Mathematical exergoeconomic optimization of a complex cogeneration plant aided by a professional process simulator

In this work we present the development and implementation of an integrated approach for mathematical exergoeconomic optimization of complex thermal systems. By exploiting the computational power of a professional process simulator, the proposed integrated approach permits the optimization routine to ignore the variables associated with the thermodynamic balance equations and thus deal only with the decision variables. To demonstrate the capabilities of the integrated approach, it is here applied to a complex cogeneration system, which includes all the major components of a typical thermal plant, and requires more than 800 variables for its simulation.