch point and the HUS for a given PFFR. Furthermore, the optimal PFFR and the maximum HUS can be identified easily. Three cases are studied to illustrate the applicability of the proposed method. © 2012 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 59: 1964–1980, 2013     

Studies on simultaneous energy and water minimisation—Part II: Systems with maximum re-use of water

A new systematic design methodology has been developed for the simultaneous management of energy and water systems that also feature maximum re-use of water. A two-dimensional grid diagram is proposed to exploit different options within water systems and also enable reduced complexity of the energy and water network. Isothermal and non-isothermal stream mixing between water streams are introduced to create separate systems between hot and cold water streams in the energy composite curves and provide a design basis for a better structure with fewer units for the heat exchanger network. In addition to allowing re-use of water, issues about heat losses inside unit operations have also been incorporated in the simultaneous management of water and energy.     

A review of methods for determining structural fire severity—Part II: Analysis and review

There is a risk of a building suffering unsustainable structural damage in the event of a large fire. Therefore, it is necessary to design buildings to withstand expected fires. A widely used simplified calculation method is the so-called “time-equivalence” method. There are significant concerns about the suitability of this method. This paper is part II of a twofold study examining the state of the art of time-equivalence methods. The purpose of this paper is to identify methods and/or analysis concepts which show the potential for use in modern design. A SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats) analysis is used for this purpose. However, as there is a large number of time-equivalence methods to assess, a numerical case study is first undertaken to identify methods which have sufficient accuracy to warrant further study. These analyses found that, while none of the time-equivalence methods studied have sufficient accuracy for use in their present form, the methods derived using the equal energy concept provide a good basis to model the effects of fire on a structure. This study recommends that a new time-equivalence method be developed using the equal energy approach.     

Evaluation of methods for verifying the performance of color‐measuring instruments. Part II: Inter‐instrument reproducibility

Part I described an experiment in which the repeatability of a number of common, commercially available spectrocolorimeters was compared using ASTM procedures. ASTM E2214‐02 Standard Practice for Specifying and Verifying the Performance of Color‐Measuring Instruments is intended to standardize the terminology and procedures used to evaluate color measuring instruments. In this article, we develop reproducibility results from a medium‐term study of 10 commercial spectrocolorimeters. The comparisons are presented so as to contrast between the traditional color difference based specifications found in the historical literature and in manufacturer's literature and the more complex multidimensional methods specified in E2214. Instrument to instrument contrasts are reported as well as tests of agreement across a set of instruments as a whole. The results confirm common understandings. Hemispherical diffuse instruments exhibit a higher level of inter‐instrument agreement than do bidirectional (45:0) instruments. The results also provide support for a surprising conclusion about the statistical significance of the minor differences in both inter‐instrument agreement and inter‐model agreement for a single manufacturer. Some speculations on the impact of these conclusions to the development of future comparisons of spectrocolorimeters are given. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Col Res Appl, 32, 176–294, 2007     

Synthesis of mass exchange network for batch processes—Part II: Minimum units target and batch network design

The first part of this series of papers (Chem. Eng. Sci. 59(5) (2004) 1009) presented a methodology for identifying the minimum utility targets for a mass exchange network (MEN) for a batch process. This paper describes the methodology for setting the minimum number of mass exchange units target and a procedure for designing a maximum mass recovery network that features the minimum utility targets. The time-grid diagram and the overall time-grid diagram that include the time dimension in network design have been introduced to provide a better representation of the mass exchange network for a batch process. The systematic network design procedure also includes a technique to simplify and evolve the preliminary batch MEN to reduce the number of mass exchangers to the minimum.     

Model for biomass char combustion in the riser of a dual fluidized bed gasification unit: Part II — Model validation and parameter variation

The two-phase combustion model for biomass char combustion in a riser of a dual fluidized bed gasification unit that has been presented in part I is validated using the data obtained from the 8 MWth dual fluidized bed reactor at Guessing/Austria. The model is capable of calculating the average temperatures in all zones, the gas phase composition, solid hold up, char feed rates and air ratio. The model predictions for the temperature profile along the riser and for the exiting gas composition are in good agreement with the measured values. The simulation results show that the residual char from the gasifier is only partly converted in the riser for char particles larger than 0.6 mm. Un-combusted char is circulated back into the gasification reactor. Parameter variations show that the exact location where additional liquid fuels are introduced in the middle zone of the riser does not affect the global behaviour of the combustion reactor. Based on the simulation results it is proposed that external supply of char (additional) may be a very effective method for reducing producer gas recycling to the riser, which is currently necessary to obtain the desired gasification temperatures.     

Proposal for selecting two‐color combinations with various affections. Part II: Demonstration of the system

The characteristics of the proposed color selection system are shown using several colored figures of two‐color combinations selected by the system. There are four kinds of color feelings in the system, and each feeling is classified into three categories (i.e., high, intermediate, or low). The feelings used are pleasantness, contrast, floridness, and warmth. Users can try the 3⁴ = 81 combinations of feelings by setting the categories for four kinds of feelings. The differences among categories of color feelings are also shown by several colored figures. It is difficult to describe the differences by words. However, it is rather easy to describe by pictures. The proposed color selection system is expected to be a useful tool for assisting color designers. Comments about the proposed system from potential users are reported. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Col Res Appl, 34, 135–140, 2009     

Catalyst based on BaZrO3 with different elements incorporated in the structure: II. BaZr(1−x)RhxO3 systems for the production of syngas by partial oxidation of methane

New catalytic systems, synthesised by a variant of the citrate route, are proposed for the partial oxidation of methane. They consist of solid solutions – barium, zirconium, rhodium and oxygen – with a perovskite structure of formula BaZr_(1−x)Rh_xO₃. Detailed analysis of the XRD diffractograms and the TGA cycles show that Rh is randomly distributed as Rh^IV among the B sites of the perovskite, together with Zr. The activities of the catalysts have been tested for the catalytic partial oxidation of methane at short contact times to evaluate the potential of materials giving promising results in terms of syngas yield at low Rh loading.     

Effect of CaSO4 Pelletization Conditions on a Novel Process for Converting SO2 to Elemental Sulfur by Reaction Cycles Involving CaSO4/CaS – Part II: Reduction of SO2 with CaS

A new process for converting sulfur dioxide to elemental sulfur by a cyclic process involving calcium sulfide and calcium sulfate without generating secondary pollutants, developed at the University of Utah, was described in Part I of this series. In this process, sulfur dioxide is reacted with calcium sulfide to produce elemental sulfur and calcium sulfate; the latter is reduced by hydrogen to regenerate calcium sulfide. Here, in Part II, the effects of different pelletization conditions for the initial reactant calcium sulfate on the reactivity of CaS pellets produced from calcium sulfate pellets toward sulfur dioxide were studied. Experiments were performed to investigate the effects of temperature in the range 1023–1173 K, pellet size, cycle repetition, and water vapor or carbon dioxide content in the sulfur dioxide stream. The binder amount and the presence of nickel catalyst did not significantly affect the reaction rate.