6. Connecting Aspen Plus to the Wolfram Cloud for Flash Calculations
Description
Recent examples published in Mendeley Data [1-5] demonstrate interconnectivity between CHEMCAD, Mathematica, and Excel. Those examples show that user-defined Mathematica functions can be called from Excel and passed to CHEMCAD in real time. This means process models can be built in Mathematica, expressed as functions, run in Excel, and passed to CHEMCAD, with all three programs running simultaneously. Both local PC-based and cloud-based Mathematica versions were used in those demonstrations. Other process simulators besides CHEMCAD allow data mapping to Excel. For example, the Aspen Simulation Workbook add-in for Excel is included in the Aspen products installation. This publication demonstrates that a similar approach can be used to connect Aspen Plus, Mathematica, and Excel. The results are interesting because a wide range of advanced design and simulation equations can be posed in Mathematica, deployed to the cloud, and then used directly by multiple users running Aspen Plus. To use this dataset, open and follow the procedure document.
Files
Steps to reproduce
We took the following steps to verify that the software connectivity, data maps, and calculations are working correctly. The work was verified by replicating the results in Reference 6 and the results were compared to the results produced by Aspen Plus. In all cases, we achieved nearly the same answers, with very small differences seen in the compositions of the product streams. The problem statement is given below. For consistency between our solution and Aspen Plus, we used the vapor pressure equation and constants recommended by Aspen [7] instead of the standard Antoine equation and set the thermodynamic method in Aspen Plus to ideal vapor pressure. However, we switched the equation from the Extended Antoine Aspen equation in Reference [7] to DIPPR equation 101 [8] in order to match the results produced by Aspen. We also had each contributor download the files and follow the steps in the procedure file to make sure the guidance is correct. Problem Statement: Find the bubble-point temperature of the following mixture at 50 psia, where z is the mole fraction in the feed: Component mole fraction (z) Methane 0.005 Ethane 0.595 n-Butane 0.400 References [1] A. Biaglow, S. Cowart, S. Yuk, C. James, and E. Nagelli (2023), “Simple Flash Unit in Mathematica Linked to CHEMCAD”, Mendeley Data, V1, DOI: 10.17632/smzy2998df.1; https://data.mendeley.com/datasets/smzy2998df/draft?a=e425fbc8-19d9-46c3-b4c5-b0324c7a6385. [2] A. Biaglow, S. Cowart, C. James, E. Nagelli, and S. Yuk (2023), “Simple Membrane Unit in Mathematica Linked to CHEMCAD ”, Mendeley Data, V1, DOI: 10.17632/cdcgbsrrhc.1; https://data.mendeley.com/datasets/cdcgbsrrhc/draft?a=a444cdf4-2630-426c-ab33-92639c929847. [3] A. Biaglow, S. Cowart, S. Yuk, E. Nagelli, and C. James (2023), “Improved Membrane Unit in Mathematica Linked to CHEMCAD ”, Mendeley Data, V1, DOI: 10.17632/nz7p8bhhs3.1; https://data.mendeley.com/datasets/nz7p8bhhs3/draft?a=c9ceb8a5-1501-4239-8932-d45833a50b39. [4] A. Biaglow, S. Yuk, C. James, E. Nagelli, and S. Cowart (2023), “Connecting CHEMCAD to the Wolfram Cloud for Flash Calculations”, Mendeley Data, V1, DOI: 10.17632/3b8n72m28v.1; https://data.mendeley.com/datasets/3b8n72m28v/draft?a=21876e25-2d38-4981-81e6-2bd81769d21b. [5] A. Biaglow, S. Yuk, C. James, E. Nagelli, and S. Cowart (2023), “Connecting CHEMCAD to the Wolfram Cloud for Membrane Calculations”, Mendeley Data, V1, DOI: 10.17632/6gw5m5d7pn.1; https://data.mendeley.com/datasets/6gw5m5d7pn/draft?a=dafaccf6-2741-4ea6-9942-a5b7ca311989. [6] J. Henley and E. Seader, Separation Process Principles, New York: Wiley, 1998, Example 14.5, pp. 705-707. [7] “Is possible to use the Antoine Parameters for the simple Antoine Equation within Aspen Plus?” Article ID 000056328, https://esupport.aspentech.com/S_Article?id=000056328. [8] “Pure Component Equations,” DDBSP – Dortmund Data Bank Software Package, http://www.ddbst.com/files/files/ddbsp/2020/Documentation/PCPEquationFit.pdf, page 2020.