Exergy-based efficiencies are measures of the thermodynamic perfection of systems and processes. A meaningful formulation of these performance criteria for petroleum systems is difficult because of (i) the high chemical exergy of hydrocarbons, (ii) the large variety of chemical components, and...

The oil and gas processing plants of four North Sea offshore platforms are analysed and compared, based on the exergy analysis method. Sources of exergy destruction and losses are identified and the findings for the different platforms are compared. Different platforms have different working...

We explore the applicability of exergy analysis as an evaluation and monitoring tool for the oil and gas processing on an offshore platform. A real production day on a particular North Sea platform is analysed. A process flowsheet is simulated using measured process data. We distinguish between...

Life-cycle assessment is an established tool for industrial ecology. An analysis of the energy use in the chemical and other energy-intensive industries is still under discussion in this field. We argue that the concept of exergy can play a role in industrial ecology, using a recent Norwegian...

This paper explores the rather controversial proposal by Howard Brenner that the velocities that follow from the mass flux and from the translational momentum in a fluid, are not equal. We show that standard non-equilibrium thermodynamics can be formulated such that it is in full agreement with...

We present a way to minimize the entropy production rate in plug flow reactors using optimal control theory, a well known branch of optimization theory. A general formulation is first presented for a plug flow reactor with several reactions, when the temperature of the cooling/heating medium is...

The entropy production rate of a common industrial SO2 converter was minimized, simultaneously varying the heights of four catalytic beds, the temperature differences across five intermediate heat exchangers, and the distribution of a fixed area available for heat exchange. The entropy...

We improved our model for minimization of entropy production rate in diabatic tray distillation. The entropy production rate had contributions from heat and mass transfer on the trays and from heat exchangers connected to the trays. The area of the heat exchangers were not used as free...