Optimization of a drum boiler startup using dynamic simulation and a micro-genetic algorithm

In order to develop thermal power plants operational capabilities to face the new operational challenges of electrical power, in this paper we propose an approach to design operational procedures on a drum boiler of a thermal power plant. The proposed approach uses a coupled system of a simulation model and a metaheuristic optimization algorithm. The simulation model is developed in the modeling and simulation environment OpenModelica and the metaheuristic optimization algorithm is a micro-genetic algorithm (mGA). The results show that optimized operating profiles minimize the startup time to reach the drum boiler goal state by at least 35 percent and generate control valves operating sequences that must be carry out to achieve the desired profile.