An exergoeconomic approach for retrofit of fractionating systems

Based on a three-link model, this paper presents a multi-objective retrofit optimization algorithm that simultaneously takes into account capacity expansions and uses of energy. This approach was successfully applied to retrofit an aromatic fractionation unit. Compared to the original system, the capacity of the retrofitted system increased by 28% and the energy consumption decreased by 81.4%. The proposed retrofit method is suitable for the simultaneous optimization of expansion and energy integration in process systems.