ECONOMIC ACHIEVEMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL-REGULATION IN CHEMICAL PROCESS INDUSTRIES

This paper presents an integrated approach for economic achievement of environmental regulation from existing total sites. The approach foll ows a hierarchical method that combines physical insights with mathema tical methods. An understanding of the problem is used to generate opt ions in the first step. The second step uses economics and site feasib ility to screen options. The options left after screening are formulat ed in a superstructure. The optimisation of the superstructure gives a n optimum mix of options that are then translated into the retrofit de sign. An important feature of the method is that understanding of the problem is used to generate options and proper bounds on different var iables. This reduces the size, complexity and the solution space of th e superstructure. Thus even large industrial problems can be solved ef fectively. (C) 1998 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights rese rved.