Sabp A 009 PDF

Best Practice
SABP-A-009 20 January 2016

Pinch Technology for Energy Efficiency Optimization
Document Responsibility: Energy Systems Optimization Standards Committee
Pinch Technology
for Energy Efficiency Optimization
Developed by: Energy Systems Division

Process & Control Systems Department
Previous Issue: 21 July 2013 Next Planned Update: TBD

Revised paragraphs are indicated in the right margin Page 1 of 210
Contact: Soliman Nour Eldin, Mahmoud Bahy Mahmoud (nourelmm) on +966-3-8809449
CopyrightSaudi Aramco 2016. All rights reserved.

Document Responsibility: Energy Systems Optimization Standards Committee SABP-A-009
Issue Date: 20 January 2016
Next Planned Update: TBD Pinch Technology for Energy Efficiency Optimization
Table of Contents
1.0 INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................................... 3
1.1 DEFINITION ................................................................................................3
1.2 PURPOSE AND SCOPE ................................................................................3
1.3 INTENDED USERS .......................................................................................3
2.0 PINCH TECHNOLOGY .............................................................................................................. 4

2.1 HISTORY AND BACKGROUND ............................................................................... 4
2.2 DATA EXTRACTION ............................................................................................. 23
2.3 TARGETING......................................................................................................... 32
2.4 HEAT EXCHANGERS NETWORK (HEN) DESIGN.............................................. 116
2.5 HEAT EXCHANGERS NETWORK (HEN) IMPROVEMENT................................... 171
3.0 PINCH TECHNOLOGY AND MATHEMATICAL

PROGRAMMING HYBRID METHODS ............................................................................ 175
3.1 MATHEMATICAL PROGRAMMING FOR HEN SYNTHESIS .................................. 180
3.2 SIMULTANEOUS PROCESS OPTIMIZATION AND HEAT INTEGRATION ............... 194
4.0 APPENDICES ............................................................................................................................ 209

4.1 COMPUTER SOFTWARE(S) ......................................................................209
4.2 REFERENCES .........................................................................................209
Page 2 of 210
1.0 Introduction
Energy conservation in Saudi Aramco became everyones business. It is mandatory
for each process facility to find cost effective solutions to save energy and achieve
more with less in their facilities. Saudi Aramco has constituted a committee called
EMSC Energy Management Steering Committee to direct and manage a sustainable
process for energy conservation.
A vital contribution towards the success of the company wide energy conservation
policy comes through documenting the company best practices in methodology, tools
and applications in the field of energy conservation and distributing such knowledge
among our facilities. Hence, a consistent effort has been exerted in Saudi Aramco to
produce Best Practices to help Saudi Aramco plants achieve their energy conservation
targets and assimilate energy conservation knowledge. This particular Best Practice
document for pinch technology is a contribution towards this goal.
1.1 Definition
The term pinch technology or sometimes called pinch analysis refers to the
methodology of collecting and analyzing available process data to conduct what was
originally called heat integration. Pinch technology is the technology that provides a
systematic methodology for energy saving in processes and total sites.
The methodology is based upon thermodynamic principles.
1.2 Purpose and Scope
The purpose of this best practice document is to introduce the pinch technology short
cut tools by which energy integration and heat exchanger networks synthesis and
retrofit can be conducted faster, cheaper and better in our facilities. Its scope include
the pinch technology tools for energy integration and heat exchangers network
design/synthesis and the pinch-mathematical programming hybrid methods for
simultaneous optimization of process conditions and heat integration.
1.3 Intended Users
This Best Practice manual is intended for use by the energy engineers working in
Saudi Aramco plants, who are responsible for energy integration and efficient
operation of their facility. This particular document will enable them to capture as much
as possible information about the state-of-the-art technology for energy integration
known as Pinch Technology.
Page 3 of 210
2.0 Pinch Technology

2.1 History and Background
Pinch Technology/Analysis was developed in the late 1970s as a technique for

optimization of thermal heat recovery, and rapidly gained wide acceptance as a
theoretically elegant yet practical approach to the design of Heat Exchanger Networks
(HENs). Since then, it has evolved into a general methodology for optimization, based
on the principles of process integration.
It has been applied successfully not only to energy systems (heat recovery, pressure
drop recovery, power generation), but also to fresh water conservation, wastewater
minimization, production capacity de-bottlenecking, and management of chemical
species in complex processes.
Applying Pinch Analysis to HEN synthesis and retrofit, engineers can calculate the
energy requirement for any process, and produce thermally efficient and practical
designs. Energy savings are typically 20% or more compared to previous best
designs. Pinch Analysis also applies to optimization of the supply-side, consisting of
on-site utilities, such as boilers, furnaces, steam and gas turbines, cogeneration, heat
pumps, and refrigeration systems.
Consider the example of a process with only two streams as per Figure 1, one cold (to
be heated) and one hot (to be cooled), as illustrated in the figure, and represented on
a Temperature-Enthalpy (T-H) diagram. The temperature axis shows the available
driving forces for heat transfer, while the enthalpy axis shows the demand for and
availability of heat. In this case, both hot and cold duties are supplied by utilities
(e.g., steam and cooling water).
Now consider recovering some heat from the hot stream to the cold stream as in
Figure 2. The optimum value of the Minimum Approach Temperature (Tmin) is first
determined based on the economic tradeoff between cost savings from heat recovery
and capital cost of the heat exchangers. The T-H curves are then moved horizontally
until the closest vertical approach between the hot and the cold curves is equal to the
Tmin. This point is called the process pinch. The enthalpy overlap represents the
optimum amount of heat recovery between the two streams. The residual duties of the
two streams must be supplied by utilities, and represent the energy targets. Notice that
the duties on both hot and cold utilities are reduced by an identical amount, and equal
to the amount recovered. A lower value of Tmin will reduce utility consumption, but
will require more heat exchanger area.
Page 4 of 210
For processes with multiple cold streams, the individual process heating duties can be
combined into a single cold composite curve drawn on a T-H diagram, which
represents the enthalpy demand profile of the process as shown in Figure 2 below.
Similarly, all the cooling duties (for hot streams) can be combined into a single hot
composite curve, which represents the enthalpy availability profile of the process.
Composite curves are produced by summing enthalpy changes of individual streams
in their respective temperature intervals. When both curves are plotted on the same
T-H diagram, they show the opportunity for heat recovery as well as the net heating
and cooling targets.
The concept of composite curves reduces the multi-stream problem to a 2-stream

problem, which we know how to solve. The process pinch separates the overall
process into two distinct thermal domains: (a) a net heat sink above the pinch
temperature, to which hot utility must be supplied, and (b) a net heat source below the
pinch temperature, to which cooling must be provided. In order to achieve the targets,
the HEN design must satisfy three conditions:
1) No hot utilities used below the pinch temperature
2) No cold utilities used above the pinch temperature
3) No heat transfer from hot streams above the pinch to cold streams below the pinch
Feed Product
H PROCESS C
120
T HOT UTILITY
100
80
60
40
20
0
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 H
COLD UTILITY
Figure 1 - Basic Process T-H Diagram
Page 5 of 210
Feed Product
H PROCESS C
120
T HOT UTILITY
100
HEAT
80
RECOVERY
60
Pinch
(MAT)
40
20
0
0 10 20 30 40 50 60
H
COLD UTILITY
Figure 2 - Heat Recovery Process T-H Diagram
The general pinch approach is shown in Figure 3. The problem is first transposed into
the pinch format, which plots composite curves of resource (energy, water, etc.)
demand and availability. Targets are set (e.g., for hot and cold utilities consumption),
and a broad set of heuristic design rules used to develop a practical design that meets
these targets as closely as economically possible. The transposed environment gives
the engineer a graphic visualization of even the most complex problems and enables
quick assessment of alternatives, including outline economics.
Page 6 of 210
Finally, the pinch environment is transposed back into the familiar flowsheet format,
and the final stages of simulation, feasibility checking and detailed design are
completed.
Pinch Principle in Brief
The point where Tmin is observed is known as the Pinch and recognizing its
implications allows energy targets to be realized in practice. Once the pinch has been
identified, it is possible to consider the process as two separate systems, one system
above the pinch and one below it. The system above the pinch requires a heat input
from external utilities and is therefore, a net heat sink. Below the pinch, the system
rejects heat and so is a net heat source. The understanding of the pinch principle
gives three rules that must be obeyed in order to achieve the minimum energy targets
for a process as we mentioned before,
Heat must not be transferred across the pinch

There must be no external cooling above the pinch
There must be no external heating below the pinch
Violating these soft constraints will lead to cross-pinch heat transfer resulting in an
increase in energy requirement beyond the target. These rules form the basis for the
pinch design method (PDM) for HEN design. The PDM ensures that there is no cross
pinch heat transfer. In retrofit applications the design procedures modify the
exchangers that are passing the heat across the pinch.
The energy required for the process is supplied through several utility levels.
The objective of wise utility utilization in process plants is to maximize the use of the
cheapest utility and minimize the use of the expensive one. For instance, it is
preferable to use low pressure steam rather than high pressure steam and cooling
water in lieu of refrigeration. The composite curves introduced before provide overall
energy targets but do not clearly indicate how much energy needs to be supplied by
different utility levels. Therefore, a new tool called the grand composite curve is used
for this purpose as will be shown later on.
Page 7 of 210
Net Heat Sink

Above the Pinch
Opportunity for
heat recovery
Net Heat Source

Below the Pinch
Figure 3 - Example of a Pinch Diagram
Basic Concepts for Heat Recovery (New Design)
It feels natural to start with the single most important industrial application area for
Pinch technology. The development that followed the discovery of the Heat Recovery
Pinch has been unique in Process Design when it comes to real life applications in
industry based on results from academic research.
One of the important advantages of basic Pinch Analysis is that a number of concepts,
representations and graphical diagrams have been developed that both are excellent
learning aids but also provides the engineer with powerful tools for industrial
applications.
In order to introduce and explain some of these concepts, representations and graphs,
simple examples will be used throughout most of this document.
Page 8 of 210
210 C
160 C
Compressor
130 C
Condenser
270 C 160 C
Reactor
Reboiler
210 C
50 C 220 C 60 C Product
Feed
Figure 4 - Pinch Technology Main Phases
The process example shown above in Figure 4 illustrates the four main phases of
Pinch Technology in the design of heat recovery systems for both new and existing
processes:
1) Data Extraction, which involves collecting data for the process and the utility
system.
2) Targeting for best performance in various respects.
3) Design, where an initial Heat Exchanger Network is established.
4) Optimization, where the initial design is simplified and improved economically.
It is important to make sure that a proper problem definition has been formulated
This also includes relevant cost data and economic criteria.
Page 9 of 210
The most time consuming and often most critical phase is the identification of the need
for heating, cooling, boiling and condensation in the process. This task is more art than
science, and if not carried out properly, the final design will not be the best possible.
It is quite easy to accept too many features of the proposed flowsheet and blind
yourself with a lot of details. This is inevitably will results in the situation where many
good opportunities are excluded from the analysis.
Once the Data Extraction and corresponding Targeting (Phase 2) activities are
completed, it is time to look back and question some of the decisions made for the
Reactor and Separation Systems. The idea is then to identify process modifications
that will increase the potential for heat recovery and/or allow the use of cheaper
utilities.
In practice, there are a number of situations where heat integration is not desirable.
Examples include long distances (costly piping), safety (heat exchange between
hydrocarbon streams and oxygen rich streams), product purity (potential leakage in
heat exchangers) switchability, flexibility, controllability, operability and availability.
A reasonable strategy is, however, to start by including all process streams and keep
the degrees of freedom open. Later, practical considerations can be used to exclude
some of these streams and degrees of freedom, and the engineer will then at any time
be able to establish the consequences with respect to energy consumption and total
annual cost.
A central part of data extraction is the identification of heating and cooling

requirements in the process. The necessary data for each process stream are the
following:
m = mass flowrate (kg/s, tons/h, etc.)
Cp = specific heat capacity (kJ/kgC)
Ts = supply temperature (C)
Tt = target temperature (C)
Hvap = heat of vaporization for streams with a phase change (kJ/kg)
Table 1 below shows the data extracted for the simple example in Figure 4 above
including data for available utilities, where Q values are variables that will be
optimized during targeting and design. In order to analyze area and investment cost
for heat exchangers, heat transfer conditions must be established. This is typically
done by assigning a film heat transfer coefficient (h) to each process stream. The total
coefficient (U) for heat transfer between a hot stream (Hi) and a cold stream (Cj) is
then estimated by the simple equation:
Page 10 of 210
1/U = (1/hHi) + (1/hCj)
Table 1 - Extracted Data for Process Example

Stream ID Ts(C) Tt(C) mCp(kW/C) Q(kW) h(kW/m C)
Reactor Outlet H1 270 160 18 1980 0.5
Product H2 220 60 22 3520 0.5
Feed C1 50 210 20 3200 0.5
Recycle C2 160 210 50 2500 0.5
Reboiler C3 219 220 2000 2000 1
Condenser H3 130 129 2000 2000 1
HPS 250 250 (var.) 2.5
MPS 200 200 (var.) 2.5
LPS 150 150 (var.) 2.5
Cooling water CW 15 20 (var.) 1
An important feature of Process Integration is the ability to identify Performance
Targets before the design phase is started. For heat recovery systems with a specified
value for the minimum allowable approach temperature (Tmin), targets can be
established for Minimum Energy Consumption (external heating and cooling), Fewest
Number of Units (process/process heat exchangers, heaters and coolers) and
minimum total heat transfer area. In addition, the corresponding calculations will also
identify the Heat Recovery Pinch, which acts as a bottleneck for heat recovery.
For new designs, it is possible to return to data extraction and modify the process in
such a way that the impact of the heat recovery pinch is reduced or even eliminated.
Then a new Pinch point will be identified, and the procedure can be repeated.
It is also possible to combine targets for energy, units and total heat transfer area into
an estimate of the total annual cost. By repeating these calculations for different
values of Tmin, it is possible to identify a good starting value for the level of heat
recovery. This exercise of pre-optimization has been referred to as "Super-Targeting"
(which also gave name to one of the commercial software packages available). While
initial methods used a global value for Tmin, later methods allowed individual stream
contributions to the overall minimum approach temperature (Ti) reflecting the heat
transfer conditions for each process stream, as indicated by its film heat transfer
coefficient (hi). One model that has been used is Ti = C / sqrt(hi), where C is a
common adjustable factor, reflecting the chosen level of heat recovery.
By adding enthalpy changes for the hot and cold process streams in table separately
and for each temperature interval in the process, the hot and cold Composite Curves
in the graph below can be established. The distillation column (H3, C3) is not included
at this stage. How to draw these curves will be illustrated in a step-by-step manner
later in the document.
Page 11 of 210
T (C)
Qh-min
Q-recovery
300
250
200
150 Pinch
100
50
Qc-min Q (kW)
0.0 2000 4000 6000
Figure 5 - Hot and Cold Composite Curves
Composite Curves provide valuable information about maximum heat recovery

(QRecovery), minimum external heating (QH,min), minimum external cooling (QC,min)
and location of the heat recovery Pinch for a given value of Tmin. Composite Curves
can be applied and provide valuable information whenever an amount (such as heat)
has a quality (such as temperature). The advantages of graphical representations
include a clear aspect of understanding, they provide the engineer with an overview of
the problem, they illustrate important economic tradeoffs, and finally they represent
information in a very concentrated form. The results (targets) that can be extracted
from this graph where Tmin = 20C, are the following:
Maximum Heat Recovery: QRecovery = 4700 kW

Minimum External Heating: QH,min = 1000 kW
Minimum External Cooling: QC,min = 800 kW
Pinch Point (caused by a cold stream): TPinch,C = 160C
Corresponding Pinch for hot streams: TPinch,H = 180C
Page 12 of 210
As indicated in the previously shown Table 1, the values for mCp are assumed to be
constant. This simplifies the calculations from numerical integration to a summation
over intervals. When the value of Cp varies considerably with temperature, introducing
stream segments can piece-wise Linearise the temperature/enthalpy relation for the
stream. The same applies for a stream that has a phase change.
Based on the Composite Curves in Figure 5 above, a general strategy for Process
Modifications can be established. In Pinch Analysis, this strategy has been referred
to as the Plus/Minus principle (Linnhoff and Vredeveld, 1984), which means to
increase ("plus") heat available above Pinch and/or heat demand below Pinch or to
reduce ("minus") heat demand above Pinch and/or heat available below Pinch (see
Figure 6) Examples of such Process Modifications include changes in pressure for
distillation columns and evaporators, changes in flowrates for some streams, and new
supply and target temperatures for streams when possible.
T QH-min
-
-
+
Qc-min
Q
Figure 6 - The Plus/Minus principle applied to Composite Curves
Page 13 of 210
While graphical diagrams such as the Composite Curves are excellent tools for
learning the methods and understanding the overall energy situation, minimum energy
consumption and the heat recovery pinch are more often obtained by numerical
procedures. Typically, these are based on the Heat Cascade in Figure 7, the Heat
Cascade, the supply and target temperatures of all process streams divide the
temperature scale into Temperature Intervals, in the same way as the construction of
the Composite Curves.
On the left side of the diagram in Figure 7, hot streams supply heat into the various
intervals according to a hot temperature scale. Similarly, on the right hand side of the
diagram, cold streams extract heat from the various intervals according to a cold
temperature scale. The difference between the hot and the cold temperature scale is
the value of the minimum approach temperature, Tmin, thus the heat cascade ensures
feasible heat transfer according to an economic criterion.
STEAM
H1 270C250C
720 kW
+720
230C210C 500 kW
180 kW C1
-520 200 kW
220C200C 2000 kW
880 kW 720 kW
-1200 800 kW
180C160C
360 kW
440 kW +400 400 kW
160C140C C2
1980 kW
+180 1800 kW
70C50C
220 kW
+220
60C40C
H2
CW
Figure 7 - Heat Cascade
Page 14 of 210
The Heat Cascade for part of the process example discussed above captures the
essence of the process sources and sinks as the composite diagram does.
The objective of this cascade is to allow heat surplus in one interval to cascade down
to the next interval, in order to maximize heat recovery. In Figure 7, a surplus of
720 kW in the first interval can be used to cover the deficit of 520 kW in the second
interval. There is an accumulated heat surplus of 200 kW that can be cascaded further
into the third interval. The heat deficit of 1200 kW in the third interval can then be
covered by 200 kW of cascaded heat and the inevitable supply of 1000 kW from hot
utility, such as steam (ST). The last three intervals in Figure 7 all have heat surplus,
and the total heat that must be removed from the cascade in this lower part by cold
utility, such as cooling water (CW), is 800 kW. Some important results can be
extracted from the Heat Cascade in the subsequent discussion. First, we have
identified the need of 1000 kW from hot utility (which, of course, is the same as
indicated by the Composite Curves) and 800 kW removed by cold utility. By having
this minimum exchange of heat between the process and the utility system, there is no
heat flow between intervals 3 and 4. This is the Pinch Point (bottleneck for heat
recovery). Above the Pinch temperature (180C/160C), we have a sub-system with
heat deficit, and below Pinch there is a sub-system with heat surplus.
This decomposition effect is a very important property of the Process Pinch, and it
has several important impacts on the design of energy efficient processes. In heat
recovery, it becomes important not to transfer heat across pinch. Each single kW
taken from the subsystem above Pinch (heat deficit) and transferred to the sub-system
below pinch (heat surplus) will immediately require an extra 1 kW of both steam and
cooling water. The easiest way to obey this rule is to design two separate heat
exchanger networks, one above and one below the Process Pinch. Violations of the
Pinch decomposition are also the key to identifying good retrofit projects as will be
shown later in details.
Page 15 of 210
Process Cascade Distillation Column Heat Pump Steam Turbine
Q H, min
Q-reboiler
Above Q HP, out Q steam, in

Pinch
Q = 0.0
WHP W steam
below
Pinch Q HP, in Q steam, out
Q-condenser
Q c, min
Figure 8 - Decomposition
The pinch decomposition characteristics exhibited before can be used to study energy
systems with several "Suppliers" and "Customers".
The decomposition property has a major impact on the use of Heat Pumps, the use of
back-pressure Steam Turbines and the integration of special equipment such as
Distillation Columns and Evaporators. The general rule that can be formulated based
on the decomposition principle is to try to match heat "suppliers" with heat
"customers".
Otherwise, heat integration does not serve any energy saving purpose, and will only
introduce additional investment cost and less operable processes.
This scenario with suppliers and customers is indicated in Figure 8 without any
temperature details, however, for each item (process cascade, distillation column, heat
pump and steam turbine), temperature is decreasing as we move from the top to the
bottom of the graph. Of course, the "supplier" must provide heat at a sufficiently high
temperature to meet the needs of the "customer". The following explicit rules are
derived from the decomposition principle using graph above.
Page 16 of 210
A distillation column should only be integrated with the background process if:
a) The reboiler temperature is lower than the Pinch temperature
b) The condenser temperature is higher than the Pinch temperature
A heat pump should only be integrated with the background process if it takes heat
from below Pinch and lifts it above Pinch. Similarly, it should only be integrated with
a distillation column if the column can not be integrated with the background
process, since heat pumping is more expensive with respect to investment than
direct process integration using heat exchangers.
A steam turbine should only be integrated (i.e., back pressure or extraction turbine)
with a process or distillation column if the outlet steam has a high enough
condensing temperature (high enough pressure) to be used above the process
Pinch or in a column reboiler. Otherwise a condensing turbine should be used.
While the Heat Cascade provides crucial insight about efficient use of energy through
heat integration, it is also the basis for an important school of methods based on
mathematical models. The heat cascade is a special case of the Transshipment
Model which is frequently used in Operations Research and forms the basis for some
of the optimization based methods such as Mathematical Programming.
Page 17 of 210
Grand Composite Curve (GCC)
Without the Distillation Column
STEAM
T (C)
T0= 270C Q h, min= 1000

300
+720
T1= 220C R 1= 580
-520
Q h, min= 1000
T2= 210C R 2= 580
Thermal Cascade Diagram -1200 200
T3= 170C R 3= 580

+400
T4=150C R 4= 580
+180
100
T5=60C R 5= 580
+220
Q c, min= 800
T6=50C Q c, min= 800
CW 0.0 500 1000 1500

Q (kW)
Figure 9 - Grand Composite Curve
The previously discussed decomposition principle has one major disadvantage.

We need a better view of the amount of heat available at various temperatures from
the "suppliers", and the corresponding need for heat at various temperatures among
the "customers". This additional information about Load and Level is crucial for
applying the explicit rules mentioned above. It does not help if the distillation column
can provide heat above the Process Pinch, if the amount of heat needed at that
specific temperature is very small.
Such information is implicitly available in the heat cascade however, a much better
overview of the situation is obtained if the Heat Cascade is transformed into another
graphical diagram called the Grand Composite Curve. This diagram, which also has
been referred to as the Heat Surplus Diagram, is generated by plotting so-called
modified interval temperatures against the corresponding flow of heat between
intervals in the cascade. This is shown in Figure 9 for the example process, after the
addition of minimum hot and cold utility requirements. The modified temperatures are
simply the average between the hot and the cold temperatures (Tmin /2), an
adjustment that allows the drawing of hot and cold streams and utilities in the same
temperature scale, while satisfying the need for minimum driving forces.
Page 18 of 210
The Grand Composite Curve has a number of industrial applications, mostly related
to the utility system and heat and power considerations. Typically, the Grand
Composite Curve can be used to qualitatively and to some extent quantitatively
address the following tasks:
Identify a near-optimal set of utility types (both load and level) to cover the need for
external heating and cooling in the process. A Utility Grand Composite Curve
consisting of available utilities, such as for example various steam levels, flue gas
from a furnace or gas turbine, hot oil circuits, cooling water, refrigeration, etc., can
be combined in such a way that total utility cost is minimized.
Identify potential for steam production below Pinch, if the process Pinch is at a
sufficiently high temperature. This means that steam generation (typically LP steam)
is acting as a cold utility.
Identify potential for utilizing so-called "pockets" in the Grand Composite Curve for
additional power production. If the temperature difference had been sufficiently
large between the part of the process where there is local heat surplus and the
corresponding part where there is local heat deficit, there would have been some
scope for producing steam that could have been used in a back pressure turbine.
The turbine then borrows steam generated in the process and returns steam for
heating at a lower level after power production.
Identify scope for using heat pumps in the process to reduce both hot and cold utility
consumption. Typically, this is the case where there is a distinct Pinch point, with flat
profiles both immediately above and below the Pinch. In such cases, a significant
amount of heat can be transferred from the heat surplus region below Pinch to the
heat deficit region above Pinch, by using a heat pump with moderate temperature
lift.
Identify whether there is scope for integration of special equipment such as

distillation columns or evaporators with the background process.
Page 19 of 210
Grand Composite Curve with box representation for distillation columns is shown
below in Figure 10.
Figure 10 - Grand Composite Curve without Distillation Column
Returning to the process example, the Grand Composite Curve can be used to give a
quick and simple answer about the scope for integrating the distillation column with
the background process, or whether it should be operated with utilities (steam and
cooling water). After heat integration with the process has been analyzed, the next
step could be to evaluate the scope for heat pumping.
The graph above shows the Process Grand Composite Curve and the
Temperature/Enthalpy Diagram for the distillation column in our process example.
Since the distillation column operates across the Pinch, there will be no energy
savings from integration with the process. This also follows from the decomposition
concept illustrated before. The graphical representation in figure above has also been
referred to as the Andrecovich diagram which is a later extension within Pinch
Analysis include a refinement of the box representation, where a Column Grand
Composite Curve (CGCC) shows the need for re-boiling and condensation at various
Page 20 of 210
temperatures in the column. The CGCC is based on converged profiles from a

rigorous column simulation, and can be used to identify the scope for distributed
reboiling and condensing as well as feed pre-heating or pre-cooling, and finally
changes in the reflux ratio for the column.
Process and Utility Grand Composite Curve for the Process Example
Figure 11 - Grand Composite Curve for Utility Selection without Distillation Column
Referring to the simple process example and the list of available utilities in Figure 11,
the Grand Composite Curve shown above can, as explained, be used to identify the
set of utilities with minimum energy cost. Typically, this means to maximize the use of
cheaper utilities in order to minimize the use of more expensive utilities. This is shown
in graph below where the amount of MP steam is maximized and limited by the
situation where the MP part of the Utility Grand Composite Curve touches the Process
Grand Composite Curve.
Similarly, a potential for LP steam production is identified below Pinch, and the amount
is again limited by the point where the LP part of the Utility Grand Composite Curve
touches the Process Grand Composite Curve.
Page 21 of 210
The Grand Composite Curve enables the engineer to identify a set of utilities that
gives minimum energy cost. As always, however, there is a trade-off between
operating cost (energy) and investment cost (number of heat exchangers and their
total heat transfer area).Thus, the following important factors need further investigation
before accepting the set of utilities proposed in graph:
Temperature driving forces will be reduced when introducing MP and LP steam,
which means larger heat transfer area in some utility and process/process
exchangers.
As a result, there will be a significant increase in the investment cost.
New Utility Pinch Points will be introduced when maximizing MP steam usage and
LP steam production. This will result in tighter designs and more complex heat
exchanger network structures.
The decomposition feature of the Process Pinch also applies to Utility Pinches.
This means for example that heat pumps can be used to transfer heat across (from
below to above) all Pinch points in order to reduce total heating and cooling
requirements (Process Pinch) or reduce the need for a more expensive utility (Utility
Pinch).
The number of heat transfer units will increase whenever new utilities are
introduced and whenever Utility Pinches are created, which means increased
investment cost.
The complexity of the heat exchanger network (number of units, piping and stream
splits) will increase with an increasing number of Pinch points included during
design.
While significant savings in energy cost can be obtained by introducing intermediate
(and thus cheaper) utilities, there will be a corresponding increase in investment cost
(total heat transfer area and the number of units will increase). Minimum total annual
cost is found by exploring these trade-offs.
The Grand Composite Curve (GCC) has the inherent limitation (which also in many
respects is an advantage) that details about the individual streams are not shown.
Thus, any conclusion about integration of distillation columns and heat pumps as well
as steam generation, must be evaluated carefully by looking beyond the GCC and into
the actual number of streams that would be involved. If a heat pump would have to
extract (deliver) heat from (to) a large number of streams, it would not be economically
interesting. The same applies if we end up with a large number of steam boilers.
Page 22 of 210
2.2 Data Extraction
The objective of this part is to show in details how to extract the right data to obtain
energy targets for the hot and cold utilities consumption and select the optimal utility
scheme for a desired plant or process area.
This can be essentially done via three methods, graphical, algebraic and using
mathematical programming/optimization. Step number zero in our calculation is to
extract from the process flow diagrams and other process information data sheets the
necessary data to conduct our targeting step.
This step is called in Pinch technology data extraction.
There are two main categories of data extraction. The first set involves the extraction
of the flow rate-specific heat and supply and target temperatures for a given process
to conduct heat and power integration study. The second set involves the extraction of
process conditions that challenges every step in the process to design/retrofit the
scheme for the sake of energy efficiency optimization.
In general, data extraction involves collecting data for the process and the utility
system.
It relates to the extraction of information required for pinch analysis from given process
heat and material balance.
This phase is most time consuming phase and it is very important for the identification
of process needs from heating, cooling, condensation and evaporation utilities.
The extraction of the necessary thermal data from any flow sheet includes the
identification of the cooling and heating utilities required.
In such case the flow sheet will be drawn in a way that highlights the cooling and
heating utilities demands without any reference to cooler, re-boilers and heat
exchangers.
Each process stream needs to be defined either as a hot or cold stream.
Such definition depends upon the task needed to be conducted regarding the stream.
If it is raising the stream temperature then the stream will be considered as a cold
stream. Otherwise (to reduce its temperature) the stream is going to be considered a
hot stream.
Page 23 of 210
If the task is condensing a vapor stream or mixed (vapor and liquid) then it is a hot
stream. If the task is vaporizing a liquid stream or mixed (vapor and liquid) then the
stream is a cold stream.
_Upon defining the type of each stream (hot or cold) and create a list of hot streams
and cold streams; the flowrate of each stream (F) need to be extracted from the
process flow diagrams.
Note: DCS real-time graphics can be used to extract the mass flowrate of the desired
streams.
Thermal properties of the streams such as specific heats (Cp) and latent heats
of vaporization and condensation need also to be obtained from thermodynamic
packages or literatures.
It is also important to consider stream composition to be able to get accurate

thermal properties for desired process streams.
Streams supply temperatures (Ts) and target temperatures (Tt) need to be

defined for each hot and cold stream
These thermal data are depicted in the Table 2 below:
Table 2 - Thermal Data
Strm No Strm.Type Start Temp(Ts)(C) Target Temp.(Tt)(C) Heat Capacity Flowrate(kW/C)

1 hot 180 80 20
2 hot 130 40 40
3 cold 60 100 80
4 cold 30 120 36
Tmin= 10C,
Utility steam is supplied at 200C and
Cooling water at 25C to 30C
This table shows the data necessary to obtain energy targets.
Page 24 of 210
Hot streams are the streams that need to be cooled (heat sources). Cold streams are
streams that need to be heated (heat sinks). The heat capacity flow rate (FCp) is the
mass flow rate times the specific heat capacity. Where (Cp) is the stream specific heat
capacity (kJ/C, kg) and (F) is the mass flow rate (kg/sec). The (FCp) of a stream is
measured as enthalpy change per unit temperature (kW/C).
The following process example will be used as an illustration to the data extraction
step from the process flow diagram shown below.
Remember for each stream we need to define the mass flow rate (kg/sec), supply
temperature (C), target temperature (C), specific heat capacity (kJ/kgC) and heat of
vaporization or condensation for streams with phase change (kJ/kg).
Table 3 - Example Process Thermal Data
Start Target
Stream/Type Heat Capacity Flowrate(kW/C)
Temp(Ts)(C) Temp.(Tt)(C)
Reactor outlet (hot) 270 160 20
Product (hot) 220 60 40
Feed (cold) 50 210 80
Recycle (cold) 160 210 36
These thermal data are mandatory to conduct energy targeting study. This data
extraction should be done carefully since poor data extraction can results in missed
opportunity for improved process design for energy saving.
Page 25 of 210
210 C
160 C
Compressor
130 C
Condenser
270 C 160 C
Reactor
Reboiler
210 C
50 C 220 C 60 C Product
Feed
Figure 12 - Example of Process Flow Diagram
Over the years pinch technology experts developed some heuristics for data
extraction.
Some of these heuristics are as follows:
1- Do not carry over features of the existing solution
2-Linearise on the safe side
3-Do not extract utilities
4-Do not mix streams at different temperatures.
5-Define soft data
6-Use targeting to determine cost of constraints
7-Extract at effective temperature
Page 26 of 210
Let us explain these heuristics one-by-one and with some details.
1- Extract streams from flow-sheet according to deep understanding of the

process and not based upon the existing Heat exchangers network
2- The enthalpy change of some streams is significantly non-linear. This is

particularly true for condensing/vaporizing streams. In such situations, adopting
just one value of FCp might lead to inaccurate results. It is more accurate to
represent the stream in as many segments as is required to closely mimic the
heating and cooling curve of the stream. These segments should exhibit the
following rules to guarantee safe linearization.
- The actual hot stream must be hotter than the extracted hot stream
- The actual cold stream must be colder than the extracted stream
Note: Phase Changes:
The pinch procedures require that the FCp values of streams be constant. We can
incorporate phase changes that take place at constant temperature into this
formulation simply via assuming a 1F temperature change at the temperature of the
phase change and then calculating a fictitious FCp value that gives the same heat duty
as the phase change. In other words if the heat corresponding to the phase change is
FHv we write FfCpf(1)= FHv; Where Ff and Cpf are the fictitious values.
For the case of mixtures, where a plot of enthalpy versus temperature is curved, we
merely linearize the graph and select fictitious FCp values that have the same heat
duty.
Page 27 of 210
Original hot streams are hotter than proposed

hot segments
Original Cold streams are colder than proposed

cold segments
Figure 13 - Enthalpy Temperature Mixture Curve
3- A true utility stream is a utility stream like steam, cooling water, refrigerant,
brine,etc., that can be in principle replaced by any other stream(utility or
process) for heat exchange purposes. Such true utility streams should not be
extracted as a part of the process streams that need to be cooled or heated.
An example of true utility stream is cooling water used in a heat exchanger.
Such stream can be replaced by any other process stream heating or
air cooling, refrigerant cooling. This stream should not be extracted. In the other
hand when steam is used as a raw material in methane- steam reforming
process the steam is not a true utility stream that can be replaced by other utility
stream. In such situations the steam must be extracted as a process cold
stream that need to be heated from boiler feed water conditions to the
appropriate temperature for the reformer/reactor.
However, for the sake of overall steam consumption reduction, the process should
also be challenged from design and/or operational point of view to look for more
efficient energy-conscious alternatives. (i.e., dry reforming)
Page 28 of 210
Another example is when direct live steam is used for stripping. If this steam is used
for just heating purposes for reboiling a column and can be replaced by heating oil,
other heating medium or process cooling stream it would be treated as true utility
stream. If the reboiling must be via direct injection of steam, then the steam is not a
utility stream and should be extracted as part of the process cold streams that need to
be heated from water to the desired target temperature.
4- One common problem in data extraction occurs when the process flow-sheet
involves the mixing of process streams at different temperatures. When the
streams are at different temperatures, the mixing junction then acts as direct
contact heat exchanger. Thermodynamically it is not recommended to mix
streams at very different temperatures. First because of the high level of entropy
generation resulting in losses in availability widely known as exergy or lost work.
Second the mixing junction could involve cross-pinch heat transfer and
Therefore, an increase in the overall process energy requirements as we
mentioned before. To avoid this situation it is recommended that if mixing has to
happen any way due to some unchallengeable process reason, the streams
involved in such mixing process should be extracted as being mixed
isothermally. In other words these streams need to reach the same temperature
before get mixed. The figure below illustrates this rule.
Page 29 of 210
NO
20 220
YES
110
20 60
20 110
110
NO 20 110
200 Look for the temperature

that is beneficial
To the energy targets
150 50
100 200
50
100 T
Figure 14 - Mixing Process Extraction
5- The temperature, pressure and enthalpy conditions of some streams within a

process are open to change within certain limits. Such streams data are called
soft data. An example of soft data is the pump discharge pressure upstream
(immediately) of a vaporizer. The pump discharge pressure can be varied within
certain limits resulting in a corresponding flexibility in the vaporization
temperature. Another example of soft data is the target temperature of a product
stream which is to go into storage. This temperature can be within a substantial
temperature range.
These soft data should ideally be extracted such that the overall process energy
requirement is minimized.
Page 30 of 210
6- Process constraints can have a detrimental effect on process energy

requirement. Energy targeting tools can be used to investigate of certain
constraint on the process energy demand. For instance in some cases it is
preferred to keep process areas independent of each other. In such cases the
pinch targeting tool can be utilized to explore the effect of such constraint on the
process energy requirement. The example below demonstrates such
calculation.
What is the cost of separating A from B
A B
A B A+B
Energy Consumption= 200 Energy Consumption=160
HEN Area= 120 HEN Area= 132
Figure 15 - Effect of Process Energy Requirement Constraint
Page 31 of 210
7- For data extraction purpose the effective stream temperatures are more
important than the actual stream temperatures. For example, for a hot stream it
is important to know what temperature it is available at to exchange heat against
cold streams, rather than its actual temperature. Similarly, for cold streams it is
the temperature at which heat must be supplied to them that is important. A
famous example if you have a reactor outlet stream (product) that must be
quenched during which steam is raised.
As a result of this constraint the temperature at which the heat in the product stream is
available to other streams is not the reactor outlet temperature but the temperature at
which steam is raised. Therefore, extracting this process stream at the effective
temperature which is the condensing steam temperature will gives the correct energy
targets. In other words due to given process constraint the product stream would have
a very large stream Tmin with the cooling/quenching water stream.
Notes on Extracting Data from PFDs:
First Category:
Exchangers which operate in parallel can be considered as a single stream with

an enthalpy change equal to the combined duties of the existing exchangers
and a temperature profile from the initial stream temperature to the final mixed
temperature.
Exchangers operating in series can also be combined into single stream,

starting at the coldest and ending at the hottest. Duties of the individual
exchangers may be considered as segments, if the stream thermal profile is
not linear.
Upon the completion with the data extraction phase now we can start our targeting
phase using Pinch technology.
2.3 Targeting
Graphical Method
As we explained before any heat exchanger can be represented as a hot stream that
is cooled down by another cold stream and/or cold utility and a cold stream that is
heated up by a hot stream and/or hot utility with a specified minimum temperature
approach between the hot and the cold called Tmin.
Page 32 of 210
The process exhibited below in the graph shows the situation when the two streams
do not have a chance of overlap that produce heat integration between the hot and the
cold.
Feed Product
H PROCESS C
120
T HOT UTILITY
100
80
60
40
20
0
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 H
COLD UTILITY
Figure 16 - Heat Integration between Hot and Cold streams
Moving the cold stream to the left on the enthalpy axis without changing its supply and
target temperatures till we have small vertical distance between the hot stream and the
cold stream we obtain some overlap between the two streams that result in heat
integration between the hot and the cold and less hot and cold utilities. As been
depicted in the graph below with shrinkage in the red and blue lines span.
Page 33 of 210
Feed Product
H PROCESS C
120
T HOT UTILITY
100
HEAT
80
RECOVERY
60
Pinch
(MAT)
40
20
0
0 10 20 30 40 50 60
H
COLD UTILITY
Figure 17 - Heat Integration between Hot and Cold Streams
Now we want to represent all the hot streams in the process by one long hot stream
and we will call this line the hot composite curve. We will also do the same thing with
all the cold streams in the process.
The next step will be drawing the two composite curves/lines on the same page in
Temperature (T)-Enthalpy diagram with two conditions:
1- The cold composite curve should be completely blow the hot composite curve.
2- The vertical distance between the two lines/curves in terms of temperature
should be greater than or equal to a selected minimum approach temperature
called global Tmin
Page 34 of 210
The resulting graph is depicted below and known as thermal pinch diagram
Net Heat Sink

Above the Pinch
Opportunity for
heat recovery
Net Heat Source

Below the Pinch
Figure 18 - Thermal Pinch Diagram
This step can be done in details as follows:
Constructing the composite curves (step-by-step)
Table 4 - Streams Data
Supply Target Heat Capacity Flowrate

Stream/Type
Temp(Ts)(C) Temp.(Tt)(C) (kW/C)
1-Hot 170 70 10
2-Hot 120 30 20
3-Cold 50 90 40
4-Cold 20 110 18
Page 35 of 210
1- Draw the hot composite curve and the cold composite curve via developing the
following tables.
Note: The tables list all the hot and cold streams temperatures in an ascending
order with the cumulative enthalpy corresponding to the lowest hot
temperature and lowest cold temperature respectively equal to zero.
2- In every temperature interval the cumulative hot load is calculated using the
following formula
H= FCp * (Tsupply Ttarget)
3- In every temperature interval the cumulative cold load is calculated using the
following formula
H= FCp * (Ttarget Tsupply)
Table 5 - Hot Stream Composite Curve Data
Hot streams temperature list Cumulative Enthalpy (H)

T0=30 H0 =0.0
T1=70 H1 =800
T2=120 H2 =2300
T3=170 H3 =2800
Table 6 - Cold Stream Composite Curve Data
Cold streams temperature list Cumulative Enthalpy (H)

T0=20 H0=0.0
T1=50 H1=540
T2=90 H2=2860
T3=110 H3=3220
Page 36 of 210
Hot composite curve
Cold composite curve
30
20
Cold composite curve is not completely below the hot composite c urve
Figure 19 - Temperature-Enthalpy Diagram
As we mentioned before the cold composite curve shall lie completely below the hot
composite curve and this can be done via dragging the cold composite curve to the
right on the enthalpy axis (H). This process shall stop at a vertical distance between
the cold and the hot composite curve for a temperature equal to the minimum
temperature approach selected earlier.
Page 37 of 210
Minimum Heating Utility

T
Qh =480 kW
Hot composite curve
Cold composite curve
Minimum Temperature Approach
30
20
Qc=60 kW
Minimum Cooling Utility
Figure 20 - Temperature-Enthalpy Diagram
Algebraic Method:
Information needed
Given a unit with a list of hot streams to be cooled and cold streams to be heated
Table 7 - Hot and Cold Streams Data
Stream ID Type (FCp) Supp. Temp Target Temp

1 Hot 10 520 330
2 Hot 5 380 300
3 Cold 19 300 550
4 Cold 2 320 380
Page 38 of 210
Constructing Temperature Interval Diagram
1.1. Draw two temperature scales one for the hot streams and another for the cold
streams
1.2. Select reasonable minimum temperature approach between the hot streams and
the cold stream (for instance, 10C)
1.3. Draw all the hot streams (in the table hot section) to be cooled according to the
hot steam scale as arrows that start at the supply temperatures and end at the
target temperatures
1.4. Repeat step 1.3 for all cold streams in the cold section of the table
1.5. Start at the highest temperature of any hot stream in the hot section and draw a
horizontal line that span along the two sections of the table, the hot and the cold.
1.6. Draw horizontal lines again at the start and the end of any arrow representing the
hot streams in the hot section of the table
1.7. Repeat step 1.6 for any arrow representing cold stream in the cold section (at the
start and the end of any arrow)
1.8. Count the number of segments generated and number them starting at the
highest temperature (they are called temperature intervals)
1.9. Make sure that each temperature interval has now temperature value on both the
hot temperature scale and cold temperature scale. The difference is the desired
minimum temperature approach (for instance the 10C used in this example)
These procedures are depicted in the figure below
Note: This structure means that within any temperature interval it is

thermodynamically feasible to transfer heat from the hot streams to cold
streams. It is also feasible to transfer heat from a hot stream in an interval x to
any cold stream which lies in an interval below.
Page 39 of 210
T minimum = 10 K
T* Interval
Hot Streams Cold Streams
T t
555 560 550
1 H1
515 520 510
2
385 390 380
375 3 H2 380 370
4 330 320
310
5 310 300 C2
305
6 C1
295 300 290
Hot Streams:H1; F1Cp1= 10 kW/K Cold Streams:C1; F1Cp1= 10 kW/K
H2; F2Cp2= 5 kW/K C2; F2Cp2= 5 kW/K
Figure 21 - The Temperature Interval Diagram
Note: The temperature symbol T* is interval inlet temperature used later on selecting
the suitable energy utility after calculating the targets using what is known as
grand composite curve.
To calculate T* we take the average interval inlet temperature of the hot and cold
temperature scale.
Page 40 of 210
Constructing Tables of Exchangeable Heat Loads and Cooling Capacities
2.1 Determining individual heating loads and cooling capacities of all process streams
for all temperature intervals using this formula:
Qnm = F1Cp1* (Ts-Te) in energy units ( kW)
Ts is the interval start temperature and
Te is the interval end temperature
n is stream number and m is the interval number
Example 1:
Interval # 1 in the hot section:
The interval start temperature is 560 K
The interval end temperature is 520 K
Q11(Q for stream #1 in interval #1)= F1Cp1*(560-520)
Since there is no H1 stream in this interval, hence, F1Cp1=0.0
Q stream # 1(exchangeable load) in this interval = 0.0*(560-520)= zero
Example 2
Interval # 2 in the hot section:
The flow specific heat F1Cp1= 10 kW/K
Then,
Q stream #1(exchangeable load) in interval #1= 10*(520-390) = 1300 kW
Page 41 of 210
Example 3
Interval # 1 in the cold section:
The flow specific heat of this cold stream is F1Cp1= 119 kW/K
Then,
Q stream #1(cooling capacity) in interval #1= 19*(560-520) = 760 kW
Upon the completion of this step
2.2 We can now obtain the collective loads (capacities) of the hot (cold) process
streams.
These collective loads (capacities) are calculated by summing up the individual loads
of the hot process streams that pass through that interval and the collective cooling
capacity of the cold streams within the same interval
Page 42 of 210
These calculations for the above problem is shown in the following tables
Table 7 - Exchangeable Loads for Process Hot Streams Intervals
Interval Load of H1, kW Load of H2, kW Total Load, kW
0.0*(560-520)= 0.0 0.0*(560-520)= 0.0 0.0+0.0= 0.0

1
2 10*(520-390)= 1300 0.0*(520-390)= 0.0 1300+0.0= 1300
3 10*(390-380)= 100 0.0*(390-380)= 0.0 100+0.0= 100
4 10*(380-350)= 500 5*(380-330)= 250 500+250= 750
5 0.0*(330-310)= 0.0 5*(330-310)= 100 0.0+ 100= 100
6 0.0*(310-300)= 0.0 5*(310-300)= 50 0.0+50= 50
Page 43 of 210
Table 8 - Cooling Capacities for Process Cold Streams Intervals
Interval Capacity of C1, kW Capacity of C2, kW Total Load, kW
19*(550-510)= 760 0.0*(550-510)= 0.0 760+0.0= 760

1
2 19*(510-380)= 2470 0.0*(510-380)= 0.0 2470+0.0= 2470
3 19*(380-370)= 190 2*(380-370)= 20 190+20= 210
4 19*(370-320)=950 2*(370-320)= 100 950+100= 1050
5 19*(320-300)= 380 0.0*(320-300)= 0.0 380+ 0.0= 380
6 0.0*(300-290)= 0.0 0.0*(300-290)= 0.0 0.0+0.0= 0.0
Constructing Thermal Cascade Diagrams
This diagram is constructed using the total hot loads and cooling capacities obtained in
the previous step for each temperature intervals.
The temperature intervals are drawn as rectangular with two inlets and two outlets.
The inlet from the left is the total hot load available in this interval (for instance,
1300 kW in case of interval # 2)
The inlet from above is the utility input load, in case of the first interval, or the input
from interval above in case of second, third,,N intervals.
The output from the right is the total cooling capacity of this interval (for instance,
2470 kW in case of interval #2).
Page 44 of 210
The output from the bottom is the difference between the total inputs and the cooling
capacity of the interval
The heat balance around each interval will be conducted as follows:
Hot Load from Utility Source
Top Input
Hot Load From Process Source Cooling Capacity from Process Source
Left Input Right Output

1
Residual Hot to Subsequent Interval
Bottom Output from first interval
Heat Balance
Top Input+ Left Input- Right Output = Bottom Output
Figure 22 - First Interval Heat Balance
Page 45 of 210
Hot Load From Utility Source
Top Input= 0.0 kW
Hot Load From Process Source Cooling Capacity From Process Source
Left Input= 0.0 kW Right Output=760 kW

1
Bottom Output from first interval = - 760 kW

Heat Balance

0.0 + 0.0 - 760 = - 760 kW
Figure 23 - Numerical Example of First Interval Heat Balance
Page 46 of 210
Hot Load from Above Interval
Top Input
Hot Load from Process Source Cooling Capacity from Process Source
Left Input Right Output

N
Bottom Output
Heat Balance
Figure 24 - Subsequent Intervals Heat Balance
Page 47 of 210
Hot Load from Above Interval
Top Input = -760
Hot Load from Process Source Cooling Capacity from Process Source
Left Input= 1300 Right Output= 2470

2
Bottom Output = - 1930
Heat Balance
- 760 + 1300 -2470 = -1930
Figure 25 - Numerical Example for Subsequent Intervals Heat Balance
Page 48 of 210
Upon the completion of heat balance around each interval the following diagram will
be produced.
Note: During this step the input from Hot Utility to the first interval is equal to zero
0.0
0.0 1 760
- 760
1300 2 2470
- 1930
100 3 210
- 2040
750 4 1050
-2340
100 5 380
- 2620
50 0.0
6
- 2570
Figure 26 - Thermal Cascade Diagram (Un-Balanced)
The maximum difference between the available hot loads and cooling capacities from
the heat balances of these intervals is 2620 kW.
This deficiency in heat will be supplied via outside hot utility.
Page 49 of 210
This value will be the input (from the top of the first interval) and the same heat
balance calculation conducted above will be repeated to produce the balanced
thermal cascade diagram below.
Note: During this step the input from Hot Utility to the first interval is equal to zero
Minimum Q -heating = 2620 kW
0.0 1 760
1860
1300 2 2470
690
100 3 210
580
750 4 1050
280
100 5 380
Thermal Pinch
0.0
50 0.0
6
Minimum Q -cooling = 50 kW
Figure 27 - Thermal Cascade Diagram (Balanced)
With the completion of this step, now the minimum heating utility and minimum cooling
utility required are 2620 kW and 50 kW respectively.
Page 50 of 210
Constructing the Grand Composite Curve (G.C.C.)
This curve will be drawn between T* calculated before and the corresponding top heat
inputs to each interval.
These data are depicted below:
T* (K) Enthalpy ( kW)
555 2620 kW
1
T* (K) 515 1860 kW
2
385 690 kW
3
375 580 kW
4
310 280 kW
5
305 0.0 kW
Thermal Pinch
6
295 50 kW
Enthalpy ( kW)
Figure 28 - G.C.C. Data Construction
Page 51 of 210
Drawing these data as T* versus Enthalpy results in the following diagram that can be
used to define different levels of utilities that can be used to satisfy the process heating
utility requirement as shown below.
T* (K) Total hot utility required is equal to 2620 kW
600
Hu3
Hu2
500
Hu1
400
300
Enthalpy (kW)
200
700 1400 2100 2800
Page 52 of 210
Multiple Utility Targeting/Selection using Grand Composite Curve (GCC)
Upon maximizing heat recovery in the heat exchanger network, those heating duties
and cooling duties not serviced by heat recovery must be provided by external utilities.
The most common utility is steam. It is usually available at several levels.

High temperature heating duties require furnace flue gas or a hot oil circuit.
Cold utilities might be refrigeration, cooling water, air cooling, furnace air preheating,
boiler feed water preheating, or even steam generation at higher temperatures.
Although the composite curves can be used to set energy targets, they are not a
suitable tool for the selection of utilities. The grand composite curve drawn above is a
more appropriate tool for understanding the interface between the process and the
utility system. It is also as will be shown in later chapters a very useful tool in studying
of the interaction between heat-integrated reactors, separators and the rest of the
process.
The GCC is obtained via drawing the problem table cascade as we shown earlier.
The graph shown above is a typical GCC. It shows the heat flow through the process
against temperature. It should be noted that the temperature plotted here is the shifted
temperature T* and not the actual temperature. Hot streams are represented by
Tmin/2 colder and the cold streams Tmin/2 hotter than they are in the streams
problem definition. This method means that an allowance of T min is already built into
the graph between the hot and the cold for both process and utility streams. The point
of zero heat flow in the GCC is the pinch point. The open jaws at the top and the
bottom represent QHmin and QCmin respectively.
The grand composite curve (GCC) provides convenient tool for setting the targets for
the multiple utility levels of heating utilities as illustrated above.
Page 53 of 210
The graphs below further illustrate such capability for both heating and cooling utilities.
Figure 30 - Grand Composite Curve for Utility Selection
The above figure (a) shows a situation where HP steam is used for heating and
refrigeration is used for cooling the process. In order to reduce utilities cost,
intermediate utilities MP steam and cooling water (CW) are introduced. The second
graph (b) shows the targets for all the utilities. The target for the MP steam is set via
simply drawing a horizontal line at the MP steam temperature level starting from the
vertical axis until it touches the GCC. The remaining heat duty required is then
satisfied by the HP steam. This maximizes the MP steam consumption prior to the
remaining heating duty be fulfilled by the HP steam and therefore, minimizes the total
utilities cost. Similar logic is followed below the pinch to maximize the use of the
cooling water prior the use of the refrigeration.
Page 54 of 210
The points where the MP steam and CW levels touch the GCC are called utility
pinches since these are caused by utility levels. The graph (C) below shows a different
possibility of utility levels where furnace heating is used instead of HP steam.
Considering that furnace heating is more expensive than MP steam, the use of the MP
steam is first maximized. In the temperature range above the MP steam level, the
heating duty has to be supplied by the furnace flue gas. The flue gas flowrate is set as
shown in graph via drawing a sloping line starting from the MP steam to theoretical
flame temperature Ttft.
If the process pinch temperature is above the flue gas corrosion temperature, the heat
available from the flue gas between the MP steam and pinch temperature can be used
for process heating. This will reduce the MP steam consumption.
In summary the GCC is one of the basic tools used in pinch technology for the
selection of appropriate utility levels and for targeting for a given set of multiple utility
levels. The targeting involves setting appropriate loads for the various utility levels by
maximizing cheaper utility loads and minimizing the loads on expensive utilities.
Page 55 of 210
T-tft
(C)
T*
MP
CW
Refrigeration
H
Figure 31 - Utility Levels for Hot & Cold Streams
Normally, we have a choice of many hot and cold utilities and the graph below shows
some of our options. Generally it is recommended to use hot utilities at the lowest
possible temperature while we generate it at the highest possible temperature. And for
the cold utilities it is recommended to use it at the highest possible temperature and
generate at the lowest possible temperature. These recommendations are best
addressed systematically using the grand composite curve.
Page 56 of 210
Boiler House
And Power Plant
Fuel
Steam W
Turbines
W
Gas
Turbines
BFW
Hot Oil preheat
Circuit
Heat W
Process Pump
Furnace
Cooling W
Towers
Refrigeration
Air preheat
Figure 32 - Hot & Cold Utilities
Understanding the Grand Composite Curve
The graph below shows that utility pinches are formed according to the number of
utilities used. Each time a utility is used a utility pinch is created. It also shows that
the GCC right noses sometimes known as pockets are areas of heat
integration/energy recovery. In other words it does not need any external utilities.
These right noses/pockets are caused by;
1. Region of net heat availability above the pinch

2. Region of net heat requirement below the pinch
Page 57 of 210
Applying the Grand Composite Curve
GCC curve can be used by engineers to select the best match between utility profile
and process needs profile. For instance, the steam system shown below needs to be
integrated with the process demands profile to minimize low pressure steam flaring
and high or medium pressures steam let downs. Besides it helps selecting steam
header pressure levels and loads.
Page 58 of 210
Figure 34 - Typical CHP Model
Page 59 of 210
T HP
MP
Process GCC
LP
BFW
CW
H
Figure 35 - Superimposed Utility Profile with Process Profile
The superimposed steam system on the process grand composite curve shows that
while process heating needs can be achieved electricity can also be generated to
satisfy process demands and/or export the surplus to the grid.
The graph below shows how we can use the GCC not only to select utility type, load
but also to define the steam headers minimum pressure/temperature to minimize
driving force and save exergy.
Page 60 of 210
T Qh
HP
MP
LP
BFW
CW
Qc
H
Figure 36 - G.C.C. Steam Headers for Minimum Pressure/Temperature
Grand Composite Curve can also be utilized to select the load and return temperature
of hot oil circuits. The graph below shows that while in many cases the process pinch
can be our limiting point in defining the load (slop of the hot oil line) and the return
temperature of the heating oil. In some other cases the topology of the GCC is the
limiting point not the process pinch. This is also shown in the second graph below.
This practical guide to select the load and the target temperature of the hot oil circuits
is also applicable to furnaces as will be shown later in this chapter.
Page 61 of 210
Process Pinch temperature is the Limiting temperature for the Hot oil return temperature
T*
T supply
Hot Oil
T return
Process CW
Pinch
Refrigeration
Figure 37 - Process Pinch Temperature for Hot Oil
Process Pinch temperature is not the Limiting temperature for the Hot oil return temperature
But the topology of the GCC curve
T* T supply
Hot Oil
CP-min
T return
Process CW
Pinch
Refrigeration
Figure 38 - Return Temperature for Hot Oil
Page 62 of 210
Grand composite curve (GCC) can also be used to select the process refrigeration
levels and the synthesis of the multiple-cycles refrigeration systems as we did in the
steam system. The schematic graph below shows a simplified refrigeration system.
Condenser
25 C
CW
Process - 5C
0C
-40 C
Process
-35 C
-70 C
Process
-65 C
Work
Compressor
Figure 39 - Multilevel Refrigeration System
Page 63 of 210
The GCC as we mentioned before can be used to place the refrigeration levels as we
did with steam levels. The graph below shows how we can do that.
We can place the refrigeration levels like steam levels.

Maximizing the highest temperature load to minimize the lower temperature loads
Tcw
- 5 C
- 40 C
- 70 C
Figure 40 - Refrigeration Levels for Cold Stream
When a hot utility needs to be at a high temperature and/or provide high heat fluxes,
radiant heat transfer is used from combustion of fuel in furnace. Furnace designs vary
according to the function of the furnace, heating duty and type of fuel, and method of
introducing combustion air. Sometime the function is purely to provide heat;
sometimes the furnace is also a reactor like the steam-methane reformer and the
furnace provides the heat of reaction.
Page 64 of 210
Process furnaces have a number of common features. In the chamber when the
combustion takes place the heat is transferred mainly by radiation to tubes around the
walls of the chamber, through which passes the fluid to be heated. After the flue gas
leaves the combustion chamber, most furnace designs extract further heat from the
flue gas in a convection section before the flue gas is vented to the atmosphere.
A simplified furnace model is shown in the graph below.
T0- corrosion
T-stack
T-TFT Q-Hmin
Air
Fuel
Figure 41 - Furnace Model
T-TFT is the theoretical flame temperature, while T0-corrosion is the minimum flue gas
outlet temperature that still avoids furnace stake corrosion.
Page 65 of 210
Furnace flue gas used as a hot utility can be matched against the grand composite
curve as shown below.
T*
T*TFT
Flue Gas
T*stack
T*ambient
Stack Enthalpy
loss Q-Hmin
Fuel
Figure 42 - Furnace Flue Gas Utility for Hot Stream
The flue gas starts at its theoretical flame temperature shifted with the desired Tmin
on the grand composite curve and presents a sloping profile because it is giving up
sensible heat. Theoretical flame temperature is the temperature attained when a fuel is
burnt in air/oxygen without any heat loss.
The real flame temperature will be lower than the theoretical flame temperature
because heat is lost from the flame because part of the heat released provides heat
for a variety of endothermic dissociation reactions that occur at high temperatures.
Thus although theoretical flame temperature is not very accurate representation of the
true flame temperature, it dose provides a convenient reference to indicate how much
heat is actually released by the combustion as the flue gas is cooled.
Page 66 of 210
In figure above the flue gas is cooled to pinch temperature before being released to
the atmosphere. The heat released from the flue gas between the pinch temperature
and ambient temperature is the stack loss. These losses can be easily calculated for a
given process grand composite curve and given theoretical flame temperature.
Combustion processes work with an excess air or oxygen to ensure complete

combustion of the fuel .Excess air typically ranges between 5 to 20% depending on the
fuel, burner design and furnace design. As excess air is reduced the theoretical flame
temperature increases. This action has the effect of reducing the stack losses and
increasing the thermal efficiency of the furnace for a given process duty. Alternatively, if
the combustion air is preheated again the theoretical flame temperature increases and
the stack losses decrease resulting in better furnace efficiency as shown in the graph
below.
T*
T*TFT2
T*TFT1
Flue Gas
T*stack
T*ambient
Enthalpy
Stack
loss Q-Hmin
Fuel
Figure 43 - Two Furnace-GCC Graph
Page 67 of 210
In the two furnace-GCC graphs shown above the flue gas is capable to be cooled to
the pinch temperature before releasing it to the atmosphere. This is not always the
case. One famous case is the situation in which the acid dew point temperature, which
is the practical minimum temperature to which the flue gas can be cooled without
condensation that causes corrosion in the stack, is higher than the pinch temperature
as shown in graph below.
T*
T*TFT
Flue Gas
T*stack=T*corrosion
T*ambient
T-pinch
Enthalpy
Stack
loss Q-Hmin
Fuel
Figure 44 - Furnace G.C.C. Graph
Page 68 of 210
Another case as shown in the graph below when the shape of the grand composite
curve (GCC) prevent the stack temperature to be reduced all the way to the pinch
temperature where the process away from the pinch limits the slope of the flue gas line
and hence the stack loss.
T*
T*TFT
Flue Gas
T*stack
T-pinch
T*ambient
Enthalpy
Stack
loss Q-Hmin
Fuel
Figure 45 - Furnace G.C.C. Graph
Page 69 of 210
Combined Thermal Energy and Power using GCC
A more complex utility is combined heat and power or cogeneration. In such case,
simply, the heat rejected by a heat engine such as steam turbine, gas turbine or diesel
engine is used as the hot utility.
According to the first law of thermodynamics, heat and power are related. Thus, it
should not be surprising that the energy integration concepts can be applied for heat
and power integration. Fundamentally there are three possible ways to integrate a
heat engine exhaust, but before starting to discuss these possibilities let us get a
glance about heat engines. In this course we mean with heat engines steam turbines
and gas turbines. A heat engine takes in heat (Q1) from a heat source at very higher
temperature and rejects heat (Q2) at a lower temperature into a heat sink while
producing electricity. The power generation, in form of work (W), equals the difference
between heat input (Q1) and heat rejection (Q2), as per the strict definition of the first
law of thermodynamics.
Thermodynamic texts imply that the efficiency of a heat engine is always less than
100% since some of the heat output will always be wasted. If we can utilize this waste
heat in another process task to satisfy certain process requirement such as the
heating of process streams then we are enhancing the efficiency of the heat engine via
its integration with other process unit. A systems approach now will lead to different
conclusion from the consideration of a particular unit in isolation of the rest of the
process. The challenge now is how we integrate the heat engine with other process
units systematically, without enumeration and in a way that enhance the thermal
efficiency of the heat engine. As we mentioned earlier there are three possible way of
such integration with process units, above the pinch, below the pinch or across the
pinch. Let us first consider the integration of the heat engine exhaust across the pinch
as shown in the Graph (A) below.
Page 70 of 210
(A)
T*
QHmin + QHE
Heat Engine W
QHE - W
Qc+QHE-W
Figure 46 - Heat Engine Exhaust Integration
Page 71 of 210
The heat engine takes in QHmin units of heat from the external utility above the pinch,
produces W units of work and rejects QHE-W heat into the process below the pinch,
which is rejected into cooling water. The graph shows that the process still needs
QHmin and the cooling utilities need will be increased by (QHE- W) amount of heat
and the heat engine will perform no better than if it was a standalone one. It takes
QHE and produce W work while it produces QHE-W waste heat. As a matter of fact
this integration will be counterproductive from both capital investment and energy point
of views. More capital investment since the cascaded heat (QHE-W) is rejected to the
cooling water Therefore, the process will need more heat exchangers. More energy
since the level of work extraction from the QHE supplied heat was not full than it
should be by taken the expansion in the turbine/Heat engine all the way down to the
condensation level to generate more power. Therefore, we conclude that heat engines
should not be integrated across the pinch since this will be counterproductive from
energy consumption point of view and the heat engine efficiency as well.
Now let us examine the other two possible cases of integrating the heat engine above
the pinch as shown in graph (B) or below the pinch as per graph (C). In both cases the
integration of the heat engine with the process will be beneficial in both cases as we
will show below.
First case is to study the effect of integrating the heat engine with the process above
the pinch point.
Page 72 of 210
(B)
QHmin + QHE
T*
QHmin- (QHE-W) QHE
Heat Engine W
QHE-W
Qc
Figure 47 - Effect of Heat Engine Integration
Page 73 of 210
If we integrate the heat engine above the pinch then we are rejecting the QHE-W
exhaust heat to the process which is a heat sink above the pinch and already needs
such external utility.
This mechanism means less external utility by the amount of QHE-W or all the thermal
energy input to the heat engine QHE is utilized; part as work and the wasted heat
QHE-W as a heating medium for the process. In other words we take in extra units of
energy QHE than the QHmin required by the process and which we are going to take
any way for a standalone heat engine and utilize it all via turning it into shaft work and
process heating medium achieving 100% efficiency for the heat engine as if we are
having a100% conversion of heat to power using the first law efficiency definition.
Now if we integrate the heat engine below the pinch as shown in graph (C), we are not
integrating the heat engine exhaust but we are taking waste heat from the process,
which is a heat source below the pinch, and give to the heat engine to produce work.
In such case we are getting double benefits, first, we are not getting external QHE for
the heat engine or we are not increasing the hot utility requirements. Second we are
also decreasing the cooling utility requirement by Qc-QHE. In other words, again we
are getting to a situation that we are using the process waste heat below the pinch to
generate electricity and saving cooling utility.
Page 74 of 210
(C)
T*
QHmin
QHE Heat Engine W
QHE-W
Qc-QHE
Figure 48 - Heat Engine Integration below Pinch
Page 75 of 210
This situation of a system approach, compared to the unit based approach, shows that
when we put our boundary lines around both the process plant and the utility plant and
consider a bigger picture than that we all of us sometimes see we get into a new
system in which the process and the heat engine are acting as a one system. In such
new situation, apparently the conversion of heat to work is happening with 100%
efficiency. Now let us take a closer look at the two most commonly used heat engines,
the steam turbine and the gas turbine to see the efficiency that they can achieve in
practice. Simple rule, before we start talking about steam and gas turbines, is that the
grand composite curve for the process should be used to make any quantitative
assessment of any heat and power scheme and the heat engine exhaust shall be
treated as any other utility.
Steam Turbine Integration
The graph below shows a steam turbine expansion on an enthalpy-entropy plot.

It shows the ideal expansion process and the real expansion one and what we mean
by isentropic efficiency or second law (of thermodynamic) efficiency.
Page 76 of 210
P1
Enthalpy (H)
H1
Real
expansion
Process
P2
Ideal
expansion X=1.0
Process
Isentropic H2* X=0.9
H2
X=0.85
Entropy (S)
Figure 49 - Steam Turbine Expansion
In an ideal turbine, steam with an initial pressure P1 and enthalpy H1 expands

isentropically to pressure P2 and enthalpy H2. In such hypothesis, the ideal work
produced is equal to H1-H2. Because of the losses in the turbine real expansion
process due to frictional effects in the turbine nozzle and blade passages, etc., the exit
enthalpy is greater than it would be in the ideal process. Therefore, the actual work
output will be less and determined by the H2* value as shown in the above graph.
The actual work output is equal to H1-H2*.
Page 77 of 210
The turbine isentropic efficiency:

isen ( H1 H 2*) /( H1 H 2)
The output from the turbine might be superheated or partially condensed. If the
exhaust steam is to be used for process heating, ideally it should be close to
saturation condensation. If the exhaust steam is significantly superheated, it can be
de-superheated by direct water injection of the boiler feed water which vaporizes and
cools the steam. However, if saturated steam is fed to a steam main, with significant
potential of heat loss from the main, then it is desirable to retain superheat than to
de-superheat. Since the heat losses will cause excessive condensation in the main,
which is not desirable. On the other hand if the exhaust steam from the turbine is
partially condensed, the condensate is separated and the steam is used for heating.
Figure below shows a steam turbine integrated with process plant above the pinch.
Figure 50 - Integration of Steam Turbine with the Process
Page 78 of 210
Fuel supplied to the boiler is used to produce high pressure steam for process heating
and for power generation in the turbine. Rejected heat from the turbine is also used for
process heating. As shown in graph the process proceeds as follows heat QHP is
taken into the process from high pressure steam. The balance of the hot utility demand
QLP is taken from the steam turbine exhaust. The flash steam is recovered after
pressure reduction of the high-pressure steam condensate as shown in the above
graph. Heat Q-fuel is given to the boiler and an overall energy balance gives:
Q-fuel = Q-HP steam+ Q-loss
And Q-HP steam = QHP+ QLP+W;
Then
Q-fuel= (QHP+ QLP+ W) + Q-loss
The process needs QHP+ QLP to satisfy its enthalpy imbalance above the pinch.
In addition to boiler losses there are losses from the turbine and significant one from
the steam distribution system.
Gas Turbine Integration
Graph below shows a simple gas turbine matched against a process. The gas heat
engine is essentially a rotary compressor mounted on the same shaft of a turbine.
Air enters the compressor where it gets compressed before entering the combustion
chamber where there the combustion process increases its temperature. The mixture
of the combustion gases, including air, is expanded in the turbine. The energy input to
the combustion chamber is enough to drive the compressor and produce useful work
(Electricity). The expanded gas may be discharged to the atmosphere directly or may
first be used to preheat the air to the combustion chamber as shown in graph below.
Page 79 of 210
Figure 51 - Gas Turbine Exhaust Matched against the Process
Gas turbines are normally only used for relatively large-scale applications.
The overall efficiency of conversion of heat into power depends on the turbine exhaust
profile, the pinch temperature and the shape of the process grand composite curve.
It is instructive to mention here that reciprocating engines, combined cycles, etc., all
have heat sources and heat sinks and they can be treated similarly.
Since we have many different types of heat engines to choose from, we need the
grand composite curve to help us determine the most suitable heat engine for a given
process.
Example in graph below shows that for a process that have such type of a grand
composite curve the best type of utility will be low pressure steam. This result is not
easy to obtain via intuition without drawing the process grand composite curve due to
the fact that the process extends to high temperatures.
Page 80 of 210
Figure 52 - Integration of Steam or Gas Turbine with the Process
The grand composite curve in the above case indicates a little bit flat temperature
profile for demand which exhibit a good fit between low pressure steam and the
process. If high pressure steam is available we can utilize the energy in it via
producing work using steam turbine to recover the shaft work available between the
high pressure (HP) and low pressure (LP) mains as shown in graph below.
Page 81 of 210
Figure 53 - Integration of Steam Turbine with the Process
In other situations where the process grand composite curve slope is far of being flat,
integration of steam turbines with the process might not be appropriate and a gas
turbine might be better as shown in graph below. The graph shows that a gas turbine
is more appropriate because the sloping profile of the GCC is not suitable for a
constant-temperature utility like steam. The gas turbine exhaust here in this example
has a sloping utility profile which better fits the process GCC since several steam
levels would be required to make a steam turbine efficient.
Page 82 of 210
Figure 54 - Integration of Steam or Gas Turbine with the Process
In most of the times there is a trade-off between capital and energy costs. In the
selection of steam or gas turbines that best integrate with the process utility
requirements we have a trade-off between gas turbine efficiency, HEN capital cost and
stack heat loss to ambient. For instance in order to closely matches the process grand
composite curve with the gas turbine exhaust, the minimum approach temperature
between the process and the hot utility exhaust gas will be small resulting in high
capital cost for the HEN. In addition it will result in increased heat loss to the ambient.
On the other hand higher stack temperature means less efficient gas turbine and lower
flowrate-specific heat availability to satisfy the process needs. These two cases are
depicted in the graph below. The solid line of the gas turbine exhaust represents a low
temperature gas turbine exhaust, while the dotted line represents a higher gas turbine
exhaust temperature.
Page 83 of 210
Figure 55 - Trade-off between Capital and Operating Cost
Integration of Heat Pumps
Heat pumps are the opposite of heat engines. We put work into a heat pump to raise
the temperature level of the available heat. A heat pump is a device that absorbs heat
at low temperature in the evaporator, consumes shaft-work when the working fluid is
compressed and rejects heat at higher temperature in the condenser. The condensed
working fluid is expanded and partially vaporized. Then the cycle repeats. In many
cases the working fluid is pure component which means that the evaporation and
condensation take place isothermally.
Page 84 of 210
Graph below is a schematic of a simple vapor compression heat pump.
Condenser
Expansion Valve
Compressor
Separator
Evaporator
Figure 56 - Schematic of a Simple Vapor Compression Heat Pump
Page 85 of 210
Just as with heat engine integration there are appropriate and inappropriate ways to
integrate heat pumps. Essentially there are two ways to integrate heat pumps with the
process; either across the pinch or not across the pinch. Not across the pinch means
the heat pump will be placed above the pinch or below the pinch point. Let us first
examine the case where the heat pump is placed or integrated with the process above
the pinch point. In this configuration the process imports W shaft-work and saves
W hot utility. In such configuration the system converts power into heat which is
normally never economically worthwhile considering
(A)
QHmin _ W
T*
(QHP+W) Heat Pump

W
QHP
Pinch
Qc-min
Figure 57 - Integrating of Heat Pump above the Pinch
Page 86 of 210
Another possible integration not across the pinch too is integrated the heat pump with
the process below the pinch as shown in the (B) graph below.
(B)
T*
QHmin
Pinch
QHP+ W
Heat Pump W
QHP
(Qc-min) + W
Figure 58 - Integrating of Heat Pump below the Pinch
The result of integration in such case is worse economically. In such case, power is
turned into waste heat that then need to be rejected to cooling utility.
Page 87 of 210
Last possible way of integration of the heat pump with the process is across the pinch
as shown in graph below.
(C)
(QH-min)- QHP-W
T*
QHP+ W
Pinch
Heat Pump W
QHP
(QC-min)-QHP
Figure 59 - Integrating of Heat Pump across the Pinch
Page 88 of 210
This arrangement brings about a genuine energy savings. As shown in graph it can
reduces the process heating utility import by (W+QHP) and decreases the process
cold utility import by QHP. It also makes overall sense because heat is pumped from
the part of the process which is overall a heat source to the part of the process which
is overall a heat sink.
Thus the appropriate placement of heat pumps in the process context is that they
should be placed across the pinch. In case of utility pinch the heat pumps shall also be
placed across it.
Graph below shows a heat pump integrated properly across the pinch and the use of
grand composite curve in defining the best place to integrate this heat pump. The (A)
graph depicts the heat balance but the (B) graph of the GCC illustrates how the grand
composite curve can be used to size the heat pump
(A) (B)
(QH-min)- QHP-W
T* T*
Steam
QHP+ W
QHP+W
Pinch W
Heat Pump
QHP
QHP
CW
Enthalpy
(QC-min)-QHP
Figure 60 - Heat Pump against the GCC
Page 89 of 210
It is instructive to mention here that in order to examine how a heat pump performs we
need to check its coefficient of performance (COP). The coefficient of performance for
a heat pump (COP) generally can be defined as the useful energy delivered to the
process divided by the shaft-work spent to produce this useful energy.
COPHp = (QHp + W)/ W
Where COPHp is the heat pump coefficient of performance, QHp is the heat absorbed
at low temperature and W is the shaft-work consumed. For any given type of heat
pump, a higher COPHp leads to better economics. Having a better COPHp and hence
better economics means working across a small temperature lift with the heat pump.
The smaller the temperature lift, the better is the COPHp. For most allocations, a
temperature lift greater than 25C is rarely economical. Attractive heat pump
application normally requires a lift much less than 25C.
Using the grand composite curve, as shown above, the loads and the temperatures of
the cooling and heating duties and hence the COPHp of integrated heat pumps can be
readily assessed. To target for the thermal design of the heat pump we can use the
GCC and treat the heat pump like an energy utility. The graph below shows that the
GCC can help define the W needed for the heat pump if the process cooling utility Qc
and the desired temperature differences, which can bring up value, are defined.
Since the W needed in the heat pump is a function in the temperature difference;
iteration will be needed to decide best temperature difference. In the graph below it is
clear that the hot side of the heat pump is limiting since the desired process heating
utility Qh from the heat pump is limiting
Page 90 of 210
T*
Steam
With the GCC determining the levels for heat
Pump placement is straightforward
QHP+W
Heat
W Pump
QHP
CW Enthalpy
Figure 61 - The Heat Pump against the GCC
Let us try to go back to the coefficient of performance (COP) of a heat pump and try to
see in numbers how it is function of temperature difference.
We know that the shaft-work requirement of a heat pump increases with T. If the
heat pump operates over small T the shaft-work requirement is lower than working at
high T and consequently as shown in the graph below the COP is relatively becomes
high.
Page 91 of 210
COP = (QHP+W)/W
T*
T*
QHP+W=150
Heat
QHP+W=110
W=50
Pump Heat
W=10
Pump
QHP=100 QHP=100
COP = 150/50=3 Enthalpy

Enthalpy
COP = 110/10=11
Figure 62 - Heat Pump across Small Ts
Integration of Refrigeration Systems
A refrigeration system is a heat pump in which heat is absorbed below ambient

temperature. A heat pump is a reverse of a power cycle. For example a home
refrigerator removes heat from food that is just above freezing (say 5C) and ejects
that heat into the room which is at ambient temperature( say 25C). The work we put
into the pump to move the heat to the higher temperature degrades to heat.
Degrading heat from a high temperature to a low temperature allows us to create
work. Using work allows us to elevate the temperature of low grade heat.
Before we talk about the integration of refrigeration cycles with the process let us
examine first the refrigeration cycle using temperature-entropy diagram.
Page 92 of 210
The graph below shows again the main components of a typical refrigeration cycle.
We start examining the cycle at the exit of the condenser at point # 1.
High Pressure Liquid High Pressure Vapor

1
4
Condenser
Expansion Valve
Compressor
2 3
Low Pressure Vapor Low Pressure Vapor
and Liquid (two Phases)
Evaporator
Figure 63 - A Typical Refrigeration Cycle
Here the refrigerant is a high pressure liquid, very near to saturation (i.e., about ready
to boil). We reduces the pressure on the liquid by passing it through an adiabatic valve
(H=0.0). It partially vaporizes point #2. The heat required for vaporization, since we
do not give it an external heat, comes from the fluid itself, cooling it. We next pass this
fluid through the refrigeration coils where the rest of the liquid evaporates. In doing so,
it takes heat from the surroundings (from food or process). We now have a low
pressure Vapor/fluid, point # 3, which is all vapor and very near saturation (just ready
to condense). We then increase the pressure on the fluid by compressing it. An ideal
compressor operates isentropically (at constant entropy, S=0.0), arriving to point # 4.
It has been heated up due to compression becoming a superheated vapor well above
saturation. We then cool it by rejecting the heat to the surrounding or cooling medium
in the process returning ultimately to being a liquid at high pressure, point # 1.
Page 93 of 210
The graph below shows this cycle on a plot of temperature versus entropy diagram.
The advantage of viewing such cycle on temperature versus entropy and not pressure
versus enthalpy that the area enclosed in the cycle represents the ideal work needed
to run the cycle. Any improvements to the cycle will show up as reductions in this area,
provided that we pick up the same amount of heat in the evaporator both before and
after the improvement since this amount of heat is normally the one dictated by the
process needs.
T, K
4
1
liquid
Vapor
2 3
Vapor and liquid
Entropy, S(J/mol K)
Figure 64 - Temperature-Entropy Diagram for Refrigeration Cycle
Understanding the above temperature- entropy diagram in the context of the

refrigeration cycle components allows us to generate ideas that can help save energy.
In the graphs below we will present two of such possible improvements.
Page 94 of 210
The first is to use a multi-stage compressor as shown below to reduce the area
enclosed in the cycle which represents the idea work needed to run the cycle.
T, K
Save this area
liquid
Vapor
Multistage
Vapor and liquid Compressor
Entropy, S(J/mol K)
In such case we compress only part way and then cool the vapor back to its saturation
temperature. We compress again to the final pressure. The area saved on the right
side of the above graph represents the savings in the ideal work needed to run this
cycle.
The second possible improvement shown in the graph below is using a let down
turbine rather than a valve to drop the pressure of the high pressure liquid.
Page 95 of 210
T, K
Turbine Expansion
Save this area
liquid
Vapor
Multistage
Compressor
Vapor and liquid
Extra refrigeration capacity
Entropy, S(J/mol K)
This expansion is shown in the straight line. This step appears to increase the area
enclosed which means extra ideal work will be required to run this cycle. However, it
also increases the length of the line that represents the heat we pick up in the
evaporator from the process. In other words we are increasing our refrigeration
capacity. It is really an improvement since the area (that represent the ideal work
needed to run the cycle) per unit heat we pick from the process (process demand) in
the evaporator is actually reduced when we use the let down turbine. In general we
should normally use one cycle to elevate the low temperature heat by no more
than30C. If we need to increase the temperature of the heat more than that, it pays to
use multiple cycles where a lower temperature cycle passes heat to the cycle above it,
which in turns passes the heat to the cycle above it, repeating until the top cycle,
which passes the heat to the ambient conditions. This configuration is shown in the
double cycle shown in the graph below.
Page 96 of 210
Condenser
Expansion Valve
Evaporator Compressor
Condenser
Expansion Valve
Compressor
Evaporator
Figure 67 - A Two Stage Refrigeration Cycle
Refrigeration cycles are expensive to purchase and expensive to operate. Hence, they
should be run with much smaller driving forces than are typical for above ambient
processes. Smaller driving forces mean we will pay more for the equipment but less
for operating costs. The evaporator/condenser that connects the two cycles in graph
above requires a temperature driving force for the heat to transfer. The lower cycle
must raise the heat to a temperature just above the temperature of the fluid in the
upper cycle so it can transfer heat to it.
Page 97 of 210
If it is reasonable to use the same refrigerant in the two cycles we can eliminate this
loss in temperature driving force by exchanging heat between the two cycles as shown
in the graph below without this common evaporator/condenser shown in the graph
above.
Condenser
Expansion Valve
Flash Compressor
Two phase fluid
Vapor
Liquid
Compressor
Expansion Valve
Evaporator
Figure 68 - A Two Stage Refrigeration Cycle
Page 98 of 210
In this graph we replace the evaporator/condenser unit with flash drum. The two cycles
trade fluid rather than just heat. The lower cycle puts vapor into the flash unit while the
upper cycle feeds in 2-phase fluid.
The lower cycle takes away the liquid while the upper cycle takes the vapor from the
flash unit. Material balance requires each cycle to remove the same amount of
refrigerant as it put into the flash unit. The lower cycle trades vapor for liquid, while the
upper cycle trades vapor and liquid for vapor alone. It is as if they have traded heat.
This trade is done with no temperature driving force and makes it an attractive
alternative to improve a cascaded refrigeration cycle.
There are many other ways to improve refrigeration cycles and what does really
concerns us is to design a good refrigeration cycle that also best fit with our process
using the type of insights that we got from grand composite curve.
Integration of Refrigeration Cycles
As we mentioned before the refrigeration system is a heat pump in which heat is

absorbed below ambient temperature. Thus the appropriate placement principle for
heat pumps applies in exactly the same way as for refrigeration cycles.
The appropriate placement for refrigeration cycles is that they also should be across
the pinch. As with heat pumps refrigeration cycles can also be appropriately placed
across utility pinches. It is common for refrigeration cycles to be placed across a utility
pinch caused by maximizing cooling water duty.
Most refrigeration cycles are almost the same as heat pumps. Heat is absorbed at low
temperature, servicing the process, and rejected at high temperature either to the
ambient (cooling water or air coolers) or to heat recovery in the process. Heat transfer
takes place essentially over latent heat profiles.
As with heat pumping the GCC is used to assess how much heat from the process
needs to be extracted into the refrigeration system and where if appropriate the
process can accept rejected heat.
Page 99 of 210
(QH - min) - QHP - W

T* T*
Steam
QHP+ W
QHP+W
Pinch W
Heat Pump
QHP
QHP
CW
Enthalpy
(QC - min) - QHP
Figure 69 - The Heat Pump against the GCC for Appropriately Placed Heat Pump
Again the coefficient of performance COP determines how the refrigeration system
performs. In the case of refrigeration systems, the coefficient of performance COPref
is generally defined in terms of the heat extracted from the process divided by the
shaft-work consumed.
COPref = QHP/ W
The higher the coefficient of performance the better is the economics. The cost of the
shaft-work required to run a refrigeration system can be estimated approximately as a
multiple of shaft-work required for an ideal system. The performance of an ideal
system is given by
Wideal/Qc = (Th-Tc)/ Tc
Where Wideal= Ideal shaftwork required for the refrigeration cycle
Qc = The cooling Duty
Tc= Temperature at which heat is taken into the refrigeration cycle(K)
Th= Temperature at which heat is rejected from the refrigeration cycle(K)
Page 100 of 210

The ratio of ideal work to actual work is usually 0.6. Thus, the actual work W required
for the refrigeration cycle will be;
W= (Qc/0.6)* ( Th-Tc)/Tc
Before we leave heat pumps and refrigeration cycles we need to refer to a technique
used in enhancing energy consumption in stand-alone distillation columns know as
vapor recompression. The graph below shows what we mean by vapor recompression.
Figure 70 - Distillation Column with Vapor Compression Scheme
Page 101 of 210

Vapor compression or some people sometimes call it recompression is an expensive

way to save energy in distillation columns. It uses a compressor which has a high
capital cost and operating too. It shall be avoided as a technique for energy saving in
distillation process unless the column is already placed across the pinch with high
reboiler and condenser duties besides that the difference in temperature between the
T-reboiler and T-condenser is not much. It is the same philosophy which governs the
case where we decide the economics of a heat pump. The heat temperature upgrade
should not be high otherwise the economics will not allow it.
Heat Integration of Distillation Columns
The dominate heating and cooling duties associated with a distillation column are
reboiler and condenser duties. In general there will be other duties associated with the
heating and cooling of feed and product streams. These sensible heat streams will be
smaller in comparison with the latent heat changes in reboilers and condensers.
Both the reboiling and condensing processes normally take place over a range of
temperature. Practical considerations, however, usually dictate that the heat to the
reboiler must be supplied at a temperature above the dew point of the vapor leaving
the reboiler and that the heat removed in the condenser must be removed at a
temperature below than that of the bubble point of the liquid. Therefore, in preliminary
design at least both reboiling and condensing can, be assumed to take place at a
constant temperature. As we did in heat pumps we will examine here the consequence
of placing the distillation columns in different locations relative to the pinch. There are
two possible ways in which the distillation column can be integrated with the rest of the
process. The reboiler and the condenser can be integrated either across the pinch or
not across the pinch. In such case where distillation is going to be placed across the
pinch and the background process (which does not include the reboiler and
condenser) is represented simply as a heat sink and heat source divided by the pinch.
Heat Qreb is taken into or given to the reboiler above pinch temperature and rejected
from the condenser at a lower temperature, which in the graph shown below is below
pinch temperature.
Page 102 of 210

(QH-min)+Qreb
T*
Distillation Column is upside down
Qreb
Pinch Distillation
Column
Qcond
(QC-min)+Qcond
Figure 71 - Integration of Distillation Column across the Pinch
Because the process sink above the pinch requires at least Qh-min to satisfy its
enthalpy balance, the removal of Qreb into the reboiler must be happening by
introducing an extra Qreb from hot utility. Please note here that if the distillation
column will be in stand-alone mode the heating utility requirement for the process and
the distillation column will be the same in case of integration between the process and
the distillation column and without integration. Below the pinch the process is a source
and needs to reject heat to the environment (cooling utility) to reach the enthalpy
balance below the pinch and the rejection of heat through the condenser of the
distillation column will add up to the cooling duty requirement. Therefore, it is clear
from the graph below in such case of integration between the distillation column and
the process that fundamentally there is no energy saving from the integration of a
distillation column across the pinch.
Page 103 of 210

In integration of the distillation column and the process above or below the pinch the
situation is different. The graph below shows a distillation column entirely placed
above the pinch.
QHmin+ Qreb-Qcond
T*
Note: Distillation Column is

Shown in an upside down
Qreb Distillation position
Column
Qcond
Pinch
Qc-min
Figure 72 - Integration of Distillation Column above the Pinch
Page 104 of 210

The distillation column takes heat Qreb from the process and returns Qcond at
temperature above the pinch. The hot utility consumption changes by (Qreb-Qcond).
The cold utility as shown in graph is unchanged. Usually Qreb is equal to Qcond, then
the heat utility consumption is QH-min, and there is no additional hot utility required to
run the column. In such case the integration between the process and the column is
useful. In graph below, the last possible way of integration between the column and
the process where the column is integrated with the process below the pinch is shown.
Now the hot utility is unchanged, but the cold utility consumption will change by
Qcond- Qreb and hence they are almost equal as we said before, then the result is
similar to heat integration above the pinch.
T*
QHmin
Distillation Column is upside down
Pinch
Qreb
Distillation
Column
Qcond
(Qc-min) + Qcond- Qreb
Figure 73 - Integration of Distillation Column below the Pinch
Page 105 of 210

All the above arrangements can now be described in a very simple statement:
The appropriate placement for distillation column should not be across the pinch. It is
instructive to note here that due to controllability/operability reasons integrating both
the reboiler and the condenser with the process can make the column difficult to
control and start-up.
The appropriate placement principle can only be applied if the process has the
capacity to give up or accept the required heat duties in the distillation column.
A quantitative tool is Therefore, needed to assess the source and sink capacities of
any given background process. For this purpose the grand composite curve is used.
The grand composite curve would contain all heating and cooling duties for the
process including those associated with the column feed heating and product cooling
but excluding reboiler and condenser loads.
Let us consider now few examples for the use of the grand composite curve in helping
find the appropriate place for the heart integration of the distillation column with the
process. In the two graphs below the grand composite curve is shown and both the
distillation column reboiler and condenser duties are shown too separately and
matched against the GCC. Neither of the distillation columns in the two graphs fit with
the GCC. In the first graph it is quite clear the distillation column exists across the
pinch. In the second graph even though the distillation column reboiler and condenser
duties lay above the pinch it also does not fit with the GCC. Strictly speaking, it is not
appropriately placed and hence some energy can be saved.
Page 106 of 210

T*
Reboiler
Condenser
Enthalpy
Figure 74 - Distillation Column Which Do Not Fit Against the Grand Composite Curve
Page 107 of 210

T*
Reboiler
Condenser
Enthalpy
Figure 75 - Distillation Column Which Do Not Fit Against the Grand Composite Curve
Page 108 of 210

By contrast the distillation column shown in graph below fits. The reboiler duty can be
supplied by the hot utility. The condenser duty must be integrated with the rest of the
process.
T*
Reboiler
Condenser
Enthalpy
Figure 76 - Distillation Column Which Fit Against the Grand Composite Curve
Another example is shown in graph below. This distillation column also fits.
The reboiler duty must be supplied by the integration with the rest of the process.
Part of the condenser duty must be integrated but the remainder of the condenser duty
can be rejected to the cold utility.
The design of simple distillation columns that have good impact on utility consumption
can be evolved from heat integrated processes using the GCC.
Page 109 of 210

Starting with an inappropriately placed distillation, if it is shifted above the pinch by

increasing its pressure, the condensing stream which is hot stream, is shifted from
below to above the pinch. The reboiling stream, which is a cold stream, stays above
the pinch. If the inappropriately placed distillation, is shifted below the pinch by
decreasing its pressure, then the reboiling stream, which is a cold stream is shifted
from above to below the pinch. The condensing stream which is hot stream stays
below the pinch. Thus the appropriate placing of distillation column is in fact a
particular case of the plus/minus principle.
T*
Enthalpy
Figure 77 - Distillation Column Which Fit Against the Grand Composite Curve
Page 110 of 210

If a distillation column is in appropriately placed across the pinch, it may be possible to

change its pressure to achieve appropriate placement. Of-course, as the pressure is
changed the shape of the distillation column reboiler and condenser box will also be
changed.(since not only do the reboiler and condenser temperatures change but also
the difference between them).
The relative volatility also will be affected. Thus both the height and the width of the
box will change as the pressure changes. Changes in the columns pressure will also
affect the heating and the cooling duties for column feed and products. Since these
streams are also included in the background of the process the GCC will also change
and the fit between the GCC and the distillation column is going to be different than
the one before the modification.
If the distillation column will not fit either above or below the pinch, then other design
options can be considered. One possibility is the double effecting scheme shown
below.
C1
The relative pressures in the two columns

are chosen in a way that allow best
integration with the process
C2
Figure 78 - Double-Effect Distillation Column
Page 111 of 210

The column feed is split and fed to two separate parallel columns. The relative
pressures in the column are chosen such that the two columns can each be
appropriately placed. Obviously, the capital cost of such a scheme will be higher than
that of a single column, but it may be justified in some favorable conditions.
T*
C2
C1
Enthalpy
Figure 79 - Double-Effect Distillation Column
Page 112 of 210

Another design configuration that can be considered if a column will not fit with the
process GCC is use of an intermediate reboiler or condenser. An intermediate
condenser is shown in the graph below.
Condenser
cooler
A+B
Reboiler
Figure 80 - Distillation Column with Intermediate Condenser
Page 113 of 210

T*
Reboiler
Intermediate Condenser
Condenser
Enthalpy
Figure 81 - Distillation Column with Intermediate Condenser
The shape of the box is now altered because the intermediate condenser changes
the heat profile of the column. The particular design shown above in the GCC diagram
would require that at least part of the heat rejected from the intermediate condenser be
passed to the process. An analogous approach can be used to evaluate the
possibilities for use of intermediate reboilers.
It is important to note here that such heuristics are not always correct and needs to be
used with care.
Page 114 of 210

Heat pumping (vapor recompression) schemes sometimes are also considered in

stand-alone distillation column designs for efficient use of energy. For heat pumping to
be economical on a stand-alone basis, the heat pump must work across a small
temperature difference, which for distillation means close-boiling mixtures. Sometimes
the scope of integrating simple distillation columns is limited. Some constraints prevent
integration of distillation columns with the rest of the process. Considering the
sequence of the distillation in the context of the whole process from heat integration
point of view is one of the options that can be pursued in such cases. Some other
option in looking for energy efficient process with distillation columns is the
consideration of more complex distillation column designs.
The design changes suggested to distillation columns will always be motivated by the
requirement to reduce energy costs by more effective heat integration between the
distillation column and the rest of the process. There are however, capital cost
implications when distillation column are integrated with the rest of the process.
These implications fall into two categories, changes in column capital cost and
changes in heat exchanger network capital cost. Obviously, these capital cost changes
should be considered together with the energy cost changes in order to achieve an
optimal tradeoff between capital and energy costs.
Distillation column capital costs:
The classic example of optimization in distillation columns is the tradeoff between the
capital cost of the column and the energy cost for the distillation. This would be carried
out with the distillation column working on utilities for both the reboiler and condenser
and not for a column integrated with the rest of the process.
The column optimal reflux ratio is normally determined according to the tradeoff
between the column capital cost and the column operating cost. An increase in the
reflux ratio can result in lower number of trays and hence smaller in length column.
On the other hand such column will have more loads on the condenser and reboiler
resulting in bigger size and more utilities cost. If the column is appropriately integrated
with the rest of the process, then the reflux ratio often can be increased without
changing the overall energy/operating cost of the column. Having said that it is
important to note that the decrease in the capital cost of the column is not the only
capital cost that should be explored to find the optimal reflux ratio. In order to find the
true tradeoff, the HEN capital cost should be evaluated too.
Page 115 of 210

Heat exchanger network capital cost:
The full implications of the integration between the distillation columns and the rest of
the process are only clear by considering the composite curves of the process with the
distillation column. Temperature driving forces become smaller throughout the process
due to the process conditions modifications that enable the best fit of the distillation
columns with the rest of the process. This means that the capital energy tradeoff
should be re-adjusted and a larger Tmin may be required. The optimization of the
capital/energy tradeoff might undo part of the savings achieved by appropriate
integration.
2.4 Heat Exchangers Network (HEN) Design
Fewest-Number of Units
A heuristic estimate for the minimum number of units is obtained by using Euler's Rule
from Graph Theory as the basis:
U=N+LS
where U is the number of units (process/process heat exchangers, heaters and

coolers), N is the total number of process streams and utility types, L is the number of
heat load loops in the network and S is the number of sub-systems in the network.
Assuming there are no heat load loops (it will be shown later that loops can be
removed) and no sub-networks (sets of hot and cold streams in perfect heat balance,
which would be a coincidence), the following can be used as an estimate for the
fewest number of units:
Umin = N + 0 - 1 = N 1
In order to obtain Maximum Energy Recovery (MER) or minimum energy consumption,

however, it was shown above that decomposition at the Process Pinch must be
respected.
This means that separate heat exchanger networks must be designed above and
below Pinch, and the corresponding minimum total number of units is given by:
Umin, MER = (N - 1 ) above + ( N - 1 )below
Page 116 of 210

In the case of multiple utilities, as indicated in figure below, new Utility Pinch points will
be introduced, whenever a cheaper utility is maximized in order to minimize a more
expensive utility. There are also cases with near-Pinches that could be included to
make tight design situations easier. A more general formula for the fewest number of
units is function of number of Pinch points (Process and Utility Pinches) and the total
number of process streams and utility types that are present between two neighboring
Pinch points, alternatively above the highest Pinch and below the lowest Pinch.
Utility Pinch Process Pinch Utility Pinch
200 C 180 C 170 C
250 C
HP MP
270 C
160 C
H1
220 C
60 C
H2
210 C 50 C
C1
160 C
210 C 150 C 15 C
C2 20 C
LP CW
180 C 160 C 150 C
Figure 82 - Stream Grid for the Process Example with Multiple Pinch Points
It is obvious that the target for minimum number of units depends on the number of
utility types that are used and the number of Pinch points (process and utility pinches)
where strict decomposition is implemented. For our simple example, with 4 process
streams, (keeping the distillation column out of the discussion) and up to 4 utility types,
the fewest number of units varies considerably. If we only use HP and CW and do not
decompose at the process Pinch, the fewest number of units is 4, while it is 14 if we
use all 4 utility types and decompose at all 3 Pinch points. Obviously, the economic
trade-off between energy cost and equipment cost will have an optimum that is closer
to 5 heat transfer units than 14. The Stream Grid (Linnhoff and Flower, 1978a) shown
above is an important representation for the design of heat exchanger networks. It can
also be used to assist in the application of the (N-1) rule to calculate the fewest
number of heat exchangers for the various scenarios of multiple utilities and the
existence of Process and Utility Pinch points.
Page 117 of 210

Minimum Number of Shells
Refinements have been made in Pinch Analysis (Ahmad and Smith, 1989) to reflect
the fact that very few industrial heat exchangers are pure counter-current.
These refinements relate to both the number of heat exchange units (now counted as
number of shells rather than heat exchangers) and to heat transfer area.
So far, these extensions only apply to Shell & Tube exchangers, where correction
factors for heat transfer area (fT) are used that depend on mCp values and
temperatures for the streams. These factors represent deviations from pure counter-
current heat exchange when using models and equations for 1-2 Shell & Tube
exchangers. If the value of fT falls under a minimum acceptable value, the number of
shells must be increased by one, and the procedure is repeated. With these extended
models, it is possible to obtain a target for the minimum number of shells rather than
units. The next section on minimum heat transfer area also applies to shells in
1-2 configurations, with the addition of the fT factor when calculating area.
Minimum Heat Transfer Area
Estimating the need for total heat transfer area in the network of heat exchangers
before design is both the most time consuming (need software) and the most uncertain
targeting activity. There are large uncertainties in heat transfer coefficients, and
simplified assumptions are made about the network structure when calculating
minimum total area. In Pinch Analysis, a target for minimum area is obtained by
applying and expanding the concept of counter current heat exchange between two
streams to the situation with many hot and cold streams. The resulting heat flow model
is the vertical one illustrated in figure below. The idea of Vertical Heat Transfer
between the Composite Curves is aiming at optimal use of the available driving forces
in order to minimize total heat transfer area.
Since, however, the general equation for heat transfer area is:
A = Q / ( U TLM fT )
it is the product of heat transfer coefficient (U) and driving forces (TLM) that should
be optimally distributed, not driving forces alone. This will be briefly discussed below.
Page 118 of 210

T (C)
HP
CW
Q (kW)
Figure 84 - Vertical Heat Transfer for the Process Example
In order to achieve vertical heat transfer in a heat exchanger network, however, all
heat Exchangers in the same Enthalpy Interval must have exactly the same
temperature profiles. This can only be achieved by considerable splitting and mixing of
streams and a large number of small heat exchangers (must apply the N-1 rule to
each enthalpy interval). The corresponding network is Therefore, referred to as the
"Spaghetti Design", and serves exclusively as a calculation model for total heat
transfer area (Townsend and Linnhoff, 1984).
Hot and cold utilities are included and the result is often referred to as the Balanced
Composite Curves. In this case only HP steam and cooling water are used.
The actual calculation of minimum area, based on the concept of vertical heat transfer,
is done with the so-called Bath formulae (after the place where the equation was
presented):
Amin = (1/ Tlm, j) (qi) /( hi)

j i
Page 119 of 210

Where qi is the change in enthalpy and hi is the film heat transfer coefficient for stream
(i) in enthalpy interval (j). By applying this equation to the example problem we get the
following results:
With MP/LP: Amin = 775 m Without MP/LP: Amin = 632 m
Thus, while the introduction of MP and LP steam reduces total energy cost with about
30%, there is an increase in the target for heat transfer area of about 23%. In addition,
as discussed in the previous section, there will be an increase in the number of units,
and the network structure will be more complex.
As mentioned above, there are a number of uncertainties related to these target

values for minimum area. In addition to the fact that heat transfer coefficients are
uncertain by nature; the vertical model and the Bath equation have two severe
limitations:
To achieve minimum area, a large number of heat exchangers; splitters and mixers
are required. Due to economy of scale effects, cost optimal heat exchanger
networks will have close to the fewest number of units rather than close to minimum
area. The so called Spaghetti Design should only be regarded as a model for
calculating Amin.
The strict vertical model will only result in minimum area if all film heat transfer
coefficients for the hot streams area equal (hH), and that all cold stream film heat
transfer coefficients are equal (hC). With significant differences in these coefficients,
streams with low film heat transfer coefficients should be matched with other
streams while allowed more driving forces at the expense of matches between
streams with large film heat transfer coefficients. The later streams shall be
assigned less driving forces. As a result, there may be considerable non-vertical
(Criss-Cross) heat transfer.
These limitations are important, however, the main use of the target for minimum area
is to be able to estimate total annual cost ahead of design for various values of Tmin,
in order to identify a good starting point for the design exercise.
Page 120 of 210

Total Annual Cost
By combining targets for minimum energy consumption, least number of units or

shells and minimum heat transfer area, as well as cost data for utilities, cost equations
for heat exchangers, some economic factors such as payback time or interest rate, and
the number of operating hours per year, it is possible to obtain figures for Total Annual
Cost. There are also uncertainties in these estimates, for example related to the fact that
we only have figures for total area, and not how this area is distributed among the heat
exchangers. With an economy of scale type cost equation, such a distribution is
important for the final result. Experience from industrial projects have shown, however,
that some of the uncertainties and assumptions in the calculation of area and total
annual cost tend to cancel, and that the estimated total cost often is within a few percent
from the total cost of the final heat exchanger network (using the same cost and
economic data).
As mentioned above, the main purpose of estimating Total Annual Cost (TAC) is to
identify a good starting point for network design. This is done by calculating the
different targets and the resulting total annual cost for various values of Tmin.
By selecting a value for Tmin where TAC has a minimum, the initial heat exchanger
network will have a structure that is compatible with the final optimal network.
In case of multiple utilities a similar economic trade-off should be used to explore the
cost impact during the targeting phase.
Methods have been developed within Pinch Analysis that can be used to identify near-
optimal amounts of the various utilities (Parker, 1989, and Hall et al., 1992).It should
also be mentioned that utility selection and process modifications interact and must be
considered simultaneously.
HEN Design
This part will be presented in much less detail than the previous ones where number of
concepts, representations and graphical diagrams were introduced that are of a
general nature with several different applications in Process Integration.
Design of Heat Exchanger Networks in various industries is primarily carried out using
the now classical Pinch Design Method (Linnhoff and Hindmarsh, 1983). While the
original method focused on minimum energy consumption and the fewest number of
units, later graphical and numerical additions made it possible also to consider heat
transfer area and total annual cost during design. Both the original features and the
later extensions have been implemented in current state of the art commercial
software packages for Heat Exchanger Network Design.
Page 121 of 210

The basic Pinch Design Method respects the decomposition at Process and Utility
Pinch points and provides a strategy and matching rules that enable the engineer
obtaining an initial network that achieves minimum energy consumption.
The Stream Grid presented in before is very useful in the design phase and acts as a
drawing board, where the engineer places one match at a time using these matching
rules. The Pinch Design Method also indicates situations where stream splitting is
required to reach the minimum energy target. Stream splitting is also important in area
considerations and the optimal use of temperature driving forces. The design
strategy mentioned above is simply to start design at the Pinch, where driving forces
are limited and the critical matches for maximum heat recovery must be selected.
The matching rules simply ensure sufficient driving forces, and they attempt to
minimize the heat exchangers number of units. The design then gradually moves away
from the pinch, making sure that hot streams are utilized above Pinch (limited
resource), and vice versa for cold streams below Pinch (limited resource).
The matching rules for Pinch exchangers (those situated immediately above or below
Pinch) can be expressed mathematically by (where Hi and Cj are potential streams to
be matched in a heat exchanger):
Above Pinch:
mCpcj mCphi
nc nh
Below Pinch:
mCphi mCpcj
nh nc
Making sure that every unit fully satisfies the enthalpy change of either the hot or the
cold stream (the tick-off rule) minimizes the number of units. If the inequalities above
are not satisfied for a complete set of Pinch exchangers, stream splitting has to be
considered in order to reach Maximum Energy Recovery (MER). It is always possible
by stream splitting to satisfy all the inequalities, since total mCp for cold streams are
larger than total mCp for hot streams above Pinch, and vice versa below Pinch.
Page 122 of 210

Find here below the detailed step-by-step pinch design method for the HEN synthesis.
The best design for an energy efficient heat exchange network will often result in a
tradeoff between the equipment and operating cost. This is dependent on the choice of
the Tmin for the process. The lower the Tmin chosen, the lower the energy costs, but
conversely the higher the heat exchanger capital costs, as lower temperature driving
forces in the network will result in the need for greater area. A large Tmin on the other
hand will mean increased energy costs as the will be less overall heat recovery, but
the required capital cost will be less. The trade-off is further complicated in a retrofit
situation, where a capital investment has already been made.
Early in this course we learned how to set energy and area targets for the process
before considering the HEN design.
In the early days of pinch technology this technique was important to help make the
trade-off between the HEN capital cost and operating cost quickly and without any
heavy calculations. However, nowadays lot of software are available to make a
preliminary synthesis of any large size HEN and estimate its capital cost directly and
then automatically make the trade-off between the operating cost and the capital cost
for the HEN in order to determine the optimal Tmin for the HEN to be designed. In this
chapter before we get into the pinch design method procedures we will revisit the
pinch targeting methods for since these methods can still be used using a pencil and
paper enabling us to do some short-cut calculations quickly.
First, the minimum number of units in a HEN (Nunits ) can be calculated using the
following formula:
Nunits = S 1
Where,
S= number of streams (hot and cold) including utilities
Then, the composite curves that make it possible to determine the energy targets for
given value of Tmin can also be used to determine the minimum heat transfer area
required to achieve the energy targets.
To calculate the network area from the composite curves, utility streams must be
included with the process streams in the composite curves to obtain the balanced
composite curves. The resulting balanced composite curves should have no residual
demand for utilities. Then the balanced composite curves are divided into vertical
enthalpy intervals as shown in the graph below to calculate the total minimum area
targets assuming constant overall heat transfer coefficient and pure vertical counter
current heat transfer.
Page 123 of 210

T (C)
HP
Qi
A1
A2
A3
A4
CW A5
A6
Q (kW)
A = Q / U TLM i
i i
A = Ai
i
Figure 85 - Network Area Targeting
Now to start the design of the HEN a good initialization of this design is to assume that
no individual heat exchanger will have a temperature difference smaller than T min
calculated from the targeting phase and there must be no heat transfer across the
pinch by process to process heat transfer or/and inappropriate use of utilities.
These rules are important for the HEN design to achieve the energy target, given that
no individual exchanger should have a temperature difference smaller than T min.
To comply with these two guidelines the design problem needs to be divided at the
pinch and using the grid diagram as shown earlier in this course manual.
Page 124 of 210

Step-By-Step
HEN Design Method of a Four Streams Problem
The graph below shows the stream data of a HEN problem drawn on a grid diagram
where the pinch temperature is shown on both the hot and the cold sides.
-By -Step HEN design
Pinch
150 C CP
(MW/C)
QHmin = 7.5 MW
250 C 40 C
2 0.15
200 C 80 C
4 0.25
180 C 20 C
1 0.2
230 C 140 C
3 0.3
140 C QCmin = 10.0 MW
Figure 86 - The Grid Diagram for the Step-By-Step HEN design
Page 125 of 210

Start at the Pinch
The pinch is the most constrained region of the problem. At the pinch, Tmin exists
between all the hot and cold streams. As a result, the number of feasible matches in
this region is severely restricted. Quit often there are essential matches to be made.
If such matches are not made, the result will be either use of a temperature differences
smaller than Tmin or excessive use of a utility resulting from heat transfer across the
pinch. If the design was started away from the pinch, at the hot end or the cold end of
the problem, then initial matches likely would need follow up matches as the pinch is
approached, which violate the pinch or the Tmin criterion. Using the reverse logic and
putting the argument the other way around, if the design is started at the pinch, initial
decisions are made in the most constrained part of the problem. This is much less
likely to lead to difficulties later.
The CP inequality for individual matches
The graph below shows the temperature profile for an individual exchanger at the
pinch, above the pinch.
Pinch CP
(MW/ C)
150 C
QHmin = 7.5 MW
250 C 150 C 0.15

2
200 C 150 C
4 0.25
180 C 140 C
1 0.20
230 C 140 C
3 0.30
140 C
Figure 87 - Criteria for Pinch Matches above the Pinch
Page 126 of 210

Moving away from the pinch, temperature difference must increase. Graph below
shows the match between a hot stream and a cold stream which has a CP smaller
than the hot stream. At the pinch the, the match starts with a temperature difference
equal to Tmin. The relative slops of the temperature-enthalpy profiles of the two
streams mean that the temperature differences become smaller while we are moving
away from the pinch, which is infeasible.
T
Pinch
4 For hot stream #4

slope= 1/CP=1/0.25=4
Hot stream
For cold stream #1
slope=1/CP=1/0.2=5
Infeasible
? T-min
Enthalpy
Page 127 of 210

On the other hand, the graph below shows the matching between the same hot stream
(stream #4) but with another cold stream. (stream # 3)
Pinch CP
150 C
(MW/C)
QHmin = 7.5 MW
250 C 150 C 0.15

2
200 C 150 C
4 0.25
180 C 140 C
1 0.20
230 C 140 C
3 0.30
140 C
Page 128 of 210

The cold stream # 3 in this case has a greater CP as shown in graph. In such case the
relative slopes of the temperature-enthalpy profiles now cause the temperature
differences to become larger moving away from the pinch, which is feasible.
Thus, starting with Tmin at the pinch, for temperature difference to increase while
moving away from the pinch, we have to have this inequality achieved CPH <= CPC
(Above the pinch for streams at the pinch).
T
Pinch
4 For hot stream #4

slope= 1/CP=1/0.25=4
Hot stream
For cold stream #3
slope=1/CP=1/0.3=3.3
feasible
? T- min
Enthalpy
Page 129 of 210

The graph below is depicting the situation below the pinch at the pinch. It shows the
cold stream#1 matched with the hot stream #2 that has a smaller CP.
Pinch
150 C CP
(MW/C)
150 C 40 C
2 0.15
150 C 80 C
4 0.25
140 C 20 C
1 0.20
140 C
Figure 91 - Criteria for Pinch Matches below the Pinch
Page 130 of 210

In such cases if a cold stream is matched with a hot stream with a smaller CP, steeper
slope, then the temperature differences become smaller which is infeasible as shown
in graph below.
T
Pinch
2
? T-min
1 For hot stream #2
slope= 1/CP=1/0.15=6.67
For cold stream #1

slope=1/CP=1/0.2=5
Infeasible
Hot stream
Enthalpy
Page 131 of 210

If the same cold stream#1 is matched with a hot stream with a larger CP such as
stream# 4 as shown in graph below different situation will arise.
Pinch
150 C CP
(MW/C)
150 C 40 C
2 0.15
150 C 80 C
4 0.25
140 C 20 C
1 0.20
140 C
Page 132 of 210

A less steep slope will be obtained resulting in temperature differences that become
larger which is feasible as shown in the graph below. Thus, starting with Tmin at the
pinch, for temperature difference to increase while we are moving away from the pinch
we have to have the following inequality achieved
CPH >= CPC ( below the pinch for streams at the pinch)
T
Pinch
4 For hot stream #4

slope= 1/CP=1/0.25=4
Hot stream ? T-min
1
For cold stream #1
slope=1/CP=1/0.2=5
feasible
Enthalpy
The CP Table
Identification of the essential matches in the pinch region can be clarified using what
we call CP table. In a CP table as will be shown in the graphs below, the CP values of
the hot and the cold streams at the pinch are listed in descending order. Graph (A)
below shows the grid diagram with a CP table for the HEN design/streams matching
above the pinch at the pinch. Cold utility must not be used above the pinch, which
means that hot streams must be cooled to pinch temperature by heat recovery.
Hot utility can be used if necessary on the cold streams above the pinch. Thus, it is
essential to match hot streams above the pinch with a cold partner. In addition, if the
hot stream is at pinch conditions, the cold stream it is to be matched with must also be
at pinch conditions; otherwise the Tmin constraint will be violated. The graph (A) below
shows a feasible match above the pinch that does not violate the Tmin.
Page 133 of 210

It is important to note here that the CP inequality constraint applies only when a match
is made between two streams that are both at the pinch. Away from the pinch,
temperature differences increase and it is no longer essential to obey the CP
inequalities.
(A)
Pinch CP
CPH <= CPC
(MW/ C)
150 C
0.25 0.30
0.15 0.20
250 C 150 C 0.15

2
200 C 150 C
4 0.25
180 C 140 C
1 0.20
230 C 140 C
3 0.30
140 C
Figure 95 - CP above the Pinch for HEN Design
The graph (B) below shows the grid diagram with a CP table for design below the
pinch. Hot utility must not be used below the pinch, which means that cold streams
must be heated to pinch temperature by heat recovery. Cold utility can be used, if
necessary, on the hot streams below the pinch. Thus, it is essential to match cold
streams below the pinch with a cold partner.
Page 134 of 210

In addition, if the cold stream is at pinch conditions, the hot stream it is to be matched
with also must be at pinch conditions; otherwise, the Tmin constraint will be violated.
The graph (B) below shows a feasible match below the pinch that does not violate the
Tmin.
It is important to note here that the CP inequality constraint applies only when a match
is made between two streams that are both at the pinch. Away from the pinch,
temperature differences increase and it is no longer essential to obey the CP
inequalities.
(B) Below The Pinch
CPH >= CPC Pinch
150 C CP
0.25 0.20
(MW/C)
0.15
150 C 40 C
2 0.15
150 C 80 C
4 0.25
140 C 20 C
1 0.20
140 C
Figure 96 - CP below the Pinch for HEN
Page 135 of 210

In conclusion there are some essential matches at the pinch or the region of minimum
choice (ROMC) that need to be made around the pinch or the ROMC.
The next task is to design a network that exhibit minimum number of units. In other
words we need to decide how big should be the matches to minimize the HEN number
of units.
The tick-off heuristic
Once the matches around the pinch have been chosen to satisfy the criteria for
minimum energy, the design should be continued in such a manner as to keep capital
cost to a minimum. One important criterion in the capital cost is the number of units.
(Of-course, there is others that need to be addressed)
Keeping the number of units at a minimum can be achieved using the tick-off
heuristic. To tick off a stream, individual units are made as large as possible. In other
words the smaller of the two heat duties on the streams being matched shall be taken
completely.
Graph (a) below shows the matches at the pinch with their duties maximized to tick-off
streams. Stream (1) has been ticked off and stream (4) too. The heat exchangers
duties are shown below. The heat exchanger that has the stream (1) matched with
part of stream (2) has a heat duty of 8 MW. While the heat exchanger that has the
match between stream (4) and part of stream (3) has a heat duty of 12.5 MW.
The design in graph (a) below can now be completed by satisfying the heating and
cooling duties away from the pinch.
Page 136 of 210

Pinch CP
CPH <= CPC
(MW/ C)
150 C
0.25 0.30
0.15 0.20
250 C 203.3 150 C 0.15

2
200 C 150 C
4 0.25
180 C 140 C
1 0.20
8 MW
230 C 187.7 140 C
3 0.30
12.5 MW
140 C
Figure 97 - (a) Matching Streams above the Pinch
Cooling water must not be used above the pinch, Therefore, if there are hot streams
above the pinch which the duties are not specified by pinch matches, additional
process-to-process matches for more heat recovery shall be explored.
In the graph (b) below the remaining part of the hot stream (stream # 2) is matched
with stream #3 in another heat exchanger with heat duty of 7 MW to satisfy the
residual cooling requirement for the hot streams above the pinch.
Again the duty on the unit is maximized.
Page 137 of 210

Pinch CP
CPH <= CPC
(MW/ C)
150 C
0.25 0.30
0.15 0.20
250 C 203.3 150 C 0.15

2
200 C 150 C
4 0.25
180 C 140 C
1 0.20
8 MW
230 C 205 187.7 140 C
3 0.30
12.5 MW
7 MW
140 C
Figure 98 - (b) Matching Streams above the Pinch
Page 138 of 210

Finally, above the pinch the residual heating duty requirement of the cold streams
must be satisfied. Since there are no hot streams left above the pinch and the cold
stream # 3 needs to be heated up to 230C, hot utility must be used as shown in
graph ( c ) below. The heater duty is shown in the graph. The heater duty is the
minimum heating duty calculated in the targeting phase which is equal to 7.5 MW.
Pinch CP
CPH <= CPC
(MW/ C)
150 C
0.25 0.30
0.15 0.20
250 C 203.3 150 C 0.15

2
200 C 150 C
4 0.25
180 C 140 C
1 0.20
8 MW
230 C 205 187.7 140 C
3 0.30
12.5 MW
7 MW
7.5 MW 140 C
Figure 99 - (c) Matching Streams above the pinch
Page 139 of 210

Now let us consider the second half of the problem below the pinch, as shown in
graph (a) below.
The graph shows the pinch design with the streams ticked off. If there are any cold
streams below the pinch for which the duties are not satisfied by the pinch matches,
additional process-to-process heat recovery must be used, since hot utility must not be
used. The graph shows that the hot stream (4) has been ticked off and the heat
exchanger used for the match has the highest possible duty of 17.5 MW.
CPH >= CP C Pinch
0.25 0.20
150 C CP
(MW/C)
0.15
150 C 40 C
2 0.15
150 C 80 C
4 0.25
20 C
140 C 52.5
1 0.20
17.5 MW
140 C
Figure 100 - (a) Matching Streams below the Pinch
Page 140 of 210

The hot stream (2) still needs to be cooled to 40C. This can be done via matching the
stream with the cold stream (1) as shown in graph (b) below.
(b)
CPH >= CPC Pinch
0.25 0.20
150 C CP
(MW/C)
0.15
150 C 106.7 40 C
2 0.15
150 C 80 C
4 0.25
20 C
140 C 52.5
1 0.20
17.5 MW 6.5 MW
140 C
Figure 101 - (b) Matching Streams below the Pinch
In graph (b) above we see additional match to satisfy the residual heating of the cold
streams below the pinch. Again, the duty load on the unit is maximized.
The new match has a heat exchanger duty of 6.5 MW.
Page 141 of 210

Finally, below the pinch the residual cooling duty in the hot streams must be satisfied.
Since there are no cold streams left below the pinch, cold utility must be used as
shown in graph (c) below.
(c)
CPH >= CPC Pinch
0.25 0.20
150 C CP
(MW/C)
0.15
150 C 106.7 40 C
2 0.15
10 MW
150 C 80 C
4 0.25
20 C
140 C 52.5
1 0.20
17.5 MW 6.5 MW
140 C
Figure 101 - (c) Matching Streams below the Pinch
The graph (c) above shows that the remaining hot duties of the hot stream #2 that
need to be removed from the stream to allow the hot stream temperature of 106.7C
reach its target temperature of 40 C is going to be handled using cold utility. The duty
of the cold utility heat exchanger as shown in the graph (c) above is 10.0 MW. This
duty is the minimum cooling utility that has been calculated during the targeting phase
of the HEN design.
Now the HEN design has been completed after finishing the below pinch design.
Page 142 of 210

The final design shown in graph below is just an augmentation of the above pinch
design with below pinch design. The duty of the hot utility is 7.5 MW. It agrees with the
QHmin. The duty on the cold utility is 10 MW. It also agrees with the QCmin.
Both heating and cooling utilities agree with the QHmin and QCmin predicted by the
composite curves and the problem table algorithm.
Pinch Pinch
150C 150 C
250 C 203.3 150 C 150 C 106.7 40 C

2 2
10 MW
200 C 150 C 150 C 80 C
4 4
180 C 140 C 140 C 52.5

1 1
8 MW 17.5 MW 6.5 MW
230 C 140 C
205 187.7
3
12.5 MW
7 MW
7.5 MW 140 C 140 C
Figure 102 - The Completed Design for the HEN Problem
Page 143 of 210

This design procedure is known as the pinch design method and it can be summarized
as follows:
Divide the problem at the pinch into two separate problems

The design for the separate problems is started at the region of minimum
choice known as the pinch and then moving away
Temperature feasibility requires constraints on the CP values to be satisfied for
matches between streams at the pinch for the two problems above the pinch
and below the pinch
The loads on individual heat exchangers are determined using the tick-off
heuristic to minimize the number of units
Away from the pinch there is usually more freedom in the choice of matches.
In this case the designer can choose on the basis of his/her process knowledge
Before we close the discussion about HEN design for new projects we need to
mention at a glance the design needs for streams splitting.
Streams Splitting
Stream splitting is sometimes necessary to overcome the CP constraints mentioned

above and/or to avoid using cold utility above the pinch or hot utility below the pinch.
Cooling utilities should not be used above the pinch. It means that all hot streams must
be cooled to pinch temperature by heat recovery. If we have number of hot streams
greater than the number of cold streams (Three hot streams and two cold streams) a
problem will then arise. Since regardless of the CP values of the streams, there will be
one of the hot streams that will not to be cooled to pinch temperature without some
violation of the Tmin constraint. This problem can only be resolved by splitting a cold
stream into two parallel branches. Thus in addition to the CP criterion, there is a
stream number criterion above the pinch such that
Sh<=Sc (above the pinch)
Where, Sh = number of hot streams at the pinch (including branches)

Sc = number of cold streams at the pinch (including branches)
If there had been more cold streams than hot streams in the design above the pinch,
this would not have created a problem, since hot utility can be used above the pinch.
Page 144 of 210

Let us now consider the part of the design below the pinch. Here hot utility must not be
used below the pinch. Thats mean that all cold streams must be heated to pinch
temperature by heat recovery. Again if we have below the pinch the number of cold
streams is greater than the number of hot streams (3 cold streams and two hot
streams) regardless of the CP values one of the cold streams can not be heated to
pinch temperature without some violation of the Tmin constraint. The problem can be
solved by splitting a hot stream into two parallel branches. In such case each cold
stream will have a partner with which to match and capable of heating it to pinch
temperature. Thus, there is also a stream number criterion below the pinch such that:
Sh<= Sc (below pinch)
If we have more hot streams than cold streams below the pinch, this would not be a
problem, since cold utility can be used below the pinch.
It is instructive to mention here that, it is not only the stream number that creates the
need to split streams at the pinch. Sometimes the CP inequality criteria for the streams
above the pinch at the pinch and below the pinch at the pinch can not be met at the
pinch without a stream split. It is important to emphasize here on the need to satisfy
both criteria the stream population and the CP inequality. Number of hot streams
above the pinch at the pinch needs to be greater than or equal the number of cold
streams above the pinch at the pinch. If this is not the case then we need to split a hot
stream to achieve this guideline. In the same time the CP of the hot stream above the
pinch at the pinch shall be less than or equal to the CP of the cold stream above the
pinch at the pinch in order to be able to match them in a heat exchanger. If this is not
the case the cold stream need to be split into two.
On the other hand, Number of cold streams below the pinch at the pinch needs to be
smaller than or equal the number of hot streams above the pinch at the pinch. If this is
not the case then we need to split a hot stream to achieve this guideline. In the same
time the CP of the hot stream below the pinch at the pinch shall be greater than or
equal to the CP of the cold stream below the pinch at the pinch in order to be able to
match them in a heat exchanger. If this is not the case the cold stream need to be split
into two. The graphs below present the flowchart that can be used for the overall
approach.
Page 145 of 210

Stream data
at Pinch
Yes CPh <= CPc Yes

For pinch Sh <=Sc
matches
NO
NO
Split cold
stream
Split hot
stream
Place
Matches
Figure 103 - Stream-Splitting above the Pinch
Page 146 of 210

Stream data
at Pinch
Yes CPh >= CPc Yes

For pinch Sh >=Sc
matches
NO
NO
Split cold
stream
Split hot
stream
Place
Matches
Figure 104 - Stream-Splitting below the Pinch
HEN Retrofit using Pinch Design Method
It is important to note here that for HEN projects retrofit where there is no significant
integration already built in the plant the above method known as pinch design method
(PDM) is utilized with maximum re-use of existing exchangers.
This method in retrofit applications will proceed as follows:
a- Delete the existing network

b- Re-design the HEN network by following the Pinch Design Method mentioned
above
c- Re-use existing exchangers in place of new ones between the same streams
Page 147 of 210

In situations where the existing network already involves many process to process
heat exchangers, it is not appropriate to delete the entire network in order to apply the
Pinch design Method. Instead, it is better to apply a method that makes incremental
changes to the existing network, with a corresponding quantification of the benefits.
This is particularly true of processes with diverging composite curves and significant
use of intermediate utilities. Indeed, for such a process it is usually possible to
discover a series of independent retrofit projects, each involving just a few
modifications to the network. It is then possible to rank these projects and just choose
the best ones according to some practical or economic criteria.
Another important point regarding the stream splitting is that If a hot stream is need to
be split into two parts with CP of 10 and 5 to satisfy the CP inequality criterion, we are
doing here a subjective decision since the split can be anything that satisfies the CP
criterion. In other words it can be 9 and 6 or 11 and 4 and so on. That is mean the
stream splitting has several degrees of freedom in the branching flowrate that while
can achieve the CP inequality criterion it can also used for optimizing the system.
For instance by fixing the heat duty on the two heat exchangers for the split stream
and changing the branch flowrate the temperature differences across each unit are
changed. The best choice of-course can be done via optimization where the sizing and
costing of the various units will be completed for the network with different branch
flowrate.
Later extensions of this method enabled the engineers to also consider investment
cost during design, in particular the effect of each match on total heat transfer area.
The Driving Force Plot makes is possible to evaluate graphically whether a
suggested match is using reasonable driving forces compared with what is available in
that temperature region of the process.
The Remaining Problem Analysis is more quantitative tool, that provides figures for
energy (E), number of units (U), heat transfer area (A) and total annual cost (TAC), if a
suggested match is accepted. Adding actual figures for partial designs under
development to target values for the remaining problem provides accumulated figures
for TAC.
Graph below shows an initial heat exchanger network for the process example studied
in this chapter when the distillation column is not integrated with the rest of the
process.
Page 148 of 210

mCp (kW/C)
H1= 18
180 C H2= 22
C1= 20
C2= 50
270 C
235.6 C 180 C 160 C
H1 Ca
3 2
360 kW
220 C 180 C 270 C 60 C
H2 1 4 Cb
440 kW
210 C 160 C 50 C
2 4 C1
1000 kW 2200 kW
210 C 190 C 177.6 C 160 C
H 3 1 C2
1000 kW 620 kW 880 kW
160 C
Figure 105 - Initial Heat Exchanger Network
The targeting phase concluded that (in this particular case) integrating the column with
the rest of the process would not result in any energy savings, since the column
operates across the process Pinch. Also notice that only HP steam and cooling water
is used for external heating and cooling. The network in figure above has been
established using the Pinch Design Method and is drawn using the Stream Grid.
The initial heat exchanger network reaches the targets values for energy consumption
(1000 kW of heating and 800 kW of cooling) and minimum number of units. For the
case with two utilities, four process streams and strict decomposition at the process
Pinch, the minimum number of units is (5-1) above Pinch and (4-1) below Pinch, in
total 7 heat exchangers including heaters and coolers.
It is important to notice that several initial networks may be generated. The Pinch
Design Method provides rules for matching streams that eliminate certain
configurations but still open up for alternatives. The larger the industrial problem is, the
more alternatives exist, and the engineer is free to make choices based on practical
considerations such as safety, operability, controllability, etc.
Page 149 of 210

In the small process example used in this chapter, only one significant alternative
exists above Pinch. By splitting stream C2, it is possible to reduce the number of heat
exchangers by one, as shown in graph below. While this example illustrates the
existence of sub-networks above Pinch, stream splitting is more often used to be able
to reach minimum energy consumption. The best example is crude preheat trains in oil
refineries, where there is one large cold stream (the crude oil) and many hot streams
(intermediate products and pump rounds from the distillation tower), and the crude is
typically splitted in two, three or four branches before and after the desalter.
Splitting of streams is also introduced to save total heat transfer area (better utilization
of the available temperature driving forces), and in some rare cases splitting is also
used to reduce the number of units, as indicated in graph below. Here, the heating
needed by stream C2 matches exactly the cooling required for streams H1 and H2
above Pinch.
mCp (kW/C)
H1= 18
180 C
H2= 22
C1= 20
C2= 50
270 C
180 C 160 C
Ca
H1 2
360 kW
220 C
180 C 270 C 60 C
H2 4 Cb
1
440 kW
50 C
210 C 160 C
H 4 C1
1000 kW 2200 kW
2 26 160 C
210 C 222.3 C 50
1620 kW
C2
196.7 C 1 24
880 kW
160 C
Figure 106 - An Alternative Initial Heat Exchanger Network
Below Pinch there is also a design alternative, since the cooler could have been
replaced by a match between H1 and C1, with a corresponding increase in the duty of
cooler Cb and decrease in the duty for exchanger 4.
Page 150 of 210

Basic Concepts for Heat Recovery in HEN Retrofit
While the majority of early days methods developed within Process Integration were
related to the design of new plants, most of the projects in industry are trying to make
the most out of existing facilities. Typically, these projects are related to improved
operation, removal of plant bottlenecks, improved efficiency with respect to energy and
raw material utilization, and the introduction of new technology into an existing
process.
Many terms are used for plant modifications, such as retrofit, revamp and
de-bottlenecking. In this section, the term retrofit is used for projects trying to reduce
energy consumption in the most economic way. Typical economic parameters or
constraints are maximum allowed values for Payback Time and Investment Cost.
The objective of a retrofit project is then to save as much energy as possible while
satisfying these economic constraints. The economy of most energy saving projects
(cost of new equipment versus reductions in operating cost) is not good enough to
include the losses in production if the plant has to be stopped for a period of time while
the modifications are installed. Thus, the timing of retrofit projects into regular plant
maintenance periods is extremely important. Further, the best retrofit projects are the
ones that combine pure energy saving features with more general plant modifications.
Some Useful Representations
Grassroots Pinch Analysis can and has been used to a large extent in industry to
establish the potential for energy savings in existing plants. When comparing the
current energy consumption with grassroots targets, however, the identified potentials
tend to be rather optimistic. In the process industries there is no "second hand"
market, thus one of the prime objectives in retrofit projects is to try to improve the
utilization of already invested and installed equipment. There will be discrepancies in
the existing design that cannot be completely removed, only improved by smaller or
larger process modifications. As a result, the optimal heat exchanger network after
retrofit is likely to be quite different from the optimal grassroots design.
Page 151 of 210

Area
E
Aexist
d
c A
Amin
b a
Emin Eexist Energy
Figure 107 - Area-Energy Plot for Heat Exchanger Networks
In an existing plant, the heat recovery system can suffer from two types of errors, as
illustrated in graph. Each point on the curved line indicates the minimum amount of
heat transfer area that is required to have a certain energy consumption (or level of
heat recovery). Similarly, the curve also indicates minimum energy consumption for a
given total heat transfer area. The points (a) to (e) represent different design solutions
that will be discussed in the following. The curved line in graph, also referred to as the
Area-Energy Plot, is constructed by calculating minimum target values for energy
and area as indicated before for different values of the minimum allowable approach
temperature, Tmin. With small values of Tmin, the minimum area target is large,
while the energy target is low, and opposite for large values of Tmin.
Page 152 of 210

Assume that design (c) is the optimal grassroots heat exchanger network, with an
optimal trade-off between operating cost and investment cost for the current energy
and area prices. Network (a) has been correctly designed in the sense that it uses
minimum area to achieve a certain level of heat recovery. Most likely, this design has
been established by the Pinch Design Method. The trade-off in this design is wrong,
however, as it uses more energy than would have been optimal with the current
prices. In a retrofit project, it will be very hard and costly to improve this network.
Moving along the curve from (a) to (c) would mean that a number of heat exchangers
would have to be taken out of the network. What would be done in practice is to keep
most of the existing exchangers and invest in some new ones. The corresponding
retrofit project would move along a curve above the minimum target line, and this
curve would be steeper than the target line.
Next, consider design (e), which is located far above the target line. If this had been a
suggested new design, both investments cost (area) and operating cost (energy) could
have been reduced as indicated by A and E. If this is an existing network, however,
it is not economically tractable to try to reach design (c), since that would involve
throwing away a large number of invested heat exchangers. Again, the retrofit project
would follow a curve to the left, but in this case it would be flat in the beginning, since
the existing network has major errors that can be corrected by moderate investments,
such as re-piping and the addition of strategically placed new heat exchangers.
After correcting the most obvious errors in the existing design, the cost of recovering
additional heat will gradually become more costly. This means that the retrofit curve
would become steeper, and payback time therefore, increases with the amount of
energy saved. While network (a) is a "good" design (unfortunately with a wrong trade-
off), network (e) is a "poor" design, since it uses much more energy than what could
have been achieved with the amount of invested heat transfer area. The errors in
design (e) are important in retrofit projects and will be discussed in detail in this
section.
It should also be mentioned that the minimum area figures used to establish the target
curve in figure 6.1 actually require a large number of heat exchangers, splitters and
mixers (referred to as the Spaghetti Design). Thus, one would never design on the
target line, but some small distance above. The figure above is a quantitative tool to
identify the potential for improved heat recovery, and at the same time a qualitative
picture of the situation indicating how costly the corresponding retrofit projects will be.
What are needed next are some guidelines on how to actually modify the network.
The reason why an existing design, such as network (e) is using more than the
minimum amount of energy (both heating and cooling), is the fact that heat is being
transferred across the heat recovery Pinch. Such heat transfer can take three
different forms as will be mentioned later.
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The heat recovery Pinch divides the process into a heat deficit part above Pinch and a
heat surplus part below Pinch. Of course, it would not make sense to transfer heat
from the deficit part to the surplus part. Nevertheless, when heat exchanger networks
are designed without the knowledge about the heat recovery Pinch, such heat transfer
is often inevitable.
This is why large potentials for energy savings have been identified in existing plants,
and the more complex these processes are, the more likely it is that considerable
cross Pinch heat transfer takes place. Typical examples are petrochemical plants and
oil refineries, however, significant potentials have also been identified in other
industries as well.
There may also be practical reasons for such heat transfer across the Pinch. One of
the major limitations of the Composite Curves and the corresponding Pinch analysis, is
that hot and cold streams are regarded to be heating and cooling resources that can
be used without limitation. In practice, however, there will be match combinations
among hot and cold streams that one would avoid. Examples include safety
considerations, geographical distance, start-up considerations, ensuring product
purity, etc.
In many of these cases, heat transfer across the Pinch is inevitable, however, there
are some degrees of freedom in how this heat transfer takes place. Heat can be
transferred across the heat recovery Pinch in the following three ways:
Heat transfer from a hot stream above Pinch to a cold stream below Pinch: QPp
Heating a cold stream below Pinch with hot utility, such as steam: QPh
Cooling a hot stream above Pinch with cold utility, such as cooling water: QPc
The total Energy Penalty (QP) for heat transfer across the Pinch is then the sum of
these individual heat flow components:
QP = QPp + QPh + QPc
This penalty is then the difference between the current energy consumption and the
minimum energy consumption for a given value of Tmin:
QH,exist = QH,min + QP
QC,exist = QC,min + QP
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The three components of penalty heat flow (QPp, QPh and QPc) can be considered as
variables that can be used to take advantage of the situation when practical
constraints result in an energy penalty. When trying to minimize the cost penalty of
such constraints, the three variables provide two degrees of freedom. The following
advantages can be taken from a constrained situation:
QPp means heat transfer at larger driving forces, thus heat transfer area is reduced.
QPc can be realized as steam production, if the Pinch temperature is high enough.
QPh means that a cheaper hot utility with lower temperature can be used.
Since the energy target depends on the chosen value of Tmin, the corresponding
potential for reduced energy consumption is larger for a smaller value of Tmin.
The corresponding retrofit project will, however, also be more complex and costly.
While targeting methods exist for the retrofit case that can identify a proper value for
Tmin (will be described later), it is common practice in industry to use a larger value
for Tmin in a retrofit situation than the corresponding and optimal value of Tmin in a
grassroots case.
Having explained the features of an existing design that is responsible for a larger than
minimum energy consumption, the next logical step is to look at the actual heat
exchanger network to identify which process/process heat exchangers, external
heaters and coolers that are actually transferring heat across pinch. The Stream Grid
is an excellent tool for this purpose. In the following graph, an existing heat exchanger
network is drawn in a stream grid in such a way that the relative position (in
temperature) to the Pinch is indicated for all units.
Page 155 of 210

mCp (kW/C)
Process Pinch H1= 18
180 C H2= 22
C1= 20
C2= 50
270 C
214.4 C 180 C 160 C
H1 1 Ca
980 kW
220 C 120 C 60 C
H2 4 Cb
1320 kW
210 C 160 C 50 C
1 C1
4
1000 kW 2200 kW
160 C
210 C
H C2
2500 kW
160 C
Figure 108 - Cross Pinch Heat Transfer in a Stream Grid
A Preliminary Retrofit Discussion
It is now easy to identify which heat exchangers that transfer heat across the Pinch,
and what amount of heat that is transferred across Pinch in each of these units.
The sum of all these cross Pinch occurrences should add up to the total energy
penalty. It should be noted, however, that there sometimes are cases where a heat
exchanger operating with small temperature driving forces is transferring heat from
below to above Pinch. These heat flows must then be subtracted when calculating the
total energy penalty.
The heat exchanger network in the graph above uses 2500 kW of hot utility and
2300 kW of cold utility.
The corresponding minimum target values for Tmin = 20C are QH,min = 1000 kW and
QC,min = 800 kW
(The total energy penalty for this existing design is thus):
QP = QH,exist - QH,min = QC,exist - QC,min = 1500 kW
Page 156 of 210

For the network in this graph, cross Pinch heat transfer can be identified in heat
exchanger (2) and cooler (Ca).
The actual amount of heat transfer across the Pinch in these units can be calculated
as follows:
Exchanger (2): QPP = 22 (220 - 180) = 880 kW
Cooler (Ca): QPC = 18 (214.4 - 180) = 620 kW
In this case, there is no external heating below Pinch, and the total energy penalty can
be calculated from the occurrences of cross Pinch heat transfer:
QP = QPP + QPH + QPC = 880 + 620 + 0 = 1500 kW
mCp (kW/C)
180 C H2= 22
C1= 20
C2= 50
270 C
235.6 C 180 C 160 C
H1 3 1 Ca
360 kW
220 C 180 C 80 C 60 C
H2 4 2 Cb
440 kW 50 C
210 C 160 C
1 2 C1
1000 kW 2200 kW
160 C
210 C 190 C 177.6 C
H 3 4 C2
1000 kW 620 kW 880 kW
160 C
Figure 109 - A Retrofit Solution Reaching Minimum Energy Consumption
Page 157 of 210

Obvious retrofit projects should involve attempts to reduce heat transfer across the
Pinch. Hot stream H2 is a heating resource above Pinch that could be used to heat up
cold stream C2 and thus reduce the use of steam in the heater (H). Hot stream H1 is
also a heating resource above Pinch, where some heat in the existing design is lost to
cooling water.
Trying to realize the total potential for energy savings (1500 kW), would involve two
new heat exchangers (3 and 4) and additional area in the existing ones (1 and 2), due
to reduced driving forces. The corresponding heat exchanger network shown in figure
above is actually identical to the initial MER design for the grassroots case shown
before. Without actually performing cost calculations, it is obvious that the retrofitted
network in graph above will be very expensive. It is almost an entirely new heat
exchanger network. An alternative solution would be to try to recover some of the heat
that is lost from hot stream H1 into cooling water, by adding a new unit between hot
stream H1 and cold stream C2. In this case, the existing heat exchangers are not
modified (no additional area is needed), and the simple question is whether the saving
of 620 kW of steam and cooling water will justify the investment in a new heat
exchanger (3). The corresponding network is shown in the figure below.
mCp (kW/C)
180 C H2= 22
C1= 20
C2= 50
270 C
214.4 C 180 C 160 C
H1 1 3 Ca
360 kW
220 C 120 C 60 C
H2 2 Cb
1320 kW
210 C 160 C 50 C
1 C1
2
1000 kW 2200 kW
160 C
210 C 172.4 C
H 3 C2
1880 kW 620 kW
160 C
Figure 110 - A Cheaper Retrofit Solution Recovering Part of the Potential Energy Savings
Page 158 of 210

Having shown some of the useful representations and indicated a possible "thinking" in
retrofit situations based on cross Pinch heat transfer, the remaining part of this chapter
will be devoted to briefly presenting the methods that can be used for heat exchanger
network retrofit.
Similar to the grassroots case, there are four distinct phases also for retrofit design:
1) Data Extraction
2) Targeting
3) Design
4) Optimization/improvement
There will, however, be significant differences in all of these phases when compared to
the grassroots situation. These differences and the new objectives will be highlighted
in the description of each of these phases.
Data Extraction in Retrofit Applications
While there are a number of similarities between data extraction in the retrofit situation
and the grassroots case there are also significant differences that will be highlighted
here. In both cases, data extraction is a time consuming and critical activity for the
outcome of a Process Integration project.
Typically, for a new design there will be material and energy balances available either
manually derived or based on a simulation model. A rigorous simulation model has the
distinct advantage that stream data can be extracted directly and even automatically
with todays software.
Unfortunately, such models may not always be available for an existing plant.
In general, the following are possible sources for data that are needed in a retrofit heat
recovery project, and often these sources have to be used in combination:
Measurements (that are often not complete and not reliable)

Design data (that are often outdated after plant modifications)
Simulation models (that may not always reflect true plant behavior)
Page 159 of 210

As a result, data reconciliation is important in retrofit projects. If measurements

indicate that heat extracted from a hot stream in an existing heat exchanger does not
match the heat absorbed by the cold stream in the same exchanger, it is necessary to
analyze the situation. Stream data must be modified in such a way that heat balance is
obtained; otherwise the heat recovery project will produce unrealistic results. It is
important to notice that data accuracy is most important in the near Pinch region of the
plant. Thus, it is common practice to try to establish a first draft of the Composite
Curves, and then try to improve the accuracy only for process streams in the near
Pinch region.
Another typical retrofit issue is related to which streams to include in the analysis.
There may be a number of practical considerations suggesting that certain streams
should not be included, since heat integration of these streams could cause
operational problems. It is, however, good practice to start by including all streams that
need heating or cooling, and then later exclude these streams one by one from the
analysis. In this way, the engineer will know the loss in heat recovery potential from
excluding certain streams.
In retrofit projects it is not necessary to iterate between data extraction and targeting,
since the basic process (reactors, separators) is given and cannot easily be modified
for improved heat recovery potential as the case is for grassroots projects. It would
also be expensive to modify these process units, and would seldom pay off in pure
energy based projects.
Retrofit Targets
Targeting in the Retrofit situation is far more difficult than Grassroots design because a
number of different changes can be made to the heat exchanger network in order to
reduce energy consumption. Typically, these modifications include:
Addition of a new heat exchanger

Additional area to an existing unit (for example a new shell)
Change internals in heat exchangers
Modify piping on one side of the exchanger
Modify piping on both sides of the exchanger
Moving a heat exchanger to a new location
Page 160 of 210

Most of these retrofit actions will change the operating conditions for many of the heat
exchangers, and a rigorous rating exercise is required to evaluate whether an existing
unit will be able to operate in the new situation. The cost function for the retrofit project
will exhibit a discontinuity whenever a heat exchanger switches from being large
enough to become too small for the new operation.
In other words, the targeting of capital investment (new heat transfer area and new
units) is much more difficult than in the grassroots case. Energy consumption, on the
other hand, is much easier to predict, however, knowing the savings in energy cost is
of limited value if it is not correctly linked with its corresponding investment cost. That
is the true challenge in retrofit targeting.
Different T Representations
The ultimate goal of the targeting exercise is to establish a good starting value for the
level of heat recovery. In grassroots heat exchanger network design, the parameter
Tmin (minimum approach temperature) was used to represent this level of heat
recovery. In most industrial processes, it does not make sense to require that all heat
exchangers (and thus all process streams and utilities) obey the same minimum value
for driving forces, since streams (and utilities) in general have very different heat
transfer coefficients. Quite often, the difference in film heat transfer coefficients can be
two orders of magnitude.
Thus, some heat exchangers require large T-values in order to avoid excessive heat
transfer area, while other units manage well with much smaller T-values.
Note: The effect of the T-values does not only get reflected in the capital but also in
the level of energy consumption.
We should at least acknowledge the need for two different approach temperatures:
HRAT = Heat Recovery Approach Temperature

EMAT = Exchanger Minimum Approach Temperature
While HRAT, as the name indicates, is a key parameter for the level of heat recovery
(it is simply defined as the smallest vertical distance between the Composite Curves),
EMAT is the minimum allowable temperature difference for the individual heat
exchangers. In order to reach a certain level of heat recovery, (as specified by HRAT),
the following inequality must be satisfied:
0.0 EMAT HRAT
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It is also possible to assign individual contributions to the minimum driving forces

for each stream and utility. Typically, these T contributions should reflect heat
transfer conditions, but they can also be used to represent the need for expensive
material of construction, expensive heat exchanger types, etc.
In this case, EMAT becomes stream dependent, and the following must be satisfied for
a match between hot stream/utility (i) and cold stream/utility (j):
Ti,j EMAT (i,j) = Ti + Tj
(Where Ti and Tj are the individual stream contributions)
To illustrate how these different T-values apply in retrofit situations, consider a typical
oil refinery with a crude preheat train that warms up the crude from ambient
temperature to the inlet of the furnace just before the crude fractionation tower. This is
a complex heat exchanger network with many units, a large number of stream splits
and considerable heat recovery from various hot streams in the refinery. In retrofit
projects for such plants, it is common to design for a level of heat recovery that
corresponds to HRAT = 30C, however, the actual energy consumption in many such
crude preheat trains corresponds to a value of HRAT well above 50C. At the same
time, there will be some heat exchangers typically where T in one end of the units is
in the range between 10 and 15C. Thus, EMAT and the individual contributions Ti
and Tj are considerably less than HRAT.
A Simple Energy Target
An obvious way to establish a target for energy savings in a retrofit project is to

calculate the minimum external heating requirements for different values of HRAT
(previously referred to as Tmin). One of these values of HRAT (typically a large one)
corresponds to the current energy consumption, and the targeting exercise then
becomes the identification of a new value of HRAT that is less than the existing value
of HRAT:
HRATnew HRATexisting
By plotting minimum energy consumption (or minimum energy cost in the case of
multiple utilities) as a function of HRAT, it is possible to identify potential starting
values of HRAT for the retrofit project.
Page 162 of 210

Qh,min
Qh,exist
E
a
Qh,new
b
c
HRAT
HRAT-new HRAT-exist
Figure 111 - A typical Energy Target Plot for the Retrofit Case
Consider this Energy Target Plot, where the change in the slope illustrates the typical
situation that minimum energy consumption does not always increase directly
proportional with minimum driving forces. As a result, there are certain levels of heat
recovery (represented by HRAT) that are more likely to be good retrofit candidates
than others. Consider point (a) in this figure when trying to move towards larger energy
savings, the change in QH,min is relatively small, while the reduction in HRAT is
considerable. Normally, this means large investments with moderate savings.
The graph also indicates how the targeted savings in energy consumption (E) can be
read from the diagram for different values of HRAT. Also, by looking at the graph, one
may conclude that point (a) seems to save too little energy, while point (c) involves too
large investments. Qualitatively, it may look as if point (b) provides a good trade-off
between investments and savings in the retrofit case; thus, HRATnew is a good starting
value for the retrofit project. Cross Pinch Analysis will then be performed, where the
existing heat exchanger network is drawn in a stream grid with a Pinch point according
to;
Tmin = HRATnew.
Page 163 of 210

Targets for Area and Investment Cost
As stated before targeting for heat transfer area and investment cost is far more
complicated and uncertain in the retrofit situation than in the grassroots case.
The identification of promising starting points in work in some cases however, there is
a need to quantify not only the energy saving part, but also the investment in new
equipment and changes in piping. Within Pinch Analysis, a Retrofit Targeting procedure
has been proposed that is based on the concept of Area Efficiency. This parameter
can be easily obtained from the existing design and can be mathematically formulated
as:
= Amin / Aexist

Where = Area Efficiency
Amin = Minimum area for the current level of heat recovery (HRAT exist)
Aexist = Total heat transfer area in the existing network
A conservative assumption is that any new invested heat transfer area will at least
have the same utilization level (area efficiency) as the installed area. This assumption
(also referred to as the constant- approach) proved to work nicely for oil refineries
and crude preheat trains, where area efficiency in existing plants was quite high
(above 80%), while it did not work equally well in other industries. In processes with
less heat integration, the constant assumption can be too conservative. Attempts
have been made to overcome this problem; one is the so-called incremental
approach which means that area efficiency will change (improve) during the retrofit
project.
Page 164 of 210

A typical Retrofit Target Plot for Savings and Investment Cost
Savings
(US$/yr)
Pb=3
Pb=2 d
c
Pb=1
b
Inv-max Investment
(US$)
Figure 112 - A Typical Energy Target Plot for the Retrofit Case
Irrespective of the actual approach chosen, using some kind of assumptions about
area efficiency for new heat exchangers or additional shells, it becomes possible to
estimate the need for new area (and thus investment cost) when targeting for different
values of HRAT. By combining target values for area and energy for different values of
HRAT (starting with the existing HRAT and then decreasing this value gradually), the
Retrofit Target Curve shown in graph above can be obtained.
The curved line in the graph shows corresponding values for annual savings in energy
cost and the total investment for new equipment (including installation). Each point on
the curve represents a certain level of heat recovery (HRAT), starting in the origin of
the diagram, where there are no investments made and no savings earned. Thus, the
origin represents the situation before the retrofit project is started, and moving along
the curve to the right means heading for smaller HRAT values and higher levels of
heat recovery. As discussed before, the most obvious errors in the existing network
can be corrected first, often with small or moderate investments. Thus, the target line
is initially steep, but then becomes more flat as we move towards higher levels of heat
recovery.
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Payback Time is simply defined as the Investment Cost divided with the Annual
Savings in Operating Cost (energy). Considering the nature of the target curve in
graph below it is obvious that Payback Time increases as we move along the curve
towards larger energy savings. The dashed lines in the diagram illustrate typically
Payback Times (PB) of one, two and three years. It is also quite common that
management has set an upper limit on the investment that will be put into a certain
energy saving project (indicated as Inv-max in graph. There will also be constraints on
the Payback Time, and depending on whether maximum Payback Time for this
particular example is set to two or three years, the retrofit targeting exercise will
identify points (b) if minimum payback is two years or point (c) limited by maximum
investment, if maximum payback is three years.
Points (b) and (c) in graph correspond to different values of HRAT, which means that a
target for the level of heat recovery has been identified. This target is an improvement
compared with the more simplified discussion before, since investment cost has been
included and quantified, even though there are large uncertainties in these numbers.
Again, once the new value for HRAT has been identified, the next stage is a cross
Pinch analysis.
Retrofit Design
The Cross Pinch Analysis mentioned in the previous section is a good starting point for
the design exercise. The first methods suggested to remove heat exchangers that
transferred heat across the Pinch and to try to reuse these units in new locations.
Since, however, heat exchangers in most cases are tailor made for a certain
application (flowrates and types of streams) it is not easy and quite expensive to follow
this approach.
Temperature Shifting of Heat Exchangers
Instead it is suggested to shift heat exchangers away from a cross Pinch situation.
This shifting involves changes in operating conditions for the unit in such a way that hot
stream temperatures are reduced and/or cold stream temperatures increased.
The result is that cross Pinch heat transfer in that particular unit is reduced and possibly
eliminated. Heating resources are released above Pinch and or cooling resources are
released below Pinch. Consider again the existing heat exchanger network studied
earlier with cross pinch situation. The cooler Ca and heat exchanger (2) are transferring
a total of 1500 kW across Pinch, which is why external heating (2500 kW) and cooling
(2300 kW) requirements are larger than the established minimum figures (1000 kW of
heating and 800 kW of cooling). The shifting procedure means that the inlet temperature
of stream H1 to the cooler Ca should be reduced from 214.4C to at least 180C (Pinch
temperature for hot streams). This will release a heating resource from stream H1 above
Pinch equal to 620 kW, and the duty of cooler Ca is reduced from 980 kW to 360 kW.
Page 166 of 210

Similarly, the inlet temperature of stream H2 to heat exchanger (2) should be reduced
from 220C to 180C. Assuming that the duty of this unit remains unchanged at
2200 kW (should always be questioned during network optimization), the duty of cooler
Cb will be reduced by 880 kW to 440 kW. Figure below shows the incomplete network
after these shifting operations. As indicated by the rectangles, there are two heating
resources that have been released and not yet utilized above Pinch.
mCp (kW/C)
180 C H2= 22
C1= 20
C2= 50
270 C
180 C 160 C
H1 1 214.4 C Ca
620 kW 360 kW
220 C 120 C 60 C
H2 2 Cb
880 kW 440 kW
210 C 50 C
1 160 C
2 C1
1000 kW 2200 kW
160 C
210 C
H C2
2500 kW
160 C
Figure 113 - Incomplete Heat Exchanger Network after Shifting
Introduction of New Heat Exchangers
The next obvious question is how to utilize these new heating resources above Pinch.
Since cold stream C1 already is fully covered through heat recovery from hot stream
H1, the obvious option is to try to use heat from hot streams H1 and H2 to partially
heat cold stream C2 in order to reduce steam consumption in the heater.
Page 167 of 210

Following the basic philosophy of the Pinch Design Method, cold stream C2 cannot
fully utilize the two new heating resources (would involve taking both streams H1 and
H2 down to Pinch temperature) unless stream C2 is split into two branches.
Since mCp for stream C2 (50 kW/C) is larger than the sum of mCp (18+22 kW/C) for
streams H1 and H2, this is a feasible option. Alternatively, the heating resource related
to hot stream H1 could be shifted to the beginning (hottest part) of the stream. This
option has already been shown in the retrofit solution that reaches the minimum
energy consumption. However, as indicated in this solution, heat exchanger (1) has
considerably reduced driving forces and additional area is inevitable.
The graph below shows the initial retrofitted heat exchanger network when the stream
split option is chosen. In this case, the operating conditions duty and temperatures for
heat exchanger (1) is unchanged, and no additional area is needed. Heat exchanger
(2) has, however, reduced driving forces with the same duty, and additional area is
needed as indicated. A comparison with the alternative retrofit design for maximum
energy recovery will be made before going into the optimization stage.
mCp (kW/C)
180 C H2= 22
C1= 20
C2= 50
270 C
214.4 C 180 C 160 C
H1 1 3 Ca
360 kW
220 C 180 C 80 C 60 C
H2 4 2 Cb
440 kW
210 C 160 C 50 C
1 C1
2
1000 kW
2200 kW
210 C 3 160 C
190 C 620 kW 50
H C2
1000 kW
4
880 kW 160 C
Figure 114 - Complete Retrofitted Heat Exchanger Network with Stream Splitting
Page 168 of 210

In order to compare the two alternative initial retrofit heat exchanger networks in the
maximum energy recovery solution and the above graph, details about heat transfer
conditions and cost equations are needed. In this particular case, we do have
information about heat transfer coefficients for streams and utilities (table below),
however, for the purpose of this manual we do not want to go into detailed cost
calculations. Instead, comparison between the two alternatives will be made on the
basis of a simple UA analysis.
It is easy from the heat transfer equation to calculate UA-values for the heat
exchangers before and after retrofit modifications. If we assume that the units are pure
counter current, UA-values can be obtained from:
UA = Q / TLM
The table below shows UA-values for existing and new heat exchangers before and
after retrofit modifications for the two alternative designs A and B. Utility exchangers
are not included, since the duty of these units is reduced in such a way that no
additional area is needed (actually, these units will not be fully utilized after the retrofit
modifications). Isothermal mixing is assumed for stream C2 after the split.
As indicated in the table below the UA analysis does not give any strong preference
for design A or design B. The difference in total UA needed in the retrofitted networks
is not significant, and a stronger argument for choosing Design B is probably that the
number of modifications is less, since there is no change needed for heat exchanger
(1) in this case, however, there is a stream split introduced
Table 9 - Heat Exchanger Design Retrofits
Heat Exchanger Existing Design Retrofit A Retrofit B

1 17.49 44.12 17.49
2 33.91 89.2 89.2
3 0 9.07 27.99
4 0 29.52 35.68
Total 51.4 171.91 170.36
While both design A and design B fully recover the energy saving potential of
1500 kW, in most cases one can only justify economically to realize some fraction of
this potential. The figures for UA listed in table indicate that heat transfer area must be
more than tripled in order to reduce energy consumption to its minimum for
HRAT = 20C. Thus, more recent retrofit methods use a greedy approach trying to
identify the most economic retrofit projects with the fewest number of topological
changes.
Page 169 of 210

Matrix Methods for Retrofit Design
Some interesting matrix based methods have also been proposed for heat exchanger
network retrofit situations. It focused on heat transfer area in a method where targeting
and design are closely linked. The so-called Area Matrix method is an adoption of the
vertical heat transfer model. For various levels of heat recovery, the best vertical
match area contribution is found using Linear Programming (LP). The result is a
significantly improved retrofit area targeting method when compared with the constant
or incremental methods mentioned before. While the Area Matrix method primarily
is a targeting procedure, the results from the LP optimization can also be used for
retrofit design. Another matrix based method for retrofit design is the Cost Matrix
method developed. The method is based on the experience from a number of retrofit
projects that other costs such as pumping and piping may have a larger influence on
the optimal design than the number of units and heat transfer area. A Cost Matrix for
possible matches is established, where the cost for each match is estimated taking
into account parameters such as physical distance between process streams, material
requirements, type of heat exchangers, auxiliary equipment (such as valves), heat
transfer coefficients, space requirements, pumping cost, maintenance cost and fouling.
The method uses the greedy approach due to its sequential nature, and there is no
targeting involved.
More Recent Retrofit Methods
A number of more recent methods for retrofit heat exchanger networks using
optimization (Mathematical Programming) to a large extent have been developed.
Due to the rather complex nature of these methods, however, they are only briefly
mentioned here in this course manual. The complexity of these methods also means
that software is an absolute requirement. Typically, these methods acknowledge the
fact that only a few carefully selected modifications will be economically worthwhile,
and the approach is to identify these retrofit actions.
Page 170 of 210

2.5 Heat Exchangers Network (HEN) Improvement
Heat Exchanger Networks for maximum energy recovery established by the Pinch
Design Method should only be regarded as initial designs. The strict decomposition at
the Pinch normally results in networks with stream splits and a few rather small units.
As mentioned above, the basic Pinch Design Method focuses on minimum energy
consumption while using the fewest number of units. Even though extensions such as
the Driving Force Plot and the Remaining Problem Analysis help the engineer to also
minimize total heat transfer area, Total Annual Cost is not necessarily at its minimum,
and some final optimization is required. With a good initial value for Tmin, only minor
network changes (described as design evolutions by Linnhoff and Hindmarsh, 1983)
are required in most cases. The matches of the initial network depend on the Pinch
location, and since the Pinch point depends on the value of Tmin, this becomes a key
parameter in Pinch based methods.
The Degrees of Freedom available for network optimization are the following:
Since the initial network is produced by respecting strict Pinch decomposition,

there will be more than the minimum number of units. Thus, there are Heat Load
Loops in the network, where 2 or 4 or 6, etc., heat exchangers (including heaters
and coolers) have duties than can be modified in a systematic way without
changing the stream target temperatures. Such loops can be used to remove
small units in the network (discrete optimization) or simply to obtain an area
distribution in the network with lower total annual cost (continuous optimization).
There will also be Heat Load Paths from a hot utility exchanger through some of
the process/process exchangers to a cold utility exchanger. These paths can be
used to restore unacceptable temperature driving forces in some units after
manipulation of heat load loops. Since increasing the duties of utility exchangers
will affect the energy/area trade-off, this procedure has similarities to shifting the
Composite Curves for the overall problem. A heat load path, however, affects only
a limited number of units. In some cases, such heat load paths can also be used
to remove small units.
Flowrates of the individual branches of a Stream Split can be varied in order to

reduce total heat transfer area (or actually investment cost) of the heat
exchangers involved.
This is a local optimization affecting a limited number of units, but interactions exist
between this optimization and the manipulation of heat load loops and paths.
Page 171 of 210

The two HEN (heat exchanger networks) designs introduced above reflect maximum
heat recovery (MER) solution. This solution may require more heat exchangers and
more piping. The MER design also has temperature driving forces that are at least
20C in all its heat exchangers. Other designs may have different heat exchanger(s)
with larger or smaller duties and may be only 10C temperature difference in the hot
end in one or more of its streams. In these arguments, the distillation column and its
use of HP steam and cooling water is not included, since the column is operated in the
same way.
In summary, network optimization can be carried out as a design evolution, without

large modifications to the basic network structure. This method requires a good initial
design, as the ones that can be established by the Pinch Design Method. In practice,
cost information is required to actually optimize the network, but the basic strategy
outlined here is still valid:
a) Identify a good starting value for Tmin by pre-optimization based on individual

targets for Energy, Area and Units (also referred to as SuperTargeting).
b) Design an MER network using the Pinch Design Method.
c) Remove the smallest unit by breaking a Heat Load Loop.
d) Restore driving forces by manipulating a Heat Load Path.
One of the major limitations in is the assumption of a global value of Tmin for all
process streams and heat exchangers. In industrial applications, differences in heat
transfer coefficients must be accounted for in Targeting, Design and Optimization.
Another limitation is the fact that sequential procedures as the one outlined here have
problems handling complicated multiple trade-offs and so-called topology traps.
Page 172 of 210

Network Improvement in Retrofit Applications
As mentioned in the previous section, optimization is used in some of the more recent
retrofit methods for network design, and the distinct classification into targeting, design
and optimization has been reduced and almost eliminated. This part will discuss how
initial retrofit designs developed using the methods described before can be improved
economically and simplified with respect to network structure, using the same
optimization philosophy as in the grassroots case. Degrees of freedom in the form of
heat load loops and paths as well as stream splits can be used to improve the initial
retrofit design. One important new aspect in the retrofit case is to maximize the
utilization of existing heat exchangers. After the shifting of cross Pinch heat
exchangers and the introduction of new units, some of the existing heat exchangers
may have a reduced duty and therefore, no longer require all the area installed.
In such cases it may be worthwhile to shift duty in heat load loops and/or paths until
the existing units are better utilized. Similar to grassroots situations, retrofit network
optimization is a combination of discrete and continuous adjustments. The discrete
part takes care of the removal of small new heat exchangers or small area additions to
existing units, while the continuous part takes care of the trade-off between investment
cost and obtained energy savings. The continuous part also includes, as mentioned
above, the maximum utilization (if possible) of existing units.
The cheaper retrofit solution that recover part of the potential energy savings
introduced earlier in this retrofit part of the chapter shown again below shows an
alternative retrofit heat exchanger network for the example problem, where only one
topological modification is suggested.
Page 173 of 210

mCp (kW/C)
H1= 18
180 C H2= 22
C1= 20
C2= 50
270 C
214.4 C 180 C 160 C
H1 1 3 Ca
360 kW
220 C 120 C 60 C
H2 2 Cb
1320 kW
210 C 160 C 50 C
1 2 C1
1000 kW 2200 kW
210 C 160 C
172.4 C 3
H C2
1880 kW 620 kW
160 C
Figure 115 - An Alternative Retrofit Heat Exchanger Network
The introduction of the new heat exchanger (3) between H1 and C2 recovers heat that
is lost to cooling water above Pinch in the existing design. In this retrofit alternative,
the existing heat exchangers (1) and (2) are not changed, and the optimization simply
becomes a one-dimensional search to identify the largest duty for heat exchanger (3)
that satisfies constraints such as maximum Payback Time and maximum Investment
Cost.
Page 174 of 210

3.0 Pinch Technology and Mathematical Programming Hybrid Methods

Mathematical Programming is a class of methods for solving constrained Optimization
problems. Since both continuous and discrete (or binary) variables can be used in the
corresponding Mathematical Programming models, these methods are perfectly suited
for typical design tasks encountered in Process Synthesis and Process Integration.
The binary variables (0 or 1) can be used to model discrete decisions such as
selection of equipment, the interconnection and sequencing of equipment and other
non-continuous choices made by the designer. The continuous variables can be used
to model process stream properties such as flowrate, temperature and pressure, as
well as operating conditions and geometrical sizes such as area and volume of
process equipment.
While Mathematical Programming belongs to the so-called deterministic optimization

methods, there have also been applications of stochastic or non-deterministic methods
such as Simulated Annealing and Genetic Algorithms in Process Integration.
These methods have been used to overcome numerical problems such as local
optima caused by non-convexities in the models, discontinuities and combinatorial
explosion. It is, however, beyond the scope of this course manual to describe these
methods. Use of Simulated Annealing in Process Integration has been described in
several papers and literatures.
Even though Pinch Analysis is used routinely in a large number of industrial

companies, indicating that the technology is realistic and applicable, there are a
number of limitations inherent in Pinch based methods. These limitations are actually
the major motivation for using Mathematical Programming in energy Integration.
One of the most important and basic concepts in Pinch Analysis is the Composite
Curves that in a single diagram gives the engineer a birds eyes view of the
opportunities for heat recovery in the total process. The diagram provides details about
the bottleneck(s) for heat recovery (Process and Utility Pinches), the minimum external
heating and cooling requirements as a function of the specification of minimum
allowed driving forces in the heat exchangers, and an indication of the total need for
heat transfer area.
Page 175 of 210

It is, however, an underlying assumption that all hot and cold streams are resources
that can be used without limitation for heat recovery purposes. Once the streams have
been merged into the hot or cold composite curve, their identity is lost. If pairs of hot
and cold streams are not allowed to exchange heat (for reasons such as safety,
operability, piping difficulties, contamination prevention, etc.) it becomes extremely
difficult to evaluate the effect on heat recovery of such forbidden matches from the
composite curves. Using Mathematical Programming, however, it is extremely simple
to formulate such situations, and the corresponding solution phase actually becomes
easier.
In Pinch Analysis, there is also a combination of Heuristic Rules and Thermodynamics.
Of course, Thermodynamic Methods do not fail, but the Heuristic Rules are by nature
only approximations that have a limited validity. One example in Process Integration is
the so called (N-1) rule for the fewest number of units (heat exchangers). Since this
formula only counts the number of process streams and utility types, with no reference
to temperature, it sometimes fails to properly identify the correct minimum number of
units. The calculation of minimum total heat transfer area is based on the assumption
(or Heuristic Rule) that vertical heat transfer minimizes total heat transfer area.
This assumption is not valid when there are significant differences in the film heat
transfer coefficients for the streams. In the design phase, Pinch based methods fail to
properly address the multiple trade-offs involved due to the sequential nature of these
methods. The Pinch Design Method is also quite time-consuming, and even though
the matching rules are simple, it often becomes a major effort to develop a valid initial
design. The strict Pinch decomposition has also been shown to be counter-productive,
since the subsequent design evolution is trapped into the structure of the initial
decomposed design. Last but not least, another more important example is the
plus/minus principle for the process modification that fails to account systematically
and without enumeration for best combinations of process parametric and structural
modifications for the sake of energy saving.
In summary, there are limitations in many phases of Pinch Analysis, such as the
problem definition phase (hard to handle forbidden matches), the targeting phase
(approximations and heuristic rules that fail), as well as the design and optimization
phase (multiple tradeoffs, topology traps, etc.). In theory, Mathematical Programming
overcomes all these limitations however, some of the corresponding models are
extremely difficult to solve. Finally, it should be mentioned that Mathematical
Programming provides a framework for Automatic Design, which means that time
(which is a limiting factor in many engineering projects) can be saved and used for
more high level decisions.
Page 176 of 210

Classes of Mathematical Programming Models
Generally, a Mathematical Programming model consists of an objective function

(typically some economic criteria) and a set of equality constraints as well as inequality
constraints. The general form is indicated below:
min f(x,y)
subject to
g(x,y) 0
h(x,y) = 0
where
x R n
y [0,1]m
It should be noticed that the variables x and y in general are vectors of variables, and
that the constraints g and h similarly are vectors of functions. The objective function (f)
is assumed to be a scalar.
If there are no binary variables (dim(y) = 0), and all functions f, g and h are linear, we
have the simplest class of problems, the Linear Programming (LP) models. Using the
Simplex algorithm, for example, LP models with hundreds of thousands variables and
constraints can be solved in reasonable times with todays computer resources.
If there are no binary variables (dim(y) = 0), and at least one of the functions f, g and h
are non-linear, we have a Non-Linear Programming (NLP) problem. These are
generally much harder to solve, especially if the non-linearities are non-convex,
because a local optimum may be found.
If there are binary variables in the model (dim(y) 0), and all functions f, g and h are
linear, we have a Mixed Integer Linear Programming (MILP) problem. These can be
solved to global optimality provided the number of binary variables does not cause a
combinatorial explosion. Finally, if there are binary variables in the model (dim(y) 0),
and at least one of the functions f, g and h are non-linear, we have the hardest class of
problems; Mixed Integer Non-Linear Programming (MINLP) models. Unfortunately,
most real design problems are of the MINLP type with significant problems related to
computer time (combinatorial explosion) and local optima (non-convex nature).
Fortunately, in most Process Design, Synthesis and Integration applications, the

binary variables do not occur in the equality constraints (h(x) = 0) and they appear
linearly in the objective function and the inequality constraints.
Page 177 of 210

Rigorous Targets for Heat Integration
As mentioned before one motivation for the use of Mathematical Programming in

Process Integration is that rigorous targets can be obtained for energy requirement,
number of units and heat transfer area, even in cases where there are restrictions on
the matches.
As indicated in the beginning of this chapter, the breakthrough in the use of

Mathematical Programming in Process Integration came when results from Pinch
Analysis were included in the models. The most important concept in this respect
was the use of the heat cascade to formulate Transshipment Models. In these models,
the Temperature Intervals act as Warehouses (or intermediate storages) between
the Sources/Producers (the hot process streams and utilities) and the
Sinks/Consumers (the cold process streams and utilities).
The transshipment model will be introduced in little details along small part of the
mathematical programming models for HEN in later chapters.
Merge of Pinch Technology and Mathematical Programming
It is the merge that has been done between Pinch and Mathematical Programming
models, where thermodynamic Concepts and insights of pinch technique are
combined with mathematical programming into what appears to be very powerful
semi-automatic methods for both grassroots and retrofit heat exchanger network
synthesis. This is the topic of the rest of this document.
When using Mathematical Programming in energy Integration, there are three distinct
activities that are of importance for the final result:
1) The structural alternatives must be represented in a Superstructure that is rich

enough to contain all promising solutions, but not too wide to create prohibitive
combinatorial problems.
2) The Superstructure must then be converted into a Mathematical Model that trades
off complexity and rigor with speed in the numerical solution phase. This modeling
activity is almost an art, and the same problem can be formulated quite differently.
3) The numerical solution phase where powerful Algorithms are needed to efficiently
and reliably identify the global optimum for the proposed models.
Page 178 of 210

Even though process engineers primarily should deal with the first two of these
activities, history has shown that major contributions have also been made in the last
activity.
The brief insights that can be summarized from pinch technology are as follows:
Given a minimum temperature approach, the exact amount for minimum utility
consumption can be predicted prior to develop the network structure.
Based on the pinch temperatures for minimum utility consumption, the
synthesis of the network can be decomposed into sub-networks.
The fewest number of units in each sub-network is often equal to the number of
process and utility streams minus one.
It is possible to develop a priori good estimates of the minimum total area of
heat exchange in a network.
It is possible via trial and error to select best process conditions that result in
better energy targets
It is possible for a given process to get a priori good selection of utilities and
configuration of utility plant
While these insights narrow down the alternative designs for a HEN, process
conditions modifications and utility plants configurations considerably (via reducing
the search space), by themselves they do not provide an explicit procedure for
deriving the configuration of a HEN, utility plants and/or define optimal process
conditions. In this part we will present algorithmic optimization approach for the
synthesis of HEN, utility plants and simultaneous optimization of process plant
conditions and heat integration. The insights obtained from pinch technology will be
used in the development of these mathematical programming algorithms.
Hence, we call this approach the Pinch technology and mathematical programming
hybrid method.
Page 179 of 210

3.1 Mathematical Programming for HEN Synthesis
The HEN synthesis problem features a number of key difficulties that are
associated with its handling:
The potentially explosive combinatorial problem for identifying the best pairs
of hot and cold streams so as to enhance energy recovery;
Forbidden, required and restricted matches;
The optimal selection of the HEN structure;
Fixed and variable target temperatures;
Temperature dependent physical and transport properties;
Different phases type streams;
Different types of heat exchangers
There are two major synthesis strategies for the HEN; sequential optimization and
simultaneous optimization. The former is the one that rely on Pinch technology and
exploit the insights resulting from it in developing the mathematical formulation of
the sequential optimization method. Therefore, it is the one that is going to be
introduced here in this document. This HEN synthesis method provides systematic
procedures that allow the automation of this synthesis task.
Three basic heuristic rules that are motivated by the insights of pinch technology will
be used in the development of algorithmic methods based on sequential optimization.
In particular, it will be assumed that an optimal or near optimal HEN exhibits the
following characteristics respectively:
1. Minimum utility cost

2. Minimum number of units
3. Minimum investment/Area cost
It is possible in general to have conflicts among these rules. Therefore, we will assume
that rule 1 has precedence over rule 2 and rule 2 over rule 3. In this way, our objective
will be to consider first candidate networks that exhibit minimum utility cost, among
these the one that have the fewest number of units, and among these the one that has
the minimum investment cost.
Page 180 of 210

HEN Sequential Synthesis
Representation of Heat Flows

for Transshipment Model
Interval # 1
Interval # 2
Interval # 3
Interval # 4
Figure 116 - Minimum Utility Cost using Transshipment Model
Page 181 of 210

The basic idea of the minimum utility cost calculation using the transshipment
model representation above is to:
Introduce variables for all potential heat flows
Write the overall energy balances around each interval
Write mathematical model that minimize the utility cost subject to the energy
balance constraints
Now for the heating and cooling utilities minimization problem, let us go back to our
small problem that we solved algebraically using pinch technology. Then, we write our
objective function, we formulate our model/constraints using energy balance; and we
solve the optimization problem using commercial software.
Objective function
Minimize (3* 10 6 Qheating

min
+ 5* 10 6 Qcooling
min
)*3600*8760
Define loads of heating and cooling utilities in each temperature interval and the
surplus from each interval via developing temperature interval diagram, tables of
exchangeable loads and un-balanced thermal cascade diagram. Instead of writing the
model for minimum utility cost using variables as we will do in the next part of this
document for the minimum matches problem, Let us use numerical numbers to make
easy to understand and illustrate how it is easy to model for optimization environment.
Page 182 of 210

Now let us have another look on the temperature interval diagram of our old example.
T minimum = 10 K
T* Interval
T t
555 560 550
1 H1
515 520 510
2
385 390 380
375 3 H2 380 370
4 330 320
310
5 310 300 C2
305
6 C1
295 300 290
Hot Streams:H1; F1Cp1= 10 kW/K Cold Streams:C1; F1Cp1= 10 kW/K
H2; F2Cp2= 5 kW/K C2; F2Cp2= 5 kW/K
Figure 117 - Temperature Interval Diagram
Page 183 of 210

The model formulation is then as we said above simply a heat balance around each
temperature interval as shown numerically in the graph below:
min
Qheating
0.0 1 760
r1
1300 2 2470
r2
100 3 210
r3
750 4 1050
r4
100 5 380
r5
50 0.0
6
min
Qcooling
Figure 118 - Thermal Cascade Diagram (Un-Balanced)
min
Qheating + 0.0-760=r1
r1+1300-2470=r2
r2+100-210=r3
r3+750-1050=r4
r4+100-380=r5
min
r5+50-0.0= Qcooling
Page 184 of 210

Now using LINGO software:
Model:
Min = (3* 10 6 Qheating

min
+ 5* 10 6 Qcooling
min
)*3600*8760;
min
r1- Qheating = -760;
r2-r1= -1170;
r3-r2= -110;
r4-r3= -300;
r5-r4= -280;
min
Qcooling -r5= 50;
min
Qheating 0.0;
min
Qcooling 0.0;
r10.0;
r20.0;
r30.0;
r40.0;
r50.0;
End
Page 185 of 210

The solution of the optimization problem using LINGO software (student copy available
upon request from ESU/CSD) gives the following results:
Objective value = $ 255757

min
Qheating = 2620 kW
min
Qcooling = 50 kW
r1= 1860 kW, r2= 690 kW, r3= 580 kW, r4= 280 kW, r5 =0.0 kW
These targets obtained using mathematical programming with pinch based insights
give an idea about the potential of utility saving in the facility.
Minimum Utility Cost with Constraint Matches
In practice it might not always desirable or possible to exchange heat between any
given pair of hot and cold streams. This could be due to the fact that the streams are
too far apart or because of other potential considerations such as control, safety,
environment regulations or start-up. Hence, it would be clearly desirable to extend the
above mentioned formulation to the case when we impose certain constraints on the
matches. The most common would be to forbid the heat exchange between certain
pairs of streams (to force the use of utilities on some of the streams). We could also
think of requiring that a minimum or maximum amount of heat be exchanged between
certain pairs of streams (e.g., forcing the use of utilities on some of the streams).
The LP transshipment model mentioned above implicitly assumes that any given pair
of hot and cold streams can exchange heat since there was no information as to which
pairs of streams actually exchange heat. In order to develop an LP model formulation
where we do have that information, we can consider the following two alternative
models:
1. Transportation model where we consider directly all the feasible links for heat
exchange between each pair of hot and cold streams over their corresponding
temperature intervals.
2. Expanded transshipment model where we consider within each temperature
interval a link for the heat exchange between a given pair of hot and cold
streams, where the cold stream is present at that interval and the hot stream is
either also present or else it is present in a higher temperature interval.
The second method is preferred since it renders a small size LP problem.
Page 186 of 210

HEN Synthesis with Minimum Number of Matches
In the previous part we introduced the minimum utility cost target and its formulation as
an LP transshipment model. The solution of the LP transshipment model provides:
The required loads of hot and cold utilities, and
The location of pinch point if any.
A useful target used to distinguish among the many HENs that satisfy the minimum
utility cost is the minimum number of matches problem which can be stated as
follows:
Given the information obtained from solving the minimum utility cost target
problem, loads of hot and cold utilities, location of pinch points and hence sub-
networks, determine for each sub-network the minimum number of matches and
the heat load of each match. In such problem definition we implicitly assume that
the HENs that satisfy minimum number of matches are usually close to an optimal
or near optimal total annualized cost solution.
Basic Idea of MILP Transshipment Model
The basic idea in the transshipment model for the minimum number of matches
target is to model explicitly the potential heat exchange between all pairs of
streams, excluding hot utilities to cold utilities with respect to;
Existence of each match,
Amount of heat load of each match, and
Amount of heat residual of each hot process stream/utility.
The potential existence of each match (ij) is modeled through the introduction of the
binary variables yij:
yij 1, If match (ij) takes place

{0, otherwise
Where i HP HU , j CP CU , and we exclude some matches (ij)

i HU , j CU .
Page 187 of 210

The amount of heat load of each match (ij) is modeled through the introduction of
continuous variables Qij and Qijk:
Qij Qijk ,
k
Where Qijk is the heat exchanged in match (ij) at interval k and Qij is the heat load of
match (ij) over all intervals of the sub-network under consideration.
The amount of heat residual of hot process stream/utility existing at each temperature
interval k is modeled via the continuous variables, Ri,k and Rk:
Rk Ri , k
i
Where Ri,k is the heat residual of hot process stream/utility I out of temperature
interval k, and Rk is the total residual heat exiting interval k.
The pictorial representation of a temperature interval k is shown in graph below.
We have a hot process stream H1, a hot utility stream S1 potentially exchanging heat
with cold stream C1. In such case we have two potential matches (H1,C1) and (S1,C1)
Page 188 of 210

RS1,k-1 RH1,k-1
QS1,C1,k
C
Q C1,k
TI-k C1
H
Q H1,k
H1 QH1,C1,k
RS1,k RH1,k
Figure 119 - The Pictorial Representation of a Temperature Interval
The amount of hot utility S1 which enters at an upper TI is known from the minimum
utility cost calculation problem but the heat load Qs1,C1,k is a variable.
The residuals Rs1,k-1 and Rs1,k are variables, too. The known fixed quantities are the
Qhot,H1,k and Qcold,C1,k which represent the heat available from hot stream H1 and
the heat needed by the cold stream C1, respectively, at interval k.
The residuals RH1,k-1 and RH1,k are variables. The heat load QH1,C1,k is also
variable.
Page 189 of 210

Having introduced the pictorial representation and the appropriate binary and
continuous variables the basic building blocks of the model for the
minimum number of matches target are:
Energy balances for each hot process stream and at each temperature
interval k,
Energy balance for each hot utility and at each temperature interval k,
Energy balances for each cold process stream and at each temperature
interval k,
Energy balance for each cold utility and at each temperature interval k,
Definitions of total residual flows at each interval,
Definitions of heat loads of each match,
Relationship between heat loads Qij and binary variables yij,
Non-negativity constraints on continuous variables,
Zero top and bottom residual constraints,
Integrality conditions on yij ( yij=0 -1)
Page 190 of 210

The objective function involves the sum of binary variables representing all potential
matches. Then, the mathematical model for the minimum number of matches target
can be stated as follows:
Min yij
i j
s.t.
Ri , k Ri , k _ 1 Qijk QikH ,
j
k TI
i HPk
j CPk CUk
Ri , k Ri , k _ 1 Qijk QikH , i HUk,
j
k TI
j CPk
Qijk Q
i
C
jk , j CPk
i HPk HUk
k TI
Qijk Q
i
C
jk , j CUk
i HPk
k TI
Rk Rik 0
i
i HPk HUk
k TI
Page 191 of 210

Qi, j Qijk
kTI
Lij y ij Qij U ij y ij
Qijk 0,
k TI ;
Rik 0,
k TI
R 0 Rk 0
yij=0_1
i HP HU ,
j CP CU
It is important to note here after we explained how to write the model that the
objective function is a linear sum of all yijs and simply minimize the number of
potential matches. The energy balances and the definition constraints are linear
constraints in the residuals and heat loads. The relationships between the
continuous and binary variables are also linear since Lij and Uij are parameters
corresponding to lower and upper bounds, respectively, on the heat exchange
of each match (ij). It is important too to understand the key role of these
constraints which is to make certain that if a match does not exist, then its heat
load should be zero while if the match takes place, then its heat load should be
between the provided bounds.
We can understand that more from the if statement below:
If yij=1 , then Lij Qij Uij
If yij=0 ,then 0 Qij 0 and hence Qij=0
Page 192 of 210

In the above mentioned model formulation constraint we will distinguish the following
cases:
Case (1) No restriction on Matches
In this case, the upper bound Uij of potential match (ij) is given by the minimum
of the heat loads of streams i and j, that is,

U ij min QikH Q Cjc
kTI kTI
The lower bound Lij, is used so as to avoid small heat exchangers and in this
case of no restriction we will have Lij=0.
Case (2) Required Matches:
In this case, if one match must take place then we set
Yij =1,
And hence eliminate one binary variable from the model.
Case (3) Forbidden Matches:
In this case if one match (ij) must not take place for instance, then this is equivalent to
setting:
Yij=0
And the upper and lower bounds should be
Uij=Lij=0,
Which will make the heat loads Qij zero.
Page 193 of 210

3.2 Simultaneous Process Optimization and Heat Integration
When we consider an existing or still on paper process we need to optimize it to be

energy efficient. However, energy is not the only item for the operating cost and its
systems components are not the only items in capital costs. In fact from the operating
costs point of view raw materials are most of the time the dominant cost.
Besides, there are other process objectives such as safety, operability, reliability,
environmental compliance, etc., that need to be considered while optimizing our
process to be energy efficient.
Of course, it will be optimal to be able to consider all the process objectives in one
model and optimize the process. Numerical difficulty does not allow this approach to
happen at least for now. Therefore, process optimization and energy integration tasks
are always done sequentially. However, in some special cases where the problems
are not large and only changes in a fixed process configuration are considered
process optimization and heat integration can be done simultaneously. This situation is
the one introduced here in this best practice.
The pinch-based method introduced in this document is known as Pinch location

method.
In general, we describe our processes with models having nonlinear performance

equations where pressures and temperatures are also variables. The main difficulty
that arises is that we can no longer apply the equations of the transshipment model
directly since the temperature intervals used in the previous model formulation will now
be variable. Therefore, it is desirable to have a method that can handle both variable
flowrate and temperatures.
Let us first consider the non-linear optimization problem without heat integration.
Here we will denote by x all the variables in the process among which are included the
heat capacity flowrate(s) and the inlet and outlet temperatures, Fi,
Tini,Touti,i=1,2,nh, fj,tinj,toutj, j=1,2,nc, of hot and cold streams respectively.
The loads of the hot and cold utilities are denoted by Qs, Qw.
Page 194 of 210

The optimization problem corresponds then to:
Min C = f(x) + csQs+ cwQw
s.t h(x)=0
g(x) 0
nc
Qs fj (t out
j t in
j )
j 1
nh
Qw Fi (Ti in Ti out )
j 1
Qs, Qw 0,
Fi , Ti in , Ti out 0,
i 1....nh,
fj , t inj , t out
j 0,
j 1....nc,
x Rn
In this formulation, the objective term f(x), the equations h(x) = 0, and the constraints
g(x) are in general nonlinear.
Page 195 of 210

In order to replace the Qs and Qw equations by heat integration constraints, it is

essential to remove the definition of temperature intervals used in pinch method
calculation procedures since these temperature intervals will not be fixed any more
due to the possibility of changing inlet and outlet temperatures according to
optimization needs of the process.
Pinch Location Method
Let us now assume first that we are dealing with the old problem where we have
constant flowrate(s) and temperatures in order to explain how the Pinch Location
method works without the need to use defined temperature intervals. Then, we will
incorporate in the above mentioned model formulation the necessary constraints that
need to be added to account for heat integration without using the defined temperature
interval concept. For the problem given in below we can determine the minimum utility
consumption using methods mentioned before.
Table10 - Hot and Cold Streams Data
Stream Fcp Ts Tt
H1 1 450 350
H2 4 400 350
C1 2 300 360
C2 0.5 360 500
Qs= 35 KW and Qw=145 KW and the pinch temperature using Tmin = 20 K is 450-430 K
The pinch location procedures is very simple, we plot first the T-Q curves at a value of
Tmin greater than 20 K. Try to pinch each of the inlet streams one-by-one as shown in
the graphs below and determine the corresponding cooling and heating requirements.
Clearly from the graphs below the pinch which is defined by inlet temperature of
stream H1 is correct one. All others in graph exhibit temperature crossings and hence
lower utility consumption (even negative). Therefore, what the figures here suggest is
that the criteria for selecting the correct pinch that can be used to define the minimum
heating and cooling utilities that is feasible is to select the pinch that exhibits largest
heating and cooling among all the pinch candidates.
Page 196 of 210

T (C)
Pinch Candidate H1
500
H1
H2 C2
400
C1
300
Q (kW)
0.0 2000 4000 6000
Figure 120 - T-H Curve Case (i)
Page 197 of 210

T (C)
Pinch Candidate H2
500
H1
H2 C2
400
C1
300
Q (kW)
0.0 2000 4000 6000
Figure 121 - T-H Curve Case (ii)
Page 198 of 210

T (C)
Pinch Candidate C1
500
C2
400 H1
H2
300 C1
Q (kW)
0.0 2000 4000 6000
Figure 122 - T-H Curve Case (iii)
Page 199 of 210

T (C)
Pinch Candidate C2
500
H1
C2
H2
400
C1
300
Q (kW)
0.0 2000 4000 6000
Figure 123 - (D) T-H Curve Case (iv)
Page 200 of 210

Mathematically, this condition can be expressed as follows:

Qs max Qsp
pP
Qw max Q p
w
pP
Where P is the index set of all the hot and cold streams, i=1nh and J=1..nc,
Qsp , Qwp , are the heating and cooling loads that result from each pinch candidate.
We can simplify these two expressions via calculating Qw from Qs as follows:
Qw= {(heat content of hot streams- heat content of cold streams)} + Qs

i.e.,
Qw =heat surplus () + Qs
In other words if we know Qs we can then get the Qw directly without the max
relationship.
Therefore, our basic criterion for the pinch location can be expressed as follows:
Qs max Qsp
pP

Qw = + Qs
The only remaining part now is the explicit representation of

Qsp in terms of flows
and temperatures.
Qsp = { QACP QAHP }
Page 201 of 210

Where QAC{
P
QAHP } represents the heat deficit that exists above the candidate
pinch p P ,
QACP and QAHP are the total heat content above the candidate pinch (p) of the cold and
of the hot streams, respectively. To develop explicit expression of QACP and QAHP we
can use the graphs below that show how we can calculate the heat content above
pinch of hot stream (i) for different cases.
T
Heat content Above the
Pinch Temperature T-pinch = Fi (Ti in Ti out )
Ti in
Ti out
Tpinch
Enthalpy
Figure 124 - Heat Content above Pinch of Hot Stream Case (i)
Page 202 of 210

T
Pinch Temperature T-pinch = Fi (Ti in Tpinch )
Ti in
Tpinch
Ti out
Enthalpy
Figure 125 - Heat Content above Pinch of Hot Stream Case (ii)
Page 203 of 210

T
Pinch Temperature T-pinch = 0
T-pinch
Ti in
Ti out
Enthalpy
Figure 126 - Heat Content above Pinch of Hot Stream Case (iii)
We can clearly see from the graphs above that the heat content of this hot stream
above the pinch depends on whether the stream is entirely above the pinch, whether it
crosses the pinch or whether it is below the pinch.
And the three equations that capture the three cases are as follows:
1. Stream lies above the pinch, Ti in Ti out T p
Then,
Fi[{Ti in Ti p } {Ti out Ti p }] Fi[Ti in Ti out ]
2. Stream crosses the pinch, Ti in T p Ti out
Then,
Fi[{Ti in Ti p } 0] Fi[Ti in Ti p ]
Page 204 of 210

3. Stream lies below the pinch, T p Ti in Ti out
Then,
Heat content above pinch temperature = 0
From the above three cases the heat content above pinch (p) for hot stream (i) can be
represented with the following formulation:
Heat content above pinch (p) for hot stream (i) =
Fi[max{ 0, Ti in Ti p } max{ 0, Ti out Ti p }]

And the Total heat content of all hot streams above the candidate pinch (p),
QAHP will be
nH
QA Fi[max{ 0, Ti in T p } max{ 0, Ti out T p }]
P
H
i 1
Similarly, QACP will be given by
nC
QA fj[max{ 0, t out
P
C j (T Tmin )} max{ 0, t j (T Tmin )}]
P in p
j 1
Where the pinch temperature, T P are defined as follows:
T P = Ti in if candidate pinch is hot stream i

t Tmin if candidate pinch is cold stream j
in
j
Based on the equations developed above where we obtained explicit expressions of

the heat integration in terms of continuous variables such as flowrate and
temperatures we can now write the modified process optimization formulation problem
in a way so as to perform simultaneous process optimization and heat integration.
Page 205 of 210

The formulation is as follows;
min C f ( x) csQs cwQw

s.t.
h( x ) 0
g ( x) 0
nC
Qs fj[max{ 0, t out
j (T p T min)} max{ 0, t inj (T p T min)}]
j 1
nH
Fi[max{ 0, Ti in T P } max{ 0, Ti out T P }]
i 1
pP
nH nC
Qw Qs Fi (Ti in Ti out ) fj (t out
j t inj )
i 1 j 1
Qs, Qw 0,
Fi , Ti in , Ti out 0,
i 1...nH ,
fi , tiin , tiout 0,
i 1...nC ,
x Rn
where
T p, p P
TP= Ti in if candidate pinch is hot stream i

t inj Tmin if candidate pinch is cold stream j
Page 206 of 210

The above new formulation can treat the flows and the temperatures as variables for
the optimization and the heat integration of any process. The difficulty in this
formulation is the presence of max operators that are non-differentiable. However, a
smooth approximation procedure can be used to help avoids the difficulties and enable
us use the current available commercial software solvers for non-linear programming
problems as we are showing below.
f(x)
Figure 127 - Plot of Max {0,f(x)}
The function (x)=max {0,f(x)}, which arise in the formulation above is non-
differentiable at f(x)=0 as shown in graph above. We can however, construct an
approximation to it that is continuous and differentiable everywhere to avoid problems
in the commercial NLP solvers. One very famous approximation to the (x) = max
{0,f(x)} function is the following suggested by Balakrishna and Biegler.
Page 207 of 210

The function is simply replaced by the following equation:
a 0.5[ f ( x) 2 2 ]1 / 2 0.5 f ( x)
It is recommended to use typical values for between 0.0001 and 0.01.
It is easy to verify that for small values of the above equation yields an
approximation similar to the graph below.
f(x)
Figure 128 - Plot of Smooth Approximation Scheme
Another difficulty which is not addressed in this document is the inclusion of the
process structural optimization with heat integration in a mixed integer non-linear
programming (MINLP) formulation for an industrial size application. This important
problem will be addressed in another document.
Page 208 of 210

4.0 Appendices
4.1 Computer Software(s)
The major state-of-the-art software(s) in the market for utilities targeting, selection and
simulation are SUPERTARGET and Pro-Steam of KBC and Star of UMIST (copies
are available in Saudi Aramco for UMIST software).
The list of commercial and academic software for heat integration applications include
the following,
ADVENT, is process integration software based on pinch technology. It includes

targets, design and optimization capabilities for heat exchanger networks.
It also includes modules for utility system. It also performs exergy analysis using
graphical method
MAGNETS, is HEN design software that implements sequential synthesis strategy

using the LP and MILP transshipment models, as well as, NLP superstructure
optimization.
SPRINT, is software for simulation, optimization, control and flexibility of heat

exchanger networks.
HX-NET, is a HEN design software. It includes targeting capability and is currently

incorporated with ASPEN-Pinch software.
SUPERTARGET, is a pinch analysis based software for targeting, design and

optimization of HENs. It can be used for grassroots and retrofit problems. It has exergy
analysis capability.
4.2 References
The two papers below present a brief but complete description of the state-of-the-art
method in utilities targeting known as Total-Site-Analysis (Site-Pinch)
Linnhoff, B. and Dhole, V. Total Site Targets for Fuel, Cogeneration, Emissions
and Cooling
Kokossis, A. and Mavromatis, S. Conceptual optimization of utility Networks for
Operational Variations-I. Targets and level optimization
Page 209 of 210

There are also several papers about Pinch technology and its application. Below are
few important ones.
Linnhoff, B. and Townsend,B., Designing Total Energy Systems
Linnhoff, B. and Townsend,B., Overall Site Optimization By Pinch Technology
Linnhoff, B., Pinch AnalysisA State-of-the-Art Overview
Linnhoff, B. and Smith, R., Recent Developments in Pinch Analysis
Regarding books there are variety of books that address pinch technology both in
energy and mass integration applications. Below find few examples.
Smith, R., Chemical Process Design and Integration

Biegler, L.,Grossmann,I. and Westerberg, A., Systematic Methods of
Chemical Process Design
El-Halwagi, M., Pollution Prevention Through Process Integration
Revision Summary
12 March 2011 Reaffirmed the contents of the document, and reissued with editorial changes.
21 July 2013 Editorial revision to change document responsibility name from P&CSD/Energy Systems Unit
to P&CSD/Energy Systems Division.
20 January 2016 Minor revision to update all figures and tables with description, provided extra tables for data,
organized the context and fixed the symbols.
Page 210 of 210

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SABP-A-009 20 January 2016

Developed by: Energy Systems Division

Previous Issue: 21 July 2013 Next Planned Update: TBD

CopyrightSaudi Aramco 2016. All rights reserved.

2.0 PINCH TECHNOLOGY .............................................................................................................. 4

3.0 PINCH TECHNOLOGY AND MATHEMATICAL

4.0 APPENDICES ............................................................................................................................ 209

1.2 Purpose and Scope

1.3 Intended Users

2.0 Pinch Technology

Pinch Technology/Analysis was developed in the late 1970s as a technique for

The concept of composite curves reduces the multi-stream problem to a 2-stream

Figure 1 - Basic Process T-H Diagram

Figure 2 - Heat Recovery Process T-H Diagram

Pinch Principle in Brief

Heat must not be transferred across the pinch

Net Heat Sink

Net Heat Source

Figure 3 - Example of a Pinch Diagram

Basic Concepts for Heat Recovery (New Design)

Figure 4 - Pinch Technology Main Phases

A central part of data extraction is the identification of heating and cooling

1/U = (1/hHi) + (1/hCj)

Table 1 - Extracted Data for Process Example

0.0 2000 4000 6000

Figure 5 - Hot and Cold Composite Curves

Composite Curves provide valuable information about maximum heat recovery

Maximum Heat Recovery: QRecovery = 4700 kW

Figure 7 - Heat Cascade

Process Cascade Distillation Column Heat Pump Steam Turbine

Above Q HP, out Q steam, in

Grand Composite Curve (GCC)

Without the Distillation Column

T0= 270C Q h, min= 1000

T3= 170C R 3= 580

CW 0.0 500 1000 1500

Figure 9 - Grand Composite Curve

The previously discussed decomposition principle has one major disadvantage.

Identify whether there is scope for integration of special equipment such as

Figure 10 - Grand Composite Curve without Distillation Column

temperatures in the column. The CGCC is based on converged profiles from a

2.2 Data Extraction

This step is called in Pinch technology data extraction.

Each process stream needs to be defined either as a hot or cold stream.

It is also important to consider stream composition to be able to get accurate

Streams supply temperatures (Ts) and target temperatures (Tt) need to be

These thermal data are depicted in the Table 2 below:

Table 2 - Thermal Data

Strm No Strm.Type Start Temp(Ts)(C) Target Temp.(Tt)(C) Heat Capacity Flowrate(kW/C)

Utility steam is supplied at 200C and

Cooling water at 25C to 30C

This table shows the data necessary to obtain energy targets.

Table 3 - Example Process Thermal Data

Figure 12 - Example of Process Flow Diagram

Let us explain these heuristics one-by-one and with some details.

1- Extract streams from flow-sheet according to deep understanding of the

2- The enthalpy change of some streams is significantly non-linear. This is

Note: Phase Changes:

Original hot streams are hotter than proposed

Original Cold streams are colder than proposed

Figure 13 - Enthalpy Temperature Mixture Curve

200 Look for the temperature

0.0(560-520)= 0.0 0.0(560-520)= 0.0 0.0+0.0= 0.0

2 10(520-390)= 1300 0.0(520-390)= 0.0 1300+0.0= 1300

3 10(390-380)= 100 0.0(390-380)= 0.0 100+0.0= 100

4 10(380-350)= 500 5(380-330)= 250 500+250= 750

5 0.0(330-310)= 0.0 5(330-310)= 100 0.0+ 100= 100

6 0.0(310-300)= 0.0 5(310-300)= 50 0.0+50= 50