Synthesis of optimal process flowsheets by an infeasible decomposition technique in the presence of functional non‐convexities

An infeasible decomposition method based on the two‐level optimization procedure is proposed for the structural parameter method for synthesis of optimal process flowsheets. A penalty term is used to guarantee the success of the method in the presence of functional non‐convexities very often encountered in chemical process design. The convergence characteristics of the primal and dual problems have been considered and a computational procedure which will enhance the convergence rates for both problems is proposed. The use of the suggested strategy is illustrated in the synthesis of a simple reactor‐separator system.