(721a) Modelling Template for the Development of the Process Flowsheet

Models are playing important roles in design and analysis of chemicals/bio-chemicals based products and the processes that manufacture them. Model-based methods and tools have the potential to decrease the number of experiments, which can be expensive and time consuming, and point to candidates, where the experimental effort could be focused.

In this contribution a general modelling framework for systematic model building through modelling templates, which supports the reuse of existing models via its tools integration and model import and export capabilities, is presented.

Modelling templates in connection to other modelling tools within the modelling framework are forming a user-friendly system, which will make the model development process easier and faster and provide the way for unified and consistent model documentation. The modeller can use the template for their specific problem or to extend and/or adopt a model. This is based on the idea of model reuse, which emphasizes the use of a model not only for one specific application but also for future applications involving different needs and levels of detail to match different purposes. As the result the model developer can generate and test models systematically, efficiently and reliably. In this way, development of products and processes can be faster, cheaper and very efficient.

The developed modelling framework involves three main parts: 1) a modelling tool, that includes algorithms for model generation; 2) a template library, which provides building blocks for the templates (generic models previously developed); 3) computer aided methods and tools, that include procedures to perform model translation, model analysis, model verification/validation, model solution and model documentation.

In this work, the integrated use of all three parts in the modelling framework is highlighted through a development of a simple flowsheet model. Initially the model equations are obtained from the tool for model generation and then transferred to model analysis tool. Further, based on this model, a modelling template is created, which is used later for the modelling of Williams-Otto plant. The main goal is a demonstration of the template reuse for the system with similar repetitive objects.