Optimization of Multilayer Standby Mechanisms in Continuous Chemical Processes

Sing Zhi Chan, Hung Yu Liu, Yi Kai Luo, Chuei Tin Chang

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

3 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Every critical online unit in a continuous process must always function normally, and one or more identical units are usually put on standby to sustain the uninterrupted operation. Although a few related studies have been reported in the literature, a comprehensive analysis of the standby mechanism still has not been carried out. The objective of this research is to construct a generalized mathematical model to synthesize the multilayer standby mechanisms for any given processes by minimizing the total expected life cycle expenditure. A Matlab code can be developed accordingly to perform the required optimization tasks via a genetic algorithm. The feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed approach have been demonstrated with the case studies concerning the pump system in a typical chemical plant. From the optimization results, one can obtain the optimal design specifications of the multilayer standby mechanism, which include (1) the number of layers, (2) the numbers of both online and spare sensors in each measurement channel, (3) the corresponding voting-gate logic in each channel, (4) the inspection interval of a switch, (5) the number of spares for a switch, (6) the inspection intervals for warm standbys, and (7) the number of cold standbys.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)2049-2059
Number of pages11
JournalIndustrial and Engineering Chemistry Research
Volume59
Issue number5
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2020 Feb 5

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • General Chemistry
  • General Chemical Engineering
  • Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering

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