Application of Problem Decomposition in Process Integration

Despite its success, Pinch Technology still faces serious criticism, much of which relates to resultant network structure. Such criticism can be removed by decomposing the overall problemin to a number of sub-problems associatedwith specific parts of the flowsheet. The transfer of heat between zones should then be avoided unless fully justified on cost grounds. An adaptation of the Problem Table Algorithm allows the engineer to determine the energy savings associated with such transfers. A procedure dealing with total network costs is then introduced.