An Efficient Coupled Genetic Algorithm-NLP Method for Heat Exchanger Network Synthesis

Abstract

<span style="font-size: 10pt; color: #000000; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal;"><em>Synthesis of heat exchanger networks (HENs) is inherently a mixed integer and</em> <span style="font-size: 10pt; color: #000000; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal;"><em>nonlinear programming (MINLP) problem. Solving such problems leads to difficulties</em> <span style="font-size: 10pt; color: #000000; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal;"><em>in the optimization of continuous and binary variables. This paper presents a new</em> <span style="font-size: 10pt; color: #000000; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal;"><em>efficient and robust method in which structural parameters are optimized by genetic</em> <span style="font-size: 10pt; color: #000000; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal;"><em>algorithm (G.A.) and continuous variables are handled due to a modified objective</em> <span style="font-size: 10pt; color: #000000; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal;"><em>function for maximum energy recovery (MER). Node representation is used for</em> <span style="font-size: 10pt; color: #000000; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal;"><em>addressing the exchangers and networks are considered as a sequence of genes. Each</em> <span style="font-size: 10pt; color: #000000; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal;"><em>gene consists of nodes for generating different structures within a network. Results</em> <span style="font-size: 10pt; color: #000000; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal;"><em>show that this method may find new or near optimal solutions with a less than 2%</em> <span style="font-size: 10pt; color: #000000; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal;"><em>increase in Hen annual costs.</em></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br style="font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: -webkit-auto; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;" /><br class="Apple-interchange-newline" /></span>