(535d) Ipsepro: a Cape-Open Unit Plug for Advanced Power Plant Equipment Modeling

In this presentation we discuss the application of CAPE-OPEN to provide much-needed interoperability between traditional chemical process simulation software (e.g., PRO/II or Aspen Plus) and traditional power plant simulation software (e.g., IPSEpro or GateCycle). In the past, as discussed in this presentation, the differing needs and requirements between designers and developers of chemical process plants and power plants have led to significant differentiation in the core features and capabilities between the leading commercial software used in these areas. Recently, the rising interest in Integrated Gasification Combined-Cycle (IGCC) power plants and other complex integrated chemical/power processes has renewed the interest and need to combine the traditional capabilities of chemical process simulation software to model the chemical process sides of these plants with the capabilities of codes such as IPSEpro to model key power equipment (such as gas turbines and steam turbines).

CAPE-OPEN offers the opportunity for the designers of complex integrated chemical-power process plants such as IGCC to be able to integrate power equipment unit and sub-system models built using software such as IPSEpro, functioning as a CAPE-OPEN unit plug, into complete-plant models of the entire process built using a process simulation environments (PSE) such as PRO/II or Aspen Plus, functioning as CAPE-OPEN unit sockets. The developers' experience in modifying IPSEpro to make it CAPE-OPEN compliant will be discussed and an illustrative example of a detailed gas turbine model built in IPSEpro running as a unit operation in a CAPE-OPEN compliant PSE flowsheet will be demonstrated.