Title: Determination of the Optimal Operating Condition of Dual Mixed Refrigerant Cycle of LNG FPSO Topside Liquefaction Process
Abstract: In this study, the optimal operating conditions for the dual mixed refrigerant(DMR) cycle were determined by considering the power efficiency. The DMR cycle consists of compressors, heat exchangers, seawater coolers, valves, phase separators, tees, and common headers, and the operating conditions include the equipment's flow rate, pressure, temperature, and refrigerant composition per flow. First, a mathematical model of the DMR cycle was formulated in this study by referring to the results of a past study that formulated a mathematical model of the single mixed refrigerant(SMR) cycle, which consists of compressors, heat exchangers, seawater coolers, and valves, and by considering as well the tees, phase separators, and common headers. Finally, in this study, the optimal operating conditions from the formulated mathematical model was obtained using a hybrid optimization method that consists of the genetic algorithm(GA) and sequential quadratic programming(SQP). Moreover, the required power at the obtained conditions was decreased by 1.4% compared with the corresponding value from the past relevant study of Venkatarathnam.