Design and synthesis of batch processing plants: A consideration of utility aspect and using a robust scheduling platform

Abstract The aim of this contribution is to address design, synthesis and scheduling simultaneously with the consideration of economic savings in utility requirements. The recent design and synthesis model by Seid and Majozi (2013) is extended to incorporate the design of the associated utility facility, since it is proven to result in better design objective and computational efficiencies. Additional feature of the proposed model is the determination of optimal pipe connection between processing equipment. The model is implemented in a case study in order to demonstrate its application. From the case study, the profit is increased by 20% and the total utility requirement is reduced by 41.1% for the design and synthesis of energy integrated batch plant compared to the basic design.