Development of an expert system for conceptual design of biomass-fired cogeneration plant

• Grant number: 11/19099-1
• Support Opportunities: Regular Research Grants
• Start date: February 01, 2012
• End date: January 31, 2014
• Field of knowledge: Engineering - Mechanical Engineering - Thermal Engineering
• Principal Investigator: José Alexandre Matelli
• Grantee: José Alexandre Matelli
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Engenharia (FEG). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Guaratinguetá. Guaratinguetá , SP, Brazil
• Associated researchers: José Antônio Perrella Balestieri ; Rubens Alves Dias

Abstract

The success of distributed generation systems as alternative for power supply depends on the design consistency. Biomass-fired cogeneration plants are one of the most spread technologies for distributed generation in São Paulo state, due to the wide availability of bagasse and the characteristics of the power and heat demands in a sugar-ethanol plant. The design of such a plant is a synthesis problem subjected to thermodynamic, economic and environmental restrictions. It includes location and sizing of the components in order to satisfy the heat and power demands. Synthesis problems are intrinsically complex due to their wide space of solution, i.e., there is a large number of solution alternatives that meet a given set of design requirements. Despite the complexity, these problems are robustly solved through experience, creativity and knowledge of human experts. In other words, the problem nature is heuristic, which suggests the use of artificial intelligence, i.e., computational techniques that code and emulate the human reasoning. One of the most well known IA technique is the expert system. Expert systems were successfully applied to hydraulic systems, transformers, cogeneration plants and others. Thus, the objective of the present proposal is to develop an intelligent computational tool for designing biomass-fired cogeneration plants, on which design methodology and energetic performance methods are integrated to the techniques suitable for this domain. (AU)

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

MATELLI, JOSE ALEXANDRE. Conceptual design of biomass-fired cogeneration plant through a knowledge-based system. Journal of the Brazilian Society of Mechanical Sciences and Engineering, v. 38, n. 2, p. 535-549, FEB 2016. (12/12567-2, 13/06907-8, 11/19099-1)