Determining the Minimum Energy

Requirement using Process Composite

Curves
 Process Energy Targets

Process energy targets (minimum steam and cooling

water requirements) can be obtained from

Composite Curves
• cumulative process heat availability (surplus)
• cumulative process heat requirement (deficit)

 Problem Table Algorithm

• process heat surpluses and deficits within
some specified temperature intervals
 Process Energy Targets from the
Composite Curves

Composite Curves

Representation of process streams’ heat

content on a plot of temperature (T) versus
enthalpy (H)
 Temperature vs Enthalpy Diagram

Process Steam
B-4 integration
Feed Product
Reactor
30 oC 200 oC 50 oC

Cooling
Water

T(oC)
T-H Plot 200
Steam
Hot Stream
e.g. product)

Cold Stream (e.g.

feed)

50
30
CW
H (MW)
 Process After Integration

Steam

Feed Product
Reactor
30 oC 200 oC 50 oC

Cooling
Water
 Working Session - HEN
“Design by intuition”

60°
80° Cool 180°
FCP=1

R2
C1
120°

130° R1
Heat
FCP=4

Cool
FCP=2 100° 120°
Heat
40° FCP=1.8
30°
 Stream data

Tmin = 10°C Steam @ 200°C, Water @ 25°C

T supply T target FCP

Stream Type
(°C) (°C) (KW/K)

C1 Cold 60 100 4.0

C2 Cold 30 120 1.8

H1 Hot 180 80 1.0

H2 Hot 130 40 2.0

• Design a network of steam heaters, coolers and Heat

exchangers for the four process streams.
• Where possible, use heat interchange in preference to utilities
 Potential streams for heat exchange

FCp
H =100 (MW/K)
Ts = 180°C 2 Tt = 80°C
1.0
H =180 Tt = 40°C
Ts = 130°C 4 2.0
H =160 Ts = 60°C
Tt = 100°C 1 4.0
H =162 Ts = 30°C
Tt = 120°C 3 1.8

• Where to begin placing a match?

• Which streams to match?
 Properties of T-DH Diagram

Given the stream Stream Stream T supply T target FCP H

Number Type (°C ) (°C ) (MW/K) (MW)
data :
1 Cold 40 130 2.0 180

T vs H Plot H = FCpT ==> T/H = 1/FCp

T(°C)
Ttarget 130 smaller FCp  H is a relative quantity.
Thus, the T-H line
can be shifted horizontally
T
bigger
 1/FCp is the slope of the
Tsupply H FCp
40 T-H line:
H (MW)  smaller FCp: steep
 bigger FCp: flat
 Example: Front End PFD of a
Process Plant

EX1 EX3
65ºC
285ºC
95ºC EX4
Reactor 1
95ºC 35ºC

EX2 V1
190ºC Product
100ºC Splitter
30ºC
Reactor 2
110ºC For further
separation
 The Stream Data

Stream Stream Tsupply Ttarget FCP H

Number Type ( °C ) ( °C ) (MW/K) (MW)

1 Hot 285 65 1 220

2 Hot 95 35 2.5 150

3 Cold 95 285 0.5 -95

4 Cold 30 190 1 -160

Temperature (T) vs Enthalpy (DH)
Temperature (T) vs Enthalpy (H)
Diagram for multiple
Diagram streams
for multiple streams

Introducing the composite curves…

 The Hot Composite Curve

T (ºC) Individual T (ºC) Composite

285
FCPH1
H1
FCPH1 Composite (resultant)
FCPH1 = 1 MW/K
+ FCPH2 Hot Stream
95 H2 FCPH2
65
FCPH2 = 2.5 MW/K
35

H (MW) H (MW)
220 150 75 105 190

H1+H2 = 370
 The Cold Composite Curve

Individual Composite
T (ºC) T (ºC)
285
FCPC3
C3
FCPC3 = 0.5 MW/K
190
FCPC3
C4 + FCPC4

95
FCPC4
FCPC4 = 1 MW/K
30

H (MW) 65 142.5 47.5 H (MW)

95 160

C3 + C4= 255
 The “PINCH”

Hot and cold composites on the same T-H diagram

T (ºC)

Hot composite
curve

Cold composite
Pinch curve
“The Pinch”

H (kW)
 Composite Curves (CC)

T (ºC)
QH,min

Hot composite curve

Cold composite curve

Smallest T (driving force).

Pinch - The most constrained part
Tmin of the process (in terms of
heat transfer) is at the
Pinch
Process-to-process heat
QC,min transfer

QH= External Heating Duty

H (kW)
QC= External Cooling Duty
 Energy Targets

Q H = Hot Utility

Process to
Process Heat
Exchange

QH= External Heating Duty

QC= External Cooling Duty

Q C = Cold Utility
Requirement
 Effect of DTmin

T (ºC)
QH,min

Move
horizontally

Pinch

Tmin

QC,min

H (kW)
 Effect of DTmin
QH >QH,min
T (ºC)
QH,min

Move
horizontally

Pinch

Tmin T > Tmin

QC,min Less Process-to-Process

heat transfer

QC >QC,min H (kW)
 Working Session 1-
Composite Curves

60°
80° Cool 180°
FCP=1

R2
C1
120°
• Set up Stream Data Table
• Construct Composite Curves
• Read- Energy Targets for
130° Heat R1 Tmin = 10°C
FCP=4
• Compare your result with
Cool design by intuition
FCP=2 100° 120°
Heat
40° FCP=1.8

30°
 Working Session 2– Composite Curve
[Linnhoff et al.]

Stream data
Tmin = 10°C

T supply T target FCP

Stream Type
(°C) (°C) (MW/K)

C1 Cold 20 135 2

C2 Cold 80 140 4

H1 Hot 170 60 3

H2 Hot 150 30 1.5

Verify that QH,min=20MW; QC,min=60MW

Heat Exchanger Network

 Significance of The "Pinch"
Process above
the pinch in heat HC
balance with QH HH QH HH + QH = HC
T (ºC)

No heat transfer

Process below the “Pinch” …Heat exchange

pinch in heat should be confined
balance with QC to only each side
of the pinch !
QC HC HC + QC = HH
H (kW)
HH
 Significance of The "Pinch"
Heat Sink = only accepts heat
QH@ 180ºC
HH Q
H
“Heating below T (ºC)
pinch”
•QH used for heating
“Cooling above
instead of hot stream
pinch”
with Hs
• HH potential heat
• more excess heat
Hs from rejected to
• must add CW
CW
besides additional QH
• must compensate
to reject Qxs heat for loss of HH with
unused “Pinch” additional steam for
process heating
heat QC
QXS HC
HH CW@ 30ºC

Heat Source – H (kW)

only rejects heat
 Significance of The "Pinch"
Heat Sink = only accepts heat

HH Q • Cross Pinch Heat

H
T (ºC) Transfer - “upsets”
the heat balance

X-Pinch heat Implications:

transfer • Not enough process
heat above
Hs • excess heat below

Simple Rule:
Exchange only
“Pinch” • high Temp with
high temp,
QC • low T with low T
HH HC

Heat Source – H (kW)

only rejects heat
 Significance of The "Pinch"

“No Heating QH,min

below the
pinch”
T (ºC)

No heat transfer

“No Cooling
above the
pinch”
H (kW)
QC,min
 Summary –
Significance of The "Pinch"
1. Tmin, which is the smallest approach temperature for
heat exchange, limits the amount of heat recovery in a
process (i.e. the heat recovery “pinch”).

2. There should be no heat transfer across the pinch. To

guarantee this,
• do not heat below the pinch (no external heating), or
• do not cool above the pinch (external cooling)
• do not transfer heat across the pinch

3. Any external cooling above the pinch, or heating below

the pinch will result in cross-pinch heat transfer,
thereby increasing the external utility requirements
 Pinch Application 1 – Retrofit of an
Existing Aromatics Complex

4
X-5 X-8
9 11 16 X-11
14 19 21
X-4 X-7 X-10
12
R-1
7 P-3 P-5 P-7
17
X-2
5
3

X-1 X-3 10 15
23 X-13
22
2 20
1 X-6 8 X-9 13 X-12 18

6
P-1 P-2 P-4 P-6
T-1 T-2 T-3

Exchangers causing highest losses

 Assignment 1 – Composite Curves
for Palm Oil Refinery
Activated better
Effluent H2PO3 Clay
Effluent “heat sink”
Acid
RBDPO 50°C (recipient)
50°C 97°C 86°C
Bleacher
124°C Q
60ºC
86°C
120°C Filters
104°C
CPO Degummer Q
70ºC
50°C
160ºC Effluent 120°C
230°C
230°C 86°C 86°C
Effluent
160°C
high
Q
loss
83°C 260°C 160°C
70°C Deodorizer 86°C

Citric Acid
 Practical Use of the CCs & Pinch

• Baseline Utility Consumption

• Maximum Heat Recovery
• Guidelines for heat recovery matches
• Forbidden matches
• Implication of forbidden matches
• Diagnose heat recovery inefficiencies
• Guide for favourable process changes
• Guide for CHP and heat pump integration