ABSTRACT
ABST R AC T This manuscript proposes a novel approach to the conceptual design of industrial processes. The conventional conceptual design paradigm can be dened as the interaction between the process simulation, characterized by continuous variables, and the discrete optimization, where some specic superstructures are selected by means of the Boolean logic or, more in general, of integer variables. The paper proposes a novel approach that goes beyond the paradigm currently conceived in the literature. This approach is not limited to identify a single set of optimal steady-state operating conditions and an optimal equipment layout, but it focuses on the selection of a series of candidate process layouts, each of them optimal for a specic situation, making more protable the denition of production campaigns both on the short-and medium-term horizons.
