The current scientific consensus is that changes in greenhouse gas emissions will have wide-ranging effects on the natural environment as well... Show moreThe current scientific consensus is that changes in greenhouse gas emissions will have wide-ranging effects on the natural environment as well as on human society and world economies. Cutting green house gas emissions could be achieved by switching the majority of power production to renewable sources, like wind and solar. However, the intermittent nature of renewable sources will require special attention when integrating into the electric power system. The notion of a smart grid is to introduce new dispatch capable sources as well as provide mechanisms for consumers to be responsive to power availability. One way a smart grid communicates its objectives is through the price of electricity. Economic Model Predictive Control (EMPC) can utilize forecasts of electricity prices to determine operating policies for dispatch capable generators and flexible consumers. While EMPC in the context of variable electricity prices can reduce costs (or increase the revenue), operational flexibility will usually require equipment upgrade, and add to the capital cost of the system. In this thesis an Integrated Gasification Combined Cycle (IGCC) will be used to illustrate potential dispatch capabilities, the benefits of EMPC based operation, and the challenges associated with process design in the context of smart grid coordinated operation. First it is assumed that dispatch enabling equipment is available. While EMPC can provide an increase in the revenue during plant operation, it is not amenable to the equipment design problem. While the method of ELOC can be used for integrated process design and control, we must first show that ELOC performs similar to EMPC and that it can serve as a surrogate. Finally, the ELOC based equipment design problem is formulated, which optimizes with respect to operating as well as capital costs. Show less
