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VALI Help
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VALI 4.12 Belsim
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Table of Contents
CHAPTER .......................................................................................................
1: WHAT'S NEW 23
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
1: USER'S GUIDE ORGANISATION 23
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
2: NEW FEATURES IN RELEASE VALI 4.12 24
INSTALLATION
...................................................................................................... 24
UPGRADING
......................................................................................................
MODELS FROM RELEASE VALI 4.11 TO RELEASE VALI 4.12 24
KNOWN
......................................................................................................
ISSUES 24
COMPATIBILITY
...................................................................................................... 25
NEW
......................................................................................................
FEATURES IN VALIMODELLER AND VALIENGINE 26
NEW
......................................................................................................
FEATURES IN VALISCHEDULER AND VALISERVICE 26
CHAPTER .......................................................................................................
2: INTRODUCTION TO VALI 29
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
1: DVR PRINCIPLES 29
INTRODUCTION
...................................................................................................... 29
WHAT
......................................................................................................
IS VALI ? 29
WHAT
......................................................................................................
ARE THE BENEFITS OF DVR ? 30
THE......................................................................................................
BASICS OF DATA VALIDATION AND RECONCILIATION 30
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
2: VALIMODELLER ENVIRONMENT 32
VALIMODELLER
......................................................................................................
COMPONENTS 32
THE......................................................................................................
MODEL FILE (BLS) AND OTHER FILES 32
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
3: VALI OBJECTS 34
PFD...................................................................................................... 34
UNIT
...................................................................................................... 35
STREAM
...................................................................................................... 35
THERMOD
...................................................................................................... 36
REACTION
...................................................................................................... 36
COMPOUND
...................................................................................................... 36
TAG
...................................................................................................... 37
AN ......................................................................................................
EXAMPLE: THE LIQUID-VAPOUR SEPARATOR 38
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
4: PROCESS UNIT EQUATIONS 40
CONTROLLING
......................................................................................................
THE SET OF GENERATED EQUATIONS 41
BLACK
......................................................................................................
BOXES AND MIXERS: BBXVAL, NETVAL, EFFVAL, CUTVAL 44
HEAT-EXCHANGERS:
......................................................................................................
EEXVAL, HEXVAL, PRHVAL, SATVAL, WALVAL, ECOVAL 46
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 3
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COMPRESSORS
......................................................................................................
AND TURBINES: COMVAL AND TURVAL 49
PUMPS:
......................................................................................................
PUMVAL 49
CHEMICAL REACTORS: BATVAL, BWHVAL, RCTVAL, RLVVAL, RKPVAL, RKIVAL,
CND-HNO3,
......................................................................................................
HEX-HNO3, RCT-HNO3 50
SEPARATORS:
......................................................................................................
LVEVAL, LLEVAL, LLVVAL, WLEVAL, WLVVAL 51
DISTILLATION, ABSORPTION AND STRIPPING COLUMNS: COLVAL, DISVAL,
CRUVAL
...................................................................................................... 51
STORAGE
......................................................................................................
TANKS: TNKVAL 52
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
6: PETROLEUM REFINING APPLICATIONS 69
THE......................................................................................................
CONCEPT OF PSEUDO-COMPOUND 69
DATA
......................................................................................................
VALIDATION OF DISTILLATION CURVES 69
USING
......................................................................................................
THE CRUVAL UNIT 70
USING
......................................................................................................
DISTILLATION CURVES MEASUREMENTS 70
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
7: COMPATIBILITY WITH VDI-2048 72
THE......................................................................................................
VDI-2048 GUIDELINE 72
THE......................................................................................................
VDI MODE OF VALI 72
COMPLIANCE
......................................................................................................
TO THE VDI-2048 GUIDELINE 72
CHAPTER .......................................................................................................
3: THERMODYNAMIC CALCULATION METHODS 75
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
1: INTRODUCTION 75
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
4 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
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SECTION
.............................................................................................................
2: BELSIM CALCULATION METHODS 76
FUGACITY
......................................................................................................
CALCULATION METHODS FOR THE VAPOUR PHASE 77
FUGACITY
......................................................................................................
CALCULATION METHODS FOR THE LIQUID PHASE 77
CALCULATION
......................................................................................................
METHODS FOR ENTHALPY AND ENTROPY 79
CALCULATION
......................................................................................................
METHODS FOR MOLAR VOLUME 80
CALCULATION
......................................................................................................
METHODS FOR THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY 81
CALCULATION
......................................................................................................
METHODS FOR VISCOSITY 81
CALCULATION
......................................................................................................
METHODS FOR SOLID COMPOUNDS 82
PHASE
......................................................................................................
EQUILIBRIUM CALCULATIONS 82
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
3: FUNDAMENTAL PROPERTIES OF CHEMICAL COMPOUNDS 84
AVAILABLE
......................................................................................................
DATA BASES 84
DATA
......................................................................................................
NEEDED FOR LIQUIDS AND VAPOURS 86
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
4: INTERACTION PARAMETERS 94
EQUATIONS
......................................................................................................
OF STATE 95
VIRIAL
......................................................................................................
EQUATION OF STATE 95
NRTL
......................................................................................................
AND UNIQUAC METHODS 95
QUADRATIC
......................................................................................................
HEAT OF MIXING 97
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
5: CALCULATION METHODS FOR TYPICAL MIXTURES 98
WATER
...................................................................................................... 98
NONPOLAR
......................................................................................................
HYDROCARBON MIXTURES WITH OR WITHOUT WATER 98
OXYGENATED
......................................................................................................
COMPOUND MIXTURES 100
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
6: REFERENCES 102
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
7: FLUIDS DATA BASE 105
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
8: SOLIDS DATA BASE 142
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
9: USER-DEFINED COMPOUNDS 169
STARTING
......................................................................................................
NEWCOMP.EXE 169
ADDING
......................................................................................................
A NEW COMPOUND 170
DELETING
......................................................................................................
A COMPOUND 171
EDITING
......................................................................................................
COMPOUND DEFINITION 171
EDIT
......................................................................................................
COMPOUND DATA 172
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
10: USING CO-COMPLIANTTHERMODYNAMIC PLUGS 174
THE
......................................................................................................
PRINCIPLES 174
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 5
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DEFINING
......................................................................................................
A CAPE-OPEN COMPLIANT THERMOD IN THE MODEL FILE 174
REVIEWING
......................................................................................................
THE PROPERTIES OF A CO COMPLIANT THERMOD 175
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
11: UNCERTAINTY OF THERMODYNAMICS 177
INTRODUCTION
...................................................................................................... 177
CALCULTATION
......................................................................................................
PROCEDURE 177
CHAPTER.......................................................................................................
4: HOW TO BUILD YOUR DATA VALIDATION MODEL 183
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
1: INTRODUCTION 183
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
2: HOW TO BUILD A VALIDATION MODEL 184
PRELIMINARY
......................................................................................................
WORK 184
DEFINING
......................................................................................................
THE MODEL WITH VALIMODELLER 187
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
3: INTRODUCING VALIMODELLER 188
WINDOWS
......................................................................................................
STANDARD 188
INFORMATION
......................................................................................................
COHERENCY 189
STARTING
......................................................................................................
VALIMODELLER 190
THE
......................................................................................................
BROWSE TREE 191
MENU
......................................................................................................
ITEMS 193
EDIT
......................................................................................................
MODE 196
TOOLBAR
......................................................................................................
AND KEYBOARD SHORT-CUTS 196
SHOWING
......................................................................................................
UNIT AND STREAM NAMES AND RESULT BOXES 198
CHANGING
......................................................................................................
CONFIGURATION OPTIONS 198
MODEL
......................................................................................................
MEASUREMENTS PAGE 204
THE
......................................................................................................
FIND FACILITY 204
RENAMING
......................................................................................................
OBJECTS 205
SELECTING
......................................................................................................
OBJECTS 206
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
4: THE MODEL FILES 207
CONTENTS
......................................................................................................
OF A MODEL FILE 207
CREATING
......................................................................................................
A NEW MODEL FILE 207
IMPORTING
......................................................................................................
MODELS FROM AN OTHER MODEL FILE 208
MODEL
......................................................................................................
VERSIONING AND DOCUMENTATION 210
THE
......................................................................................................
DEFAULT PLANT 211
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
5: THE PROCESS FLOW DIAGRAMS (PFD) 213
CREATING
......................................................................................................
A NEW VALI PFD 213
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
6 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
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OPENING
......................................................................................................
A PFD 214
RENAMING
......................................................................................................
A PFD 214
DELETING
......................................................................................................
A PFD 214
MOVING
......................................................................................................
A PFD TO ANOTHER PFD 215
CHANGING
......................................................................................................
THE STATUS OF A PFD (ON, OFF, OUT) 215
USING
......................................................................................................
EXTERNAL PFDs 216
ZOOMING
......................................................................................................
A PFD 217
PRINTING
......................................................................................................
A PFD 217
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
6: THE UNITS 218
UNIT
......................................................................................................
STATUS : ON/OFF/OUT 218
UNIT
......................................................................................................
NOTEBOOK 218
CREATING
......................................................................................................
A UNIT 226
MOVING
......................................................................................................
AND SIZING UNITS 228
DELETING
......................................................................................................
UNITS 228
RENAMING
......................................................................................................
UNITS 229
CREATING
......................................................................................................
A FLEX PROGRAM FROM AN EXTERNAL FILE 229
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
7: THE STREAMS 230
STREAM
......................................................................................................
NOTEBOOK 230
CREATING
......................................................................................................
A STREAM 235
REDRAWING
......................................................................................................
AND RECONNECTING STREAMS 236
DELETING
......................................................................................................
STREAMS 237
RENAMING
......................................................................................................
STREAMS 238
NAVIGATING
......................................................................................................
BETWEEN PFDs 238
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
8: THE TAGS 239
SETS
......................................................................................................
OF VALUES ASSOCIATED TO A TAG 240
CREATING
......................................................................................................
NEW TAGS 242
EDITING
......................................................................................................
TAGS 243
COPYING
......................................................................................................
TAGS FROM EXISTING OBJECTS 246
MOVING
......................................................................................................
TAGS FROM EXISTING OBJECTS 248
VIEWING
......................................................................................................
AND EDITING MEASUREMENTS VALUES 249
USING
......................................................................................................
CONTROL STRINGS 257
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
9: THE THERMODS 261
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ACCESSING
......................................................................................................
THE THERMODS NOTEBOOKS 261
MODIFYING
......................................................................................................
THERMODS 262
CREATING
......................................................................................................
THERMODS 263
RENAMING
......................................................................................................
THERMODS 264
DELETING
......................................................................................................
THERMODS 264
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
10: THE COMPOUNDS 265
ADDING
......................................................................................................
COMPOUNDS TO A MODEL FILE 266
REMOVING
......................................................................................................
COMPOUNDS FROM A MODEL FILE 267
RENAMING
......................................................................................................
COMPOUNDS IN A MODEL FILE 268
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
11: THE REACTIONS 269
ACCESSING
......................................................................................................
REACTIONS NOTEBOOK 269
MODIFYING
......................................................................................................
THE STOICHIOMETRY OF REACTIONS 270
MODIFYING
......................................................................................................
THE KINETICS OF REACTIONS 271
CREATING
......................................................................................................
REACTIONS 273
RENAMING
......................................................................................................
REACTIONS 273
DELETING
......................................................................................................
REACTIONS 273
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
12: HANDLING PHYSICAL UNITS 274
CHANGING
......................................................................................................
PHYSICAL UNITS 274
CREATING
......................................................................................................
NEW PHYSICAL UNITS 275
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
13: RESULT BOXES 276
RESULT
......................................................................................................
BOXES NOTEBOOK 276
CREATING
......................................................................................................
RESULT BOXES 278
DELETING
......................................................................................................
RESULT BOXES 278
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
14: A PRACTICAL EXAMPLE 279
THE
......................................................................................................
EXAMPLE : A GAS TURBINE 279
PRELIMINARY
......................................................................................................
WORK 280
DEFINING
......................................................................................................
THE MODEL WITH VALIMODELLER 282
CHAPTER.......................................................................................................
5: HOW TO RUN YOUR DATA VALIDATION MODEL 293
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
1: INTRODUCTION 293
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
2: RUNNING THE MODEL 294
STARTING
......................................................................................................
VALIENGINE FROM VALIMODELLER GUI 295
INTERACTING
......................................................................................................
WITH VALIENGINE 299
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8 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
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BROWSING
......................................................................................................
RESULT FILES 300
LOADING
......................................................................................................
VALI RESULTS BACK IN VALIMODELLER GUI 304
USING
......................................................................................................
VALI IN BATCH MODE 305
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
3: USING TAG FILES 307
GENERAL
......................................................................................................
SYNTAX OF A TAG FILE 307
TAG
......................................................................................................
DEFINITION 308
CONTROL
......................................................................................................
STRINGS 309
DEFINING
......................................................................................................
DUMMY TAGS 309
EXAMPLE
......................................................................................................
OF A TAG FILE 309
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
4: USING MEASUREMENTS FILES 310
SYNTAX
......................................................................................................
OF A MEASUREMENTS FILE 310
CHANGING
......................................................................................................
VALUES OF TAGS 315
DESCRIPTIVE
......................................................................................................
INFORMATION ABOUT THE RUN 317
SETTING
......................................................................................................
THE REFERENCE ATMOSPHERIC PRESSURE 317
DEFINING
......................................................................................................
BOUNDS ON TAGS 317
DEFINING
......................................................................................................
BOUND CONTROL 318
DEFINING
......................................................................................................
FILTER SETTINGS 318
DEFINING
......................................................................................................
COMPENSATION SETTINGS 320
DEFINING
......................................................................................................
COVARIANCES BETWEEN TAGS 321
UNIT
......................................................................................................
PARAMETERS AND INITIAL VALUES OF VARIABLES 321
PRODUCT
......................................................................................................
ATTRIBUTES 322
PRODUCT
......................................................................................................
BALANCES AND IMBALANCES 323
COMMENTS
......................................................................................................
OF OBJECTS 325
SETTING
......................................................................................................
UNITS, STREAMS OR PRODUCT "OFF" 326
SETTING
......................................................................................................
UNITS OR PRODUCTS "OUT" 327
THERMOD
......................................................................................................
BINARY PARAMETERS 327
COMPOUND
......................................................................................................
DATA 328
ELECTRO-NEUTRALITY
......................................................................................................
CONSTRAINTS 328
OUTPUT
......................................................................................................
AND ARCHIVE FILES 328
WRITING
......................................................................................................
TAG VALUES IN THE REPORT 331
WRITING
......................................................................................................
VARIOUS INFORMATION ITEMS IN THE REPORT 332
WRITING
......................................................................................................
UNIT, STREAM, COMPOUND AND THERMOD VALUES 333
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 9
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WRITING
......................................................................................................
TABLES 336
USING
......................................................................................................
IOFILE.EXE TO PROCESS MEASUREMENT FILES 345
USING
......................................................................................................
IOFILE.EXE TO CHANGE DEFAULT VALUES 345
EXAMPLE
......................................................................................................
OF MEASUREMENT FILES 347
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
5: THE SENSITIVITY ANALYSIS 349
PRELIMINARY
......................................................................................................
REMARKS 350
REPORTS
......................................................................................................
OF THE SENSITIVITY ANALYSIS 350
HOW
......................................................................................................
TO PERFORM A SENSITIVITY ANALYSIS 355
THEORETICAL
......................................................................................................
BACKGROUND 359
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
6: TRICKS AND TIPS 369
HOW
......................................................................................................
TO INITIALIZE A MODEL ? 369
SOLVING
......................................................................................................
CONVERGENCE PROBLEMS 370
HOW
......................................................................................................
TO CHECK THE COHERENCE OF A MODEL ? 371
HOW
......................................................................................................
TO DEAL WITH CLOSED LOOPS ? 371
DEALING
......................................................................................................
WITH NEGATIVE FLOW RATES 371
HOW
......................................................................................................
TO SWITCH BETWEEN OPERATING POINTS? 371
CUSTOMIZING
......................................................................................................
REPORTS 372
USER-DEFINED
......................................................................................................
PHYSICAL UNITS 372
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
7: VALI ERROR MESSAGES 375
VALI
......................................................................................................
ERROR HANDLING FACILITY 375
ERRORS
......................................................................................................
PRODUCED IN THE "MODEL ANALYSIS" PHASE 377
ERRORS
......................................................................................................
PRODUCED IN THE "MODEL RESOLUTION" PHASE 381
CHAPTER.......................................................................................................
6: DATA VALIDATION UNITS 387
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
1: SELECTING UNIT TYPES 387
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
2: ATMOPRES: SETTING ATMOSPHERIC PRESSURE 390
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
3: BATVAL: REACTOR WITH ATOMIC BALANCES 391
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
4: BBXVAL: BLACK BOX WITH MOLAR BALANCES 397
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
5: BNDVAL: DEFAULT BOUNDS ON VARIABLES 404
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
6: BWHVAL: EQUILIBRATED REACTOR WITH ATOMIC BALANCES 407
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
7: CND-HNO3: NITROUS GAS CONDENSER 413
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
8: COLVAL: DISTILLATION COLUMN 418
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
9: COMVAL: GAS COMPRESSOR 426
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10 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
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SECTION
.............................................................................................................
10: CRUOPT: OPTIONS FOR CRUDE FRACTIONS IDENTIFICATION 430
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
11: CRUVAL: CRUDE FRACTIONS IDENTIFICATION 434
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
12: CUTOFF: OPTIONS FOR GENERIC CUTOFF 445
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
13: CUTVAL: TEAR UNIT FOR LOOPS 447
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
14: DISVAL: TRAY-BY-TRAY DISTILLATION COLUMN 452
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
15: DPVAL: PRESSURE DROP (VALVE) 457
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
16: ECOVAL: BOILER ELEMENT 468
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
17: EEXVAL: HEAT EXCHANGER 469
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
18: EFFVAL: EFFICACITY AND LOSSES 475
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
19: EQUVAL: COMPOSITION EQUALITY 477
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
20: FLXVAL: USER DEFINED EQUATIONS 482
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
21: FLEXLIB: USER DEFINED FUNCTIONS 488
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
22: GROSSERR: GROSS ERRORS ELIMINATION 489
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
23: HEX-HNO3: NITROUS GAS COOLER 494
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
24: HEXVAL: RIGOROUS HEAT EXCHANGER 499
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
25: LLEVAL: LIQUID-LIQUID-SEPARATOR 512
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
26: LLVVAL : LIQUID-LIQUID-VAPOR SEPARATOR 516
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
27: LOFUNIT (PFD): LIST OF UNITS 520
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
28: LVEVAL : LIQUID-VAPOR SEPARATOR 521
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
29: NETVAL : PIPES NETWORK FOR MASS BALANCE 526
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
30: OPTVAL : VARIOUS VALI PARAMETERS 532
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
31: OPXVAL : USER DEFINED EQUATIONS 539
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
32: PIPEVAL : PIPELINES AND WELLS 544
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
33: PRECIS: PRECISION OF CALCULATIONS 558
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
34: PRHVAL : PREHEATER WITH CONDENSATION 564
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
35: PUMVAL : LIQUID PUMP 573
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
36: RCT-HNO3 : NH3 OXIDATION 581
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
37: RCTVAL : REACTOR WITH DEFINED REACTIONS 585
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
38: REPVAL : REPORT SETTINGS 591
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
39: RKIVAL : REACTOR WITH KINETICS 603
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
40: RKPVAL : EQUILIBRATED REACTIONS 608
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
41: RLVVAL : REACTOR IN L/V EQUILIBRIUM 615
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 11
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SECTION
.............................................................................................................
42: SATVAL : SATURATION UNIT 618
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
43: SPLVAL : SPLITTER 623
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
44: TNKVAL : STORAGE TANK 626
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
45: TURVAL : TURBINE 635
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
46: VARVAL : USER DEFINED VARIABLES 640
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
47: WALVAL : HEAT LOSSES THROUGH UNIT WALLS 641
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
48: WLEVAL : WATER-LIQUID ORGANIC SEPARATOR 646
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
49: WLVVAL : LIQUID-LIQUID-VAPOR SEPARATOR 649
CHAPTER.......................................................................................................
7: FLEX LANGUAGE DESCRIPTION 655
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
1: INTRODUCTION 655
WHAT
......................................................................................................
YOU CAN DO WITH FLEX 655
INTERPRETED
......................................................................................................
OR COMPILED 656
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
2: FLEX LANGUAGE OBJECTS 657
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
3: LANGUAGE ELEMENTS 658
SEPARATORS
...................................................................................................... 658
CONSTANTS
...................................................................................................... 658
VARIABLES
...................................................................................................... 659
OPERATORS
......................................................................................................
AND INTERNAL FUNCTIONS 661
OPERATIONS
......................................................................................................
EXECUTION ORDER 662
RESERVED
......................................................................................................
KEYWORDS 663
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
4: EXECUTABLE INSTRUCTIONS 665
AFFECTATION
...................................................................................................... 665
READ
...................................................................................................... 665
WRITE
...................................................................................................... 665
WHILE
......................................................................................................
BLOCK 666
UNTIL
......................................................................................................
BLOCK 666
IF......................................................................................................
BLOCK 667
END
...................................................................................................... 667
RETURN
...................................................................................................... 667
SYNTAX
......................................................................................................
OF EXECUTABLE INSTRUCTIONS 668
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
5: FLEX FUNCTIONS 669
USING
......................................................................................................
FLEX FUNCTIONS 669
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
12 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
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FLEX
......................................................................................................
INTERNAL FUNCTIONS 670
USER-DEFINED
......................................................................................................
FUNCTIONS 672
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
6: EXAMPLE OF A FLEX PROGRAMME 674
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
7: VALI IMPLEMENTATION OF FLEX 675
INTRODUCTION
...................................................................................................... 675
USER
......................................................................................................
DEFINED MEASUREMENTS 676
FLEX
......................................................................................................
FUNCTIONS TO SELECT VARIABLES AND DATA 678
FLEX
......................................................................................................
FUNCTIONS FOR THERMODYNAMIC CALCULATIONS 688
FLEX
......................................................................................................
FUNCTIONS USED IN FILTERING 692
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
8: USING FLEX FOR DEFINING KINETICS 695
CHAPTER.......................................................................................................
8: SIMULATION UNITS 699
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
1: COL010 : DISTILLATION COLUMN 699
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
2: CTL010 : SINGLE VARIABLE CONTROLLER 702
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
3: CTL020 : MULTI-VARIABLES CONTROLLER 707
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
4: CUT010 : UTILITY TO CUT STREAMS 711
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
5: FUR010 : FURNACE 713
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
6: HTX010 : HEAT TRANSFER 717
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
7: HTX040 : HEAT EXCHANGER 722
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
8: HTX050 : FURNACE TO HEAT UP A GAS 726
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
9: HTX060 : BOILER WITH ASSOCIATED DRUM 731
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
10: HTX070 : SHELL AND TUBES HEAT EXCHANGER 735
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
11: HTX100 : HEAT EXCHANGER (ONE SIDE) 740
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
12: HTX110 : STREAM STATE TOOLBOX 743
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
13: INCREM : LOOP CONTROLLER 746
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
14: MAT010 : CONVERGENCE PROMOTER 750
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
15: MAT020 : CONVERGENCE PROMOTER 754
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
16: MEC010 : GAS COMPRESSOR 757
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
17: MEC030 : TURBINE 759
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
18: MEC050 : LIQUID PUMP 761
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
19: MEC110 : GAS COMPRESSOR 763
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
20: MEC130 : GAS COMPRESSOR 768
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
21: MIS010 : UTILITY MODEL 773
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 13
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SECTION
.............................................................................................................
22: MIX010 : MATERIAL STREAMS MIXER 774
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
23: MIX020 : MECHANICAL/THERMAL STREAMS MIXER 776
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
24: PERMEA : PERMEATOR 777
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
25: OPT070 : OPTIMIZER 781
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
26: RCT010 : CHEMICAL REACTOR 785
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
27: RCT110 : NH3 SYNTHESIS REACTOR 790
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
28: RCT141 : FURNACE TYPE CHEMICAL REACTOR 793
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
29: RCT201 : CHEMICAL REACTOR 800
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
30: RCT210 : CHEMICAL REACTOR 805
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
31: RCT300 : INTEGRAL PLUG FLOW REACTOR 809
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
32: RCT320 : COOLED PLUG FLOW REACTOR 815
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
33: RCT400 : FLUID BED REACTOR 823
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
34: RCT420 : FLUID BED REACTOR 824
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
35: RCT500 : CSTR REACTOR 832
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
36: REPORT : REPORT FILE CONTROLLER 838
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
37: SEP010 : SPLITTER 840
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
38: SEP020 : LIQUID - VAPOUR SEPARATOR 842
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
39: SEP030 : BLACK BOX SEPARATOR 845
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
40: SEP050 : SPLITTER 849
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
41: SEP060 : LIQUID/LIQUID SEPARATOR 851
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
42: SEP070 : THREE PHASE SEPARATOR (L/L/V) 853
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
43: SEP080 : SOLID/FLUID PHASE SEPARATOR 856
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
44: SIMFLX : USER-DEFINED CALCULATIONS 858
DEFINING
......................................................................................................
THE FLEX PROGRAM 858
DEFINING
......................................................................................................
WHEN THE CODE MUST BE EXECUTED 860
FLEX
......................................................................................................
DECLARATIONS OF VARIABLES 861
FLEX
......................................................................................................
ROUTINE TO SELECT THERMODYNAMIC MODEL 862
FLEX
......................................................................................................
SUBROUTINES TO SELECT VARIABLES 863
FLEX
......................................................................................................
SUBROUTINES FOR THERMODYNAMIC CALCULATIONS 866
CHAPTER.......................................................................................................
9: VALIREPORT 873
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
1: INTRODUCTION 873
WHAT
......................................................................................................
CAN YOU DO WITH THIS APPLICATION? 873
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
14 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim
VALI Help
REQUIREMENTS
...................................................................................................... 874
SPECIAL
......................................................................................................
FEATURES AND CONVENTIONS 874
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
2: HANDLING VALIREPORT WORKBOOKS 875
CREATING
......................................................................................................
A VALIREPORT WORKBOOK 875
OVERVIEW
......................................................................................................
OF VALIREPORT 877
MOVING
......................................................................................................
AND COPYING A VALIREPORT WORKBOOK 879
WORKING
......................................................................................................
IN READ-ONLY MODE 879
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
3: HANDLING DATABASES 880
ACCESS
......................................................................................................
DATABASE 880
SQL-SERVER
......................................................................................................
DATABASE 880
DATABASE
......................................................................................................
STRUCTURE 882
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
4: WORKING RUN BY RUN 884
LOAD
......................................................................................................
RUN DATA FILES INTO VALIREPORT 884
STORE
......................................................................................................
RUN DATA INTO A DATABASE 886
AUTOMATICALLY
......................................................................................................
STORE RUNS INTO A DATABASE 887
RETRIEVE
......................................................................................................
RUN STORED IN THE DATABASE 888
REMOVING
......................................................................................................
RUNS FROM THE DATABASE 889
GROUPING
......................................................................................................
TAGS BY UNITS 889
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
5: TABLES AND CHARTS 891
CREATING
......................................................................................................
A TABLE 891
CREATING
......................................................................................................
A CHART 892
UPDATING
......................................................................................................
TABLES AND CHARTS 892
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
6: FLOW-SHEETS AND REPORTS 893
CREATING
......................................................................................................
A NEW FLOW-SHEET 893
DRAWING
......................................................................................................
THE FLOW-SHEET 893
INSERTING
......................................................................................................
TAG REFERENCES: FSTAG 895
INSERTING
......................................................................................................
AGGREGATED TAG REFERENCES: BLSTAGC 896
MODIFYING
......................................................................................................
TAG REFERENCES 898
DELETING
......................................................................................................
TAG REFERENCES 898
CHANGING
......................................................................................................
COLOURS AND THRESHOLD VALUE 898
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
7: WORKING DIRECTORY 900
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
8: VALIDBLOADER APPLICATION 901
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 15
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
VALI Help
INI
......................................................................................................
FILE FOR AN ACCESS DATABASE 902
INI
......................................................................................................
FILE FOR A SQL SERVER DATABASE 903
ADDITIONAL
......................................................................................................
SECTIONS IN THE INI FILE 903
VALIDBLOADER
......................................................................................................
STATUS 905
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
9: RUNNING VALI 906
CHAPTER.......................................................................................................
10: VALIANALYTICS 913
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
1: INTRODUCTION 913
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
2: INTEGRATION IN VALISUITE 916
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
3: GENERALITIES 917
TOOLBAR
...................................................................................................... 917
STATUS
......................................................................................................
BAR 918
GENERAL
......................................................................................................
FUNCTIONALITIES 919
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
4: GLOBAL VIEW 921
GLOBAL
......................................................................................................
TAGS TABLE 924
GAIN
......................................................................................................
DISTRIBUTION CHART 926
GENERAL
......................................................................................................
INFORMATION 927
GAIN
......................................................................................................
IN UNCERTAINTY BY MEASUREMENT TYPE 929
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
5: INDIVIDUAL VIEW 931
GLOBAL
......................................................................................................
TAGS TABLE 935
TAG
......................................................................................................
CHART 936
PRECEDENTS/DEPENDENTS
......................................................................................................
TABLES 939
PRECEDENTS
......................................................................................................
CHARTS 944
CHAPTER.......................................................................................................
11: LICENSEMANAGER 953
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
1: INTRODUCTION 953
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
2: BELSIM LICENSE SERVER 954
LICENSING
......................................................................................................
PHILOSOPHY 954
USERS
......................................................................................................
RIGHTS 955
HANDLERS
......................................................................................................
AND TIME-OUT 956
TAGS
...................................................................................................... 956
PLANTS
...................................................................................................... 957
ValiManager
......................................................................................................
and ValiPerformance 957
SUB-LICENSES
...................................................................................................... 957
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
16 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim
VALI Help
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
3: BELSIM LICENSEMANAGER 961
STARTING
......................................................................................................
LICENSEMANAGER 961
THE
......................................................................................................
GENERAL PAGE 963
THE
......................................................................................................
VALIMANAGER PAGE 964
THE
......................................................................................................
VALIPERFORMANCE PAGE 967
THE
......................................................................................................
TAG PAGE 969
THE
......................................................................................................
PLANT PAGE 971
THE
......................................................................................................
USER PAGE 972
THE
......................................................................................................
MAINTENANCE PAGE 975
THE
......................................................................................................
HANDLER PAGE 976
CHAPTER.......................................................................................................
12: VALIPERFORMANCE 979
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
1: VALI Software Suite 979
ValiPerformance
...................................................................................................... 979
VALI
......................................................................................................
modules 980
CHAPTER.......................................................................................................
13: VALILINK 985
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
1: INTRODUCTION 985
USING
......................................................................................................
VALILINK TO GET DATA 986
USING
......................................................................................................
VALILINK TO WRITE DATA 988
TAGNAMES
......................................................................................................
VERSUS DBNAMES 988
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
2: RUNNING VALILINK 990
STARTING
......................................................................................................
VALILINK 990
SPECIFYING
......................................................................................................
THE VALIDATION TIME WINDOW 990
VALILINK
......................................................................................................
STATUS 991
SECTION
.............................................................................................................
3: CONFIGURING VALILINK - VALILINKBUILDER 992
STARTING
......................................................................................................
VALILINKBUILDER 992
GENERAL
......................................................................................................
SETTINGS 995
READING
......................................................................................................
AND WRITING ACTIONS 1000
FIELDS
......................................................................................................
RECAPITULATIVE TABLE 1009
.............................................................................................................
SECTION 4: INPUT AND OUTPUT FILES FORMAT 1019
COMMON
......................................................................................................
FORMATTING CONVENTIONS 1019
FORMAT
......................................................................................................
OF THE INPUT FILES 1019
FORMAT
......................................................................................................
OF THE OUTPUT FILES 1019
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 17
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
VALI Help
.............................................................................................................
SECTION 5: CONTENTS OF THE LOG FILE 1021
.............................................................................................................
SECTION 6: PLUGS TECHNICAL INFORMATION 1022
PI
...................................................................................................... 1022
IP21
...................................................................................................... 1023
PLANTCONNECT
...................................................................................................... 1028
MS-SQL
...................................................................................................... 1028
ORACLE
...................................................................................................... 1029
PHD
...................................................................................................... 1033
MATRIKON
......................................................................................................
OPC HDA SERVER 1034
CHAPTER
.......................................................................................................
14: VALIFILTER AND VALIEVENT 1039
.............................................................................................................
SECTION 1: INTRODUCTION 1039
.............................................................................................................
SECTION 2: VALIFILTER 1040
FILTERING
......................................................................................................
TAGS 1040
DEFINING
......................................................................................................
THE FILTERS USING VALIMODELLER 1040
DEFINING
......................................................................................................
THE FILTERS USING MEA FILES 1042
INTERACTION
......................................................................................................
WITH CUTOFF AND CONTROL STRINGS 1043
REPORTS
...................................................................................................... 1044
ADVANCED
......................................................................................................
FILTERING STRATEGIES 1045
.............................................................................................................
SECTION 3: VALIEVENT 1046
OPERATION
...................................................................................................... 1046
STARTING
......................................................................................................
VALIEVENT 1046
CONFIGURING
......................................................................................................
VALIEVENT 1048
CHAPTER
.......................................................................................................
15: VALI ONLINE ENGINE 1053
.............................................................................................................
SECTION 1: INTRODUCTION 1053
.............................................................................................................
SECTION 2: RUNNING VALIONLINEENGINE 1054
STARTING
......................................................................................................
VALIONLINEENGINE 1054
VALI
......................................................................................................
INFORMATION FILE (pc.vif) 1054
RUN
......................................................................................................
STATUS 1055
.............................................................................................................
SECTION 3: RUNNING VALISCHEDULER 1056
STARTING
......................................................................................................
VALISCHEDULER 1056
GENERAL
......................................................................................................
PAGE 1057
ACQUISITION
......................................................................................................
PAGE 1071
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
18 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim
VALI Help
RECONCILIATION
......................................................................................................
PAGE 1072
STORAGE
......................................................................................................
PAGE 1075
EVENT
......................................................................................................
PAGE 1076
BACKUP
......................................................................................................
PAGE 1077
LOG
......................................................................................................
FILE PAGE 1078
EMAIL
......................................................................................................
PAGE 1080
.............................................................................................................
SECTION 4: VALISERVICE 1083
INTRODUCTION
...................................................................................................... 1083
VALISERVICE
......................................................................................................
ENGINE 1083
PROCESS
......................................................................................................
QUEUE LIST 1084
CONFIGURATION
......................................................................................................
OF VALISERVICE 1087
CHAPTER
.......................................................................................................
16: VALIPRODUCTION 1091
.............................................................................................................
SECTION 1: INTRODUCTION 1091
VALI
......................................................................................................
SOFTWARE SUITE 1091
VALIPRODUCTION
...................................................................................................... 1091
INFORMATION
......................................................................................................
FLOW 1092
SYNERGY
......................................................................................................
BETWEEN VALIPRODUCTION AND VALIPERFORMANCE 1093
VALIPRODUCTION
......................................................................................................
INTEGRATION 1093
VALIPRODUCTION
......................................................................................................
WORK-FLOW 1095
VALIMANAGER
......................................................................................................
APPLICATION 1096
.............................................................................................................
SECTION 2: CONFIGURING A VALIPRODUCTION APPLICATION 1098
A......................................................................................................
FLEXIBLE CLIENT/SERVER SCHEME 1098
USER
......................................................................................................
RIGHTS 1099
APPLICATION
......................................................................................................
DIRECTORY STRUCTURE AND PROCESSING 1099
CREATING
......................................................................................................
A NEW VALIPRODUCTION APPLICATION 1100
CONFIGURING
......................................................................................................
THE WORKFLOW 1105
TRACK
......................................................................................................
CHANGES 1111
.............................................................................................................
SECTION 3: USING VALIMANAGER 1112
STARTING
......................................................................................................
VALIMANAGER 1112
RUNS
......................................................................................................
OVERVIEW 1112
DIGGING
......................................................................................................
INTO RUNS 1120
STARTING
......................................................................................................
RERUN 1121
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 19
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
VALI Help
CHAPTER
.......................................................................................................
17: VALIFORMS 1127
.............................................................................................................
SECTION 1: INTRODUCTION 1127
VALIFORMS
......................................................................................................
OBJECTIVES 1127
USING
......................................................................................................
VALIFORMS IN A VALIPRODUCTION APPLICATION 1130
USING
......................................................................................................
VALIFORMS IN A VALIPERFORMANCE APPLICATION 1130
.............................................................................................................
SECTION 2: CONFIGURING VALIFORMS 1131
USING
......................................................................................................
VALIFORMSBUILDER 1131
.............................................................................................................
SECTION 3: USING VALIFORMS 1175
STARTING
......................................................................................................
VALIFORMS 1175
USING
......................................................................................................
VALIFORMS IN INTERACTIVE MODE 1176
CHAPTER
.......................................................................................................
18: THERMO 1181
.............................................................................................................
SECTION 1: INTRODUCTION 1181
.............................................................................................................
SECTION 2: USING THERMO 1183
STARTING
......................................................................................................
THERMO 1183
OVERVIEW
......................................................................................................
OF THERMO 1184
MENU
......................................................................................................
BAR 1185
TOOLBAR
...................................................................................................... 1186
TABS
......................................................................................................
VIEW 1186
STATUS
......................................................................................................
BAR 1187
OPEN
......................................................................................................
MODEL FILES 1187
THERMODYNAMIC
......................................................................................................
PROPERTIES CALCULATION 1188
CHANGING
......................................................................................................
PHYSICAL UNITS 1191
SAVE
......................................................................................................
RESULT IN THE MODEL FILE 1193
EXPORT
......................................................................................................
TO EXCEL 1193
DRAWING
......................................................................................................
LIQUID – VAPOR EQUILIBRIUM 1195
DRAW
......................................................................................................
CUSTOMIZED CHART 1197
GRAPH
......................................................................................................
TAB 1200
WHITE
......................................................................................................
EQUILIBRIUM 1206
SAVING,
......................................................................................................
LOADING AND COMPARING RESULTS 1207
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
20 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
CHAPTER 1
WHAT'S NEW
I
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 1
HOW TO BUILD YOUR DATA VALIDATION MODEL: description of the different steps
required to build a validation model of a process, introduction to the use of ValiModeller to
define and maintain your model. Finally a practical example is used to show the major
steps of a model development
HOW TO RUN YOUR DATA VALIDATION MODEL: explanation of how to run ValiEngine
from ValiModeller, presentation of various features like the ValiEngine runtime options,
the TAG and MEA files to import and export information to and from a model, the
customization of the reports and the sensitivity analysis. It gives some Tips and Tricks
and lists error messages issued by ValiEngine
DATA VALIDATION UNITS: detailed information on the different types of Units that can
be used in a data validation model. Some practical examples are shown. Each Unit type
has its own section
FLEX LANGUAGE DESCRIPTION: details of the FLEX language that can be used to enter
user-defined constraints and measurements
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 23
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
Release VALI 4.12 is upward compatible from Release VALI 4.11, but not backward. Files created or
modified using Release VALI 4.12 will not be readable with previous Releases.
2.1 INSTALLATION
The installation procedure uses the classical Windows Installation engine. See the installation guide
(Installation Guide.pdf) for detailed installation guidelines and latest information on the software.
Each model should first be opened and saved with ValiModeller before being processed by a VALI
engine.
VALIMODELLER
You can experience some troubles using ValiModeller on Operating Systems with Asian display
languages. The font size of ValiModeller tabular Notebooks can appear bigger or smaller than
expected. This display issue differs depending on your Operating System version (Windows 7, 8, 10
...).
A workaround has been developed to adapt the font size and the display. In the "others" section of
Belsim.ini configuration file (located in the VALI installation folder, under "..\Belsim\dat\"), you can
define and customize the FontFactorX and FontFactorY parameters (expressed in percentages). These
parameters will adapt the rendering (height and width) of the tabular Notebooks.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
24 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 1
FontFactorX = 105
FontFactorY = 99
VALIREPORT
Depending on the various .NET frameworks installed on your machine, you may experience some
problems while starting ValiReport. Contact Belsim support if you experience some troubles.
In Office 2007, you may experience issues with the format of the date displayed by "rundate" tag in
the run sheet. This can result in wrong date format when manually inserting runs in the
ValiDatabase, leading to wrong date interpretation.
ValiReport is NOT compatible with MS Office 2010, 2012 and 2013 64bits. Make sure you use a 32bits
version of MS Office to be able to use ValiReport.
2.4 COMPATIBILITY
VALI suite is compatible with Windows 7 and Windows 8, provided screen resolution is set to 100%
for font size. If you experience display troubles in ValiModeller, check this parameter.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 25
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
These product imbalances are reported as errors ("ERS") in the r1v.html log file, in addition to the
r5v.html "Suspected Tags" report. Refer to Browsing result files for more details about HTML reports
generated by ValiEngine.
This way, the user does not have to wait a full time step (e.g. a week) to retrieve the results of the
previous period.
Refer to section Starting Real Time for more details about real time applications in ValiScheduler.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
26 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
CHAPTER 2
INTRODUCTION TO
VALI II
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 2
This Chapter presents the basic concepts you should be familiar with in order to use VALI.
Section 2 pre se nts the principle s of DVR (Data Validation and Re conciliation)
Section 4 introduce s the obje cts to be use d in orde r to build a VALI mode l
Section 5 shows which e quations are ge ne rate d by the diffe re nt type s of units
Section 6 de als with me asure me nts unce rtainty and re dundancy. It also give s the list
of me asure me nts that can be de fine d
Section 7 pre se nts some conce pts spe cific to Pe trole um Re fining applications
VALI is an equation-based data validation and reconciliation (DVR) software. It uses information
redundancy and conservation laws to correct measurements and convert them into accurate and
reliable information. VALI is used in upstream, refinery, petrochemical, chemical plants as well as
power plants including nuclear power stations. VALI detects faulty sensors and pinpoints
degradation of equipment performance (heat rate, compressor efficiency, etc.)
The plant measurements, including lab analyses, are reconciled in such a way that mass (on a
component per component basis) and heat balances are satisfied. When necessary, L/V equilibrium
and performance constraints can be added. Unmeasured values are calculated and VALI also
quantifies the precision of reconciled values. Its sensitivity analysis tool shows the interdependence
between the measurements. VALI can be used on-line or off-line and has been integrated in various
control systems.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 29
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
There are a large number of benefits due to data validation and reconciliation, and they include:
To understand the basic principles of DVR, one must first recognise that plant measurements
(including lab analyses) are not 100% error free. When using these measurements without correction
to generate plant balances, one usually gets incoherence in these balances.
sensor calibration
sensor location
A second source of error when calculating plant balances is the small instabilities of the plant
operation and the fact that samples and measurements are not exactly taken at the same time. Using
time averages for plant data partly reduces this problem. However, lab analyses cannot be averaged.
Finally, one must also realise that in some cases too many measurements are available whereas in
some other cases some measurements are missing and must be back calculated from other
measurements. The aspect of data redundancy is here an essential factor. It is because too many
measurements are available that one can prove the fact that the measurements are somewhat
inaccurate. For example, measuring all inlet and outlet flow rates of a plant (or of part of a plant),
usually leads to some imbalance between the total inputs and total outputs.
The main idea of DVR is to use the data redundancy of the system as the source of information to
correct the measurements. In fact, each measurement is corrected as slightly as possible but in such a
way that the corrected measurements matches all the constraints (or balances) of the process.
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30 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 2
subject to
is an unmeasured variable j
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 31
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
ValiModeller is a multi-purpose modelling tool intended to develop and maintain one or several
process models. ValiModeller can be used for offline validation and engineering studies.
Vali.exe: ValiEngine, which will validate and reconcile the measurements of your process
ValiModeller.exe: the graphical user interface GUI of VALI; allows you to create and
maintain your DVR models
Iofile.exe: a stand alone application that can be used to process measurement files (and
reports) independently of ValiModeller
ValiEngine and ValiModeller GUI work with the information stored in a file called the Model file (e.g.
model.bls). This file contains the description of the models as well as their data and their results.
ValiModeller allows you to develop your DVR model and to visualise, after a run, the state of the
process by looking at the units and streams data. The data are read from the model file and are
written back in it as well.
The measurements can be defined either within the model file, using ValiModeller, or in one or
several TAG files, using for example NotePad or WordPad text editor. A TAG file is a simple ASCII
file where each line defines one measurement by giving it a name, indicating the variable it relates to,
and defining a default value and precision.
Example:
TI-001 Stream Feed T 120 5 C
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32 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 2
You can also have MEA files that give, line by line, the current values of the measurements. Typically
in an on-line environment, these files would come from the process control computer and from the
LIMS (Laboratory Information Management System).
Example:
TI-001 98 C
The MEA files can also be used to modify the model, like changing various Units parameters or
specifying that parts of a model must be ignored or are currently shutdown.
Finally, MEA files can be used to generate dedicated reports or transfer information to the outside
world for archiving, reporting or integrating in other applications.
VALI reads the model description from the model (bls file) and the measurements definitions and
values from the TAG and MEA files. It creates a number of report files (r1v, r2v,..., r6v) with various
messages and results and optionally output MEA files with validated values of selected
measurements.
In addition, when the run is successful, all the model data are saved in the model file.
VALI can also generate ARC files with all data related to tags (among which measured, filtered,
validated values,) as well as some information on the run (total penalty, penalty by PFD, number of
filtered and eliminated tags, etc.). This file can be loaded into ValiDatabase through ValiDBLoader
application.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 33
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PFD: ske tch of the proce ss, graphically showing the units and the ir inte rconne cting stre ams.
Whe n ne e de d, comple x proce sse s can be divide d in se ve ral diffe re nt PFDS
UNIT: a pie ce of e quipme nt of the proce ss, like a pump, a he at e xchange r or a re actor
THERMOD: list of che mical compounds and the rmodynamic me thods. Each mate rial STREAM
has an associate d THERMOD indicating to VALI what compounds can be pre se nt in this mate rial
STREAM and what me thods must be use d to compute its the rmodynamic prope rtie s
COMPOUND: che mical compound, like H2O or BENZENE with its the rmodynamic prope rtie s
TAG: me asure me nt point associate d to a mode l variable , like a stre am te mpe rature , and by
assigning a name and an accuracy to it
Each object must have a name of 32 characters maximum. These names must be unique within each
class. UNITS and PFDS are however considered as being of the same class. A UNIT and a PFD can
therefore not bear the same name.
For COMPOUNDS, only the first 30 letters are significant and should be unique, although 32 letters
are defined and kept.
For example, a movement with submovement tagname may be written in the *.arc file as:
ZONE_PRODUCT_MOVEMENT_SUBMOVEMENT_MEASUREMENT,
each part being maximum 8 characters long + 4 underscores = 44 maxi, rounded to next multiple of 8.
3.1 PFD
Process Flow Diagrams are organised recursively, in a very similar way as directories under
Windows operating system: any PFD can contain other PFDs. The main PFD, called by default MAIN,
can only contain other PFDs, but no UNITS (process equipment). The other PFDs can contain:
PFDs
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
34 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 2
For coherency, any UNIT and any PFD can appear in only one PFD. Similarly, any stream can connect
a maximum of two different UNITS. However, these two UNITS can be located in two different PFDs.
When running VALI you will indicate what PFD must be validated. All units and sub-PFDs of this
PFD will then be part of the model.
3.2 UNIT
The various types of UNITS are gathered into categories: heat exchangers, reactors, etc. For each
category, one or several different types are available with various capabilities. For example, a heat
exchanger can be modelled by different types of units like EEXVAL, HEXVAL, SATVAL, WALVAL
(see "Process unit equations" for more information on the various types of units).
UNIT DATA defines the operation of the UNIT. In addition to a MODE parameter, which defines the
type of balances to perform, several other parameters further describe the current operation of the
unit: pressure drops, extents of reactions, etc.
3.3 STREAM
Objects called Streams represent the connections between process Units. They describe what flows
from one equipment to another.
MATERIAL STREAMS
A MATERIAL STREAM gathers all the information on a particular stream: pressure, temperature,
enthalpy, rate and composition. Each STREAM has a state indicator, that determines the phases that
can be present:
Water/Liquid: one water phase (assumed to be pure) and on liquid phase can appear
For example, a stream indicated as LV can be in liquid state, in vapour state or can be a mixture of
these two phases. However, only one of these two phases can happen to be present.
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
On the contrary, setting a stream as L will force VALI to consider the stream as a liquid, even when
its validated composition, pressure and temperature would correspond to a vapour state.
Attention: for STREAMS where the saturation state is specified, like the outlet streams of a liquid/
vapour separator, it is recommended to set the states of the streams accordingly: liquid for the
saturated liquid and vapour for the saturated vapour. This significantly improves the convergence
of the resulting model.
3.4 THERMOD
The VALI object THERMOD represents the set of information required to calculate the
thermodynamic properties of a STREAM:
3.5 REACTION
The object called REACTION contains the information related to a chemical reaction:
3.6 COMPOUND
A COMPOUND object identifies a chemical component involved in the process and contains all its
basic properties. There are three types of compounds:
EPIC: chemical compound defined by its formula. The compound must be in the liquid
and/or vapour phase
SOLID: chemical compound defined by its formula. The compound must be in the solid
phase
PETFRA: petroleum fraction that is in the liquid and/or vapour phase. The chemical
formula and properties of the compound are estimated from its density and its boiling
temperature
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 2
VALI handles compounds of type PETFRA exactly as usual EPIC compounds. The only difference is
the way their properties are generated.
On the contrary, SOLID compounds are handled differently. They constitute a distinct phase and
cannot melt or vaporise and become a liquid or a vapour. In separators, SOLIDS can be entrained
with the gas phase and/or with the liquid phase. Solids can be involved in chemical reactions as
other compounds.
Attention: it is possible to model phase changes to and from the solid state by defining a (pseudo)
chemical reaction, where a SOLID compound is transformed into its corresponding liquid/gas
compound, with the same molecular formula.
3.7 TAG
The definition of a measurement contains its location (on a STREAM or a UNIT), its name, its value
and its accuracy. Optionally, it is possible to associate to each tag:
compensation settings
control strings, to generate warning messages and to update the measured value or its
precision, depending on the measured value
In a model, four sets of values and precisions are attached to each tag:
the default value and its precision, which are the values as defined in the model (or in the
tag file) by the user
the measured value and its precision, which are initially set to the default values but can
be overwritten by values coming from measurement files (MEA files) by ValiEngine
the used value and its precision, which are the values actually used during the
reconciliation step. They are initialized to the measured values but can be overwritten by
filters, compensation algorithms or control strings
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
the penalty: calculated on the basis of the used value, can be selected (through the
mathematical unit OPTVAL) as being either the measurement penalty, the correction
penalty or the measurement impact:
the gain: which expresses the accuracy improvement and is calculated on the basis of the
reconciled and the used accuracies:
Figure below represents the VALI objects that describe a liquid-vapour separator.
The process unit consists in a single UNIT named D. The three streams connected to the separator are
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 2
S1, S2 and S3. A single THERMOD named TMOD, attached to each STREAM, represents the set of
information necessary to calculate their thermodynamic properties. The compounds, listed in the
THERMOD, describe the chemical compounds CHEM1, CHEM2 and CHEM3.
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
black boxes
splitters
mixers
heat exchangers
compressors
turbines
pumps
chemical reactors
controllers
storage tanks
valves
Each unit used to model these pieces of equipment will generate a number of equations:
performance equations
When validating composition and flow rate measurements, only mass balances are necessary.
When temperature measurements are available, you can use energy balance equations. This will not
only validate these measurements but can also improve the accuracy of the compositions and flow
rates measurements.
Moreover, when streams are involved in a phase change phenomenon, as for example in liquid/
vapour separator, the liquid-vapour equilibrium relationships or the saturation equations can help
to improve the accuracy of the composition and pressure measurements.
For some units, it is also possible to consider performance equations. This allows you, for example, to
avoid temperature crossings in heat exchangers or non-feasible efficiencies in rotating equipment.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 2
According to the type of equipment you want to model, one or several VALI unit types are available,
with various capabilities. Each UNIT type has a six to eight-letter name, which usually ends by VAL
and where the first characters indicate the type of unit, like BBXVAL for a Black box.
The first paragraph hereafter explains the way to control what equations are generated by each unit.
The following paragraphs explain how to select the appropriate VALI UNIT type in different
situations. They also describe what equations are generated.
The equations that are generated obviously depend on the type of UNIT you will select. In addition,
the UNITS have various parameters that allow you to further define the equations generated:
the MODE parameter controls energy, phase equilibrium and performance equations
The set of equations can also change depending on the status of streams and units.
A UNIT (or a complete flow-sheet) can be specified as OUT. The model is handled as if the UNIT (or
PFD) had never been defined.
A STREAM can be set OFF, meaning that no flow rate is present. All measurements on that stream
are deactivated, its variables are removed from the equations system and its rate is set to zero.
Similarly, a UNIT (or even a complete PFD) can be set OFF. All the STREAMS connected to the UNIT
are then set OFF.
A propagation algorithm checks whether the fact that a STREAM is off does automatically entrain
that a UNIT should be set OFF as well. For example if the inlet material STREAM of a pump is set
OFF, then the pump must be set OFF as well. See sub-section "ON/OFF propagation" for more
information.
For example, in a pump, the inlet and outlet streams obviously have the same composition. Rather
than duplicating the partial rates of the inlet stream for the outlet stream, VALI will instead use the
rates of the inlet stream for the outlet stream. If the inlet stream involves 10 compounds, this avoids
generating 10 extra variables and extra equations.
This concept is further generalized to the case where a stream is split up in several streams of the
same composition. In this case, an additional variable, the rates (mixture) fraction (MIXF) is
generated for each of the outlet streams. The actual flow rates of the outlet streams are obtained by
the product of their rates fraction by the flow rate of the split stream.
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
VOLUME BALANCES
When dealing with global material balances of plants without any tracking of the stream
composition, volume balances can be added to the mass balances of some of the units. The advantage
of using volume balances is that this increases the redundancy of the model and thus improves the
accuracy and robustness of the validated values. Of course, volume balances should only be used for
the units where volume will be conserved, like most blending units or cold storage tanks.
To activate volume balances, you must introduce the keyword CONVDENS in the unit COMMENT
and provide density measurements (CONVDENS measurements) on the streams. This feature only
works on units of type BBXVAL, NETVAL, COLVAL and TNKVAL.
Example:
Attention: Volume balances should not be used when dealing with thermodynamic-based models,
that is models including a detailed representation of the chemical compounds. Indeed the density
of the streams is in this case linked to the stream composition and thus adding volume balances
would artificially and incorrectly increase the redundancy of the model.
IMBALANCES
In ValiProduction applications, it is sometimes necessary to act an imbalance, for example when an
unidentified loss has occurred. The corresponding imbalance can be acted on a storage tank (See unit
TNKVAL) or on a product (see unit NETVAL).
Depending on the Unit type, different MODE values can be defined, like for example:
Depending on the Unit type, different MODEDP values can be defined, like for example:
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 2
MODEDP=2: a pressure drop equation will be generated and the pressure drop will be a
function of the mass flow rate according to an equation having the following form:
where :
CFDP is a measurable parameter that accounts for the deviation from the calculated
value (typically measured at 1 with a precision of 20% to 30%)
2. To simplify the modelling it is possible to specify (see parameter PRESMODE of unit OPTVAL)
that pressure and/or pressure drops will be considered as constant when not measured. This
feature must not be used when using equations relating pressure drops and rates.
When a unit mixes several inlet streams, you can control whether the inlet streams pressures are
related or not with the REFDP parameter, which can be:
<stream>: inlet stream pressures are not related. If pressure drops equations are
generated, then the stream indicated by REFDP is taken as reference for pressure drop
calculations
If the stream referred by the REFDP parameters is OFF, then the next stream in the list is taken as
reference and an error message is generated.
OTHER EQUATIONS
Some units can generate other types of equations, like saturation state or performance equations.
Specific parameters are then available.
ELECTRO-NEUTRALITY
When dealing with ions, you can add on selected streams the constraint that the total electric charge
of positive and negative ions must be in balance.
Whe re :
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
The electric charges of the compounds (ELECTRO) and the streams for which the constraint must be
generated are defined through measurement files (see " Electro-Neutrality Constraints").
BBXVAL: general black-box, allowing to mix a number of inlet streams and split their
contents in a number of outlet streams of varying pressure, temperature and composition.
THERMAL and MECHANICAL STREAMS can also be specified as inlet and outlet streams
of a BBXVAL
NETVAL: dedicated to the modeling of complex networks of product lines in overall mass
balance models
CUTVAL: to break the material or pressure loops that can appear when dealing with
closed cycles (e.g. water cycle in power plant)
BBXVAL
A BBXVAL unit ensures the global mass and energy balances to be satisfied, allowing you to model
mixers, distillation, absorption or stripping columns and feed drums, but sometimes, also entire
parts of a process. No reactions can occur in a BBXVAL.
A BBXVAL unit can also represent shafts linking compressors, turbines and pumps.
an energy balance around the black box. If vaporisation or condensation occurs, the heat
involved in this phase change is, of course, taken into account. When inlet and outlet
pressures are not equal, the energy balance takes the expansion and compression works
into account
equality between the temperature of all outlet streams and the first inlet stream
NETVAL
The NETVAL unit has been primarily designed to simplify the modelling of tank farms where the
storage tanks can be used to store different types of products in function of time.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 2
Rather than having to change the structure of the model by reconnecting streams from and to the
different tanks, the streams are given an ATTRIBUTE that defines their product type. The streams
coming from or going to the process units and the tanks are all connected to units of type NETVAL,
all units of this type being considered as part of a single global network of pipes. The NETVAL units
will generate as many balances as there are attributes and for each of them will include all the
streams of the corresponding attribute.
Attention: NETVAL units can only be used in mass (or mass and volume) balance mode.
EFFVAL
An EFFVAL unit generates the heat balance between all inlet streams and the two outlet streams.
Any combination of thermal and mechanical streams can be used for the inlet and outlet streams.
The yield of the unit can be expressed as a loss fraction or as efficiency.
This unit is particularly suited for modelling motors, generators or turbine shafts.
CUTVAL
The type CUTVAL is a "black-box" UNIT ensuring energy and optionally pressure balances but no
mass balance. It is useful in close loops where the mass balances can create singular matrix.
SPLITTERS: SPLVAL
A Splitter splits a stream in up to ten outlet streams having the same composition.
using the Stream Rates Sharing concept, a global mass balance equation linking the Rates
fractions of the outlet streams to that of the inlet stream
one equation for each outlet stream, to determine the split fraction versus the inlet stream
an energy balance
one pressure drop equation. With the parameter DP, you can specify (or measure) the
pressure drop between the inlet stream and all outlet streams
Attention:
1. The outlet streams of a SPLVAL are always set at the same pressure, even if a pressure drop is not
specified.
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
You can model heat exchangers by using six different types of units:
EEXVAL: a ve ry fle xible mode l that can have from 1 up to 10 inle t and outle t mate rial stre ams as
we ll as the rmal stre ams. Any he at e xchange can occur provide d that the global he at balance of
the e xchange r is satisfie d
HEXVAL: de dicate d to co- and counte r-curre nt e xchange rs, with 2 inle t and 2 outle t mate rial
stre ams, and take s a he at e xchange surface are a and transfe r coe fficie nt (conve ction and/or
radiation) into account. Saturation constraints can be adde d to any outle t stre am (saturate d
liquid or vapour). The he at transfe r coe fficie nt and the pre ssure drops can be re late d to the flow
rate s
PRHVAL: pre he ate rs whe re a stre am is he ate d up by a vapour that is de supe rhe ate d,
conde nse d and subcoole d. An optional drain inle t allows conne cting a third (conde nse d) inle t
stre am
EEXVAL
Depending on the unit parameters, the unit generates:
global mass balance equations linking the Rates fractions of the outlet streams to that of
the corresponding inlet streams, using the Stream Rates Sharing concept
one pressure drop equation per outlet material stream. With the parameter DPi, you can
specify (or measure) the pressure drop between the corresponding inlet and outlet streams
HEXVAL
The HEXVAL unit type allows you to consider the heat exchanger performance and to avoid
temperature crossings in the exchanger. Contrary to the EEXVAL type, an HEXVAL can only handle
heat exchange between 2 pairs of inlet/outlet streams. In addition to the heat and mass balances, this
unit type can generate a performance equation linking the exchanger load to the temperature
difference between the hot and cold streams.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 2
Where :
DTSIDE1 and DTSIDE2 are the temperature differences on each side of the heat exchanger
CORDTLN is a correction factor that accounts for the deviation from true counter-
configuration (only for multi-passes exchangers)
Alternatively, a method based on the concept of Number of Transfer Units (NTU) can also be used to
model convective heat transfer. This method is recommended when the difference of temperature
between the hot and cold streams is small on one or both sides of the exchanger.
The NTU method is based on the notion of efficiency, the efficiency being defined by the ratio between
the actual heat load of the exchanger and the maximum heat load achievable assuming an infinite
heat transfer surface area.
The efficiency is calculated on basis of the number of transfer unit NUT according to various
formulas (see description of unit HEXVAL) depending on the exchanger configuration and operation
mode.
EFF = F(NUT, C)
C = Cmin/ Cmax
Where :
Cmax and Cmin are the total heat capacities of the streams (Massf * Cp)
With both methods (DTLN or NTU), you can define measurements on temperature differences
(DTSIDE1, DTSIDE2), heat load (LOAD), heat exchange area (A) and heat exchange coefficients (by
convection Uglob and by radiation G). Among these three latest variables (A, Uglob and G), at least
two of them must be, either measured, or set constant.
Alternatively the heat transfer coefficient Uglob can be calculated in function of the flow rates of the
streams according to the following formula:
1/Uglob = FF + 1/(CFH.Uclean)
Where :
FF is a fouling factor
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
Where :
Where :
The HEXVAL unit type also allows you to impose a saturation state (saturated liquid or vapour) of
the outlet streams with the VFRACi parameter.
PRHVAL
The PRHVAL unit type is similar to a HEXVAL unit but allows you to split up the heat exchange into
three regions (desuperheating, condensing and subcooling) with different heat transfer coefficients.
In addition to the heat and mass balances, this unit type generates three performance equations (one
for each zone):
Where:
DTSIDE1 and DTSIDE2 are the temperature differences on each side of the three regions
SATVAL
This unit allows you to set the saturation state of the outlet stream: any vapour fraction between 0
and 1 can be set. It is also possible to specify vapour super-heating or liquid sub-cooling by defining
the difference between the saturation state and the stream temperature.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 2
WALVAL
This unit allows estimating the heat losses to the ambient air in function of the wall temperature and
surface area. Different equations are used for vertical and horizontal walls.
ECOVAL
This type of UNIT is dedicated to the detail modelling of tube layers in heat recovery steam boilers
(HRSG). It includes predictions of heat transfer coefficients and pressure drop on fumes and steam
side. The same UNIT type can be used for the modelling of economisers, vaporisers and super-
heaters.
Attention: ECOVAL unit is not part of the VALI standard installation. It is sold as an add-on to VALI
under a separate license agreement.
The mass balances of compressors and turbines are generated, by using the stream rates sharing
algorithm. A mechanical stream must be connected as inlet of the compressor or outlet of the
turbine.
In addition to the mass balance, two types of equations are generated: the heat balance and the
efficiency equations involving the isentropic or polytropic efficiencies.
When the pressure balance equation is activated, the pressure ratio of the machine is computed as
well.
For turbines a Stodola parameter can be defined in order to link the flow rate going through the unit
to the driving pressure drop.
The mass balance of a pump is generated by using the stream rates sharing algorithm. A mechanical
stream must be connected as inlet of the pump.
In addition to the mass balance, two equations are generated: the heat balance and the volumetric
efficiency equation involving the efficiency of the pump.
In the latter case, the volumetric efficiency parameter can be introduced as a pseudo-measurement.
When the pressure balance equation is activated, the pressure ratio of the machine is computed as
well.
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BATVAL: any reaction can occur. The unit generates atomic balances
BWHVAL: any reaction can occur. The unit generates atomic balances and an equilibrium
equation based on the minimisation of Gibbs Energy
RLVVAL: only the selected reactions can occur. The unit has two outlet streams: one in
gas phase and one in liquid phase. These streams are in physical (liquid/vapour)
equilibrium
RKPVAL : only the selected reactions can occur. Some of these reactions can be specified as
chemically equilibrated
RKIVAL: only the selected reactions can occur. The conversions are calculated on basis of a
user-defined kinetic model
an energy balance
for the RLVVAL unit, physical equilibrium equations between the vapour and liquid
outlet streams
Attention: When the energy and/or the equilibrium equations of a RLVVAL unit are activated, this
unit also generates equalities between outlet streams pressures and temperatures.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 2
Five different types of units allow you to handle physical separation of up to two liquid and one
vapour phases:
an energy balance
one (or two) equilibrium equation for each component present in the outlet streams
optionally, one pressure drop equation. With the parameter DP, you can specify (or
measure) the pressure drop between the inlet stream and all outlet streams
when the energy or the equilibrium equations are activated, these units also generate
equalities between outlet streams pressures and temperatures
Attention:
1. If some of the partial flow rates or compositions are measured as zero with a standard deviation
equal to zero in one of the outlet streams, the related liquid-vapour equilibrium relationship is
not considered by VALI. This can be useful when some chemicals are practically non-existent in
the liquid or vapour phase.
2. The outlet streams must be in a state compatible with their function. For example, a vapour outlet
stream should be set as V.
3. No assumption is made about the destination of solids that would be present in the inlet streams.
Composition measurements (or information coming from the downstream balances) should
define whether solids are going with the liquid or vapour phase.
Distillation columns can be modelled by using units of type BBXVAL (see Black boxes), COLVAL,
DISVAL or CRUVAL:
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COLVAL: generates the same equations as a BXXVAL, but in addition, it allows you to
specify a saturation state (saturated liquid or vapour) for each outlet stream
DISVAL: generates equilibrium equations for a number of theoretical trays. Distance from
equilibrium can be set though a Murphree efficiency
Storage tanks can be modelled using units of type TNKVAL. Only the material balance of the tank is
taken into account. The heat balance is not taken into account.
Typically, storage tanks models are most often used in daily production balance models. In such a
case, the recommended approach is to use as initial inventory (measured as constants) the validated
inventory of the preceding period (usually day).
Different modelling options are available enabling to apprehend various situations and operation
modes:
the inventories can be expressed on mass, volume or level (using a strapping table) basis
the composition of the tank can be made variable or kept constant over the validation time
period
Three units are available to enter your own equations and measurements: OPXVAL, FLXVAL and
VARVAL. In addition, you can add Flex code to generate additional constraints on all equipment
units.
An OPXVAL unit allows you to define up to 9 simple equations involving two variables:
VARi = X1 # Xi+1
Where:
X1 and Xi+1 are any STREAM or UNIT variables, referenced through tags
For example, selecting as X variables the temperatures of two streams and - as the operator, you can
calculate the temperature difference between two streams. By defining a measurement on, the VARi
parameter, you can measure this temperature difference.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 2
Whenever you want to consider more sophisticated relationships, you can use units of type FLXVAL
or add a Flex code to any equipment units. This allows you to write equations with a FORTRAN-like
programming language. Access to the thermodynamic data bank is enabled by dedicated
procedures.
Virtually, any relationship can be added. For example, the relationship between temperature,
pressure, composition and viscosity would allow you to enter viscosity measurements.
The VARVAL unit provides up to nine variables which can be referenced in any Flex code (on the
VARVAL unit itself or on any other unit).
Attention: All variables of units OPXVAL, FLXVAL and VARVAL are expressed as a dimensionless
number or %. In addition, you can define your own physical units for these variables.
The DPVAL unit allows you to take into account the pressure drop through lines or valves. The
pressure drop can be related to the stream flow rate and conditions. Several different equations are
available.
The PIPEVAL is a more detailed unit enabling to calculate the pressure drop through wells and lines
according to various correlation equations (Colebrook, Von Karman, Blasius, etc.). Heat Transfer to
an external media can also be taken into account.
The ON/OFF propagation system of VALI is a quite powerful system enabling to run a model in
different operation modes by automatically detecting parts of the process which are not operated at
a given time.
The final status of a stream or unit depends on the following succession of mechanisms.
The status is set according to the status of the PFD, Unit or Stream in the model file.
This status is then modified according to ON/OFF settings in the measurement files.
Combining the syntax UNIT/STREAM/PFD/PRODUCT name ON or OFF, and the @IF/
THEN/ELSE keywords you can activate or deactivate parts of the model depending on the
measured value of any tag (see Measurement files).
The CUTOFF commands is designed to set OFF a material Stream when its measured rate,
temperature or pressure is below a given threshold value. The CUTOFF can be set globally
for all measurements of a given type (either through the CUTOFF unit or through
Measurement files) or can be set tag by tag via control strings (see Using control strings) or
ValiFilter.
The STATUS measurement can also set OFF any material Stream via an external binary
tag.
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The propagation algorithm will then propagate the OFF status through Units and Streams
according to the following rules:
if a Unit is OFF, then all its inlet and outlet Streams are set OFF
if all the inlet (or outlet) material Streams of a Unit are OFF then the Unit is OFF
if only thermal and mechanical Streams are connected to a Unit, it will be set OFF as
soon as less than two Streams remains ON
On a heat exchanger, if an inlet (or outlet ) Stream is OFF then its corresponding outlet
(or inlet) Stream is set OFF
By exception to the above rules, the TNKVAL unit remains active independently of the
status of the connected Streams
Flex FILTER functions can be used to set OFF units and streams depending on user-
defined rules
Attention:
1. Objects can be set ON until step 2. Starting from step 3, objects can only be set OFF.
2. The CUTOFF always uses the raw measured value, except when the measured value is filtered
with the FILTERED syntax in a mea file. In the latter case the FILTERED value of the mea file is
used
3. If a tag is OFF or set OFF via a Filter, then the CUTOFF is not executed.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 2
The concept of measurement is generalised into pseudo-measurement that represents any numerical
information that can be given about the process in addition to actual measurements. For example,
turbine efficiencies can be given as pseudo-measurement, although this information comes rather
from design data than from a real measurement.
Measurements can be given on streams (e.g.: T, p, rates) or on units (e.g.: pressure drops). They are
defined via TAGS, a TAG being a unique name given to a process variable. When needed several tags
can be associated to the same variable. Tags are defined either directly in the model or in separate
TAG files. Their values can further be changed via MEA files. Finally "control strings" attached to the
tag can further modify its value or its accuracy depending on some user defined conditions on the
measured value of the tag.
measurement redundancy
effect of bounds
validated accuracy
The measurement inaccuracy reflects the confidence given to a measurement value. It indicates the
expected range of deviation of the measurement.
etc.
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
By assuming a Gaussian distribution of the sensor error, the measurement inaccuracy can be
numerically defined on basis of the standard deviation of the distribution. The probability that the
real value will be distant from the measured value by less than twice the deviation is about 95 %.
Values outside this range will be flagged by VALI as unlikely.
Finding the right combination of the inaccuracies is partly a trial and error procedure. Starting
values for the inaccuracies can be the intrinsic imprecision of the sensor as specified by the
manufacturer. Some typical values are also proposed in the following sections of this chapter.
In VALI, measurement accuracy is defined on an absolute or a relative basis. In the latter case, the
accuracy will be proportional to the measured value and calculated as a percentage of this value, as
expressed in the native physical units of VALI. For example a precision of 1% on a temperature of
20C corresponds to 1% of 293.15 K, which is 2.93 K (or C). Take care that relative precision introduced
via a TAG file or a MEA file, must be specified as a negative value (-2 meaning 2%).
0: the measurement is considered perfect and no correction will be applied to its value
any value above 10 10 : the measurement is considered as not available. Setting the
accuracy to 1010 has exactly the same effect as removing the measurement from the list of
measurements
VALUE SIGNIFICATION
0 pe rfe ct me asure me nt
Attention: The accuracy of the tags can be made dependant of the measurement range. (See section
"Using Control Strings"). It can also be modified though ValiFilter.
In some cases, the errors on several different measurements are not totally independent. This can
happen for example when the same sensor is used to measure the temperature of several different
streams.
In such a case, the measurements errors are not stochastically independent, which is one of the main
assumptions underlying the concept of DVR. To overcome this problem, one can introduce an
additional element: the covariance between measurement errors.
This covariance is introduced as a correlation coefficient between the measurement errors, defined
as:
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 2
The value of this correlation coefficient is, on a theoretical basis, bounded between -1 and +1. Positive
values indicate that the two measurements will be partly affected by the same errors whereas
negative values indicate that part of the error on one measurement affect the other one with the
opposite sign.
The redundancy is an essential concept of VALI and is the source of information it uses to correct
measurements.
The easiest way to understand the concept of redundancy is to consider an example where only a
mass balance is concerned.
If the rate of the stream IN only is measured, then there is not enough information to describe the
state of the system, as nothing can determine the quantity going through each outlet lines OUT1 and
OUT2. The redundancy is negative.
If the inlet rate and one of the outlet rates is known, then we have just enough information to
describe the system and the redundancy level is zero.
Finally, if both outlet rates are measured in addition to the inlet rate, than we have more information
than what is necessary to describe the system. We have a redundancy of level one.
The level of redundancy is the number of measurements, which come in addition to the set of
measurements needed to be able to calculate the system.
This level is calculated by VALI and when it is negative (sometimes only in a sub-region of the
complete flow sheet), VALI will propose a set of measurements, which could be added.
If it is not possible to add any measurement to the system (because of economical constraints for
example), another way of avoiding negative redundancy is to group some units as a more global
black box.
Due to their specific nature, pressure measurements and variables are handled by VALI somewhat
differently than other measurements.
The reason for this special treatment comes from the fact that in many cases, pressure measurements
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
cannot be validated because they are not interdependent with other state variables of the streams.
For example, for liquid streams, the pressure has no influence on the stream enthalpy. Therefore, the
pressure will not be of any influence on the heat and mass balances that are generated by VALI.
For gas streams (vapour only), the effect of pressure on the enthalpy is non-zero but is, in most cases,
very low. Here again, trying to validate pressure measurements on basis of heat and mass balances
is difficult if not impossible.
Therefore, it is in most cases only meaningful to validate pressure measurements when pressure
drop or pressure equalities equations are available. VALI will therefore request additional
measurements when unmeasured pressure variables do not appear in such equations.
Three different ways of handling pressure variables can be specified through the parameter
PRESMODE of the OPTVAL unit:
PRESMODE=0: unit pressure drops (DP) are considered constant when they are not
measured
PRESMODE=1: stream pressure and Unit pressure drops (DP) are considered constant
when they are not measured
PRESMODE=2: stream pressure and Unit pressure drops are considered variable when not
measured. (This is the default behaviour )
Pressure measurements can be specified in absolute (bar, atm, Pa, etc) or relative - to atmospheric
pressure - basis (barg, MPag., etc.). The reference atmospheric pressure is 1.0 bar by default. This
value can be overwritten using ATMOPRES syntax in a measurement file (see "How to run your data
validation model").
The tables below indicate for each type of stream what variables can be measured. Some typical
values are proposed for measurement uncertainty.
LOAD kW He at load 5 - 20 %
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 2
(1): RPM variable will only be taken into account if it appears in a Flex code, for example by linking
the flow rate through the rotating equipment to its rotation speed and pressure drop.
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(1):
whe re :
PH20 is the ratio of the molar flowrate of H20 to the total molar flowrate of the stre am;
PSAT is the saturate d pre ssure (at the te mpe rature of the stre am).
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 2
LFLOWTOT(3)
(3): The e nthalpy flow (e xpre sse d in kW) is de fine d as the e nthalpy carrie d by a stre am by re fe re nce to the
te mpe rature of 25 C and pre ssure of 1 atm. For e ach compound, the re fe re nce e nthalpy will be e ithe r the
liquid (or the vapour) if its boiling point is above (or be low) 25C. HFLOWTOT (kW) = HFLOW (kW) + MOLF
(kmol/s) . UHVMOL (kJ/kmol). LFLOWTOT (kW) = HFLOW (kW) + MOLF (kmol/s) . LHVMOL (kJ/kmol).
(4): The flow rate can be give n for the total flow or for se le cte d phase s of the stre am (V, L, W, or WL)
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ppm(s): 20-
CCxxx - Conce ntration of
30 %
compound xxx, in g/l (or
kg/m3) of liquid at 15°C
Attention:
1. If a compound fraction is measured as 0, then its accuracy is automatically set to zero (perfect
measurement).
3. If a compound only appears as traces (ppm), then setting it to zero is usually preferred (as it will
not affect the balance). The compound should only be considered if it is necessary for an
adequate modelling of the downstream part of the process.
Density measurements
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 2
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
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64 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 2
Miscellaneous tags
0,CLOSED,CLSD,FERME,
Fe rme => OFF
PRODID Product ID that de fine s the The list of products IDs and
product associate d to the code s must be made
stre am available in a DICTIONARY
se ction through a me a file
Attention: User-defined measurements can also be used on streams by registering them as a "model
measurement" and defining the way to calculate them through a Flex code. (See "Model
measurements page" and "User-defined stream measurements")
Many UNIT parameters can be introduced as measurement. Table below lists some of the most used
unit measurements. Refer to the unit's description for more information.
DPi Pre ssure drop 10 - 30 % All units fe aturing pre ssure drop e quations
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These solver bounds have a default value which depends on the type of value (temperature, pressure,
etc) and the optimiser used to solve the DVR problem (SOLDOG or SQP-IP). For SOLDOG, which has
not been designed for handling bounds, the bounds are quite large while for SQP-IP, somewhat
restrictive values are used. In addition, a special mode (activated through the OPTVAL unit) allows
SOLDOG to accept negative values for partial flow rates when the corresponding streams are not
involved in thermodynamic calculations.
These default values can be overwritten by using a special mathematical unit of type BNDVAL
where the user can enter its own lower and higher bounds for temperatures, pressures, etc. These
user bounds can be more or less restrictive than the default bounds.
Three levels are considered for both low and high bounds:
Warning (L -> H): a warning message will be issued if the measured or the validated
values are outside this range
Error (LL -> HH): an error message will be issued if the measured or the validated values
are outside this range. These bounds are also used by ValiFilter
Solver (SL -> SH): a fatal error occurs if the measured value is outside this range. The
validated value will be kept between these bounds. Solver bounds must always be within
the default bounds (possibly modified by a BNDVAL unit)
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 2
At convergence, a detail analysis is performed by VALI to determine which variables are on their
bounds. Each variable can be in three states:
one of its solver bounds (either High or Low) is active. This type of bound is reported as
Solver bounds in the report. Changing the value of the bound will change the results of the
model. In some cases, several bounds are related and redundant, for example, several
related flow rates might go to zero simultaneously. The redundant bounds are flagged.
its value is close to one of the bounds, i.e. the distance from the bound is lower than its
validated accuracy multiplied by a factor (which is 1 by default and can be overwritten
through the OPTVAL unit). It means that there is a significant probability that the actual
value would be on its bound. If the validated accuracy is large, it might indicate a lack of
information for determining the actual value of the variable.
BOUNDS CONTROL
The activation of solver bounds may in some cases lead to model instability and/or to numerical
singularities due to degenerated equations. The mechanism of bound control keeps the variable at an
adequate distance from the bounds avoiding any instability or singularity. This mechanism can be
used with any of the two solvers.
Attention: When using SOLDOG solver together with bounds control mechanism it is recommend
to set the parameter CONSTR of unit OPTVAL to 1.000001, to avoid staying to much away of the
controlled bound, which would inhibit the bound control mechanism.
At convergence of the validation problem and after linearization, the validated values of the
measured and unmeasured variables are expressed as a linear combination of the measured values.
Using error propagation computation, it is then possible to evaluate the validated accuracy of the
validated values on basis of these coefficients and of the accuracy of the measurements.
Variables (either measured or unmeasured) which are activating their bounds are considered as
constants when calculating the validated accuracy of the other variables.
In practice, the validated accuracy (in absolute value) is always lower or equal to the accuracy of the
related measurement. If the two values are equal, than it indicates a variable which in fact cannot be
validated.
The covariance between the validated values is calculated through a separate tool, the sensitivity
analysis. This covariance expressed as a correlation factor indicates measurements for which the
errors are related.
On basis of the redundancy level of the DVR problem, statistical tests enable the detection of possible
gross errors using the Chi-square test value and optionally an additional individual test.
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The Chi-square test (or Chi2) value depends on the number of redundancies of the system, active
bounds being considered as adding new levels of redundancy, and on the statistical certainty of the
test, typically 95% (see equation 126 of VDI-2048). If the weighted sum of penalties is higher than the
Chi-square test value, than there is a significant suspicion that gross errors exist.
Attention: The Quality of a run is defined as the ratio between the weighted sum of penalties and
the Chi2 value. The Quality should thus be less or equal to 1.
The individual test is based on the penalty associated to each of the measurement. If this penalty is
above a given threshold, which again depends on the statistical certainty of the test, then again the
measurement may be in gross error. The individual test can be based on:
the impact of the measurement, which is the decrease of the total penalty when removing
the corresponding measurement
The latest test is the most accurate in detecting the existence and the location of gross errors.
If any of the two tests is positive, all results obtained with the model are to be used with care:
validated values, identified performance factors and their validated accuracy.
The automatic procedure of elimination of gross errors of VALI can be activated by adding the
mathematical unit GROSSERR in the main PFD. This unit allows controlling the procedure by which
suspect measurements are progressively eliminated from the set of data until the statistical tests
indicate that no gross errors are present.
The selection of the tags to be eliminated can be based on any of the three individual tests listed here
above.
The Highest Impact procedure is the most powerful method. It detects the impact on the total sum of
penalties of removing each of the measurements. This impact is then weighted (by simple
multiplication) by the Failure probability factor associated to each measurement. The measurement
with the highest weighted impact is then removed and the procedure is iterated until the Chi2 test is
satisfied or, depending on the user choice, until the individual test is satisfied as well.
Eliminated tags are flagged by a distinctive colour in ValiModeller GUI PFDs as well as in the reports.
A pseudo-penalty is calculated based on the precision of the measurement (or of the correction in
VDI compliant mode).
The parameters of unit GROSSERR enable to select various detection/elimination strategies, but as
said above, the Highest Impact procedure is recommended in all cases.
More information is given on the Gross Error Elimination procedure in the description of unit
GROSSERR.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 2
Crudes and petroleum cuts are mixtures of an incalculable number of chemical compounds. Their
composition can therefore not be based on fractions of well-identified chemical compounds.
Specific analyses are available to describe these cuts, among which the distillation curves and the
density are the most important. In addition, a breakdown of some chemical compounds is
sometimes available for the light-ends (typically C1 to C5). Today, such a breakdown also covers
heavier compounds (up to C8 or C10) more and more, but compounds of the same family and
number of carbons are then lumped together.
On the modelling side, it is common practice to model such streams by representing them as a
mixture of a limited numbers of so-called petroleum fractions or pseudo-compounds.
These pseudo-compounds are defined by their boiling point and by their density. According to the
crude type and origin, different pseudo-compounds must be used to get an accurate representation.
The usual way of doing this is to select a number of compounds with given boiling point and to
identify their fraction and their density in order to match the stream distillation curve and density.
When the boiling point and the density of the compounds are known, their other thermodynamic
properties (like their critical properties or specific heat) can be calculated using standard correlations
as proposed for example by American Petroleum Institute (API).
On basis of this identification, it is then possible to perform various heat and mass balances and
other thermodynamic calculations.
Pseudo-compounds are available in the library CRUDE by step of 5 C. A typical Thermod named
CRUDE is defined in the Refining.bls file with a typical mix of pseudo-compounds.
When several petroleum cuts are involved in a distillation process, the inlet and outlet streams of the
column must obviously use the same pseudo-compounds. This problem can be expressed as a DVR
system involving:
as equations, the mass balances of the distillation column for each pseudo-compound
Having solved this system of equations, one can then estimate the other thermodynamic properties
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of the pseudo-compounds. Having identified these properties it is then possible to use these
compounds in more general DVR problems, involving heat balances and liquid/vapour equilibrium
laws.
The CRUVAL unit has been developed to solve this kind of problem. Several CRUVAL units can
appear in a model and they can be combined with other DVR units (BBXVAL, SPLVAL, etc.).
When the pseudo-compounds identification is activated (IDENT=1), only mass balances are
performed and some of the pseudo-compounds properties become variables of the system and are
therefore identified. At the end of the run the other pseudo-compounds properties are identified and
saved in the model file.
Attention: When in identification mode, you should only work with mass balances. The use of
reactors is also prohibited.
Information on the densities and distillation curves of the streams is given as usual measurements.
These measurements can be combined with composition measurements, for example to specify light
ends.
Three types of distillation curves are available: TBP, ASTM D-86 and ASTM D-1160. Each of them can
be expressed on a weight basis (TBPW, D86W and D60W) or on a volume basis (TBPV, D86V and
D60V). Each point is given as a separate measurement:
Example:
When at least three points of a distillation curve are given for a stream, VALI will do the following:
if not given the initial (0 %) and final (100 %) TBP points are extrapolated
the partial rates of compounds which fall out of this boiling range are set equal to zero,
except if a composition measurement is already defined
some additional constraints are added so as to keep the TBP curve as smooth as possible
the TBP and D86 curves will be added to the usual Stream report in the <model>.r4v file
The measurements of densities and distillation curves should be kept in both steps
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 2
Attention: Distillation curves of different types ( e.g. TBP and D86) cannot be defined as
measurements on the same stream. By defining a dummy black box with one inlet and one outlet
stream, you can however define one type of distillation curve on the inlet and a second type on the
outlet.
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The VDI 2048 guideline (October 2000 edition, available form Beuth Verlag GmbH, 10772 Berlin)
defines the fundamentals of "Uncertainties of measurement during acceptance tests on energy-
conversion and power plants". Its objective is "(…) to give instructions (…) for the evaluation of
acceptance measurements in terms of an informative comparison of guaranteed characteristics in
consideration of the special conditions in energy-conversion and power plants".
Although the mathematical principles of VALI are in total conformity with the recommendations of
the VDI-2048 guideline, a number of differences do exist between the formulation of VDI-2048 and the
default operating mode of VALI.
the definition of the accuracy, based on the standard deviation s in VALI and on the 95%
confidence level in VDI (1.96σ)
the definition of the penalty of individual measurements, which is based on the measured
accuracy for VALI and on the correction accuracy for VDI
the way reports are generated. The common reports on units and streams are replaced by
the mass and energy balance of the units and a more specific report for the streams (file
r4v)
To overcome these differences, a number of settings have been added to the list of options (units
OPTVAL and REPVAL) so that VALI strictly conforms to the guideline.
A global runtime option (-VDI) automatically activates all these settings in one shot.
Chapter 6 (assessment of the fulfilment of a guarantee) of the VDI 2048 can be fulfilled by introducing
additional equations via the FLEX language (see Flex Language description chapter). Values
calculated via Flex language will be presented in the standard reports of VALI (r4v, r6v, etc.).
VALI, when operated in its VDI mode, is fully compliant with the VDI-2048. This compliance has
been officially stated by VDI representatives.
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72 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
CHAPTER 3
THERMODYNAMIC
CALCULATION
METHODS
III
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 3
SECTION 1: INTRODUCTION
The methods depend on the chemical compounds involved, also on process temperature and
pressure ranges. The following values can be calculated for liquid and vapour phases : fugacities,
enthalpies and entropies, volumes, thermal conductivities, viscosities.
Solid chemical compounds may be considered, though they cannot be involved in phase changes.
When considering mass balances only, the default ideal methods proposed by VALI are
recommended.
When the data validation also involves phase equilibrium, appropriate methods must be selected for
fugacity calculations. This is because VALI determines phase equilibrium by equalising the fugacities
of each chemical compound in both phases.
When considering energy balances, appropriate methods must be selected, for enthalpy calculations
and for phase equilibrium calculations if phase changes occur.
Section 3 de scribe s the fundame ntal prope rtie s of che mical compone nts available in
the data-base s de live re d with VALI
FUELS for pse udo-compounds use d to mode l fue l-oil and coal
Section 4 de scribe s the inte raction parame te rs use d in the calculation me thods
available in the BELSIM e nvironme nt.
Section 5 shows how to choose the appropriate me thods for some typical mixture s and
give s advice on this subje ct.
Section 10 de scribe s how to use third partie s the rmodynamic package s compliant with
the GCO standard.
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the fugacity of a chemical compound in the liquid and vapour phase (This property is used
to calculate phase equilibrium)
Attention: Methods are not available to calculate the thermal conductivity or the viscosity of bi-
phasic mixtures (liquid plus vapour).
Thermodynamic properties calculation methods are selected from the method page of the Thermod
Notebook:
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 3
For the vapour phase, the simplest calculation method corresponds to a mixture of perfect gases
whose compound fugacities are equal to their partial pressures: VIDEAL (default method)
For the vapour phase, methods based on the equation of state are available:
LASSC
LEE-KESLER
PENG-ROBINSON
REDLICH-KWONG
SOAVE
VIRIAL
These methods consider the effects of binary interactions between identical and different molecules.
Except for the REDLICH-KWONG method, the interaction parameter values must be provided, or
the default values provided will be used. Refer to section "Interaction parameters" for more
information.
For the liquid phase, the simplest calculation method is the LIDEAL (default method)
It corresponds to an ideal liquid mixture whose compound fugacities are calculated by the Raoult
law. The fugacity of supercritical compounds is calculated by the following LYCKMAN empirical
function :
Where:
Tc and Pc are respectively the critical temperature (K) and pressure (bar) of the pure
component
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LASSC
LEE-KESLER
PENG-ROBINSON
SOAVE
REDLICH-KWONG
These methods consider the effects of binary interactions between identical and different molecules.
The interaction parameters values must be provided or the default values will be used. Refer to
section "Interaction parameters" for more information.
BRAUN K10
CHAO-SEADER
GRAYSON-STREED
These methods do not require interaction parameters values and are mostly used for hydrocarbon
mixtures.
Another group of methods is based on free energy expressions for the liquid mixture :
NRTL
UNIQUAC
The solubility of gases in a liquid mixture may also be considered but information must be provided
to calculate infinite dilution activity coefficients.
UNIFAC
This method is similar to UNIQUAC but there is no need to provide numerical interaction
parameters. The interaction parameters are defined by the model from structural information about
pure components (group contributions) : it is just necessary to define the list of typical groups
associated with each component.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 3
For the vapour phase, the simplest calculation method is the VIDEAL (default method)
This method is based on the ideal gas heat capacity. When water is present in the vapour mixture,
this method considers the real properties of water to calculate the mixture enthalpy and entropy.
LIDEAL2
QUADRAT1
QUADRAT2
The LIDEAL method calculates the liquid enthalpy by subtracting the vaporisation enthalpy
calculated by the Watson method from the vapour enthalpy of the mixture calculated with the
VIDEAL method.
The LIDEAL2 method calculates the liquid enthalpy by subtracting the vaporisation enthalpy, at the
normal boiling point, from the vapour enthalpy of the mixture calculated with the VIDEAL method,
then calculating the temperature effect with the liquid heat capacity expression.
When water is present in the liquid mixture, the above mentioned methods consider the real
properties of water to calculate the mixture enthalpy and entropy.
QUADRAT1 and QUADRAT2 calculates a deviation from respectively LIDEAL and LIDEAL2 methods
by adding a quadratic mixing enthalpy calculated as:
Where:
xi and xj are the molar fractions of the chemical compounds i and j in the liquid phase
For pure water the IAPWS-IF97, NBS and VDI methods are available.
For liquid and vapour phases, a group of methods, based on the equation of state, is applicable:
LASSC
LEE-KESLER
PENG-ROBINSON
SOAVE
REDLICH-KWON
The interaction parameters for enthalpy and entropy calculations are the default values proposed,
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unless customised values were entered previously and the same method as for fugacity calculations
is used. In this case VALI will use the interaction parameters entered for fugacity calculations.
For nonpolar hydrocarbon mixture and for both phases, the method CURL-PITZER may be used . It is
based on the principle of corresponding-states.
Attention: For ALL methods of ENTHALPY calculations (except VDI and IAPWS-IF97, for which
liquid state at 0 C is the reference), the reference state is the ideal gas at 298.15 K. Because of the
difference of reference state, streams based on VDI or IAPWS-IF97 cannot be mixed with other
streams in most units. The only exception is the BBXVAL unit where a mixing can be carried out
with the following limitation: all inlet OR outlet streams must have the same reference state.
They are based respectively on the Gunn and Yamada correlation and on the perfect gas law.
Methods based on the Wuithier correlation are also available for hydrocarbon mixtures In these
methods the mixture density is calculated on basis of its "cold density" (density at 15°C) and its
actual temperature.
Wuithier colddens: the density of the mixture at 15°C is calculated on basis of the
composition and the compounds density (COLDDENS property)
LASSC
LEE-KESLER
PENG-ROBINSON
SOAVE
REDLICH-KWONG
Attention: The LASSC equation of state method is recommended, since it is more accurate than the
other methods.
The interaction parameters for molar volume calculations are the default values, unless customized
values were entered previously and the same method as for fugacity calculations is used. In this case
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 3
VALI will use the interaction parameters entered for fugacity calculations.
For nonpolar hydrocarbon mixtures, you can use, for both phases, the CURL-PITZER method, which
is based on the principle of corresponding-states.
For pure water the IAPWS-IF97, NBS and VDI methods are available.
PEDERSEN
The first applies the principle of corresponding-states and is valid for nonpolar hydrocarbon
mixtures.
The second one is based on the Stiel and Thodos correlation associated to the Wassiljewa mixing rule.
PEDERSEN
ROBBINS-KINGREA
The first, based on the principle of corresponding-states, is valid for nonpolar hydrocarbon mixtures.
The third one, based on the Robbins and Kingrea correlation, is used for any reduced temperatures
lower than 1.0. It is associated to the mixing rule of Li.
For pure water the IAPWS-IF97, NBS and VDI methods are available.
PEDERSEN
The first method applies the correlation of Chapman and Enskog associated to the mixing rule of
Brokaw. You can use it for polar and nonpolar chemical compounds mixtures.
The second one is based on the principle of corresponding-states and is valid for nonpolar
hydrocarbon mixtures.
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
LETSOU-STIEL
VAN-VELZEN
The first, based on the Letsou and Stiel correlation, is used for all reduced temperatures to avoid
discontinuities at 0.75, even though this correlation is really only applicable for reduced
temperatures between 0.75 and 1.
The second method, based on the principle of corresponding-states, is applicable for nonpolar
hydrocarbon mixtures.
The third applies the correlation of Van Velzen, Cardozo and Langenkamp, which is normally valid
for reduced temperatures lower than 0.75. To avoid discontinuities in the liquid viscosity calculation,
the correlation is extrapolated up to the critical temperature.
The logarithmic mixing rule is used for the first and the third method.
For pure water the IAPWS-IF97, NBS and VDI methods are available.
Solids may be present in a mixture but they cannot participate in phase changes. Their enthalpies
will automatically be calculated by heat capacity coefficients. The viscosity calculation of mixtures
containing solids does not take their presence into account. The solid contribution to the molar
volume and the thermal conductivity is simply added to the mixture property.
Phase equilibrium calculations are realised by equalising the fugacities of each chemical compound in
each phase. The number and types of phases that VALI has to take into account has to be specified.
This is done by the means of the Stream State parameter which can take one of the following values :
LV: when the mixture can be liquid and/or vapour. Liquid-vapour phase equilibrium
calculations are systematically performed to check the thermodynamic state of the
mixture
LLV: when two liquid phases and a vapour phase can coexist. Liquid-liquid-vapour phase
equilibrium calculations are systematically performed to check the thermodynamic state
of the mixture
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82 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 3
LL: when two liquid phases can co-exist. Liquid-liquid phase equilibrium calculations are
systematically performed to check the thermodynamic state of the mixture
WLV: when one hydrocarbon liquid phase (without water), one aqueous liquid phase and
a vapour phase can co-exist, Liquid-liquid-vapour phase equilibrium are systematically
calculated to check the thermodynamic state of the mixture
WL: when one hydrocarbon liquid phase (without water) and one aqueous liquid phase
can co-exist. Liquid-liquid phase equilibrium are systematically calculated to check the
thermodynamic state of the mixture
Using a multiphase "Stream State" parameter means that VALI must check their existence but does
not mean that these phases exist.
For instance, with the "Stream State" set to "LV", VALI will conclude that the mixture :
is in liquid-vapour state if its te mpe rature lie s be twe e n the bubble and the de w point
is in the vapour phase if its te mpe rature is highe r than its de w point
Attention: With the "Stream State" set to "LV", VALI will never check for the existence of two liquid
phases.
It is essential that you specify properly this "State" parameter during Stream definition.
The enthalpy of a multiphase mixture is the weighted sum of the phase enthalpies, the weight factors
being obtained from the phase equilibrium calculation. The same rule applies for the entropy and the
volume.
When a solid is present in the mixture, it is considered in the liquid phase and contributes to the
enthalpy, entropy and volume of the liquid phase.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 83
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
During the definition of a Compound, ValiModeller copies the fundamental properties from the
BELSIM standard data base into the Process Data Base. When some data are missing, default values
are generated.
e tc.
e tc.
These pseudo-compounds can be used in combination with other compounds. Their properties can
be identified to match cut densities, by using a unit of type CRUVAL.
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84 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 3
Compound properties can be reviewed in the Data page of the Compounds Notebook.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 85
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
FUGACITY CALCULATIONS
Table below presents, for each listed calculation method, the set of fundamental properties, whose
values are required for each chemical compound of the mixture.
The critical coordinates are always needed to estimate starting values for the phase equilibrium
calculations.
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86 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 3
P P G A
A A Y S
R R D R S
O L S I A O R
M A P V O P D C Q
E S V S L O I P V
T T P V G S A A U L U A D
B C C C A C P T B M S R W
VIDEAL
LIDEAL X X X
VIRIAL X X X X X
PENG-ROBINSON X X X
LASSC X X X X X
SOAVE X X X
REDLICH-KWONG X X
LEE-KESLER X X X X
CHAO-SEEDER X X X X X
GRAYSON-STREED X X X X X
BRAUN K10 X X X
NRTL X X X X X
UNIQUAC X X X X X X
UNIFAC X X X X X X
PROPERTY DESCRIPTION
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 87
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PROPERTY DESCRIPTION
For the UNIFAC method, it is also necessary to introduce structural information about components:
interaction parameters are defined from structure of each component of the mixture.
Formation data is used to calculate reaction heats or reaction free energy variations when chemical
reactions are to be taken into account.
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88 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 3
H A
0 R
F O L D
M A H P C V
G E S V V C P S
0 T T P V G S A A P I A
F B C C C A C P P L D T
VIDEAL X X
LIDEAL X X X X X X X
LIDEAL2 X X X X X X
QUADRAT1 X X X X X X X
QUADRAT2 X X X X X X
PENG-ROBINSON X X X X X
LASSC X X X X X X X
SOAVE X X X X X
LEE-KESLER X X X X X X
CURL-PITZER X X X X X
PROPERTY DESCRIPTION
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 89
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PROPERTY DESCRIPTION
TABLE 3 - DATA NEEDED FOR ENTHALPY AND ENTROPY CALCULATIONS OF LIQUIDS AND VAPOURS
VOLUME CALCULATIONS
Table below presents, for each listed calculation method, the set of fundamental properties whose
values must be present in the model file for each chemical compound of the mixture.
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90 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 3
P G A
A Y S
R D R S D
O L I A O 6
M A V P D C 0
E S S O I P /
T P V G S A L U A 6
C C C A C T M S R 0
VIDEAL
VIRIAL X X X X X
GUNN-YAMADA X X X X X
PENG-ROBINSON X X X
LASSC X X X X
SOAVE X X X
LEE-KESLER X X X X
CURL-PITZER X X X
WUITHIER COLDDENS X
PROPERTY DESCRIPTION
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 91
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PROPERTY DESCRIPTION
O D I C
M M C H P V V O
O E P V O S I N
L T T P G I A L A S D
W B C C A D P M T L L
PEDERSEN X X
VANVELZEN X
LETSOU-STIEL X X X X
STIEL-THODOS X X X
POLYNOM X
ROBBINS-KINGREA X X X X
CHAPMAN-ENSKOG X X X X
PROPERTY DESCRIPTION
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92 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 3
PROPERTY DESCRIPTION
TABLE 5 - DATA NEEDED FOR VIS COS ITY AND THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY CALCULATIONS OF LIQUIDS AND
VAPOURS
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 93
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
When state equations are used to calculate vapour or liquid enthalpies and entropies, VALI uses the
default values of the interaction parameters.
Binary parameters can be entered and edited in the Binary Parameters page of the Thermod
Notebook.
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94 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 3
There is one set of interaction parameters for each pair of chemical compounds present in the
mixture. These parameters are involved in the mixing rules used to calculate the mixture's equation
of state coefficients.
Table below gives their names and their default values in the BELSIM environment.
LEE-KESLER K 1.0
TAU 1.0
The calculation of the second virial coefficients of the pure chemical compounds considers the effects
of the dipole moment and of the associative character of the chemical compounds.
When the association parameter is higher than 4.5 (as with carboxylic acids), the chemical
compounds are found as monomers and dimeres. This effect is automatically considered in the
calculation of the virial coefficients.
Interactions between different chemical compounds are calculated from the solvation parameters,
which can be identified by a separate program.
Table below shows the name and the default values of the VIRIAL interaction parameters.
These equations calculate the activity coefficients of liquid chemical compounds in non-ideal
mixtures.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 95
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The NRTL model contains six parameters: ijC0 ijCT jiC0 jiCT ijA0 ijAT
Where:
gij, gji, gii, gjj and Aij are the coefficients from the NRTL equation for the free energy and R
is the perfect gas constant
The UNIQUAC model contains four parameters: Aij Bij Aji Bji.
Where:
Uij, Ujj, Uji and Uii are the coe fficie nts from the UNIQUAC e quation for fre e e ne rgy
When supercritical compounds are present in the mixture, you must provide the coefficients to
calculate their activity at infinite dilution:
Table below shows the names of these interaction parameters in the BELSIM environment.
ijC0 0.0
jiC0 0.0
ijAT 0.0
ijCT 0.0
jiCT 0.0
isGAM0 0.0
isGAMT 0.0
Aji 0.0
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96 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 3
Bij 0.0
Bji 0.0
isGAM0 0.0
isGAMT 0.0
QUADRAT1 and QUADRAT2 calculates a deviation from respectively LIDEAL and LIDEAL2 methods
by adding a quadratic mixing enthalpy calculated as:
Where:
xi and xj are the molar fractions of the chemical compounds i and j in the liquid phase
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
pure water
5.1 WATER
Use the IAPWS-IF97, NBS or VDI methods for all the pure water. Note that IAPWS-IF97 and VDI
methods must be used for all properties together. You cannot combine IAPWS-IF97, VDI and other
methods.
Note also that you in most units you cannot mix streams using IAPWS-IF97 or VDI methods with
other streams, because the reference conditions for enthalpy are different. Only BBXVAL units enable
to mix streams using IAPWS-IF97 or VDI methods.
TYPICAL THERMODS
The file Empty.bls contains the following Thermods:
Gas: natural gas: N2, H2, H2S, CO2, C1, C2, C3, I-C4, N-C4, N-C5
The models use Ideal methods and are recommended for Power Plants applications.
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98 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 3
You can derive your own models by using these models as starting point.
If water is present in the mixture and could form a separate water liquid phase, use one of the
following strings for the Stream State parameter :
Water/Liquid/Vapour
Water/Liquid
In other cases, use one of the following strings for this parameter :
Liquid
Vapour
Liquid/Vapour
CALCULATION OF FUGACITIES
At low and medium pressures, WITHOUT light chemical compounds, choose between the following:
VIDEAL and LIDEAL calculation methods for vapour and liquid phases
VIDEAL for vapour phase and BRAUN K10 for the liquid phase for mixture s of he avy
hydrocarbon compounds
With the first three pairs of methods, there are no interaction parameters to provide.
For the equations of state, use the default values for the interaction parameters.
When light compounds are present in the mixture, choose any of the equations of state, but in this
case, we advise you to identify the interaction parameters between the light compounds and the
heavier compounds using experimental data of solubilities. A separate program can help you to
perform this identification.
If the light compounds are H2 and CH4, the methods of REDLICH-KWONG and GRAYSON-STREED
may be respectively used for the vapour and liquid phases.
The pressure and mixing corrections on enthalpy and entropy are only calculated in the CURL-
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
with a preference for the LASSC equation when interaction parameters are available. Volume
predictions by equations of state are rarely accurate.
Select one of the following strings for the Stream State parameter :
Liquid
Vapor
Liquid-Vapor
Liquid-Liquid
Liquid-Liquid-Vapor
CALCULATION OF FUGACITIES
At low and medium pressures, even for polar chemical compounds, choose between the following:
For the second and third methods, interaction parameters for both phases have to be identified from
liquid-vapour equilibrium data. A separate program may help you to identify these parameters.
The last method is equivalent to UNIQUAC, but interaction parameters are defined from structure of
each molecule : it is based on group contributions (list of groups is defined with pure component
properties).
When supercritical compounds are present in the mixture, you must provide their activity
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100 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 3
Neither mixing enthalpies, nor pressure corrections can be taken into account, except with the
method of LEE-KESLER.
with a preference for the LASSC equation when the interaction parameters are available. Volume
predictions by equations of state are generally poor.
CALCULATION OF VISCOSITIES
For the calculation of viscosities, the following methods are available :
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SECTION 6: REFERENCES
Statistical Thermodynamics of Liquid Mixtures : A New Expression for the Excess Gibbs Energy of Partly or
Completely Miscible Systems
NBS/NRC Steam tables, thermodynamic and transport properties and computer programs for vapour and
liquid states of water in SI units
Contribution à l'étude de la thermodynamique des systèmes non idéaux sous pressions élevées
He ye n G.
A modified Benedict-Webb-Rubin Equation of State for Methane using recent experimental Data
McCarty R.D.
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102 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 3
Generalized Correlation for Fugacity Coefficients in Mixtures at Moderate Pressures. Application of Chemical
Theory of Vapour Imperfections
A Corresponding States Model for the Thermal Conductivity of Gases and Liquid
An Improved Corresponding States Model for the Prediction of Oil and Gas Viscosities and thermal
Conductivity
Calculation of high-pressure vapour-liquid equilibria from a corresponding states correlation with emphasis on
asymmetric mixtures
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1971, Te chnip.
Soave G.
Vidal J.
Properties of Water and Steam- The Industrial Standard IAPWS-IF97 for the Thermodynamic Properties and
Supplementary Equations for Other Properties
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104 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 3
Acetylenes, Acids, Alcohols, Aldehydes, Amides, Aromatics, Esters, Ethers, Halogenated derivatives,
Isocyanates, Ketones, Miscellaneous, Naphtenes, Nitrogen derivatives, Olefins, Oxides, Paraffins,
Sulfur derivatives.
The properties stored for each compound are listed in the following table.
TMIN(PV)
Te mpe rature range for vapour pre ssure K
TMAX(PV)
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 105
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
TMIN(CL)
Te mpe rature range of CPL K
TMAX(CL)
TMIN(CG)
Te mpe rature range of CPID K
TMAX(CG)
UNUSED57
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106 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 3
UNUSED58
UNUSED59
UNUSED60
UNUSED63
UNUSED64
UNUSED65
UNUSED66
UNUSED67
UNUSED68
UNUSED69
UNUSED70
ACETYLENES
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ACIDS
ALCOOLS
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108 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 3
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 109
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110 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 3
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 111
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ALDEHYDES
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112 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 3
AMIDES
Me thylamine C1H5N1 MA
Ethylamine C2H7N1 EA
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 113
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114 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 3
AROMATICS
Be nze ne C6H6 BZ
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 115
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
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116 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 3
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 117
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118 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 3
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 119
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ESTERS
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120 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 3
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 121
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ETHERS
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122 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 3
HALOGENATED DERIVATIVES
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 123
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124 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 3
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 125
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126 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 3
ISOCYANATE
KETONES
Ke te ne C2H2O1 C2ONE
MISCELLANEOUS
Argon AR1 AR
Carbon C1 C
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 127
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
De ute rium D2 D2
Fluorine F2 F2
He lium 4 HE1 HE
Hydroge n H2 H2
Iodine I2 I2
Krypton KR1 KR
Ne on NE1 NE
Nitroge n N2 N2
Oxyge n O2 O2
Ozone O3 O3
Radon RN1 RN
Sulfur S2 S2
Sulfur (S6) S6 S6
Sulfur (S8) S8 S8
Xe non XE1 XE
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128 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 3
NAPHTENES
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 129
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NITROGEN DERIVATIVES
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130 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 3
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 131
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OLEFINS
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132 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 3
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 133
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134 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 3
OXIDES
PARAFFINS
Me thane C1H4 C1
Ethane C2H6 C2
Propane C3H8 C3
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 135
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136 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 3
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 137
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138 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 3
SULFUR DERIVATIVES
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 139
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140 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 3
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The characteristics of the solids are defined with regards to a quantity of solid ("unit") specified by
the user and of which the weight is given by the parameter UNITW (kg/unit). In fact, UNITW
corresponds to the molecular weight for chemical compounds that are perfectly determined.
1 : triclinic 2 : monoclinic
3 : orthorhombic 4 :
rhombohe dral
5 : quadratic 6 : he xagonal
TMIN(VS)
Te mpe rature range for volume K
TMAX(VS)
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142 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 3
Aluminum AL1 AL
Coppe r CU1 CU
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Boron1 B1 B_1
Boron2 B1 B_2
Barium BA1 BA
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Bismuth BI1 BI
Boron3 B1 B_3
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Sodium NA1 NA
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Le ad PB1 PB
Silicon SI1 SI
Vanadium1 V1 V_1
Vanadium2 V1 V_2
Vanadium3 V1 V_3
Zinc ZN1 ZN
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 3
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Tungste n2 W1 W_2
Tungste n1 W1 W_1
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Ce sium CS CS
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Gallium GA1 GA
Indium IN1 IN
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Iridium1 IR 1_IR
Platinum PT1 PT
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Potassium K1 K
Lithium LI1 LI
Rubidium RB1 RB
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Uranium1 U1 U_1
Uranium2 U1 U_2
Uranium3 U1 U_3
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 3
NewComp.exe is used to create new compounds that can be used in your VALI models.
The application NewComp.exe is located in the directory \bin of Belsim installation. It can be started
directly from vali3 folder of the windows Taskbar.
User-defined compounds properties are stored in a user library called user.bls while the list of
compounds is stored in the file user.all. Both files are located in the directory \usr of Belsim
installation.
These two files should be copied and restored in the \usr directory at each new installation of Belsim
software.
When delivered to the client, the user library contains one compound named H2O_USER that is
simply a copy of the compound H2O from Belsim library.
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To add a compound:
Name: short name of the compounds in 8 characters maximum, without any space
Formula: compact chemical formula listing the total amounts of each element (ex:
C3H5CL3)
Family: free field used to categorize the compounds when displaying the list of
compounds in ValiModeller.
2. The compound will be added after the selected compound in the main notebook
3. The compounds can be moved up and down with the [Up] and [Down] buttons.
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To delete a compound
select the compound to be deleted from the list of substances of the main notebook
Edit definition allows the user to change the Long Name, the Family and the Abstract Number of the
selected compound. The other fields are not accessible once the compound has been created.
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Edit data allows the user to access the whole set of parameters used to define the behaviour of the
selected compound. At this point, one has to mention that for mass balance only, the sole parameters
required are:
To perform mass and energy balance, the user will have to adjust the parameters required by the
thermodynamic methods he plans to use. At this time, there is no estimation method (based on the
group contributions,...) embedded in this tool to approximate the parameters required to carry out
energy balance.
The values provided by the Rough Evaluation come from simplistic correlations just based on the
molecular weight.
In any case, these estimations are not to be used for mass and energy balance.
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VALI has a Cape-Open (CO) compliant thermo-socket that enables thermodynamic calculations to be
carried-out through thermodynamic packages made available by other software vendors in the form
of CO compliant thermo plugs.
The implementation of the thermodynamic socket is compliant with CO-THRM-1 Version 1.0.
The use of third party plugs has been made as transparent and easy to use as possible and is done in
two steps:
enter the Thermod name and select the type CAPE-OPEN 1.0
press OK
Attention:
1. Compound names must unique across all Thermods (either native or Cape-Open compliant)
3. You can mix streams with different Thermods through BBXVAL units. The correspondence
between compounds is carried out according to their CAS number. When performing heat
balances, take care that the same temperature and pressure is used as reference for enthalpy
between all Thermods.
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The list of Thermodynamic packages and systems that are installed on the computer is displayed.
When editing a CO compliant Thermod, the ValiModeller native Thermod notebook is replaced by a
window that displays the properties of the CO compliant package.
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Physical characteristics and fluids properties are calculated through various thermodynamic
methods which are subject to unmeasurable and hence random errors.
By default, these uncertainties are neglected by VALI. The parameter UNCTHER of the OPTVAL unit
enables to activate these uncertainties.
At present time, such uncertainties are available and have been implemented for the steam tables
(IAPWS methods).
When thermodynamics uncertainties are taken into account, the following procedure is applied:
a first run is performed without thermodynamics uncertainties (the random errors are set
to zero)
the the rmodynamics unce rtaintie s are the n re laxe d and covariance factors are introduce d
be twe e n the de viations for points which are close to e ach othe r (in te rms of p and T) and a
se cond run is pe rforme d
For each link between stream variables and thermodynamic properties, an equation of the following
form is generated (similarly to equation 91 of VDI-2048):
x = x (p, T) + DxTABy
'TAGS OF THE SYSTEM' with the table of initial and validated values and accuracy
At present time, values for the uncertainties are only available for the IAPWS method. The standard
deviations for H-S-V are defined from the values found in the table 43 p 40 of the "Release on the
IAPWS Industrial Formulation 1997 for the Thermodynamic Properties of Water and Steam":
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Concerning the uncertainties on the saturated Pressure and Temperature, we have adopted values
found in table 44 p 42 of the same document are used:
T<623.15 K 623.15<T K
Attention: It can happen that some tags associated with thermodynamic uncertainties will be kept
constant in the case they are associated with a non-existing phase. This can happen if a stream is
defined as LV, but the final state is corresponding to pure L or V. In that case, only the variable
associated with the existing phase will be relaxed and taken into account.
The calculation of correlation factors is based on the formula 102 on page 50 of the VDI 2048
guideline:
The suitable values for the parameters are extracted from the reference [18] of the VDI 2048 guideline.
The kp and kt parameters are found from the following relationships:
The correlation factors are generated between variables belonging to the same regions, there is never
correlation coefficients between measurements associated to different regions.
For this reason, it is impossible to have correlation factors between Liquid and Vapour properties for
example. This is also not possible for saturation pressure if they are on both sides of the value of
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The problem is then rerun with the values found without thermodynamic uncertainties as initial
values.
The statistics about the size of the mathematical problem will be refreshed (except if there is no
change) and the calculation of the a posteriori covariance matrix will start after identification of the
active bounds which will be considered as additional constraints to the system.
Attention: If the second run is not successful, the solution found during the first run is restored and
a special exitcode is issued.
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CHAPTER 4
HOW TO BUILD
YOUR DATA
VALIDATION
IV
MODEL
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
SECTION 1: INTRODUCTION
Building a validation model requires the following information:
the location of measurements that are available including sample analyses (on-line and
off-line)
although this is not strictly necessary, having a design heat and mass balance of the
process is recommended for complex processes
The complete development of a model can be, somewhat arbitrarily divided in two parts:
converging the model on a few cases and reviewing it: checking the model conformity to
the actual process, adjusting the precision of the measurements, etc.
The creation of a model can be carried out in several ways. The sequence of operations proposed here
is certainly one of the best methods when creating a new model. Other schemes are of course
possible.
Better KISS than KICC: "Keep It Simple Stupid" is better that "Keep It Crazy Complicated".
Determine what you really want to validate and limit your model to this. Avoid complicating your
model with unnecessary UNITS and STREAMS. If needed, you can easily add additional details
afterwards.
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The preliminary phase consists in answering some basic questions about the data validation model:
Having answered these questions you can then set up the flow-sheet of the data validation model.
This flow-sheet is generally similar to the process flow-sheet although some differences are
sometimes observed. In some cases for example, several process UNITS can be modelled as one
validation UNIT, whereas in some other cases, several validation UNITS will be necessary to model
one process UNIT.
For an overall mass balance, where only the total rates transferred between the UNITS is of
importance, defining only one component (whatever it is) can be sufficient. The default
thermodynamic methods will be sufficient.
For a mass balance on a component per component basis, the different chemical components must
be defined. The default thermodynamic methods will be sufficient.
For a heat and mass balance of a chemical plant, the different chemical components must be defined.
According to the system, and especially for strongly non-ideal systems, some more sophisticated
thermodynamic methods might be necessary.
POWER PLANTS
For water and steam STREAMS (H2O only), the IAPWS-IF97 method is recommended. The NBS or
VDI method are also a good choice.
If combustion is involved, separate THERMODS should be used for the combustion air, the fuel and
the fumes. Adequate THERMODS are available by default in the Empty model file (Empty.bls). Using
default thermodynamic methods is usually sufficient for such STREAMS.
CHEMICAL REACTIONS
If chemical REACTIONS (including fuel combustion) are involved in the process, you can:
either define the REACTION scheme by writing the different REACTIONS that can occur in
the reactors and reference them in the UNIT (type RCTVAL, RLVVAL, RKPVAL, RKIVAL)
modelling the reactor
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
or allow any REACTION to occur, provided that atomic balances are satisfied. In such a
case a UNIT of type BATVAL or BWHVAL must be used
In the first case, you must carefully select your REACTIONS, in such a way that on a given reactor, all
REACTIONS are linearly independent. Failing to do so will induce singularities in the mathematical
system and prohibit its solution.
clack-box/mixer:
NETVAL: network of pipes where STREAMS are mixed and split up on basis of a
product code
column:
compressor:
controllers (user-equations):
heat exchanger:
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PRHVAL: heat exchange between a vapor that is condensed and a cold stream
pump:
PUMVAL: useful if one wants to identify pump power or if its power is known or
related to another equipment (driven by a turbine). In many case, pumps are not
modeled
reactor:
RKPVAL: as RCTVAL but some reactions can be at (some distance of) chemical
equilibrium
Separator:
splitter:
storage:
turbine:
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
valves:
in each PFD: define the UNITS one by one and connect them with STREAMS. Review the
various UNIT and STREAM parameters
in a separate text file called a TAG file, which you handle through any text editor, like
NotePad or WordPad. Using a spread-sheet application (like Excel, Lotus, etc.) is also
pretty well indicated for such a task. You must however export the spread-sheet in a text
form (ASCII file) so that ValiEngine can read it
When using a separate TAG file, the tags defined in the model are ignored.
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ValiModeller follows Windows standards for most if not all of its operations:
double-click the object to Open it. Double clicking a PFD opens the corresponding flow-
sheet, while double-clicking any other object (units, streams, thermods, etc.) opens its
Notebook
right-click an object to activate the Object menu, which presents the different operations
you can perform with that object
Notebooks are associated with the following objects : PFDs, UNITS, STREAMS, THERMODS,
REACTIONS, COMPOUNDS and Result Boxes. These Notebooks gather in different pages all the
information of the corresponding object.
Notebooks are activated by double-clicking the object or by right-clicking the object and selecting the
Data option in the Object menu.
The data are presented mainly through Tables. Cells with grey background are not editable. Only
cells with white background are editable values.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
use the arrow keys of your keyboard or mouse to navigate between the different cells of a
table
a little arrow on the right side of the active cell indicates a combo box
to edit the contents of a cell, double-click on the cell or press "Enter" or the "Spacebar" key.
Alternatively, you can directly enter a value to replace the existing value of in the cell
using the mouse, you can select a range of cells or the entire table. Use CTRL-C to copy the
selected range to the clipboard for exporting to external applications like Excel or Word
With ValiModeller you can add new elements to your models but you can also review the data of
existing elements. A word of caution is here necessary: the validated data of the objects are only
coherent with respect to the last successful run of the model. Incoherence in the validated data can
therefore result from the following causes:
any change made to a model can result in data incoherence: addition or deletion of a UNIT
or of a STREAM, but also change of any parameter of a UNIT or of a STREAM
as ValiModeller allows you to run parts of models, the parts that have not been considered
in the last run, are of course not necessarily coherent with the rest of the model
The UNITS and STREAMS data must therefore always be considered with great care.
After running ValiEngine (or when any other application has changed the model file), ValiModeller
will propose:
to reload the results: only the data are read from the file, assuming the model structure has
not changed. This operation is quicker but might fail if some structural changes have been
made to the model by the external application
to take no action: the results are not loaded and the next run will restart form the initial
point presented by ValiModeller
The last option allows you to first look at the results before loading them. Depending on these results
you can decide later on to load the results back in ValiModeller and use the calculated results as a
new initial point for the next run, through the command Application |Load Results (or its
corresponding button ).
Attention:
1. When running ValiEngine, the results are saved in the file only if the run is successful.
2. Even if the run is successful, a runtime option allows you to suppress the saving of the results by
ValiEngine.
3. In both cases, the Application|Load results command will restore the starting point as it was
before the last run.
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use the ValiModeller option in the Belsim | Vali4 Programs Start Menu
If you started ValiModeller without specifying a model file, you will get an empty window.
Use:
Attention: if you upgraded from an earlier version of VALI, the model will be converted
automatically when reading it.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
The Browse Tree can be activated or deactivated using the Browse Tree Button , the Option|
Browse Tree Menu command or the short-cut Ctrl+B. The Browse Tree gives a global overview of
the model structure. It is by default located on the left side of the screen but it can be moved as a
toolbar anywhere in application area.
Clicking on a will expand the tree with more information about the corresponding item while
clicking on a will collapse this information. For example expanding a PFD will display its contents:
UNITS, STREAMS and sub-PFDs.
Clicking on an PFD selects that PFD in the PFD View. Clicking on a UNIT or a STREAM, activates the
corresponding object in the current PFD and highlights its symbol in yellow in the PFD View.
Double-clicking an object opens its Notebook, except for PFDs which are opened when double-
clicking them.
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Double-clicking a PFD opens it in the PFD View. Double-clicking a UNIT or a STREAM opens its
Notebook.
Edit mode: status (ON/OFF) of the edit mode (see page 20)
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
File
Print to File…: to print the current PFD as an emf file (enhanced metafile)
Print Setup…: to select the printer and some other printer settings
Fit to Page: toggle to Fit the printing to the page size. The drawing will be scaled so
that it fits on a single page
Edit
View
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Full Fit: to zoom out the current PFD until it fits the View area
Tools
Replace Tags Default Value: to replace all the tags default values by the measured
values
Display: to display UNITS and STREAMS status and select which tags values are
displayed in the notebooks (a combo-box is also available on the toolbar)
Default: display UNITS and STREAMS status as set from GUI for the next run
Measured: display UNITS and STREAMS status as set after mea files reading
Used: display UNITS and STREAMS status finally used by ValiEngine (including
filtering, OFF propagation…)
Application
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
Log File (r1v): Summary of the run with warning and error messages
Runtime Messages (r2v): Messages that are usually sent to the screen (This file is
created only when running with -R2S option (Don't show summary of events)
Mathematical Details (r3v): List of equations and variables, trace of the convergence
algorithm.
Options
Windows
Help
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ValiModeller can be operated in two modes: Edit mode ON or Edit mode OFF.
In Edit mode OFF you can review the model and update the UNITS and STREAMS data.. All
operations on the structure of a model are disabled : creation or deletion of objects (PFDs, UNITS,
STREAMS, REACTIONS, THERMODS, COMPOUNDS, Measurements, Result boxes) but also any
operation related to the Graphical representation of the model: symbols of UNITS (including their
position and size), drawing of STREAMS, etc. The background of PFDs is set in light grey.
To enter any structural or graphical change to a model you must activate Edit mode through the
Options|Edit mode ON command or the Edit Mode button . The background of PFDs is set in
white.
Attention: when loading a model for which some tags are not registered in the LicenseServer or
when loading a model which has been modified by a non-commercial license, the Edit Mode is set
to OFF and cannot be reset to ON (Read Only Mode).
Backup Model: to create a backup of the model (in ModelBackup directory). When
clicking this button, a comment can be entered to describe the backup:
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
Restore Model: to restore a previously created back-up of the model. When clicking this
button, the model is closed, and a window prompts for choice of a backup, displaying
comments:
Full Fit: to zoom out the current PFD until it fits the View area
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The View|Hide STREAM Names command allows you to suppress the display of these names on
the flow-sheets. Similarly the command View|Hide UNIT Names allows to hide the UNIT Names in
the flow sheet and the command View|Hide Results allows to hide the result boxes.
You can save these settings in your user profile through the Options|Configure notebook.
The Option|Configure command opens a notebook where various options can be edited in different
pages:
Prefix names: defines the default names for units and streams
Attention: The settings of the first two pages can be saved in the user profile by clicking the Set as
Defaults button so that they will be automatically used during the next session. The user settings are
saved in a file called after the name of the user (<user>.ini) in the directory usr of Belsim installation.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
OPTIONS PAGE
EDIT MODE
Add Multiple Objects: to automatically add several UNITS or STREAMS in one shot
CONFIRM DELETION
You can specify here whether ValiModeller should ask a confirmation before actually deleting an
object.
Attention: REACTIONS, THERMODS and COMPOUNDS can only be deleted if they are not
referred by another object (e.g. you cannot delete a REACTION that appears in the list of
REACTIONS of a UNIT).
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When creating a new object, a name is created on basis of an optional prefix and of a number which
is automatically incremented. The options of this section enable to specify whether or not to use the
prefix.
For units and streams, a different prefix can be configured for each unit and stream type, as defined
in the page Prefix names of the Configuration notebook.
For THERMODS and REACTIONS, the prefix is respectively THER and REAC.
PRINTING
CURRENT DISPLAY
This part corresponds to the Menu commands Tools|Highlight and Tools|Display. It also enables
to activate/deactivate the Browse Tree and the coloring of objects according to their penalty.
Default: display UNITS and STREAMS status as set from GUI for the next run
Measured: display UNITS and STREAMS status as set after mea files reading
Used: display UNITS and STREAMS status finally used by ValiEngine (including filtering,
OFF propagation, etc.)
Tags Data Set option corresponds to the set of tags values shown when you open a notebook (Default,
Measured or Used). If the check-box is not checked, this setting is ignored and the set of tags values is
selected on basis of the Object Status setting.
This part corresponds to the Objects status shown after a reload of the file (typically after a run).
HIDE
PENALTY
These settings specify which colors must be used for the tags highlighting system. You can also
specify the threshold values for suspicious and significant deviations.
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MISCELLANEOUS
values shown in the notebooks will be displayed with the number of decimals specified
according to the physical units
when checked, the details are hidden in the measurements window to expand the size of
the measurements table
Attention: You can click on the fields of the table header to change the sorting order of the list of
units.
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Application path: path of the executable file to be launched when the button is clicked
(mandatory)
Start in: path of the directory where the external application will be launched. If not
specified, the application will start in the directory of the application
Icon: path of the ".ico" file displayed in the toolbar. If not specified, the Belsim icon is used
ToolTip: text displayed when the cursor moves over the button
Arguments: list of arguments that are used by the application. Clicking on the button
"List" shows a list of predefined arguments
Run Vali: when checked, ValiEngine is run before or/and after the application
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The Model Measurements page lists user-defined stream measurements. To create a new
measurement, press Add button. Once a new measurement type is created, the model needs to be
closed an reopened.
Once a user measurement is available in the model, it has to be defined using FLEX code.
The View|Find command (or the button) opens the Find window where you can list the PFDs,
UNITS, STREAMS, TAGS, THERMODS, COMPOUNDS, REACTIONS and RESULT BOXES. The top field
allows restricting the number of objects that are shown in the table. Clicking the OK button opens
the notebook of the selected object.
If you deactivate the Close on Ok check box then the Find window will remain open after opening
any object, until you press the Cancel button. Checking Stay on top, will maintain the window on
top of the other windows.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
Renaming objects is only possible in Edit Mode. The Rename Object window can be activated
through the Object Menu (right-click) of each object. It can also be activated via the Rename button of
the notebooks.
For UNITS, STREAMS and COMPOUNDS the Auto rename tags check box enable to rename the tags
belonging to the object, when the tag name is built on basis of the object name.
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You can select objects either from the Browse Tree or from the PFDs viewing and editing area.
When a PFD is open in Edit mode you can also select several objects (PFDs, UNITS, STREAMS,
RESULT BOXES) by drawing a rectangle around them. Once the objects are selected you can move
them together or delete them all with the DEL key (a confirmation of the delete will always be asked).
In an opened PFD you can also select several objects by clicking them one by one while maintaining
the CTRL key pressed. In that case you can move the objects only with the arrows keys not with the
mouse.
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PFDS
UNITS
STREAMS
THERMODS
COMPOUNDS
REACTIONS
TAGS
RESULT BOXES
HISTORY
TAGS can also be defined through one or several TAG files (see Using TAG Files). In such a case the
TAGS defined in the model file will be ignored.
The data associated to the UNITS and STREAMS correspond to the last run of ValiEngine, except if
you modify them with ValiModeller. It is also possible to change UNITS and STREAMS values
though measurement files. These data are used as starting points for the next run.
An empty model file called Empty.bls is delivered as a default file for the creation of your models. It
contains the compounds and thermodynamic models needed for the modelling of a power plant. The
file Refining.bls contains thermodynamic models relevant for refining applications.
To create a new (completely) empty MODEL FILE, use the File|New command or the button. This
will drive you through the following steps:
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A first PFD (named PFD1) will automatically be created in the main PFD.
If you want to reuse parts of already existing models, you can also:
open (File|Open) any exiting file you want to use as basis of your new model
It is also possible to import existing models (or part of models) as described below.
Attention: Several example files are distributed with VALI (see the examples directory on the
distribution CD). They contain typical COMPOUNDS and THERMODS.
To import models or part of models into another model file, you must open both files at the same time
and activate the Browse Tree.
Select the PFD or the UNIT you want to copy from the source file and drag it into one of the PFDs of
the target file.
You can use the same approach to copy THERMODS, REACTIONS and COMPOUNDS between two
models. These objects will only be copied if their data and name are different. For example, copying
the compound H2O into a model which already refers to this compound will not create a second copy
of H2O.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
The Rename Conflicting Objects window is then used to resolve naming conflicts between imported
and existing objects. The objects are listed by class and the Duplicates attribute is shown in front of
the classes for which conflicts exist. You can list the conflicting objects by checking the
corresponding radio button.
Conflicts must be resolved by renaming the conflicting objects. This renaming can be done for
several objects at a time by entering only the first letters of the names in the field Mask and entering
a new prefix for these objects in the field New Name.
The renaming can also be totally automatic by checking the Auto rename option. In such case the
conflicting objects will be renamed according to the default prefixes. If you uncheck in addition the
Rename duplicates only option, then all objects will be renamed, not only the conflicting ones.
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Attention:
1. to import several PFDs in one shot, move first all the PFDs you want to import into a single PFD
and import the latter.
3. in place of importing a model, you can also define a link from an empty PFD of a model to a PFD
defined in another model file. At execution time the corresponding model is then included in the
global model. (see paragraph Using external PFDs in the following section)
The model versioning and documentation is designed for keeping track of changes made to a model.
When saving the model after any change has been made to it , the Project History window is
displayed. The history window can also be displayed through the Options|History menu command.
the version has two parts the major and the minor numbers (ex : 3.1), which are increased
at user request. When the major version is incremented, the minor version number is set
to 1
the run number is increased after each successful run made with the model (provided the
results are saved). This run number is reset at each new major and minor version
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
In addition, you can add comments to document the changes. You can also merge or delete the
comments associated with past versions
Attention: it is possible to prohibit the appearance of the history window using the corresponding
check box or through the user settings in the Options|Configure Notebook.
Each tag of a model must be associated to a Plant. This enables to easily track the tags at the License
Server level. The notion of Plant is also used by ValiLink to communicate with external systems.
To change the default plant, use the Tools|Plants command. The Add enables to create new plants.
The other properties of the plants must be set though the LicenseManager.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
Those PFDs are organized recursively, in a way similar to directories under Windows operating
system: any PFD can contain other PFDs.
The main PFD, called by default MAIN, can contain other PFDs, but no UNITS (process equipment).
The main PFD also contains special objects which allows you to change the report lay-out or
mathematical options of the model like the maximum number of iterations (OPTVAL), the precision
of the thermodynamic calculations (PRECIS), the default bounds on variables (BNDVAL) or the
settings of the Gross Error elimination system (GROSSERR).
PFDs
The PFDs are listed in the Browse Tree window. The current PFD is displayed in the View Screen. To
modify a PFD you need to be in Edit Mode and to Open the PFD.
For consistency reasons, any UNIT and any PFD can appear in only one PFD. In the same way, any
STREAM can connect a maximum of two different UNITS. However these two UNITS can be located
in two different PFDs.
Attention: ValiModeller can be used to build models for ValiEngine but also for different
applications like SIMU (sequential process simulator). However different types of PFDs are then
used (SIMU PFDs in place of VALI PFDs).
open the PFD where this new PFD must be created (you must be in Edit Mode)
point to the place where the PFD must be created and click the mouse
PFDs are automatically named in a sequential way : PFD1, PFD2, etc. You can however rename them
as you wish. You can also change the automatic prefix in the Options|Configure window.
Attention: PFD names are maximum 32 characters long and are case insensitive. They must be
unique with respect to other PFDs but also with respect to UNITS.
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To open a PFD:
right-click the PFD symbol in its parent PFD and select the Open command from the Object
menu
right-click the PFD name in the tree and select the Open command from the Object menu
use the Show Parent PFD from a UNIT or PFD Object Menu
Several PFDs can be opened at the same time. They are handled following the MDI (Multiple
Document Interface) concept of Windows. You can switch between the opened PFDs using the CTRL-
Tab key.
To rename a PFD:
right-click in any empty region of the PFD to activate the PFD object menu
right click the PFD to be renamed (in the PFD view ofr in the Browse tree)
To delete a PFD:
select the PFD to be deleted by clicking the mouse (or dragging a selection window)
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
right click the PFD to be deleted (in the PFD view ofr in the Browse tree)
Attention: All the contents of the PFD will be deleted at the same time.
To move a PFD:
right click on the PFD symbol (or name in the Browse tree and select the DATA command
this opens a Dialog window where the unit status can be changed
Setting a PFD OFF sets all the units and streams of the PFD (and sub-PFDs) OFF. The whole section is
considered as shutdown (no flows going through the entire section).
Setting a PFD OUT sets all the units of the PFD (and sub-PFDs) OUT. The whole section is considered
as not existing at all.
The order of units is also shown in this Dialog window. This order is not relevant for ValiEngine at
calculation time but will affect the order of TABLES in the user defined reports (see section "Using
Measurement Files").
The ZONE field is used when generating Product Balances by zones. If left blank the PFD will inherit
its zone from its parent PFD. The keyword EMPTY specifies that the PFD is not included in any zone
and is thus considered as being outside the overall balancing envelope.
Attention: The main PFD of a model does not have a notion of zone, so that the PFDs appearing in
that main PFD will be part of the EMPTY zone, except specified otherwise trhough the zone field.
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When a PFD is empty, its DATA dialog box enables linking this PFD to a PFD defined in another
model file.
When using external files, you should pay attention to the following points:
the external model files will not be saved after a successful ValiEngine run
objects having the same name as objects that are already defined are ignored:
a STREAM can appear in two different models provided they have only one origin and
only one destination unit. In addition the STREAM must use a compatible THERMOD
in both file
if a THERMOD with the same name appears at different places, the first occurrence will
be used. The duplicate thermod(s) must however be compatible with this first
occurrence: referring to the same compounds in the same order
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
Use the zooming buttons to zoom in, out or adjust the viewing area so that the whole PFD
fits into it.
Use the command File|Print to print the current PFD. Additional information like the PFD name or
the date and time will be printed, according to the settings of the Configuration Notebook.
You can preview the print File|Print Preview or print to a file with File|Print to File…
You can also print all PFDS in one shot (File|Print all PFDs).
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the UNIT TYPE defines the way an equipment is modelled by ValiEngine : EEXVAL and
HTXVAL are for example two types of UNITS allowing to model heat exchangers. The
UNIT TYPE is selected at creation time; it cannot be changed afterwards, except by deleting
the UNIT and creating a new one
the UNIT SYMBOL is the way the UNIT is shown in a PFD. According to the type of UNIT,
one or several symbols can be used. The choice of a UNIT symbol also defines the number
and type of connections that the UNIT can have. For example, several heat exchangers
symbols can be used for UNITS of type EEXVAL, with a various number of connected
STREAMS (up to ten inlets and outlets)
the HOT-SPOTS of a symbol are its possible connections and are identified by a little
square that shows up when creating or reconnecting STREAMS. The HOT-SPOTS also
defines the type of connection that can be created: inlet, outlet or both; and type of
STREAM : material, mechanical or thermal
the symbol used for a UNIT can be changed at any time (when in EDIT Mode On).
However, you can only select between the symbols that are compatible with the already
existing connections
Each UNIT has a STATUS that can be set (from ValiModeller or from MEA files) as:
OFF: the UNIT does exist but is currently shutdown so that nothing flows to or from it. As
a consequence, the streams connected to that unit will be shutdown as well. In turn the
fact that some streams are OFF can propagate to other units, and so forth
OUT: The UNIT is considered as not existing at all. STREAMS connected only to units that
are OUT becomes OUT themselves, which means that they will not be part of the model
during the next run
The UNIT Notebook has several pages: General, Parameters, Tags and Flex code. Depending on the
UNIT type, some other pages may be accessed: Control Tags, REACTIONS, Others, Composition and
Strapping.
The General page displays the UNIT name, type and comment, its status (On, Off or Out) for the next
and for the last run, as well as its graphical information: symbol, position, size and orientation.
On the right side a number of drop-down boxes define various UNITS settings like the type of
equations that will be generated (parameter MODE).
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Clicking on the PFD button opens the PFD containing the UNIT.
The Parameters page allows you to edit the operating conditions of the UNIT like the load or heat
transfer coefficient of a heat exchanger.
On the lower part of the page, two tables show the incoming and outgoing streams. Some
parameters that are linked to the inlet or outlet streams are sometimes displayed in these tables, like
for example the pressure drop setting for the outlet streams. Clicking on the stream names opens
their notebook.
Attention: Some unit parameters also appear as drop down boxes in the General page.(MODE: type
of equations) or in the table of the REACTIONS or Others page.
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The Tags page is used to display and update the values of the measurements associated with the
unit.
When in Edit mode, the New, Copy, Move, Edit, Rename and Delete buttons allow modifying the
definitions of the tags (See section "The tags" below for more information on the handling of tags).
The Details button toggles the display of the tags details in the bottom part of the screen freeing more
room to display additional tags in the main table.
The Mask combo-box combo box allows displaying only tags where filters, compensations or
bounds are defined.
The whole tag line will be highlighted in color if the measurement is either significantly corrected,
suspicious, has been filtered or has been eliminated by the Gross Error Elimination procedure (If the
color highlighting is activated).
Measurement: values associated to the tags. Use the "Data" combo box to switch between
Default, Measured and Used values
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
Definition: plant name, Database name and definition of measurement: related object and
corresponding parameter
Historian: settings for the import and export to historians and to ValiDatabase
Attention: You can click on the fields of the table header to change the sorting order of the list of
tags.
The REACTIONS page is used for the reactors of type RCTVAL, RLVVAL, RKPVAL and RKIVAL.
You modify the list of reactions by transferring them between the "Used" list and the "Defined" list
through the use of the buttons. Multiple select is supported.
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The Others page is used to display and update the values of some more parameters, like the
characteristics of the three different regions of a steam condensing preheater.
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The Flex code page is used to display and update additional user equations defined in Flex code.
On units of type FLXVAL the calculated value is stored in one of the parameters of the unit, which
can then be "measured".
On other units, the calculated value will be set to zero, defining an additional constraint.
A detailed description of the Flex code can be found in chapter "Flex language description". See also
the description of unit FLXVAL.
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The Composition page is used only for storage tanks with variable composition.
The table displays the composition (on weight basis) at the beginning and at the end of the validation
time window.
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The strapping table enables to convert tank dips (expressed in level or level %) to inventories (on
volume or mass basis).
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To create a UNIT, you must be in Edit mode On (Options|Edit mode) and have opened the PFD
where the UNIT must be created.
select the Edit|Add UNIT menu command, or right-click in the PFD and select Add UNIT
in the Define New UNIT dialog box, select the category and type of equipment and
optionally update the name of the unit
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
you can optionally review the parameters of the UNIT or define reactions and tags if
relevant
click the OK button to confirm the creation of the UNIT or the CANCEL button to abort the
operation
Attention:
1. Pressing the Escape key while creating a UNIT aborts the operation.
2. You can copy some (or all) settings from another unit of the same type via the Copy From button
in the unit Notebook.
3. If you have activated the Add Multiple Objects option, then the Define new UNIT dialog box will
open again.
click at the place where you want to create the UNIT (in the same or in another PFD)
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selecting the UNIT and dragging its symbol (with the mouse or the arrow keys). You can
select several objects in one shot by including them in a rectangle
right-clicking the UNIT Symbol and selecting the Move to other PFD command. Click in
another PFD to move the UNIT into this PFD
selecting the UNIT, clicking on the edge of the button and dragging the border
changing the X and Y size in the Notebook. The default check box allows you to restore the
default size of the symbol
select the unit name by clicking on it (or by selecting the Select Name command in the unit
right-click menu)
drag the unit name with the mouse or with the arrow keys
or:
change the X and Y name position in the Notebook. The default check box allows you to
restore the default position of the name
right-click the UNIT Symbol or Name and select the Auto position Name command
To delete a UNIT:
Alternatively you can also select the Delete option from the Menu activated by right clicking on the
unit.
Attention:
1. When deleting a UNIT, all the STREAMS that are connected only to this UNIT are also deleted.
2. Depending of your configuration settings, you will be asked to confirm the deletion.
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Alternatively you can also select the Delete option from the Menu activated by right clicking on the
unit.
To delete a unit:
check the auto-rename tag definitions box to automatically rename the tags associated
with the unit
Alternatively you can also use the Rename button from the UNIT Notebook.
The Flex code associated to a unit is normally edited directly in the Flex code page of the unit
notebook.
However, the Flex code can also be defined in an external file as follows:
write your FLEX program in a separate file and encapsulate it between the following two
lines:
&&&COMMENT <unit>
&&&END
where <unit> is the unit name
when starting your model with ValiEngine enter the name of the file into the
corresponding field
Attention:
1. When ValiEngine saves the results after a successful run, the Flex program is written into the
MODEL FILE file. The program is then kept for further runs and the option -rea does no longer
have to be used anymore.
2. To modify the Flex program of a unit, you must reload it or edit it from the Flex code page.
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Each STREAM can connect a maximum of two UNITS, going from one UNIT to the other one. Three
cases are therefore possible:
the STREAM is an outlet of one UNIT and an inlet of an other UNIT. These two UNITS can
be in two different PFDs
The Notebooks of thermal and mechanical STREAMS have a General and a Tags page. In addition,
material STREAMS have a Composition page. The top line of the Notebook indicates the origin and
destination of the STREAMS.
The General page presents the STREAM name and status (ON, OFF or OUT) and its parameters. For
material STREAMS, the page also displays the associated THERMOD, the STREAM state and
initialization mode as well as information relevant to products balancing:
Product code to be used for the following run and used during the previous run.
Movement type.
Sub-Movement type.
AUTO: the stream will be part of the product balance and considered as production,
consumption etc… depending on the units it is connected to.
When a stream goes from Zonefrom to Zoneto, its Movement Type (unique) results in multiple
actions:
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The sub-movement type is linked to a movement type. For instance, a Movement of type EXPORT,
defined as a stream going out to nowhere, from a unit or a tank, could be split into 3 sub-movements,
for example: SHIPMENT, LOSSES and other real EXPORT.
The sub-movement must be defined manually through ValiModeller or through a measurement file.
Clicking on the PFD button(s) with the origin and destination PFDs opens the corresponding PFDs.
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For material STREAMS, the Composition page displays the composition in terms of partial rates and
fractions, on a molar and on a weight basis.
The molar and weight fractions as well as the total rates can be modified by the user and will be used
as starting point for the next run.
The total flow rates can also be edited from the General page.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
The Tags page is used to display and update the values of the measurements associated with the
stream.
When in Edit mode, the New, Copy, Move, Edit, Rename and Delete buttons allow modifying the
definitions of the tags.
The Details button toggles the display of the tags details in the bottom part of the screen freeing more
room to display additional tags in the main table.
The Mask combo-box combo box allows displaying only tags where filters, compensations or
bounds are defined.
The whole tag line will be highlighted in color if the measurement is either significantly corrected,
suspicious, has been filtered or has been eliminated by the Gross Error Elimination procedure (If the
color highlighting is activated).
Measurement: values associated to the tags. Use the "Data" combo box to switch between
Default, Measured and Used values
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Definition: plant name, Database name and definition of measurement: related object and
corresponding parameter
Historian: settings for the import and export to historians and to ValiDatabase
Attention:
1. You can click on the fields of the table header to change the sorting order of the list of tags.
2. See section "The Tags" for more information on the handling of tags.
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To create a STREAM, you must be in EDIT mode and have already opened the PFD(s) where the
STREAM must be created.
Depending on the status of the Add multiple objects option, you can either create the streams one by
one via the Edit|Add STREAM menu (add single stream) or create a number of streams in one shot.
In the latter case, the Define New STREAM dialog box re-appears after each stream creation.
the outlet hot-spots which are compatible with that type of STREAM are then activated in
the current PFD and the mouse pointer is replaced by a cross
click again at the same place, to terminate the stream creation or, if needed add
fixed points to the stream by clicking at the required points in the PFD and
terminate the stream creation by double clicking on the last point
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if needed add fixed points to the stream by clicking at the required points in the PFD
if needed add fixed points to the stream by clicking at the required points in the PFD
you can copy the stream settings from another stream, using the Copy From button
you can also review the parameters and measurements of the STREAM
click the OK button to confirm the creation of the STREAM or the CANCEL button
to abort the operation
Attention: Pressing the Escape key while creating a STREAM aborts the operation.
A STREAM name box is automatically created. The STREAM name box can be moved by selecting it
and dragging it (with the mouse or the arrows) to any place. Once moved, the button becomes static.
This means that it does not move when moving the UNITS where the STREAM is connected. Use the
Autodraw or the Auto position name command to restore the automatic STREAM Button
positioning.
Attention: Take care that reconnecting streams to units can affect their connection order. This can in
turn change the meaning of unit parameters such as REFDP, DPi, VFRACi, etc.
select the Auto-draw option: all points entered for the STREAM are deleted and the
STREAM is redrawn
To redraw a STREAM manually, keeping its existing connections, or changing its final connection:
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
right-click again and select the Autodraw option: all points entered for the STREAM are
deleted
terminate your input by clicking on the hot-spot where the STREAM must be connected
To reconnect a STREAM:
select the Reconnect To or Reconnect From option: the corresponding connection and the
points of the STREAM are deleted; you can then enter the new connection
To Disconnect a STREAM:
To delete a STREAM:
select the STREAM by clicking its box or any section of its line
Alternatively you can also select the Delete option from the Menu activated by right clicking on the
stream.
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To rename a stream:
check the auto-rename tag definitions box to automatically rename the tags associated
with the stream
When a stream has connections in two different PFDs, you can easily go from one PFD to another:
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
Measurements: values associated to the tags. Use the "Data" combo box to switch between
Default, Measured and Used values
Definition: related object and corresponding parameter; failure probability, bound control
settings
Historian: plant name, DB name and other settings for the import and export to historians
and to ValiDatabase
Attention:
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In a model, four sets of values and precisions are attached to each tag:
the default value and its precision, which are the values as defined in the model (or in the
tag file) by the user
the measured value and its precision, which are initially set to the default values but can
be overwritten by values coming from measurement files (MEA files) by ValiEngine
the used value and its precision, which are the values actually used during the
reconciliation step. They are initialized to the measured values but can be overwritten by
filters, compensation algorithms or control strings
the penalty: calculated on the basis of the used value, can be selected (through the
mathematical unit OPTVAL) as being either the measurement penalty, the correction
penalty or the measurement impact:
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
the gain: which expresses the accuracy improvement and is calculated on the basis of the
reconciled and the used accuracies:
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To create a new tag, press the New key in the Tags page of the corresponding unit or stream.
if necessary, complete the information from the secondary table, like for example the
compounds for composition measurements
press the button to confirm the creation of the Tag or press the button to confirm
the creation of the Tag and to open the edition window and update values
Attention: if a Tag with the same name already exists, a new unique name is automatically
generated.
You can create several tags in a row. When all tags have been defined, press the OK button to close
the window.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
You access the Edit window by clicking on the Edit button of the Tags page of the UNITS and
STREAMS Notebook or by double-clicking the tag name in the Tag Notebook.
related plant
physical units
default value, accuracy and failure probability factor. The failure probability is a
weighting factor for the gross error elimination procedure. Use higher factor to increase
the probability that the measurement will be removed. Use a failure probability of 0 to
prevent any elimination
bounds: 3 levels are considered for both High and Low bounds:
warning (L -> H): a warning message will be issued if the measured or the validated
values are outside this range
error (LL -> HH): an error message will be issued if the measured or the validated
values are outside this range. (ValiFilter uses these bounds)
solver (SL -> SH): a fatal error occurs if the measured value is outside this range. The
validated value will be kept between these bounds
KPI settings: all tags specified as "KPI" will be printed out in the html report with their
reconciled and their target value. The settings also enable calculating the raw value and
precision of the KPI, as calculated on basis of measured values
tag comment
The Tag Comment will be printed out in the html (or r4v) reports. This comment can also be used to
define control strings, to carry out various actions depending on the measured values, and
sometimes validated value, of a given Tag: issuing messages, replacing the measured value by
another value or changing its accuracy. (See more information in the section Using Control Strings
below).
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FILTER SETTINGS
Filters are configured as follows:
Measured defines the action on the measured value and can be:
MID: the measured value is replaced by the average of the bounds (LL+HH)/2
LAST: the measured value is replaced by the validated value (as obtained during the last
successful and saved run)
Accuracy and Type defines the action on the accuracy and can be:
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
MID: the accuracy is replaced by half the difference between the bounds (HH-LL)/2
Failure Probability defines the action on the Failure probability and can be:
CutOff: if the measured value is below the specified value, the corresponding object (STREAM
orUNIT) will be set OFF.
COMPENSATION SETTINGS
The compensation mechanism corrects measured values which are known to be deviating:
Where:
Depending on the compensation mode, COMPENS can be a constant user given value or can be
calculated from a compensation correlation in function of operating and reference conditions (AREF,
BREF and CREF).
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COLDVOLF
MASSF MOLF
CONVVOLF
CREF=re f. MW
CREF=re f. MW (kg/kmol)
COLDVOLF
MASSF MOLF
CONVVOLF
CREF=re f. MW
The Copy Tags page presents in the left table (Defined in…) the existing tags and in the right table the
tags defined in the object specified as "Origin".
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
select the object from which you want to copy the tags
press the button or press the button to edit the copied tag
Default names will automatically be given to the copied tags. If needed, you can then rename them
with the Rename button.
You can use the other buttons, to adjust the selection of tags to be copied:
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The Move Tags page presents in the upper left table (Defined in…) the existing tags and in the upper
right table the tags defined in the object specified as "Origin".
select the object from which you want to move the tags
press the button OR press the button to edit the moved tag
You can use the other buttons, to adjust the selection of tags to be moved:
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
The Tools|Measurements command displays the list of tags that are currently defined in the model.
When in Edit mode, the New, Copy, Move, Edit, Rename and Delete buttons allow to modify the
definitions of the tags as described here above. You can also Edit a tag by double-clicking its name.
The Details button toggles the display of the tags details in the bottom part of the screen freeing more
room to display additional tags in the main table.
The Mask combo box allows you to display only tags where filters, compensations or bounds are
defined.
The fields on the second line of the window are masks that you can use to reduce the number of tags
that are presented in the table (in the example below only the temperature measurements are
shown):
You can also click on the column headers to change the order in which the tags are listed
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Bound Control is used to activate bound control mechanism on one or both bounds:
Criteria is the minimum distance at which the variable must be kept wit respect to the bound. It can
be specified as a value or as AUTO in which case, the minimum distance is automatically selected
according to the type of variable.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
warning (L -> H): a warning message will be issued if the measured or the validated values
are outside this range
error (LL -> HH): an error message will be issued if the measured or the validated values
are outside this range. (ValiFilter uses these bounds)
solver (SL -> SH): a fatal error occurs if the measured value is outside this range. The
validated value will be kept between these bounds
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
Tags defined as KPI (Mode = "ON" or "CALC") are gathered in a specific table in the html report. The
target value is only used as an indication of the KPI expected value.
Setting the mode as "CALC" indicates you want ValiEngine to calculate what would be the value and
accuracy of the KPI when calculated on basis of the measured values. This mode can only be used for
tags calculated through a Flex code involving only measured values (using the function CALL
GTVARTAG (…)).
This enables to quantify the benefit of the reconciliation on the correctness and uncertainty of the
KPI.
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ReadDB: Aggregation for the tag value to be acquired from the historian:
None: no acquisition
Mean: arithmetic average of all the stored values over the time window
Suffix_V: the validated value will be returned to the historian, adding the suffix _V to
the tag name
ValiDB: Che ck-box to se le ct the tags to be e xporte d to ValiDabase through the arc file
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
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(<number): satisfied if measured value < number (Number can also be SL,LL, or L)
(>number): satisfied if measured value > number (Number can also be SH, HH or H)
(number): satisfied if measured value = number ± e (e is taken as the maximum of 1.10 -6 and
|measurement|.10 -6 )
OK: stop processing string. This interrupts the normal sequential processing of the string.
Further conditions are no more evaluated and their actions are ignored.
Example:
&1"'VERY LOW'(<380),'LOW'(380,400),'HIGH'(460,480),'VERY HIGH'(>480)"
Assuming the measured value of this Tag (named TI-001) is 378.4 °c and the validated value is 383.2 °
c.
The message: "TI-001 (378.4 C): VERY LOW " is printed at the beginning of the files
The message :"TI-001 (383.2 C): LOW " is printed at the end of the files
DEF: set measurement value to the default value (as defined in the model)
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
OK: stop processing the string. This interrupts the normal processing of the string.
Further conditions are no more evaluated and their actions are ignored
Example:
&2"DEF(<380),400(380,400),460(460,480),DEF(>480)"
This would replace the measured value by the default value whenever the measurement value is
below 380 or above 480. If the measured value lies between 380 and 400, it will be replaced by 400. If
it lies between 460 and 480, it will be replaced by 460.
If the measured value of this Tag (named TI-001) is 378.4 °C, the default value of the Tag TI-001 will be
used in place of the actual value.
OK: stop processing string. This interrupts the normal sequential processing of the string.
Further conditions are no more evaluated and their actions are ignored
Example:
&3"OFF(<380),50(380,400),50(460,480),OFF(>480)"
This will turn off the measurement if its measured value lies outside the range 380 to 480. It also puts
an accuracy of 50 if the measured value lies between 380 and 400 or 460 and 480.
The measurement is first turned off. Then, if the measured lies between 380 and 480, it is turned on
again with accuracy of 50. Finally, if the measured value lies between 400 and 460, the measured
accuracy is restored.
The OK action stops the processing of the string if the measured value lies between 400 and 460.
Otherwise, it applies a value of 50 to the accuracy and turns the measurement off if it is below 380 or
above 480.
Attention: the action OK with no (condition) allows to temporarily de-activate a string without
having to retype it when you want to reactivate it : OK,OFF(<380),50(380,400),50(460,480),OFF(>480)
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In this case, the action OK is always processed which stops processing the string that is thus de-
activated. To reactivate the string, simply remove the OK action.
None/All/Active ones: objects for which tags are defined (and active or not)
Pe nalty: obje cts for which some tags are e ithe r significantly corre cte d, suspicious, e liminate d or
filte re d
The coloring follows the following order: eliminated, filtered, suspicious, significant, measurement
active or existing. For example, a tag that has been filtered and eliminated will be colored as
eliminated.
The coloring system for penalty automatically propagates through PFDs containing the
corresponding objects.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
the list of chemical components that can, but not necessarily do, appear in the STREAM
the the rmodynamic me thods that must be use d for various calculations
To access the notebook of a THERMOD, double-click it in the Browse Tree or use the Find facility
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You modify the list of COMPOUNDS by transferring compounds between the "Used" list and the
"Defined" list through the use of the buttons. Multiple select is supported.
You modify the Methods by using the drop-down list boxes for each phase property. The default
method button allows to reset the default methods.
To add new binary parameters, select the compounds, the method and the parameter, specify a value
and press the Add button.
The values of existing binary parameters can be changed directly in the table.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
The compounds page of the THERMOD notebook is then displayed. You can use the Copy From
button to copy the list of compounds, methods and binary parameters from another THERMOD.
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You can rename a THERMOD via the Rename button of its notebook or by right-clicking in the
Browse Tree and selecting the Rename command.
To delete a THERMOD, right-click it in the Browse Tree and select the Delete command.
Attention: you can only delete unused THERMODS. If some STREAMS are referring to this
THERMOD, then it cannot be deleted.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
The General page of the COMPOUNDS notebook lets you review the data associated with the
compounds. Changing the values is however prohibited.
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To add new compounds to the model, select the Edit|Add COMPOUND command.
Before adding a compound, you can first modify the default list of Available COMPOUNDS:
Depending on your installation, one or several additional data bases might be available.
limit the number of available compounds by selecting a given Family (e.g. Paraffins or
Sulphur derivatives) in the Family field.
limit the number of available compounds by entering a given text in the Mask field. Only
the compounds which include that string will be shown.
modify the order in which the compounds are shown, by checking one of the check boxes
above the list. By default, compounds are sorted by their chemical formula.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
To add a compound:
Attention: if you want to compound with the same name as an existing one, you need first to
rename that compound.
Only compounds that are not referenced in any REACTION or THERMOD can be removed. To remove
a compound:
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To rename a compound:
check the auto-rename tag definitions box to automatically rename the tags associated
with the compound
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
a name
a comment
further parameters describing the kinetics of the reaction (only used by RKIVAL unit)
To access the notebook of a REACTION, double-click the reaction in the Browse Tree. Alternatively
you can also access the REACTIONS notebooks through the Find facility.
General: to modify the REACTION name, its comment and the list of reactants and
products and their stoichiometric coefficient
Parameters: to modify the kinetic parameters of the reactions. (These parameters are only
used by RKIVAL units)
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transfer compounds between the list of available compounds, reactants and products with
the and buttons
modify the stoichiometric coefficient by changing the value in the coefficient field
The equation with the coefficients and compounds is automatically updated. At your convenience
you can copy and paste it in the comment field of the reaction.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
The description of the kinetics of a reaction is only taken into account by the RKIVAL unit. This
description can be partially overwritten by a Flex code attached to the unit (see section "Using Flex
for defining kinetics").The actual reaction velocities are defined as the product of two terms: a
velocity term Vi and an equilibrium term EI:
Ri Vi .E i
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n
X bjj
1 j 1
Ei 1 n
Ki
X ajj
j 1
Where:
aj and bj are respectively the stoichiometric coefficient of the reactants and of the products
ETYPE=2: same as 1, but the fugacity is calculated at the reactor inlet and kept constant
afterwards
ETYPE=4: same as 3, but the fugacity is calculated at the reactor inlet and kept constant
afterwards
ETYPE=5: Xj is the partial pressure. The equilibrium constant is given by the user.
ETYPE=6: Xj is the molar fraction. The equilibrium constant is given by the user.
ETYPE=7: Xj is the concentration (mole/l). The equilibrium constant is given by the user.
When given by the user, the equilibrium constant has the following form:
Where:
T is the temperature (expressed in K) and KAi and KBi are given by the user
n
Vi ki X cjj
j 1
Where:
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VTYPE=2: same as 1, but the fugacity is calculated at the reactor inlet and kept constant
afterwards
Where:
T is the temperature (expressed in K), R the ideal gas constant and K0i and ACT.ENi are
given by the user.
The parameters DHR and TREF can be used to specify the heat of reaction in place of calculating it
from the heat of formation of the compounds.
Attention: In a given reactor, all reactions must be based on the same type of equilibrium equation
and of velocity equation (parameters ETYPE and VTYPE). Some reactions can however be
individually specified as type 8 (no equilibrium term).
You can copy the data from another reaction with the Copy From button.
To rename a REACTION you can either use the Rename button in the REACTION notebook or right-
click the REACTION in the Browse Tree and select the Rename command.
To delete a REACTION, right-click the REACTION in the Browse Tree and select the Delete command.
Attention: you can only delete unused REACTIONS. If some UNITS are referring to a given
REACTION, then it cannot be deleted.
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Clicking on the Physical UnitS section in the Browse Tree or selecting the Tools|Physical UnitS menu
command opens the Physical UnitS Notebook. In this notebook, you can modify the default physical
units for all the UNITS and STREAMS parameters and measurements. You can also modify the
number of digits to be shown after the decimal separator when displaying values in the Result boxes
.
The table displays the current defaults physical units used for each type of variable, as well as the
number of digits for result boxes. Any new object you will create will use the default physical units.
Change Defaults: when checked, the new settings will apply to the new objects you will
create
Convert Values: when checked, the existing objects (unit and stream parameters) will be
converted to the new default physical units, if they are currently expressed in the previous
default units
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
Convert Tags: when checked, the existing tags will be converted to the new default
physical units, if they are currently expressed in the previous default units
Change Decimals: when checked, the existing result boxes values will be redisplayed using
the new default number of decimals
Attention: When using the Convert Values, only the variables that were using the old default
physical units will be updated. For example, when changing the default for pressure from bar to
atm, the pressures that are defined in bar will be converted in atm, but pressures defined in Pa,
mmHg or any other unit will be left unchanged.
You can create your own physical units by pressing the New button in the Physical Unit Notebook.
Enter the Physical Unit Name and the Conversion Factors to be used to convert the value from the
new physical unit to the default physical unit.
Check the Save as User Physical Unit check-box to save the settings in the user defaults file (usr/pud.
cfg file in VALI installation folder) and share it through different models and users.
User physical units are always saved in the model file as well, to ensure portability through different
installations.
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The Notebook is similar for PFDs, UNITS and STREAMS. In the example below a Result box linked to
a stream is shown.
In any Result box, you can display values related to the object to which the Result box is linked but
also values related to any other UNIT or STREAM.
For streams, you can display values related to parameters, composition (partial molar flow rates)
and measurements. For units, you can display values related to parameters and measurements.
The left side shows the Result box name, the PFD where it is located as well as the name of the object
to which it is linked. When the link check box is checked, the result box will be moved together with
the object. Otherwise its location is static.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
The middle of the notebook ("What to show") indicates what information will be shown for each of
the selected variables listed below.
The right side of the notebook ("What to select") enables to add more variables to the result box.
Use the buttons to add or remove variables to the list of selected variables. Use the
buttons to reorder the variables.
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click at the place where you want to create the Result box
or:
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
a compressor: C-1
a burner: R-1
a turbine: T-1
a generator: G-1
The gas burned will be assumed to be pure methane. The other assumptions are summarized in
following table.
C-1 EFFIC 77 5% %
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T-1 EFFIC 80 5% %
Table below lists the available plant measurements and their accuracy.
AIR.1 T 15 1 C
AIR.2 P 20 2% bar
AIR.2 T 500 2 C
NG P 20 2% bar
NG T 15 1 C
FUME.2 MF O2 14 2% mol%
FUME.2 T 600 2 C
THE THERMODS
In this example, we need three different THERMODS:
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
Air
Fumes
These 3 THERMODS are defined by default in the file empty.bls. Therefore, no additional THERMOD
or compound that needs to be defined.
CHEMICAL REACTIONS
In our example, chemical REACTIONS could be defined for the combustion. We do not need however
to define them as the burner will be modeled by a BATVAL where atomic balances are considered
(balance by elements: C, H, O, N).
G-1 BBXVAL black-box splitting the turbine powe r into a ne t powe r and the powe r
ne e de d for the compre ssor
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COMPRESSOR C-1
double-click the PFD GT to open it
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
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TURBINE T-1
click in GT to specify the position of the Unit
select the Black box BBXVAL Unit, change the Unit name by G-1 and press OK
should the History window appears (depending on your configuration settings), press the
Cancel button
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
STREAM AIR.1
select the Edit|Add Stream command
press the Space Bar key on your keyboard to activate the input hotspots
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STREAM AIR.2
select Material stream and Thermod Air
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
STREAM NG
select Material stream and Thermod GAS
press the Space Bar key on your keyboard to activate the input hotspots
STREAM FUME.1
select Material stream and Thermod FUMES
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STREAM FUME.2
select Material stream and Thermod FUMES
STREAM W-1
select Mechanical stream and press OK
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 4
STREAM W-2
select Mechanical stream and press OK
STREAM POWER
select Mechanical stream and press OK
You are now ready to run your model as shown in following chapter.
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CHAPTER 5
HOW TO RUN
YOUR DATA
VALIDATION
V
MODEL
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
SECTION 1: INTRODUCTION
In the previous chapter, you were introduced to ValiModeller GUI, which allows you to set-up and
prepare the data validation model.
In this chapter, you will now learn how to run this model.
This se ction shows how to start ValiEngine from ValiMode lle r GUI and to re vie w the
re sults. This se ction also shows how to run ValiEngine inde pe nde ntly from
ValiMode lle r GUI.
The TAG file s are use d to de fine the me asure me nts by giving the m a name ,
indicating to which variable the y re fe r and de fining the ir pre cision.
MEA file s allows to e xchange information be twe e n your VALI mode l and the outside
words: ge tting on-line value s of the me asure me nts, changing starting point, se tting
OFF or OUT parts of a mode l, e xtracting re sults, writing re ports, e tc.
Using the Se nsitivity Analysis tool, you can ide ntify how various me asure me nts
value s and pre cisions influe nce e ach othe r.
This se ction also de scribe s the mathe matical basis of VALI and its compliance to the
VDI-2048 guide line .
This se ction tackle s some typical proble ms e ncounte re d while using VALI like how to
initialise a mode l or how to solve conve rge nce proble ms.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
Measurements file: Name of the file containing the values of the measurements, as well as
unit parameters, initial values, report specifications, etc. (optional)
TAG file: Name of the TAG file (optional). When using a TAG file, the tags defined in the
model are ignored
Flexcode file: Name of the file containing flex code to be imported (optional)
Use SQP solver (-SQP) (activated by default): ValiEngine will invoke the SQP-IP solver.
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Allow additional iterations (-ITM) : ValEngine will ask for additional iterations if not
converged after the number of iterations specified in the OPTVAL - ITMAX parameter.
Mass Balance Only (-MBO): Only mass balances equations will be generated, for all units,
whatever the user has selected for the equations (parameter MODE, for example).
Additional equations created by OPXVAL units and Flex code will be kept.
VDI2048 compliant (-VDI): This option activates the VDI compliant mode of VALI (use of
95% confidence level, penalty defined on correction accuracy, sensitivity analysis for all
flagged variables, reports according to VDI 2048 guideline).
Sensitivity report (-SNS): After the run, a Sensitivity Analysis report will be generated.
Generate HTML file (-HTM) (activated by default): VALI will create HTML (Hyper Text
Meta Language) formatted files for the reports. A number of active fields allow to navigate
between the various sections of the reports, from streams to units, from and to TAG
definitions, etc.
Generate PRN file with stream data (-PRN): Vali will generate an Excel compatible file
with stream data.
Generate file for ValiReport (-ARC): VALI will produce a default ARC output file with the
measured and validated value and accuracy and the comments of all tags as well as the
date and time, the total penalty, the chi-square test value and sum of square of residues. If
defined, the contents of RUNDATE and INFOi records will be printed as well. This file can
directly be imported into ValiReport (see Output and Archive Files for more details about
Archive (ARC) files).
Don't save results (-NOS): The results will not be saved in the model file even if the run is
successful (-NOS).
Save reports in sub-directory (-SUB): The report files are generated in a sub-directory
called results.
Close VALI window automatically (-BAT): The VALI window will automatically be closed
after the run. This option is useful for unattended processing in an online environment.
Don't show summary of events (-R2V): VALI does not display any message on the screen,
but writes them in the <model>.r2v file.
Always generate output files (-NOC): VALI will generate output files specified in the mea
file even if the run is not successful. This option has the same effect as placing the keyword
NOCONVER in the mea file.
Generate debug files (-DBG): Setting this option will generate three additional files when
running the model, with a trace of the convergence process through the iterations:
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
The same option followed by a unit name (-DBG unit) will generate a fourth file (unit.dbg) giving the
derivatives of the equations units at each iteration.
User options
-ARA: same as -ARC but all the precisions are printed in absolute
-COM: commentaries are commentaries only (without this option, some commentaries can
be used during computation; eg tanks may use commentaries as product)
-DIF: to print the difference ( mea.val. - rec.val ) for each tag in a dedicated file (<model>.dif)
-JAC: print the Jacobian in the r3v file (requires the -R3V option to work)
-NLV: skip the verification, made in the report phase, that L and V streams are actually in
L or V state at the validated temperature and pressure
-NOR: reduces r4v and r6v reports to simple run information, thereby accelerating the
calculation
-SA2: the results will be saved as a separate model file named <model>_lastrun.bls
-2SL: if the selected solver fails to converge, ValiEngine will automatically restart the
calculations using the alternate solver
-FLT: VALI stops after the verification phase. A specific report containing information
about the filtering results is generated. If -ARC is used, a filtering ARC file is created as
well
Attention: When starting ValiEngine from ValiModeller GUI, the file pc.vif is created with the
settings you specify in the Run VALI dialogue box. The Runtime options appear as special
keywords as indicated between brackets.
Phase 1: Verification
Phase 2: Analysis
Phase 3: Resolution
Phase 4: Report
Phase 5: Output
If fatal errors are encountered during one of these phases, VALI will stop before starting the next
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step. You should then look for more information on the errors in the file <model>.r1v.
If the run is successful, then the results are saved in the model file (the -NOS runtime option disables
this saving).
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
While running ValiEngine, four menus are available at the top of the window with submenu entries.
File
Save As: saves the window content as a bitmap file at the location selected by the user
Exit: closes the window and stops the execution after releasing the licence. After
execution, you can also use the keyboard shortcut CTRL+C
Edit
Select All: this allows selecting the content of the window. This action also results in
Pausing the application. The execution will resume after copying in the clipboard
(menu Copy). It can also be resumed through the command Execution|Resume
Copy: this menu item is greyed until activating Select. This command will copy the
content of the window to the clipboard
Execution
Abort: Closes the window of the application and stops the execution after releasing the
licence. The difference with Exit is that a confirmation will be requested.
Pause: Pauses the application. When the programme is paused, this menu item is
toggled to Resume. You can also use the keyboard shortcut CTRL+S to pause and
CTRL+Q to resume the execution.
Stop: Stops the application and generates reports available at that stage when the
current calculations will be finished. It is possible to invoke this during the first three
phases or between two iterations.
Try Other Solver: Activates/deactivates the option to switch to the other solver if
resolution fails. This is equivalent to setting or not the -2SL option A check mark is
showing the state of the option.
Save Results: Activates/deactivates the option to save the solution found by solver in
the BLS file after resolution. This is equivalent to setting or not the -NOS option. A
check mark is showing the state of the option.
File for ValiReport: Activates/deactivates the option to have more iterations during
resolution. This is equivalent to setting or not the -ARC option. A check mark is
showing the state of the option.
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Help
You can browse VALI result files directly from the interface:
the corresponding file is then loaded in your web browser (for html reports) or text editor
(by default WordPad)
Alternatively you can access directly access the result files from Windows explorer.
VALI creates several files, whose names are derived by adding an extension to the model name (The
extension htm is added to the file names when generating html files). These files can be created in a
sub-directory called results through runtime option -SUB.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
<MODEL>.SUM.HTM: SUMMARY
This file is only created when the HTM option is checked. It replicates most of the information
provided in ValiEngine windows during the run.
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FIGURE 4 - S UMMARY
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
acquisition issue: tags that was not acquired correctly (read several times, not found in
mea file, read as BAD)
filtered
total penalty
list of measurements with their measured and validated values and accuracies
After a successful run, VALI will also create a back-up file called from the model and PFD name as
<model>_<PFD>.bls.bak. This file is a copy of the model file as it was when VALI was started. This
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gives you the opportunity of re-importing the last running version of a model, by removong the bak
extension from the backup file name.
Attention: When running in batch mode, you can specify your own name for the back-up file by
changing line 7 of the pc.vif file.
After running VALI (or when any other application has changed the model file), ValiModeller GUI
will propose:
to reload the results: only the data are read from the file, assuming the model structure has
not changed. This operation might fail if some structural changes have been made to the
model by the external application
to take no action: the results are not loaded and the next run will restart form the initial
point presented by ValiModeller GUI
The latter option allows you to first look at the results before loading them. Depending on these
results you can decide later on to load the results back in ValiModeller GUI and use the calculated
results as a new initial point for the next run, through the command Application|Load Results (or
Attention:
1. When running VALI, the results are saved in the file only if the run is successful. Only the
measured values coming from measurement files will be saved in the model file if the run is not
succesfull.
2. Even if the run is successful, the runtime option -NOS allows you to suppress any saving of the
results by VALI in the model file.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
3. In these two cases, the Application|Load results command will restore the starting point as it was
before the last run.
STARTING VALI
Provided you have a ValiOnlineEngine license, you can start the VALI.EXE application as any other
Windows applications:
by defining a short-cut to VALI.EXE on your desktop (or elsewhere) and clicking on it. Do
not forget to indicate in the properties of the short-cut in which directory it must start
by associating VALI.EXE to all files of type "vif" and clicking on any of these files (see below
for the contents of these files). It is also recommended to define an "edit" option on the vif
files. This allows to open them in a text editor (right click|edit) for modifications or to start
Vali.exe (double-click)
by opening a DOS Command windows, going in the appropriate directory and entering
the command: [InstallDir]\bin\vali.exe [file] where the optional file keyword is the name
of the vif file described below (by default pc.vif) and [InstallDir] stands for the name of the
folder where Vali has been installed
Attention:
1. You can also include the start-up command in a DOS batch file.
3. You can also run the VALIAUTO.exe application, which is strictly equivalent to VALI.EXE except
it does not produce any output on the screen.
The notion of Lastrun model file has been developed to maximize convergence rate using the
following strategy:
the calculations are first started with the model as saved after the last successful run
if the model fails to converge, then the calculations are restarted on basis of a reference
model, saved with typical operating conditions data
This strategy is launched through the combined use of the runtime options -NOS (which disables
results writing in the reference model file) and -SA2 (which saves the converged results in a separate
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The Lastrun model file is named after the name of the reference model, followed by the suffix _lastrun.
If you use a separate folder for the results (-SUB) then the lastrun file will be created there as well.
This information is normally defined in a Vali Information File (default extension vif). If not given as
argument, VALI will look by default for a file named pc.vif. If this file is not present in the current
directory, the information will be requested interactively.
Example:
gt.bls
GT
-htm
GT.MEA
GT.TAG
-2: System error - installation issue: missing directory, wrong version number
1: The run was successful but gross errors are suspected to be present (according to Chi-
square test)
A file named valiexit.log is also created with one line containing the keyword EXITCODE followed by
the same code. (Example: EXITCODE 0)
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
TAGS can be defined either inside the model with ValiModeller GUI or in a separate file called a TAG
file. When using a separate TAG file, the TAGS defined in the model (if any) will simply be ignored.
Attention: Using the command File|Import|TAG file you can import into your model TAGs
defined in a TAG file. After this command you must re-open the file.
A TAG file contains the definitions of your TAGS (or measurements): tag name, associated process
variable, default measurement value and accuracy, default physical units and control strings.
Several TAG files can be used to define your measurements. The main TAG file must then include (by
using the INPUT keyword) the other TAG files. Control strings are optional and are used:
to provide default value when measurements are not available or out of range
NUMBERS
The decimal point can be either "." or ",".
INPUT FILES
The INPUT command may be used to include TAG definitions from within other TAG files. INPUTs
may be nested up to 15 levels.
Example:
INPUT list2.tag ! this includes the contents of list2.tag in the current file.
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TAG: the TAG name (the name of the sensor) limited to 32 characters
TYP: the type of the object (STREAM or UNIT) that owns the measured variable
NAM: is the name of the object (STREAM or UNIT) that owns the measured variable
UNIT:
Material STREAM:
T: temperature
P: pressure
H: enthalpy:
Thermal STREAM:
Mechanical STREAM:
STR1: is the optional control string for messages and must be enclosed between double
quotes
STR2: is the optional control string for measured value and must be enclosed between
double quotes
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STR3: is the optional control string for accuracy and must be enclosed between double
quotes
The Control Strings are used to carry out various actions depending on the measured and sometimes
validated value of a given TAG: issuing messages, replacing the measured value by another value or
changing its accuracy.
The syntax is described in chapter "How to build your data validation model".
Please note that you must not include the &1 &2 and &3 characters. The string type is detected from
its position in the list of strings.
You can also define dummy TAGS which will be ignored by VALI. This is useful when the values of
your measurements are coming from a process control computer and contain also values of TAGS
that are not relevant for the data validation model. Defining these TAGS as dummy will avoid
getting numerous VALI warning messages about undefined TAGS.
Example:
T101 DUMMY
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The Measurement file facility is a very flexible and powerful way of exchanging information between
VALI and the outside world: yourself as a user, but also process control computer, LIMS, archiving
systems, etc. Based on ASCII files of simple structure, this system allows easy cross-platform
communication with various hardware systems.
actual measurement values, coming for example from the plant or from the lab
settings of ValiFilter
unit parameters
compound data
report specifications
Each command in a measurements file starts on a new line. All keywords should be in Uppercase,
except comments and strings.
NUMBERS
The decimal point can be either "." or ",".
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INPUT FILES
The INPUT command may be used to include TAG definitions from within other TAG files. INPUTs
may be nested up to 15 levels.
Example:
INPUT list2.mea ! this includes the contents of list2.tag in the current file.
Attention: when creating OUTPUT and ARCHIVE files, the use of INPUT files is restricted.
Example:
TABINPUT L01-WELL.txt ! imports the trajectory defined in L01-WELL.txt
The tabular data must be entered with the following syntax (keywords are in bold):
UNITNAME L01-WELL ! Name of a PIPEVAL/TNKVAL unit
NUMTABLE 1 ! Table ID (currently only 1 table is supported on a unit)
MAXCOL 2 ! Number of columns of the table
PHYSUN LG m ! Physical units definition for each column
300.0 -2349.5 ! Tabulated values
186.0 -2463.4
43.0 -2606.3
0.0 -2649.3
Attention: Physical units definition include the type of units (see a complete list of units types in
section User-defined Physical UNITS in this Chapter) as well as the engineering units that are used
for the data. In the above example, the keywords LG indicate that the data correspond to a Length.
Movement types
Sub-Movement types
Dictionary definitions are given in one or several separate text file that are referred to in your
measurement files through the following syntax:
DICTIONARY somefile.mea ! imports the definitions listed in somefile.mea
In the dictionary file itself, the keywords used with STATUS tags to indicate an active or inactive
status are listed line by line after the keywords OPEN or CLOSED.
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Example:
OPEN "Open"
OPEN "On"
CLOSED "Closed"
CLOSED "Off"
CLOSED "Shutdown"
Example:
PRODUCT CRUDE 101
PRODUCT KERO 102
PRODUCT LGO 103
For movement types, names to be used and corresponding tag names are defined through the
following keywords:
Example:
TANK_CHARGE "TANK-IN"
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If no sub-movement is specified, the default movement name will be used as sub-movement name. In
that case, the sub-movement name will be the default movement name (even if the movement name
is changed by the dictionary, see further).
When generating a file with reconciled values of tags to be written back to an historian, based on the
settings SUFFFIX_V in the historian page of the tags, the actual suffix that will be used can be set
through SUFFIX_V syntax.
Example:
SUFFIX_V “VALI”
TAGNAME: the name of a tag. (Attention: The value of the tag will be expressed in Belsim
internal units: K, bar, kg/s, kmol/s, etc.)
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Examples:
! Activates or deactivates some stream and uses a secondary file according to the
! operation mode
!
@SET SEC1 "ACTIVE"
BEGINDATE and ENDDATE define the time period for which the temporary command is active. If
RUNDATE (TAG used to store the date of the run) is comprised between BEGINDATE and ENDDATE,
the temporary command lines will be executed.
Example:
BEGIN_TEMPORARY "2010-01-01 00:00:00" "2011-01-01 00:00:00"
AIR.1_MOLF 220000 Nm3/h
AIR.1_T OFF
INPUT TempCommand.mea
END_TEMPORARY
Attention: Dates (BEGINDATE, ENDDATE and RUNDATE) must be expressed in the following
format “yyyy-MM-dd HH:mm:ss”
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Measurements files (or MEA files) are a simple way to change the measured values of the TAGS
defined in the model or through a TAG file. Most of the modern Process Control Systems and DAHS
can automatically generate this type of file with current values of the plant measurements. Lab data
can also be sent to VALI via this kind of files.
Attention: ValiLink enables to automatically create these files by interacting with various
information systems and/or databases.
BAD: means no value is currently available for that tag. If a filter is defined on the
corresponding tag, it will be activated. Otherwise, the default tag value will be taken in
place of the measured one
The default values for ACC and PU are the default values defined in the model file (or the TAG file) for
the corresponding TAG.
Attention:
1. TAGS for which no value are given in the mea files will keep their default value (as introduced in
the TAG definition).
2. The default values of the TAG in the model file remains unchanged.
3. For STATUS tags, the value can be 1 (or OPEN) or 0 (or CLOSED), or any string value (enclosed
between single quotes) defined through DICTIONARY syntax.
You can also change the failure probability through the syntax:
TAGNAME FAILPROB VALUE [PU]
Another syntax can also be used to change properties (default value, default accuracy, bounds,
failure probability and control strings) of several tags in one shot. In this case the tag values in the
model file will be updated.
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SOMETYPE and SOMENAME are strings defining which tags are to be changed (based on
their type or name) and can contain wildcards
CONTROL_STRINGS are the control strings of the tags (a series of 3 strings enclosed by
double quotes)
Attention: see DEFINING FILTER SETTINGS paragraph for a variant of UPDATETAG syntax
enabling to change ValiFilter settings.
The third syntax enables to change the value of the tag. The tag will not be considered as filtered if a
valid value is given.
BAD: means no value is currently available for that tag. If a filter is defined on the
corresponding tag, it will be activated. Otherwise, the default tag value will be taken in
place of the measured one.
You can also change the PLANTNAME of a tag using the following syntax:
TAGNAME PLANT PLANTNAME
Examples:
!
! Defines some measured values (no change of default values in the model file)
!
PI-001 20 bar
PI-002 34.23 -3 kg/cm2
PI-003 OFF
PI-004 21.23 CST
!
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
A number of pseudo-tags are also available to store some information (80 characters each) which can
then be reprinted in the output files and in ValiReport:
Pressure measurements can be specified in absolute (bar, atm, Pa, etc) or relative - to atmospheric
pressure - basis (barg, MPag., etc.). The reference atmospheric pressure is 1.0 bar by default. This
value can be overwritten by including the following syntax in a measurement file:
ATMOPRES VALUE
where:
The atmospheric pressure can also be set through a tag defined on a ATMOPRES unit.
The handling of solver bounds only works with the new SQP solver. Do not forget to use the -SQP
Vali runtime option.
Setting bounds of variables is done via the bounds specified on the TAGS. These bounds can also be
set through measurements files using the following syntax:
TAGNAME [SL VALUE] [LL VALUE] [L VALUE] [H VALUE] [HH VALUE] [SH VALUE] [PU]
where:
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Examples:
TI-001 SL 200 C ! The variable defined by TI-001 has a lower bound of 200C
TI-002 SL 150 SH 400 C ! The variable defined by TI-002 must fall in the range 150-400 C
Attention:
1. The tags on which you set the bounds can be OFF. This allows to specify bounds on unmeasured
variables as well.
2. To introduce inequality constraints between two variables (e.g. TI-001 > TI-002), you must use a
unit of type OPXVAL to calculate the difference TI-001 - TI-002 and then set a bound on this
difference. Alternatively you can also a FLXVAL unit.
Attention: Bound Control settings are usually defined through ValiModeller GUI.
Bound control mechanism keeps selected variables (defined through a TAG) at a specified distance
from their solver lower and/or upper bound.
CRITERIA: the minimum distance at which the variable must be kept wit respect to the
bound. It can be specified as a value or as AUTO in which case, the minimum distance is
automatically selected according to the type of variable.
Example:
C-1_EFFIC BND_CONTROL Both 0.1 %
ValiFilter detects measured values that are outside ERROR bounds (LL-HH interval) and updates
their value, precision and failure probability according to user settings. These settings are defined in
the model file. They can be updated using one of the two following syntaxes.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
MID: the measured value is replaced by the average of the bounds (LL+HH)/2
LAST: the measured value is replaced by the validated value of the corresponding tag
(as obtained during the last successful and saved run)
MID: the accuracy is replaced by half the difference between the bounds (HH-LL)/2
Value: the accuracy is replaced by the given value (a negative value corresponds to a
relative accuracy expressed in %)
FAILPROB: defines the action on the Failure probability and can be:
Example:
POWER_POWER LL 10 HH 17 MW
POWER_POWER FILTER DEF -5 50 %
AIR.1_T LL -20 HH 40 C
AIR.1_T FILTER BND 10 NONE
The second syntax allows to update several tags in one shot by using wildcards:
UPDATETAG TYPE TAGTYPE FILTER MEASURED ACCURACY FAILPROB
UPDATETAG NAME TAGNAME FILTER MEASURED ACCURACY FAILPROB
where:
TAGTYPE and TAGNAME are strings defining which tags are to be changed (based on their
type or name) and can contain wildcards
Example:
! Changes
01LCQ01CF001 FILTER 0.1 t/h -5 NONE
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! Sets the filter settings of all tags starting by TI to MID MID NONE
!
UPDATETAG NAME TI* FILTER MID MID NONE
Attention:
1. The penalty reported in the model and in the result files will be calculated both on basis of the
raw measured value as on basis of the filtered value.
2. The control strings and test on CUTOFF value are based on the raw measured value
It is also possible to specify a CUTOFF value on the filter settings of an individual tag (ValiFilter
license required). If the value of the measurement is below the specified value, the corresponding
object (STREAM or UNIT) will be set OFF. The syntax is:
TAGNAME CUTOFF VALUE PU
TAGNAME CUTOFF NONE
where:
VALUE: is the value under which the stream will be set OFF
Attention: It is also possible to specify a CUTOFF value on an individual tag via control strings (see "
Using control strings").
Remember also that the STATUS measurement enables a binary tag value to set a stream OFF.
You can update compensations settings of tags through the following syntax
TAGNAME COMPENS ID COMPENS BIAS AREF BREF CREF
where:
0: none
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
The covariance between two tags allows you to take into account the fact that errors on two different
measurements are somehow related, for example because the same sensor is used to measure two
different temperatures. In place of defining the covariance, you will define the correlation factors
defined as:
The value of this correlation factor must fall between -0.9 and 0.9. On a theoretical basis, the range of
values is between -1 and 1. However, on a practical basis values outside -0.9…0.9 are not significant.
Example:
CORREL TI-001 TI-002 0.1
Measurements files can also contain values of unit parameters as well as initial values of measured
or unmeasured variables.
This allows for example to easily update the MODE parameters of several units without having to
click on each of them with ValiModeller GUI.
This feature is also particularly useful when parts of a model have been set OFF and are reset ON. In
such cases all streams that where previously OFF have lost their values and must be reinitialised.
Another typical use of this feature is when the plant operates in very different operating conditions.
Having different sets of initial conditions might then be necessary to insure a smooth convergence of
the model.
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where:
The default physical units are the standard BELSIM physical units (K, bar, kmol/s, etc.).
UNIT:
MATERIAL STREAM:
T: temperature
P: pressure
H: enthalpy
THERMAL STREAM:
MECHANICAL STREAM:
Attention: The parameter MODE must be entered as a numerical value and not as a string. Also for
the REFDP parameter (reference stream for pressure drop), the stream connection number must be
given (positive for an inlet and negative for an outlet stream) and not the stream name.
A product attribute must be given to all streams connected to a unit of type NETVAL (see NETVAL :
PIPES NETWORK FOR MASS BALANCE for more information about the representation of networks
of pipes through units of type NETVAL).
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
by propagation of the product attribute associated to a tank (TNKVAL) to both its inlet
and outlet streams
if no product attribute is specified the 8 first characters of the comment of the stream will
be used as an attribute (the comment can be set through ValiModeller GUI or through the
COMMENT syntax in a MEA file)
A specific syntax enables setting OFF all units associated with a given product attribute.
Default properties can also be set on products through the following syntax:
PRODUCT NAME PROPERTY LL HH "COMMENT"
where:
LL, HH: the lower and higher filter bounds of the product property
COMMENT: a descriptive test of the product, which will be displayed in the product
balances in default reports
These default properties of the product can be used to define default values of density measurements
set on storage tanks (see section TNKVAL : STORAGE TANK).
You can select in which basis the product balances are written in the html report through the
syntax:
BALANCE_REPORT TYPE
where:
When using product attributes with NETVAL and TNKVAL units, additional tags summarizing the
product balances can automatically be created and written to the ValiReport ARC file using the
following syntax:
BALANCE PRODUCT ATTRIBUTE TYPE
where:
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If balances are activated by zones (see REPVAL unit), the same kind of tags will be defined for each
zone, starting by the zone name. In addition two additional movements type will be defined for the
zones: TRAN-IN and TRAN-OUT enabling to trace the transfer between zones.
Attention: the movement names used for these tags can be customized in a DICTIONARY section.
Example:
BALANCE PRODUCT C4 MASSF
will automatically generate the following tags:
C4_CHARGE_MASSF
C4_RUNDOWN_MASSF
C4_PRODUCT_MASSF
C4_CONSUMP_MASSF
C4_IMPORT_MASSF
C4_EXPORT_MASSF
C4_OPINVENT_MASS
C4_CLINVENT_MASS
If zone balancing is activated (and assuming one of the zone is named A1), the following tags will also
be generated:
A1_C4_CHARGE_MASSF
A1_C4_RUNDOWN_MASSF
A1_C4_PRODUCT_MASSF
A1_C4_CONSUMP_MASSF
A1_C4_IMPORT_MASSF
A1_C4_EXPORT_MASSF
A1_C4_OPINVENT_MASS
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
A1_C4_CLINVENT_MASS
A1_C4_TRAN-IN_MASSF
A1_C4_TRAN-OUT_MASSF
The above is available when no sub-movement is defined anywhere in the application.
When at least one stream has a specific sub-movement, all tag names use the sub-movement
convention described below, even for movements without sub-movements.
Assuming the balance is requested in MASSF and the Product is C4, the *.arc file will include some
lines like:
C4_EXPORT_SHIPMENT_MASSF
C4_EXPORT_LOSSES_MASSF
C4_EXPORT_EXPORT_MASSF
When balances by zone are enabled, the following tags will also be generated for each Zone (e.g.A1)::
A1_C4_EXPORT_SHIPMENT_MASSF
A1_C4_EXPORT_LOSSES_MASSF
A1_C4_EXPORT_EXPORT_MASSF
Note that it is possible to change the movement type name through a dictionary (*.mea) file. When
replacing EXPORT by EXPORTA through the dictionary, the tags become:
without sub-movement:
A1_C4_EXPORTA_MASSF
with sub-movements:
A1_C4_EXPORTA_SHIPMENT_MASSF
A1_C4_EXPORTA_LOSSES_MASSF
A1_C4_EXPORTA_EXPORT_MASSF
The EXPORT in bold here above is the default name of the movement and must be kept as it is.
You can also allow an imbalance on a given product by using the following syntax:
IMBALANCE PRODUCT ATTRIBUTE TYPE
In such a case, the balance of the selected product will not be closed and an additional tag
(ATTRIBUTE_IMBAL_TYPE) is created giving the identified imbalance.
Example:
IMBALANCE PRODUCT C4 MASSF
will automatically generate the following tags:
C4_IMBAL_MASSF
A1_C4_IMBAL_MASSF
Most objects can have a comment, which can be defined either through ValiModeller GUI or through
measurement files.
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2. The comments of TAGS (and the control strings they contain if any) can also be updated through
the UPDATETAG command
Setting a unit or a stream OFF indicates that this element is not operating and that nothing flows
through it. The corresponding equations are therefore not generated by VALI. Setting OFF a unit
automatically sets OFF all streams connected to that unit. Also any unit (except units of type
TNKVAL) having all its inlet material streams or all its outlet material streams OFF is automatically
set OFF. Setting OFF a PFD automatically sets OFF all units of the PFD.
Finally setting OFF a PRODUCT (see section "NETVAL") sets off all units (typically tanks) referring to
this product attribute.
Attention: It is also possible to set UNITS OUT, in which case the UNIT is considered by VALI as
not existing at all (see below).
Another possibility to set OFF units and streams is to use the syntax:
PRODUCT ATTRIBUTE OFF
which will set OFF all tanks associated with the corresponding product Attribute as well as their
inlet and outlet streams.
It is also possible to set streams off when a measured value on the streams is below a so-called
CUTOFF value. The TAG cannot be related to a compound partial flow rate or fraction but it can be
any total rate, temperature or pressure. The CUTOFF values can be set through unit CUTOFF,
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
through the CUTOFF filter setting on individuals tag or through the following syntax is:
CUTOFF VAR [VALMIN] VALUE [PU]
where:
VAR: is the name of the measured variable (e.g. MASSF, MOLF, T, etc.)
VALUE: is the value under which the stream will be set OFF
Examples:
CUTOFF MASSF 0.01 kg/s
! sets OFF any stream for which the measured rate is below 0.01 kg/s
CUTOFF MOLF -1 1 Nm3/h
! sets OFF any stream for which the measured rate is between -1 and 1 Nm3/
See "Defining filter settings" to define CUTOFF on individual tags.
Setting a unit OUT indicates that the UNIT is to be considered as not existing. STREAMS connected to
this UNIT only are then ignored, while streams connected to other units as well become global inlets
or outlets of the model. A complete PFD can also be set OUT. All sub-PFDs and units of this PFD are
then ignored by VALI.
This feature is very useful to exclude some parts of a model, which are not yet completed or which
are for some reasons creating problems.
Setting a product OUT enables to exclude all import and export streams from the validation model
and to validate each storage tank independently. This is useful for example when import and export
streams measurements are not yet available.
Measurements files can also contain the values of the binary parameters of the THERMODS.
where:
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The MEA files can also be used to change the data of Compounds. The syntax is the following:
where:
The physical units are the standard BELSIM physical units (K, bar, kmol/s, etc.).
The electrical charge of the Compounds (ions) is specified as a Compound property. The following
syntax can be used:
where:
where:
PRINCIPLES
Output and Archive files are automatically created by VALI after a successful run and will contain
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
When the run is not successful, the files will by default not be created. If they were already existing
before the run they will be deleted.
Attention: It is however possible to force the generation of the file even when the run is not
successful by introducing the keyword NOCONVER in any of the measurement files.
To create such a file you must introduce file a first line indicating the type of report (Output or
Archive) to be created as well as the name of this report in your measurement. Then, you specify
either line by line or as Tables which values must be written to the Output or Archive file.
The only difference between Archive and Output files is the number of values produced for each
selected TAG. Output files will include only the validated value while Archive files will include
several values for each tag its measured value, measured accuracy, validated value, a posteriori
accuracy, physical units, penalty and status.
For other variables (not TAGS), Output and Archive files are the same.
You can generate several Output and/or Archive files in a single measurements file.
Attention:
1. In a given file, all INPUT statements must come before any OUTPUT or ARCHIVE statement.
2. Archive files have been designed to operate with the ValiReport facility.
3. Several OUTPUT/ARCHIVE commands can refer to the same outfile. The different reports will
simply be concatenated.
Examples:
1.
INPUT somedata.mea ! This is a valid combination of INPUT and OUTPUT
INPUT moredata.mea
OUTPUT myreport.res
TI-001
TI-0002
2.
INPUT somedata.mea ! This is an invalid combination of INPUT and OUTPUT
OUTPUT myreport.res
TI-001
TI-0002
INPUT moredata.mea
In Example 1, it is however perfectly valid to have some OUTPUT sections in the included files
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OUTFILE: the name of the Output or Archive File that will be created
Attention: Special characters are not allowed in the name of the Output or Archive File.
ELEMENT1,2,ETC.: the various elements to be written in the report (see below): TAG
values and UNIT, STREAM, Compound and/or THERMOD data
STRINGS: comments that must be included in the report. The double quotes (") will be
removed before writing in the report
This can be defined through a specific text file that will be understood by ValiEngine.
3. You can define the number of digits for the following types of Tags only:
MASS, MASSF
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
5. When writing this file, be advised that the Measurement Type, the Physical Unit and the
number of digits columns must be separated by 8 to 16 space characters (see example here
below).
Note: tabular characters are not supported.
Example:
!-----------------------------
!Mass Flowrate
MASSF t/h 7
MASSF t/d 6
MASSF T/H 7
!-----------------------------
!Material Mass
MASS t 6
MASS TON 6
MASS T 6
!-----------------------------
!Volumetric Flowrate
CONVVOLF m3/d 6
CONVVOLF MBD 6
CONVVOLF m3/h 6
CONVVOLF bbl/h 6
CONVVOLF Nm3/h 6
!-----------------------------
!Volume
VOL1 m3 6
VOL1 bbl 6
VOL1 BBL 6
VOL2 m3 6
VOL2 bbl 6
VOL2 BBL 6
!-----------------------------
!Density
CONVDENS D60/60 6
CONVDENS Air_SG 6
CONVDENS AIR_SG 6
CONVDENS SG60/60 6
DENS1 SG60/60 6
DENS1 D60/60 6
DENS1 SPGR 6
DENS2 SG60/60 6
DENS2 D60/60 6
DENS2 SPGR 6
The values to be written can either be specified one by one (syntax 1), or globally for a number of tags
specified using wildcards (syntax 2).
NAME [PU]
DATA TAG [NAME]
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where:
PU: the physical units for the output (optionnal). The default physical units defined in the
TAG file are used if PU is not given
Attention: TAGS which are off can be specified in the report. A value will be given provided that
this TAG can be calculated from the results of the data validation run. A posteriori accuracy will
also be given when the TAG is defined on a variable which was actually part of the model.
A number of keywords can be used to get some values relevant to the run. The syntax is the same for
OUTPUT and ARCHIVE files:
KEYWORD ["STRING"]
where:
PROBLEM: the name of the PFD that has been used for the validation problem
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
"STRING": a string to be written in place of the keyword name when writing the keyword
value.
You can also get the list of units that were part of the validation model by the following syntax:
LIST
The Values to be written can either be specified one by one (syntax 1), or globally for a number of
objects of the same type (syntax 2). The first syntax allows to define the contents of your report very
precisely. The second syntax is more often used to save the values of all variables so that you can
reuse them as starting point. In each case the report produced can generally be reused as an input
file.
SYNTAX 1:
UNIT NAME PARAMETER [PU] ["STRING"]
STREAM NAME PARAMETER [PU] ["STRING"]
COMPOUND NAME PARAMETER
THERMOD NAME PARAMETER COMPOUND1 COMPOUND2
where:
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UNIT:
MATERIAL STREAM:
T: temperature
P: pressure
H: enthalpy
property: derived property (viscosity, specific heat ,etc.)(see section "CALL PROPTY")
THERMAL STREAM:
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
MECHANICAL STREAM:
COMPOUND:
THERMOD:
Attention: The report created can be reused as an input file when you do not use any derived stream
value (like VOLF and the following) and you do not use "strings".
SYNTAX 2:
DATA UNIT [NAME [PARAMETER]]
DATA STREAM [NAME [PARAMETER]]
DATA COMPOUND [NAME [PARAMETER]]
DATA THERMOD [NAME]
where:
NAME: the name of the UNIT, STREAM, COMPOUND or THERMOD. This name can include
wildcards (*, ?) in which case all objects matching the string will be selected. If no name is
given, all objects are selected
UNIT:
MATERIAL STREAM:
T: temperature
P: pressure
H: enthalpy
property: derived property (viscosity, specific heat ,etc.)(see section "CALL PROPTY")
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THERMAL STREAM:
MECHANICAL STREAM:
COMPOUND:
THERMOD:
With the TABLE concept, the user can group data of various objects into Tables. To specify the
contents of a TABLE several information must be defined:
the basic layout of the tables. Horizontal tables are tables where one line of information is
generated for each selected object. Vertical tables are tables where one column of
information is generated for each selected object
the class of object (UNITS, STREAMS or TAGS) for which the table must be generated
criteria for the selection of the objects, typically based on their names or type
selection of values (or other type of information) to be produced for each selected object
Although the way the Table information is specified is similar for all classes of objects, some
particular features are only available for some classes. The syntax is therefore described per object
class.
Some examples including tables are given at the end of this chapter. See also the coal example
(directory examples/coal on the distribution CD).
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
SELECTION COMMANDS
SELECT TYPE NAME
SELECT NAME NAME
where:
name: either the type of the UNIT or the name of the UNIT. This name can include
wildcards (*, ?) in which case all objects matching the string will be selected. If no name is
given, all objects are selected
Selection commands can be combined. Selection based on type must appear before any selection
based on name. All objects satisfying any of the type selections and any of the name selections will
be selected.
FORMATTING COMMANDS
MAXCOL I: maximum number of columns in a vertical table is set to I
COLWIDTH I: minimum width of the columnsis set to I. When necessary the width of a
column will be automatically increased
VALUE COMMANDS
These commands allow the user to specify which values are to be printed in the table. These
parameters can be a parameter of the unit (PARAM) or a parameter of an inlet (INi) or outlet (OUTi)
streams, the name of the unit (NAME), its comment (COMMENT),the name of the PFD where the unit is
located (ORIGPFD), and its mass balance based on measured values (MASSBAL).
PARAM PARAMETER ["STRING"] [PU] [FORMAT]
INi PARAMETER ["STRING"] [PU] [FORMAT]
OUTi PARAMETER ["STRING"] [PU] [FORMAT]
NAME
COMMENT
ORIGPFD
MASSBAL
where:
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FORMAT: any valid FORTRAN format specification (ex: (F7.2) prints the value using 7 digits
in total, with 2 digits after the decimal point, (G12.4) prints the values in scientific notation
using 12 digits in total, with 4 digits after the decimal point) (optional, default format is
G12.6)
"i" = 1, 2, 3, 4,... (in INi and OUTi) : the order of the inlet or outlet streams
Example: In the following example, we will print the temperature parameter of the first 3 inlet and
outlet streams of every unit in the model, to a file called "runs-units.txt".
OUTPUT RUNS-UNITS.TXT
TABLE VERTICAL UNIT
NAME
IN1 T
IN2 T
IN3 T
OUT1 T
OUT2 T
OUT3 T
ENDTABLE
A sub-table definition can appear in place of (or in addition to) Value commands in a UNIT Table.
The presence of a sub-table in a Vertical UNIT Table limits to 1 the maximum number of columns of
this main Table. The syntax is as follows:
SUBTABLE {VERTICAL|HORIZONTAL} {STREAM|INLET|OUTLET|REACTION|TAG}
[ORDER_BY {NAME|PFD}]
[SELECTION COMMANDS]
[FORMATTING COMMANDS] OR [VALUE COMMANDS]
ENDSUBTABLE
SUBTABLE COMMAND
The sub-table commands specifies the table orientation and the objects on which a sub-table will be
generated:
REACTIONS: reactions
TAG: tags
SELECTION COMMANDS
SELECT TYPE NAME
SELECT NAME NAME
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
where:
NAME: either the type or the name of the STREAM, REACTION or TAG. This name can
include wildcards (*, ?) in which case all objects matching the string will be selected. If no
name is given, all objects are selected
Selection commands can be combined. Selections based on type must appear before any selection
based on name. All objects satisfying any of the type selections and any of the name selections will
be selected.
FORMATTING COMMANDS
MAXCOL I: maximum number of columns in a vertical table is set to I
SUFFIX "S": specifies the character S as a suffix for all tag names
FORMAT: any valid FORTRAN format specification (ex: (F7.2) prints the value using 7 digits
in total, with 2 digits after the decimal point, (G12.4) prints the values in scientific notation
using 12 digits in total, with 4 digits after the decimal point) (optional, default format is
G12.6)
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FORMAT: any valid FORTRAN format specification (ex: (F7.2) prints the value using 7 digits
in total, with 2 digits after the decimal point, (G12.4) prints the values in scientific notation
using 12 digits in total, with 4 digits after the decimal point) (optional, default format is
G12.6)
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340 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
FORMAT: is any valid FORTRAN format specification (ex: (F7.2) prints the value using 7
digits in total, with 2 digits after the decimal point, (G12.4) prints the values in scientific
notation using 12 digits in total, with 4 digits after the decimal point) (optional, default
format is G12.6)
SELECTION COMMANDS
SELECT TYPE NAME
SELECT NAME NAME
where:
NAME: either the type (MAT, MECSTRM or THERSTRM) of the STREAM or the name of the
STREAM. This name can include wildcards (*, ?) in which case all objects matching the
string will be selected. If no name is given, all objects are selected
Selection commands can be combined. Selection based on type must appear before any selection
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based on name. All objects satisfying any of the Type selections and any of the Name selections will
be selected.
FORMATTING COMMANDS
MAXCOL I: maximum number of columns in a vertical table is set to I
COLWIDTH I: minimum width of the columnsis set to I. When necessary the width of a
column will be automatically increased
VALUE COMMANDS
These commands allow the user to specify which stream values are to be printed in the table. These
values can be a parameter of the stream (PARAM) , its NAME, its COMMENT, its origin (FROM, PFDFROM)
or destination unit or PFD (TO, PFDTO), its STATE or associated THERMOD. The following syntax can
be used:
PARAM PARAMETER ["STRING"] [PU] [FORMAT]
NAME ["STRING"]
FROM ["STRING"]
TO ["STRING"]
PFDFROM ["STRING"]
PFDTO ["STRING"]
STATE ["STRING"]
THERMOD ["STRING"]
COMMENT ["STRING"]
where:
FORMAT: any valid FORTRAN format specification (ex: (F7.2) prints the value using 7 digits
in total, with 2 digits after the decimal point, (G12.4) prints the values in scientific notation
using 12 digits in total, with 4 digits after the decimal point) (optional, default format is
G12.6)
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
The UNITOFF, STREAMOFF and STREAMOUT commands allow to include the tags related to streams
and units that are OFF or OUT.
SELECTION COMMANDS
SELECT TYPE NAME
SELECT UNIT NAME
SELECT STREAM NAME
SELECT NAME NAME
where:
NAME: either the type or name of the TAG or the name of UNITS or STREAMS. This name
can include wildcards (*, ?) in which case all objects matching the string will be selected. If
no name is given, all objects are selected
Selection commands can be combined. Selection based on type must appear before any selection
based on unit or stream, which in turn must appear before any selection based on TAG name. All
objects satisfying any of the Type, UNIT or STREAM selections and any of the TAG Name selections
will be selected.
FORMATTING COMMANDS
MAXCOL I: maximum number of columns in a vertical table is set to I
COLWIDTH I: minimum width of the columnsis set to I. When necessary the width of a
column will be automatically increased
SUFFIX "S": specifies the character s as a suffix for all tag names
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VALUE COMMANDS
These commands allow the user to specify which TAGS values are to be printed in the table.
KEYWORD ["STRING"] [FORMAT]
NAME ["STRING"]
COMMENT ["STRING"]
where:
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
FORMAT: is any valid FORTRAN format specification (ex: (F7.2) prints the value using 7
digits in total, with 2 digits after the decimal point, (G12.4) prints the values in scientific
notation using 12 digits in total, with 4 digits after the decimal point) (optional, default
format is G12.6)
Attention: When a TAG is set constant (or OFF), the keyword CST (or OFF) will appear in place of
CORRFACT and ATTNFACT. If the measured value is 0, the correction factor CORRFACT has no
meaning and is replaced by a question mark "?".
The separate application IOFILE.EXE can be used to process measurements files independently of
VALI application. This enables extracting various data from a model or uploading other data into
the model without the need to solve any validation problem.
by opening a DOS Command windows, going in the appropriate directory and entering
the command:
<belsim_dir>\bin\vali.exe [<file>]
where <belsim_dir> is the path to your belsim installation directory (by default c:
\belsim2001) and the optional <file> keyword is the name of the vif file (pc.vif by default)
Attention: The structure and contents of the vif files are described above in the section Using VALI
in Batch Mode.
The following mea file syntax is accepted to change the default values
Tag_name value accuracy/CST/OFF [Physical_unit]
The default value of the tag Tag_name and its accuracy will be modified.
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Or
If aproperty is DEF.VAL, DEF.ACC, RAW.VAL, RAW.ACC, SL, LL, L, H, HH, SH, FAILPROB,
COMMENT, IS.BAD, IS.FLAT1 or, IS.FLAT2, the property is changed; if aproperty is MEA.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
Remarks:
If –DEF and –NOS are used in the same time, the BLS file will not be saved;
Example 1
UNIT HTX2 OFF ! Set unit HTX2 as not operating
UNIT HTX1 MODE 1 ! Set unit HTX1 mode parameter to 2
UNIT HTX1 DP1 0.5 bar ! Set unit HTX1 first pressure drop to 0.5 bar
UNIT HTX1 DP2 0.3 bar ! Set unit HTX1 second pressure drop to 0.3 bar
STREAM S102 T 15 C ! Initialise temperature of stream S102 to 15 C
T101 13.2 C ! Set Tag T101 measurement value to 13.2 C
P101 3.5 CST ! Set Tag P101 measurement value to 3.5 (bar)
! and consider the variable as a constant
T117 27.5 C ! Set Tag T117 measurement value to 27.5 C
P117 2 CST ! Set Tag P117 measurement value to 2 (bar)
! and consider the variable as a constant
INPUT list2.mea ! Read measurements file 'list2.mea'
INPUT list3.mea ! Read measurements file 'list3.mea'
OUTPUT list3.out ! Generate output file 'list3.out'
"Results for March 24th, 1997" ! Output "Results for March 24th, 1997"
T101 F ! Output "T101 ... F"
P101 atm ! Output "P101 ... atm"
T117 F ! Output "T117 ... F"
P117 atm ! Output "P117 ... atm"
STREAM S101 VOLF m3/h "Cooling water:" ! Output "Cooling water: ... m3/h"
UNIT HTX1 A m2 "Cooler 1 area:" ! Output "Cooler 1 area: ... m2"
ARCHIVE list3.arc ! Generate output file 'list3.arc'
"Results for March 24th, 1997" ! Output "Results for March 24th, 1997"
T101 F ! Output "T101 ... F"
P101 atm ! Output "P101 ... atm"
T117 F ! Output "T117 ... F"
P117 atm ! Output "P117 ... atm"
STREAM S101 VOLF m3/h "Cooling water:" ! Output "Cooling water: ... m3/h"
UNIT HTX1 A m2 "Cooler 1 area:" ! Output "Cooler 1 area: ... m2"
OUTPUT list4.out ! Generate output file 'list4.out'
DATA UNIT * MODE ! Writes all MODE parameters
DATA STREAM ! Writes all Stream data
The resulting output file 'list3.out' could be:
Results for March 24th, 1997
T101 54.355 F
P101 3.4542 atm
T117 81.772 F
P117 1.9738 atm
Cooling water: 542.17 m3/h
Cooler 1 area: 119.56 m2
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The following 'measurement' file creates a file with the definition of all tags relevant to the model.
The generated file could be reused as a TAG file. (See in the coal example).
OUTPUT tagdef.out
! Beginning of the table of tags
TABLE HORIZONTAL TAG
! Selection commands
UNITOFF
STREAMOFF
SELECT NAME *
! Formatting commands
NOHEADER
COLWIDTH 8
SEPCHAR " "
! Value commands
OBJCLASS
OBJNAME
TYPE
MEA.VAL (G15.6)
MEA.ACC- (G11.3)
PHYSUN
! End of the table
ENDTABLE
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
A default Sensitivity Analysis is performed by setting the VALI Runtime option -SNS. The
sensitivity analysis is also generated when -VDI option is selected. The Sensitivity Analysis tool can
however be used on a stand-alone basis to generate more specific results. The files generated by the
sensitivity analysis are best exploited through ValiAnalytics GUI.
The sensitivity analysis processes the information available in the validation results to answer the
following questions:
what is the precision of the validated values of the measured and unmeasured variables ?
This is called the validated accuracy (or uncertainty). Note that the validated accuracy of
measured variables is directly calculated by VALI and shown in the html (or r4v), r5v and
r6v files
what are the measurements that have an effect on the validated uncertainty of variables?
These are the contributors
how much a given variable will change if the value of a measurement is changed? This is
called the sensitivity
what is the interaction between the measurements: this information is provided by the
covariance analysis
Having answered these questions allows you to answer a second set of questions:
what are the measurements that are really improved by the validation? The
measurements that have a significant improvement of their accuracy
what are the measurements that should be improved to improve the accuracy of a given
variable? The measurements that have a high contribution to uncertainty of the selected
variable
what is the level of dependency of the measurements ? The measurements that will show a
significant covariance factor are with a strong link
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The validated accuracy values are based on the accuracy values set on the measurements. Validated
accuracy values are not directly affected by the correction applied on some of the measurements.
When gross errors are present in the validated values, the validated accuracy estimations are no
longer valid.
The analysis should also been considered with caution when bounds are activated. It is probably
better to check the pertinence of bounds and take corrective actions: relax bounds or set variables
constants to get a model converging without activation of bounds.
The validated accuracy should not be interpreted (nor used) as the validated precision of a
measurement sensor. The validated accuracy relates to the validated value of the variable on which
the measurement is made and this accuracy takes into account the precision of the sensor itself and
the precision of all other measurements defined on other variables that have an effect on this
variable. The validated accuracy is in fact the "real" knowledge you have about the variables of the
process when all the information (measurements + model) are considered at the same time.
Variables set as constants are not considered in the Sensitivity Analysis. If you want to perform
sensitivity analysis on these variables, you must first relax them. Setting a very low uncertainty
(but not zero) on the constant will have nearly the same effect as setting it constant.
The bounds activated by the solver (SQPIP) are affecting the results of the sensitivity analysis
because they are considered as additional constraints of the system. This means that bounded
variables will show a validated accuracy of zero. They will also decrease the uncertainty of related
variables.
Attention: Some of the measurements, like rates and compositions, that are specified on STREAMS
relate in fact to their Rates record and are handled as such by VALI. You will therefore find
measurements on Rates in the sensitivity analysis.
<model>.vcv: the report of the covariances between validated values of variables and
measurements
<model>.dcv: the report of the covariances between corrections on measurements and the
measurements themselves
<model>.sds
<modell>_xml.res: xml global report, containing all results. This file is meant to be read by
ValiAnalytics
When running the sensitivity analysis from VALI, using the -SNS runtime option, the report
<model>.res will consist of the Variables and Measurements Analysis Reports as described below.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
The <model>.vcv will also been generated for the Variables and Measurements. And the <model>.dcv
will be generated for all the validated variables.
In case of VDI mode, only the measured variables flagged because of a big difference between
measured value and validated value will be considered in the different reports. No <model>.res file
will be generated.
The covariance information is useful to identify the cause of gross error because they can be due not
to the flagged measurement but to some other which are strongly correlated with those ones.
Afterwards you can also run the Sensitivity Analysis as a stand alone tool, to get some customised
reports.
All the examples found in this section are extracted from a modified version of GT example provided
with the Release.
its measured values and accuracies (absolute and relative) if measurements are defined
Attention: the list of contributors and the corresponding sensitivities can be removed from the
report when using the tool in stand-alone mode.
If the variable is not measured, the term validated will be changed in 'Computed' and the list of
associated measurements will be empty.
In the case of a variable activating one of its bounds, the term "validated" of the first line will be
replaced by 'High Bound' or 'Low Bound'. In this case, the list of variables that are related to the
considered variable and have a zero validated accuracy will be listed. The table will report for each
identified variable:
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In the case of a variable that has a zero validated accuracy, the contributors identification will be
replaced by the identification of the bounds that are influencing the validated value.
the relative gains of accuracy and the penalties of the variables when they are associated
with measurement(s)
Attention: the list of variables and the corresponding sensitivities can be removed from the report
when using the tool in stand-alone mode.
In the case of a variable activating one of its bounds, the term "validated" of the first line will be
replaced by 'High Bound' or 'Low Bound'. In this case, the list of variables that are related to the
considered variable and have a zero validated accuracy will be listed. The table will report for each
identified variable:
In the case of a variable that has a zero validated accuracy, the contributors identification will be
replaced by the identification of the bounds that are influencing the validated value.
COVARIANCE REPORT
The validated accuracies reported for each variable by VALI in its report files and in the reports
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
described in the previous sections are in fact a sub part (the diagonal) of the statistical covariance
matrix.
In all the cases, the measured variables are located at the top of the list and are sorted in decreasing
order of penalties. This is done in order to ease the use of the covariance analysis to identify the cause
of gross error in a set of measurements. In case of -VDI option, only the flagged variables will be
reported.
The problem of gross error detection is that the responsible is not necessary one of the flagged
variable, but it can be due to another one set with a higher accuracy which is not moving but is
forcing the other measured variables of the system to show big deviations. In that case, they will be
identified because they will show high correlation level with the flagged variables (Cor.Coef ~ 1).
It is possible to consider two kind of correlation coefficient analysis. The first one is based on
identification of correlation coefficient between the validated values and the measurements values
provided to the system. The second kind of analysis is to identify the correlation coefficient between
the deviation shown by the measured variables with the measurement values provided to the
system. This second kind of analysis is the one suggested by the VDI-2048 recommendation to
identify the gross errors.
its measured values and accuracies (absolute and relative) if measurements are defined
If the variable is not measured, the term validated will be changed in 'Computed' and the list of
associated measurements will be empty.
In the case of a variable activating one of its bounds, the term "validated" of the first line will be
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In the case of a variable that has a zero validated accuracy, the table of related measurements will be
removed because a trivial value of zero is associated with all the measurements.
The trivial correlation factor of 1 of the variable with itself has been removed from the table.
its measured value and accuracy (absolute and relative) if measurements are defined
its measured value and accuracies (absolute and relative), plus relative gain of accuracy
and penalty if measurements are defined
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
In case of a variable fixed by one of its bound, 'H' or 'L' will appear in the column for measurements
count (first line of variable) to show the active bound.
its measured value and accuracies (absolute and relative), plus relative gain of accuracy
and penalty if measurements are defined
The main difference with the normal report is that all the information is now on one single line.
In case of variable fixed by one of its bound, flag 'H' or 'L' will be raised in the column following the
physical units.
To generate the Sensitivity Analysis reports, you must first run your Validation model with the
option -SNS. The intermediate file required for the sensitivity analysis will also be generated when -
VDI option is used.
VALI then generates <model>.fmt where <model> is the name of the main PFD of your model. This
file contains the information required for the Sensitivity Analysis
<model>.res: variables and measurements analysis (not generated with -VDI option)
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<model>.sds
<modell>_xml.res: xml global report, containing all results. This file is meant to be read by
ValiAnalytics
If you want to customize the report contained in <model>.res, you must then use the programme
called Sensiv.exe located in the \bin directory of Belsim installation. The following steps must be
completed:
variables to be analysed
measurements to be analysed
options
line 1: S to define the analysis from the screen (step 2), F to read the settings of the analysis
from the file <model>.com
line 3: code for the spreadsheet settings: code = SEP + DEC + ALP:
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
DEC:
ALP:
0 othe rwise
line 4: line for options, actually, the only option re cognize d is the -VDI which can be use d in orde r
to ge ne rate a se t of re port similar as whe n -VDI option is use d to run the mode l in VALI. The
de fault is to ke e p a blank line to ge t the de fault re ports cove ring all the variable s.
Depending on the selections you have made, three different reports are produced:
selecting neither variables nor measurements produces the default report with measured
and validated values and accuracies of all variables
selecting only variables generates the variables analysis report with measured and
validated values and accuracies of the selected variables. On request, measurements
contributing to the validated variances are listed with optionally the sensitivity of
selected variables to the measurements value
selecting only measurements produces the measurements analysis report with the list of
variables that have a significant part of their validated variance due to the accuracy of the
selected measurements
selecting both variables and measurements allows you to get a variable analysis report
showing the sensitivities of variables to measurements values even when their
contribution are low (or zero)
In all the cases, the summary report file (<model.sum>) and the covariance report files (<model>.vcv
and <model>.dcv) will be filled at the end of the process taking into account the relevant options used
for the definition of the last section of the command file.
In the case of existing command file in the directory used to run VALI, the file is not replaced
allowing the use of personal settings to overwrite defaults.
:OUTPUT <FILENAME>: print the analysis results of the current section in the file
<filename>. By default, the report file is <model>.res
:SPREAD: when following the definition of an output file leads to generation of all the
following reports if spreadsheet format
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Trick : modify the default <model>.com file introducing the line :SPREAD after the line :OUTPUT
<model>.res will lead to reports in spreadsheet format.
VARIABLE TYP NAME VAR: defines the variables to be analysed (one line per
variable):
Example:
VARIABLE STREAM IN MASSF
TAGNAME: the name of the TAG defining the measurement. Wildcards (*, ?) can be used
Example:
MEASUREMENT IN_MASSF
NUMCONT N
MINCONT VAL: contributors with a value lower than VAL are excluded from the list.
This parameter will also be considered for the covariance analysis
If you have not defined the model in step1, Sensiv will prompt you for the relevant information.
If you have not defined the analysis in step2, Sensiv will also prompt you for the relevant
information. You can at this stage ask to create the file defining the analysis so that you can reuse it
later on.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
The following theory is developed for a single measurement on each measured variable. It can be
extended to multiple measurements cases by first computing weighted average values for measured
data (both measurement's value and measurement's accuracy).
In case of non diagonal covariance matrix (a priori covariance coefficients provided by user), the
multiple measurements are avoided by creating additional variable and link equation.
NOTATIONS
F(X,Y) array of NEQ constraint equations (balance, equilibrium and link equations).
where:
s.t
with the weighting matrix which enables the relative precision of the MES measurements to be
quantified.
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As a matter of fact, this matrix is the inverse of the a priori covariance matrix
If the covariance elements are equal to 0, the matrix is diagonal and its elements are the inverse of
variance s2i of the measurements:
The definition of the covariance matrix is made according to the VDI 2048 specification.
The constrained problem can be transformed into an unconstrained one by using Lagrange
formulation (equivalent to the formula 114 of VDI specifications):
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In these expressions, matrices A and B (hidden in J-1) are calculated after convergence (solution) of
the validation problem.
and
where:
is the matrix of linear coefficient, which can also be called sensitivity matrix
This relation is similar to the equation 192 of the VDI 2048 specifications which has been used for
computation of the guarantee conditions.
Now, if we consider the functions linking the validated values of measured variables with the values
of measurements (see above), the covariance matrix of validated values can be expressed as:
where:
J-1 1,MES is built from the 1 to MES first lines and contains MES columns
The formula is also taking into accounts the fact that both J-1 and P are symmetrical matrices, and
that P is the inverse of the a priori covariance matrix.
With this procedure, it is possible to define a posteriori accuracy for measured and variables.
Actually, VALI is computing only a posteriori variances (s2) which are converted to standard
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deviation (s) and reported to the user. This means that VALI is computing only diagonal elements of
the a posteriori covariance matrix.
Extension to off diagonal elements has been made in the external programme SENSIV and is reported
in a separate report file available only when sensitivity analysis is made. In fact, we are reporting the
covariance factor defined from the following formula:
where:
The values are in the range -1, +1. Absolute value close to 1 means a strong interaction between the
variables. This can help for detection of gross error by showing which measurements are conflicting.
It is possible to identify the covariance matrix of the deviation of the measured variables considering
In VALI default mode, the a posteriori values reported for the correlation coefficients are relative to
the validated values of the measurements. When the VDI mode is selected, the a posteriori
covariances reported are relative to the deviations between the validated value and the value of the
measurement.
The covariance matrix of the deviations can be calculated from the following relationships coming
from formulas 130 & 132 of VDI 2048 specifications:
and
where:
The test suggested by formula 129 of the VDI 2048 specifications is based on the same definition of the
correlation coefficient which leads to:
Another main difference between the VALI and the VDI mode is that only measured variables
suspected to be linked with gross error are reported. In the latter case the criterion used for the
detection of measured variables to be reported is coming from the formula 141 of the VDI 2048
specifications:
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
The value of the chi-square with a statistical certainty of 95 % is reported (in case of VALI mode, the
certainty level can be changed). When the value of the objective function is greater than this value, a
flag is raised.
where :
It is then possible to identify the suspected measurements from reports and to generate a covariance
analysis to identify the correlated variables (VDI 2048 formulas 141 and 129).
HANDLING OF BOUNDS
When using SQPIP solver, it is possible to handle bounds on a rigorous way. The solver is an
optimiser designed to handle bounds for all the variables of the system. The problem solved is now:
For the calculation of the a posteriori covariance matrix, we consider that the variables that are
activating the Interior Point procedure of the solver can be considered as constant fixed to the bound
value.
This means that for the a posteriori analysis, we are considering that the following equivalent
problem is solved:
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The additional set of constrains expresses that the corresponding variables can be considered as
constant and are equal to the activated bound (upper or lower). Practically, this means that we add a
new line to the matrix (for a bound on measured variable) or matrix (for a bound on
unmeasured variable).
Considering the equation 192 of the VDI 2048 specifications for the previous functions linking the
unmeasured variables with the values of measurements, the covariance of the unmeasured variables
can be expressed as:
where:
is built from the MES+1 to MES+NMES first lines and contains MES
columns
The formula is also taking into accounts the fact that P is symmetrical matrix and is inverse of a
priori covariance matrix.
VALI is reporting the a posteriori variances (σ²) which are converted to standard deviations (σ). The
off diagonal elements are representing the a posteriori covariance matrix between the umeasured
variables.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
The overall a posteriori covariance matrix can be expressed by the following formula:
where:
This formula is obtained considering that unmeasured variables have a standard deviation equal to
infinite (This leads to the zero values around the matrix). We can define a priori covariance
matrix equal to and we can also consider the limit following behaviour:
It is therefore possible to express the covariance matrix of the unmeasured variables with the
measured ones according to the following formula:
This formula is used in the external application, which is performing the extended sensitivity
analysis (SENSIV). Once again, the programme is reporting the correlation coefficients.
In case of non diagonal covariance matrix (a priori covariance coefficients provided by user), the
multiple measurements are avoided by creating additional variable and link equation.
Weighted average values differ from the usual arithmetic average. The formula below gives more
weight to the most accurate measurements.
with nti the number of measurements associated with the measured variable i and j the index of this
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The second specific point is that all the covariance analysis is made for the deviations of the
measured variables (ν). The analysis with the VALI mode is made for the covariances between the
validated values.
The two cases are identified by the titles of the tables presented in the report.
With the VDI mode, the first table is named 'Measurement' and the second is named 'Corrections'. In
VALI mode, the title of the first table is 'Variable' and the title of the second one is 'Measurement'.
The last difference between values reported in the tables is the definition of the penalties. In case of
VDI mode, the penalty is defined from the following definition that has been provided by the VDI
2048 specifications (formula 141 is using the square root of the penalty reported):
When VDI mode is selected, the covariance analysis is always performed but only for suspect
measurements for which penalties are biggest than (1.96)2 according to the VDI 2048 specifications
(formula 141).
Another main difference is that VALI approach is making connection between the measured values
and the resulting validated values (measured and unmeasured) considering all of them as functions
resulting from linear combination of measurement values when solution is reached. In the VDI2048,
all the mathematical developments are made considering the deviations (n) following detailed
statistical developments.
The table below details the difference in notation between VALI formulation and VDI formulation.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
On the other side a number of abbreviations are used in VALI report files. Their correspondence to
VDI nomenclature is described in the following table:
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
As VALI is based on an equation solver approach, an initial value must be set to all its variables.
Adequate initial values are taken by VALI from the results of preceding runs and from user given
initial values. If such a value is not available, then default values are given to the variables.
However, in some cases these initial values are not adequate to ensure model convergence.
INIT=0: The initial variables values are kept if they are feasible. Otherwise, arbitrary
values are used
By default INIT=1.
The default procedure based on the measurements is recommended when creating a new model.
When the model has been run successfully, using the initial variables values is usually better.
validate each PFD separately, using only mass balances (set MODE to 1 or use the -MBO
runtime option). This will usually require the addition of some pseudo-measurements
that you can remove later
validate each PFD separately, adding progressively the other balances (heat balances,
liquid/vapour equilibrium, efficiencies, etc.)
validate progressively the full model by progressively activating the various PFDs
Attention: Part of a model can be set OUT by setting units or PFDs OUT via the measurements files.
Reasonable starting points must be provided for the composition of the liquid and vapour streams
that are outlets of liquid/vapour separators (LVEVAL).
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
In case of a structurally singular matrix Vali can detect what equations are introducing the
singularity. These equations are listed in the file <model>.r1v.
When reaching a numerically singular matrix, Vali starts a Post-Mortem Analysis Phase, which
sometimes, but not always, allows to detect the equations and variables linked to the problem.
Again, the information will be provided in the file <model>.r1v.
When not reaching convergence after the specified maximum number of iterations, Vali will anyway
generate a report with the best solution found so far. If at least one feasible solution (that is a
solution that satisfies the constraints) has been found, then the "best solution" will be the feasible
solution that minimises the total penalty. If no feasible solution has been found, then the "best
solution" will be the solution that minimises the sum of residues of the constraints.
Failing to converge the validation model is in most cases due either to a wrong problem definition or
to a bad initialisation point. Applying the method proposed in the section "How to initialise a model"
here above should solve most of the problems due to a wrong initialisation point.
The file <model>.r1v will indicate, for example, inadequate initial values which are replaced by
default values. You should check whether these default values are meaningful. You can look after the
variables that have violated their bounds several times (search for string VIOL). These variables are
often (but not always) sources of convergence problems.
You can also look in the full report (<model>.r4v ) for measurements that are extensively corrected
by Vali.
You can also request the generation of debugging files (-dbg runtime option), with a trace of the
equation residues, variables values and measurements values though the iterations.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
review the inlets and outlets of streams of your model in the global balance table of the
report file (<model>.r4v or htm)
look in the table of unmeasured variables and check their a posteriori accuracy. Variables
with a very high a posteriori accuracy are a source of convergence problems. Additional
measurements should be defined in order to reduce this uncertainty. Candidates for new
measurements can be found by looking at the contributors listed in the sensitivity
analysis report
look at the constants of your model and verify whether these variables are really to be
considered constant
The modelling of a closed loop, without any purge stream leads to a singular Jacobian matrix because
of inappropriate mass balances that are generated when closing loop. This problem can be solved in
two ways :
the preferred method is to open the loop and to add temperature and pressure equalities
between the two corresponding streams (use unit CUTVAL)
another solution is to add a purge and an inlet stream to the loop and to fix one of these
two flow rates to a small value
By default, VALI does accept to reach a solution with negative flowrates when the corresponding
streams are not involved in Heat balances or LVE constraints. Getting negative flow rates as a
solution is usually the indication of an incoherence in the structure of your model or of major errors
in your measurements.
Setting the parameter NEGATFLR of OPTVAL to 1, will avoid getting negative flow rates in any case.
However, this can sometimes also prohibit convergence of the model.
Note also then when using the new SQP-IP solver, negative flow rates are never accepted.
In some cases a given process can be operated in very different modes. For example, a power plant
can be operated at full load or at partial load, in summer or winter conditions. The same validation
model can normally be used for these various operating modes. When necessary, parts of the model
can be switched off or not depending on the operation mode.
When used in on-line operation, the variations between two operating points are usually small and
do not cause any convergence problem.
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
However, when used in off-line mode, the difference between two consecutive points can be very
important and can cause convergence problems. In such a case, it is recommended to save typical
operating conditions of the various modes using the DATA UNIT and DATA STREAM keywords in an
output section of a measurements file. You can then re-use those typical operating conditions files as
new starting point for a corresponding mode.
Each section can be activated or de-activated independently and the section REPVAL for more
information.
Alternatively measurement files can be used to extract data related to unit and streams on a "one
value per line" basis. These reports can be used as input of a spreadsheet to produce dedicated
reports.
Prepare the output section of your data file to extract the required information. Then, insert the
result file in your spreadsheet. Define in another section of your spreadsheet the report as required
by referencing the values in the section when you imported the data file.
For a detailed description of measurements files see section "Using measurement files".
You can easily add your own physical units by introducing them in the file pud.cfg in the \usr
directory of your installation. Each line defines a new physical on basis of the following syntax:
UT CF1 CF2 D NAME
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
where:
UT: the unit type (see table below for units types and default Belsim units)
D: a the number of digits after the decimal point in the result boxes
NAME: a name of the physical units.(This name cannot contain any blank character)
CF1 and CF2 must be such that when multiplying the value expressed in user-defined units by CF1
and adding the term CF2 one gets the value expressed in Belsim default physical units.
TE 5.5555555556E-01 2.5537222222E+02 2 F
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
LG m le ngth VO m3 volume
Attention:
1. The names of physical units should be unique, even for different types of physical units.
2. The physical unit configuration file is read when starting ValiModeller application. After any
change in this file, you must therefore restart ValiModeller application.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
VALI error handling facility has been developed in order to give the most relevant information on
the correctness of your model and to help you in case of problems.
VALI error messages are identified by an alphanumeric code of the following form:
*COD* NUM MESSAGE
where:
WRN: Warning: a particular situation that could be a source of error in the model is
detected. A corrective measure has been taken, but it should not affect the quality of
the results
ERR: Error: an error has been detected. A corrective measure has been taken. Vali
should run correctly but the results could be affected
ERS: Severe Error: a severe error has been detected. A corrective action has been taken.
Calculation will proceed but the results are probably wrong
ERF: Fatal Error: a fatal error has been detected for which no corrective action could be
taken. The calculation will stop
Example:
*INF*2472 MEASUREMENT T STREAM FUME.1 SHOWS A
STANDARD DEVIATION > 1.E+8 AND IS NOT TAKEN INTO ACCOUNT.
A summary of the errors detected in each phase is produced in the Run VALI windows and at the
end of the Log file (<model>.r1v).
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
As the equations generated by VALI for each UNIT cannot be linearly dependant, the origin of this
fatal error lies in the topology of the model.
The process includes a loop whose material flow contains a chemical Compound which does not
enter or exit this loop. To overcome the fatal error generated by this situation, remove the
Compound from the THERMOD used in the STREAMS which constitutes the loop, or introduce this
Compound in the THERMOD of the incoming and outgoing STREAMS.
the list of variables (whether measured or not) as well as the constants involved in these
equations
For example, a BBXVAL UNIT could have two inlet STREAMS whose associated THERMOD contains
one Compound CH1 and one outlet STREAM whose associated THERMOD contains two Compounds
CH1 and CH2. During the model analysis, VALI detects that CH2 cannot exist at the outlet and
generates a measurement which specifies that the partial flowrate of CH2 equals zero with a zero
accuracy for the outlet STREAM. The outlet stream has therefore only one component and any
composition measurement has no meaning. In this case, you must introduce the Compound CH2 in
the THERMOD associated to the inlet STREAMS.
Another situation similar to the first one is when the THERMOD associated to the inlet STREAMS
contains also CH2 and you have specified that the inlet partial flowrates equal zero with a zero
accuracy. VALI will again identify that the outlet stream has only one component and that any
composition has no meaning. In this case, you must remove some CH1 composition measurements.
In general, to overcome this error, you must redefine correctly your measurements or introduce the
Compound in some THERMODS.
To overcome this error, replace the measurement value by a 1.D-6, for instance, while keeping its
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
These fatal errors are due to a poor definition of your model and consist mainly in:
a lack of measurements
Overcoming these fatal errors generally requires to look for more details in the file <model>.r1v file.
In such a case a list of supplementary measurements is produced in the <model>.r1v file, together
with the list of variables and equations that can be validated or at least calculated.
You can directly cut and paste some of the TAG definitions proposed by VALI in the <model>.r1v
file.. Select one TAG definition in each group of supplementary measurements
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
To help you, VALI lists the equations which cannot be considered during data validation.
The names of the equations which are in this list gives you an idea on the UNITs involved in at least
one process subsection which suffers from lack of information. A careful analysis of these UNITs
may sometimes indicate the possibility of grouping several UNITs into a single one.
If the variables and the equations which appear in the lists are related to a liquid-vapour separator,
you could add the liquid-vapour relationships. Anyway, you must be aware that the quality of the
results will depend upon the ability of the thermodynamic model you are using to describe the liquid
and vapour fugacities of the mixture.
It is also possible to introduce your own modelling constraints with OPXVAL or FLXVAL type of
units.
As the equations generated by VALI for each UNIT cannot be linearly dependant, the origin of this
fatal error lies in the topology of the model.
The process includes a loop whose material flow contains a chemical Compound which does not
enter or exit this loop. To overcome the fatal error generated by this situation, remove the
Compound from the THERMOD used in the STREAMS which constitutes the loop, or introduce this
Compound in the THERMOD of the incoming and outgoing STREAMS.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
the list of the equations which belong to the singular subset of equations
the list of variables (whether measured or not) as well as the constants involved in these
equations
*ERF* 2490 THE VARIABLE ... DOES NOT OCCUR IN THE EQUATIONS
This error will be issued for all pressure variables that are only appearing in heat balances equations
where their influence is assumed to be negligible in the analysis phase.
This fatal error could also appear if you are using a new type of UNIT. In that case, contact BELSIM S.
A to overcome the error.
*ERF* 2491 THE EQUATION ... DOES NOT CONTAIN ANY VARIABLE
This fatal error could only appear if you are using a new type of UNIT. Contact BELSIM S.A to solve
this error.
A typical situation refers to a mixer whose outlet STREAM contains a Compound which is not
present in the inlet STREAMS. In this case, VALI generates a measurement which specifies that the
related partial flowrate is equal to zero with an accuracy equal to zero. The measurement you
provide enters into conflict with the measurement generated by VALI.
To overcome this error, you must redefine correctly the THERMODs involved in the model.
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
A typical situation refers to a mixer where you have measured at the outlet a significant composition
for one Compound which is not present in the THERMOD associated with the inlet STREAMS.
VALI will, in this case, eliminate the mass balance equation and add a measurement which specifies
that this outlet partial flowrate is equal to zero with an accuracy equal to zero.
To overcome this error, introduce the Compound in the appropriate THERMOD in order to make
your measurement consistent with your model definition.
For example, a BBXVAL UNIT could have two inlet STREAMs whose associated THERMOD contains
one Compound CH1 and one outlet STREAM whose associated THERMOD contains two Compounds
CH1 and CH2. During the model analysis, VALI detects that CH2 cannot exist at the outlet and
generates a measurement which specifies that the partial flowrate of CH2 equals zero with a zero
accuracy for the outlet STREAM. The outlet stream has therefore only one component and any
composition measurement has no meaning. In this case, you must introduce the Compound CH2 in
the THERMOD associated to the inlet STREAMs.
Another situation similar to the first one is when the THERMOD associated to the inlet STREAMs
contains also CH2 and you have specified that the inlet partial flowrates equal zero with a zero
accuracy. VALI will again identify that the outlet stream has only one component and that any
composition has no meaning. In this case, you must remove some CH1 composition measurements.
In general, to overcome this error, you must redefine correctly your measurements or introduce the
Compound in some THERMODs.
To overcome this error, replace the measurement value by a 1.D-6, for instance, while keeping its
standard deviation equal to zero or preferably set the STREAM OFF.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
To overcome this error, identify the occurring variables and provide a non zero value for the
standard deviation of one of them.
As VALI works as an equation solver, it is often necessary to examine the residuals of each equations
at each iteration as well as the values of the occurring variables.
These results can be looked at in the <model>.r3v file or in the trace files produced through the -DBG
runtime option.
Whether you run your model for the first time or not, VALI automatically generates starting values
for all the variables. No convergence situations may of course be due to poor estimates of these
variables. The procedure used in VALI is explained in section "How to initialize a model".
A way to overcome this situation is to split your model into smaller models that can be run
successively.
If you cannot proceed in this way, contact BELSIM S.A to get a copy of VALI with a larger size for the
arrays. The maximum size depends upon the size of core memory of your computer.
*ERF* 2509 ALL PARTIAL FLOWRATES OF RATES ... BECOME EQUAL TO ZERO
This error occurs when all the partial flowrates of a STREAM become equal to zero.
In most cases, this STREAM corresponds to a process purge and the flowrates and composition
measurements which have been provided are of poor quality.
To overcome this error, we advise you to specify a small value for the incriminated flowrate together
with a zero accuracy and to run again VALI. The analysis of the measurement correction should
help you to identify the poor measurements.
The first one concerns the case where you have measured the temperature of a one component
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
The second one deals with recycling streams where you do not provide any measurement to fix their
flowrate.
We advise you to decompose your model into smaller ones and to run them separately in order to
identify the process section which causes the error. It will then be easier to discover its origin.
This can be due to the fact that the starting values for these variables are poor. We advise you to
provide better ones as explained in section "How to initialize a model".
A second way to overcome this error is to provide realistic STREAM states for each stream in order
to simplify the calculations.
This can be due to the fact that the starting values for these variables are poor.
We advise you to provide better ones as explained in section "How to initialize a model".
A second way to overcome this error is to provide realistic STREAM states for each stream in order
to simplify the calculations.
This can occur when the trivial solution (same composition in all phases) is obtained.
A better starting point must be given by initializing the compositions of the outlet streams to more
realistic values.
This error can also occur when the streams are in super-critical state, in which case Liquid/Vapour
phase separation is meaningless.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 5
pressure do not converge. The related STREAM contains only one Compound so that the basic
variable is the molar enthalpy and not the temperature.
This can be due to the fact that the starting values for these variables are poor.
We advise you to provide better ones as explained in section "How to initialize a model".
A second way to overcome this error is to provide realistic STREAM states for each stream in order
to simplify the calculations.
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CHAPTER 6
DATA VALIDATION
UNITS VI
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
Black-box/Mixer:
CUTVAL: allows breaking the material or pressure loops that can appear when dealing
with closed cycles
NETVAL: network of pipes where Streams are mixed and split up on basis of a product
code
Column:
COLVAL: saturation state of outlet Streams (saturated liquid or vapor) can be specified
Compressor:
Controllers (user-equations):
Heat exchanger:
PRHVAL: heat exchange between a vapor that is condensed and a cold stream
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
Pump:
PUMVAL: useful if one wants to identify pump power or if its power is known or
related to another equipment (driven by a turbine). In many case, pumps are not
modeled.
Reactor:
RKPVAL: as RCTVAL but some reactions can be at (some distance of) chemical
equilibrium
Separator:
Splitter:
Storage:
Turbine:
Valves:
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
MATHEMATICAL UNITS
Mathematical units can only be included in the Main PFD. They determine various global settings at
the model level.
CRUOPT: defines options used in petroleum fractions, TBP and ATSM handling
CUTOFF: defines the threshold values for the generic CUTOFF on various types of
measurements
REPVAL: controls the amount and the type of information printed out in the main report
file (r4v)
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PURPOSE
The ATMOPRES unit allows you to introduce one or several measurements of the atmospheric
pressure. All pressure gauges expressed on a relative basis will be converted to absolute pressure
according to the so defined atmospheric pressure.
If several measurements are defined on the atmospheric pressure, the actual reference pressure will
be set to an weighted average value according to the respective uncertainties of the measurements:
where:
σi: the relative standard deviation. If the measurement accuracy is absolute, relative
accuracy is recalculated
Attention: Only one ATMOPRES unit can appear in model file. Its name should start with the letters
ATMOP and no other unit should have a name starting by ATMOP.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
No connections are allowed on the ATMOPRES unit.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
PURPOSE
The BATVAL unit allows you to model reactor and takes the atomic balances, energy balance and
pressure drop into account.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
INLET STREAMS
Maximum number: 10
OUTLET STREAMS
Maximum number: 10
Type: one material as the first outlet (as shown on the symbols), thermal, mechanical
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UNIT PARAMETERS
MODE (General)
0 Atomic and Energy Balance Atomic and energy balances are taken into account
1 Atomic Balance only Only atomic balances are taken into account
COMPMODE (General)
MODEDP (General)
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
where:
DP (Parameters)
DP = Pref- Pout
where:
DPX (Parameters)
MASSFX (Parameters)
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CFDP (Parameters)
REFDP (Parameters)
0 All inlets All inlet streams are set at the same pressure
A pressure drop of 0.05 bar is taken into account between the air inlet and the fumes outlet.
The atomic and energy balances are taken into account simultaneously and a heat loss is modeled.
There is 1 UNIT :
BURN:
type=BATVAL
Symbol=Horizontal Reactor
MODDP='DP variable'
REFDP=AIR
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
GAS=C1, C2, N2
AIR=N2, O2
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
PURPOSE
This type of UNIT allows you to consider mass balances, energy balance and pressure drops for any
process unit where no chemical reaction occurs. It is used to model mixers, distillation, absorption
and stripping towers and process sections that are globally taken into account. It acts like a black box
satisfying the balance equations.
The BBXVAL type can also be used to mix or split thermal and mechanical streams, for example to
mix (add) the power produced by several turbines on the same shaft.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
INLET STREAMS
Maximum number: 10
OUTLET STREAMS
Maximum number: 10
Attention: The Horizontal and Vertical headers only support Material Streams.
If one or more material Streams are connected as inlet, then at least one material Stream must be
connected at the outlet, and vice versa.
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UNIT PARAMETERS
MODE (General)
0 Mass and Energy Balance Mass and energy balances are taken into account
1 Mass Balance only Only mass balances are taken into account
COMPMODE (General)
MODETOEQ (General)
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
1 between all outlet stream all outlet streams will be set at the same temperature
2 between first inlet and all all outlet streams and the first inlet stream will be set
outlet stream at the same temperature
Temperature equalities are only added when the unit is calculated in mass balance only. When the
energy balance is activated, these additional equations will never be generated.
REFDP (Parameters)
0 All inlets All inlet streams are set at the same pressure
MODEDP (Parameters)
where:
A value of MODEDP has to be given for each outlet stream, although it is only meaningful for material
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
streams.
DP (Parameters)
DP = Pref- Pout
where:
DPX (Parameters)
MASSFX (Parameters)
CFDP (Parameters)
FLOWFILT (Parameters)
When all but one of the connected streams are measured, there is a risk that the unmeasured stream
hits its lower bound.
This in particular the case on products routing in production accounting applications where the
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
main production flow rate is measured and the product routing is specified though manual inputs on
the flows that are redirected from the normal route (on-spec product) to slop tanks or recirculation
lines.
The automatic filtering (when enabled) creates an estimate on the unmeasured flow rate based on the
measured inlet and outlet flow rates. Should the estimated flow rate fall below a given cutoff value,
the unmeasured stream will be set off.
In this example, the BBXVAL type of unit is used to model the removal of CO2 from a stream
containing Nitrogen, Hydrogen and Helium. Only the mass balances are taken into account. The
FLXVAL unit RECOVERY calculates the recovery of CO2 in the vent stream.
CO2R:
type=BBXVAL
MODEDP1='None'
MODEDP2='None'
RECOVERY:
type=FLXVAL
NEQU=1
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The thermodynamic calculation methods are the ones used by default, as we are only concerned with
the mass balances of the unit.
VENTMOD=H2, CO2
The tag RECOVERY_CO2 is defined as a KPI (Mode CALC) with a target value of 98.8%
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
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PURPOSE
This type of UNIT allows you to overwrite the default bounds set on variables. The bounds specified
on the variables themselves through the Tags will nevertheless be used when they are more
restrictive than the default bounds.
Only one unit of type BNDVAL can be created. It must always be created in the Main PFD.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
No connections are allowed on a BNDVAL.
EFFICBND Ge ne ral Input De fault Bounds on Efficie ncie s (0: No, 1 : YES)
MinT Parame te rs Input Minimum for Te mpe rature s (de fault = 230 K)
MaxT Parame te rs Input Maximum for Te mpe rature s (de fault = 4000 K)
MinP Parame te rs Input Minimum for Pre ssure s (de fault = 0.01 bar)
MaxP Parame te rs Input Maximum for Pre ssure s (de fault = 1000 bar)
MinMR Parame te rs Input Minimum for Partial Molar Rate s (de fault = 0 kmol/s)
MaxMR Parame te rs Input Maximum for Partial Molar Rate s (de fault=100 000 kmol/
s)
MinH Parame te rs Input Minimum for Enthalpie s (de fault = -1E+10 kJ/kmol)
MaxH Parame te rs Input Maximum for Enthalpie s (de fault = 1E+10 kJ/kmol)
MinLOAD Parame te rs Input Minimum for Loads (de fault = -1E+7 kW)
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404 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
MaxLOAD Parame te rs Input Maximum for Loads (de fault = 1E+7 kW)
MinPOWER Parame te rs Input Minimum for Powe rs (de fault = -1E+7 kW)
MaxPOWER Parame te rs Input Maximum for Powe rs (de fault = 1E+7 kW)
MinDP Parame te rs Input Minimum for Pre ssure Drops (de fault = 0 bar)
MaxDP Parame te rs Input Maximum for Pre ssure Drops (de fault = 1000 bar)
MinMOLF Parame te rs Input Minimum for Molar Flowrate s (de fault = 0 kmol/s)
MaxMOLF Parame te rs Input Maximum for Molar Flowrate s (de fault = 100 000 kmol/s)
MinMASSF Parame te rs Input Minimum for Mass Flowrate s (de fault = 0 kg/s)
MaxMASSF Parame te rs Input Maximum for Mass Flowrate s (de fault = 1 000 000 kg/s)
MinVOLF Parame te rs Input Minimum for Volume Flowrate s (de fault = 0 m3/s)
MaxVOLF Parame te rs Input Maximum for Volume Flowrate s (de fault = 1E+5 m3/s)
MaxAPI Parame te rs Input Maximum for API De nsitie s (de fault = 2000 API)
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
MinAREA Parame te rs Input Minimum for Are as (de fault = 1E-6 m2)
MaxAREA Parame te rs Input Maximum for Are as (de fault = 1E+6 m2)
MinDMASS Parame te rs Input Minimum for DMass (de fault =-1E+8 kg), and for MASS1
(initial mass inve ntory of tanks)
MaxDMASS Parame te rs Input Maximum for Dmass (de fault = 1E+8 kg), and for MASS2
(final mass inve ntory of tanks)
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406 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
PURPOSE
The BWHVAL unit allows you to model a reactor and takes the atomic balances, energy balance and
pressure drop into account. The reactor can set at equilibrium or at a given distance of equilibrium.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
INLET STREAMS
Maximum number: 10
OUTLET STREAMS
Maximum number: 10
Type: one material as the first outlet (as shown on the symbols), thermal, mechanical
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 407
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
UNIT PARAMETERS
MODE (General)
0 Atomic and Energy Balance Atomic and energy balances are taken into account
1 Atomic Balance only Only atomic balances are taken into account
MODEDP (General)
where:
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408 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
EQ (General)
REFDP (Parameters)
0 All inlets All inlet streams are set at the same pressure
DP (Parameters)
DP = Pref- Pout
where:
DPX (Parameters)
MASSFX (Parameters)
CFDP (Parameters)
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 409
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
DTEQ (Parameters)
The DTEQ parameter allows you to account for a deviation from equilibrium by calculating the
equilibrium constant at a temperature different (T + DTEQ) from the outlet stream temperature T.
Attention: When DTEQ > 100 C, no equilibrium constraint is generated. This has the same effect as
setting the parameter EQi to 0.
The same basic example is taken for the following unit types: BWHVAL, RCTVAL, RKPVAL
This example deals with a chemical reactor for the synthesis of NH3.
R-1:
type=BWHVAL
MODEDP='DP variable'
White Equilibrium=Yes
REFDP=IN.RCT
DP=1.1 bar
DTEQ=25 K
V-1:
type=DPVAL
MODEDP='DP variable'
K=-1
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410 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
The Thermod RCMOD uses the default methods and the following compounds: NH3, N2, H2, AR.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 411
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
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412 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
PURPOSE
This UNIT models the cooling and partial condensation of a nitrous gas mixture, taking into account
reactions in the gas phase:
peroxidation:
NO + O2=>2 NO2
dimerization:
2 NO2<=>N2O4
as well as at the liquid-vapor interface :
absorption:
3 NO2 + H2O<=>2 HNO3 + NO
The extents of these reactions are calculated on basis of BODENSTEIN kinetic equations.
The condensed liquid is a mixture of nitric acid and water and is assumed to be in L/V equilibrium
with the remaining gas.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
INLET STREAMS (2)
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
THERMOD:
Both nitrous gas material streams must use the same THERMOD, which must contain the following
compounds in any order : NO, NO2, N2O4, O2, N2, H2O, HNO3. Any other compound is considered
as inert.
The THERMOD of the nitric acid mixture must contain the following compounds in this order: H2O,
HNO3.
Both coolant streams(inlet and outlet) must use the same THERMOD.
REACTIONS:
The reactions are part of the model and must not be defined in the Reactions page.
UNIT PARAMETERS
MODE (General)
0 Atomic and Energy Balance Atomic and energy balances are taken into account
1 Atomic Balance only Only atomic balances are taken into account
LOAD (Parameters)
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414 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
VOL (Parameters)
The shell volume is taken into account into the Bodenstein kinetics.
HA (Parameters)
LOAD = HA . LNTD
DTSIDE1 DTSIDE2
LNTD =
ln DTSIDE1 / DTSIDE2
where:
DTSIDE1 and DTSIDE2 are the temperature differences on each side of the heat exchanger
DTSIDE1,2 (Parameters)
These parameters define the temperature difference of the streams at each side of the exchanger:
DTSIDE1 = Ti1-To2
DTSIDE2 = To1-Ti2
ACTi (Parameters)
PPi
ACT i
x i Pi*
where:
i: 1=HNO3, 2=H2O
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 415
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
A 2 exp (B 2 T ) exp ( C 2 T D2 E 2T 2 ) x 2
ACT 2
x 2 P2*
where:
Ai -0.082377958 0.000095684
Bi 1.271367016 0.087355345
Ci -9.039063345 -0.002051086
DI 0.000563725 12.648391590
Ei 0.016013187 -0.000441081
Fi -0.058557541
Gi 8.991622939
Actual activity coefficients might differ from these predicted values due to the limited performance of
the condensor. It is therefore recommended to use the difference between the actual and predicted
values as a KPI (Key Performance Indicator) of the condenser efficiency.
EXTENT (Parameters)
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416 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
MODEDP (Parameters)
DP (Parameters)
DP = Pin- Pout
where:
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 417
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PURPOSE
This type of UNIT allows you to consider mass balances, heat balance and saturation equations for
the outlet streams.
It is especially useful to model distillation columns or any other operation unit where some outlet
streams are saturated liquid or vapor.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
INLET STREAMS
Maximum number: 10
OUTLET STREAMS
Maximum number: 10
The outlet STREAMS can be in L, V or LV state. You must use the L state for each outlet stream that is
specified at the bubble point, and the V state for each outlet stream that is specified at the dew point.
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418 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
UNIT PARAMETERS
MODE (General)
1 Mass Balance only Only mass balances are taken into account
2 Mass and Energy balance Mass and energy balances are taken into account
3 Mass Balance and Saturation Mass balances and saturation constraints are taken
into account
COMPMODE (General)
REFDP (Parameters)
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 419
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
0 All inlets All inlet streams are set at the same pressure
VFRACi (Parameters)
A value of VFRAC must be given for each outlet Stream, although it will only be meaningful for
material STREAMS:
MODEDP (Parameters)
DP (Parameters)
DP = Pref- Pout
where:
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420 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
In this example, a mixture of propane, pentane and heptane is distilled into three streams of high
purity.
C-1
type = COLVAL
MODE='All equations'
C-2
type = COLVAL
MODE='All equations'
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 421
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
The compounds associated to the THERMOD VENTMOD are: C3, N-C5, N-C7.
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422 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 423
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
424 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 425
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PURPOSE
This type of UNIT allows to take the mass and energy balances of a gas compressor into account.
Information on the isentropic (or polytropic) efficiency and the mechanical power can be given as
measurements.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
INLET STREAMS
1 material
1 mechanical
OUTLET STREAMS
1 material
THERMOD
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426 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
UNIT PARAMETERS
MODE (General)
0 All equations Mass and energy balances are taken into account. The
isentropic efficiency equation is generated as well
1 Mass Balance only Only mass balances are taken into account
2 Mass and Energy Balance Mass and energy balances are taken into account
MODEDP (Parameters)
EFFIC (Parameters)
POLYEFFI (Parameters)
When negative, this parameter is ignored. When positive, an additional equation is generated to
calculate the polytropic efficiency.
Attention: the formulation of the polytropic efficiency assumes that the mixture behaves like an
ideal gas.
DP (Parameters)
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 427
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
DP = Pout- Pin
PRATIO (Parameters)
PRATIO = Pout/Pin
There is 1 UNIT:
CMP:
type=COMVAL
MODE='All equations'
MODEDP='DP Variable'
POLYEFFI = 80 %
The THERMOD AIR uses the default thermodynamic methods and two compounds: N2, O2
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428 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 429
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PURPOSE
The CRUOPT unit is a mathematical unit used to specify various parameters of the procedure used
to identify petroleum fractions properties and to link distillation curves and stream compositions.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
No connections are allowed on a CRUOPT.
UNIT PARAMETERS
MODECURV (General)
The MODECURV parameter selects the interpolation method for matching the stream composition to
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430 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
MODEELIM (General)
MODEIPFP (General)
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 431
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
SMOOTH (Parameters)
The SMOOTH parameter is only used in Linear Smoothing mode (MODECURV = 0). It represents the
precision associated to each smoothing factor.
RKUOP (Parameters)
Default value = 0.01 (1 %) - In releases until 2004, the default precision was 5%.
When identifying pseudo-compounds, continuity factors are automatically introduced on the KUOP
(also known as Watson factor) of successive compounds. These factors are calculated as the ratio of
the KUOPs and measured as 1 +/- RKUOP %.
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432 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
PLFLOW (Parameters)
PLFHIGH (Parameters)
PLFTRESH (Parameters)
These three parameters control the precision used for the Composition Interpolation (MODECURV =
1).
The precision of compound fraction is set to PLFLOW for small amounts (fraction below PFLTRESH)
and to PLFHIGH for higher amounts.
PLFTRESH = 0.01 (1 %)
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 433
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PURPOSE
The CRUVAL unit is devoted to the identification of petroleum fractions (or pseudo-compounds) to
be used for the adequate modeling of petroleum cuts. Measurements of density and distillation
curves (TBP or D86) are usually defined on the streams connected to the unit.
The CRUVAL is basically a black box like the BBXVAL, but when used in Mass balance mode, it also
allows identifying the properties of the pseudo-compounds used in the streams connected to the unit.
complete heat and mass balance using the pseudo-compounds identified in the first step
The way distillation curves and compounds/composition identification are handled can be adjusted
though the mathematical unit CRUOPT.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
INLET STREAMS
Maximum number: 10
OUTLET STREAMS
Maximum number: 10
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434 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
Attention: At least one inlet and one outlet material streams must be defined.
MODE (General)
0 Mass and Energy Balance Mass and energy balances are taken into account
1 Mass Balance only Only mass balances are taken into account
COMPMODE (General)
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 435
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
IDENT (General)
REFDP (Parameters)
0 All inlets All inlet streams are set at the same pressure
MODEDP (Parameters)
where:
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436 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
A value of MODEDPi has to be given for each outlet stream, although it is only meaningful for
material streams.
DP (Parameters)
DP = Pref- Pout
where:
DPX (Parameters)
MASSFX (Parameters)
CFDP (Parameters)
In this example, the CRUVAL type of unit is used to model an atmospheric crude distillation column.
Only the mass balances are taken into account.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 437
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
There is 1 UNIT:
COL:
type=CRUVAL
MODEDPi='None'
The thermodynamic calculation methods are the ones used by default, as we are only concerned with
the mass balances of the unit.
C3, I-C4, N-C4, 22MC3, N-C5, FR050, FR060, FR070, FR080, FR090, FR100, FR120, FR140, FR160,
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438 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
FR180, FR200, FR220, FR240, FR260, FR280, FR300, FR330, FR360, FR390, FR420, FR450, FR500, FR600,
FR700
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 439
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
440 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 441
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
442 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 443
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
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444 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
PURPOSE
The CUTOFF unit is a mathematical unit used to define the threshold values for the generic CUTOFF
on various types of measurements. Keeping the default value of zero for the CUTOFF indicates no
cut-off will be performed.
Any stream on which a measurement is defined with a measured value below the CUTOFF value is
automatically set OFF.
Attention: the CUTOFF value defined on a particular tag overrides the generic value provided here.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
No connections are allowed on a CUTOFF unit.
VOLF Parame te rs Input Thre shold for Volume tric flow rate
COLDVOLF Parame te rs Input Thre shold for Volume tric flow rate at 15 C
CONVVOLF Parame te rs Input Thre shold for Conve ntional Volume tric flow rate
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 445
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UNIT PARAMETERS
MODE (General)
T (Parameters)
P (Parameters)
MIXF (Parameters)
MOLF (Parameters)
MASSF (Parameters)
VOLF (Parameters)
COLDVOLF (Parameters)
CONVVOLF (Parameters)
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446 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
PURPOSE
The CUTVAL unit allows breaking the material or pressure loops that can appear when dealing with
closed cycles like for example the steam/water cycle in a power plant or a refrigeration cycle.
This type of unit can also be used to link a part of a model with compound balances to a part where
only total mass balances are carried out.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
INLET STREAMS
1 material stream
OUTLET STREAMS
1 material stream
UNIT PARAMETERS
MODE (General)
1 No The rmal Balance No the rmal balance ge ne rate d for the unit.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 447
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MODEDP (Parameters)
1 Equality An e quality for pre ssure be twe e n inle t and outle t will be
ge ne rate d
MODECOMP (Parameters)
In the first case, any compound not present in the inlet or outlet stream - because of a measurement
or because it does not appear in its Thermod - is also set to zero in the other stream, in a similar way
to other VALI unit models. In the second case, no check is made, which means that some compounds
may appear or disappear through the unit.
This is useful when connecting two parts of a model with a different modeling approach (total mass
balance versus compound balance). It is up to the user to add (for example through a Flex code) the
equations linking the two parts (e.g. equality of total mass flow rates).
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448 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
B-1:
type=BBXVAL
MODE='All Equations'
MODETOEQ='None'
MODDP1='DP variable'
B-2:
type=BBXVAL
MODE='All Equations'
MODETOEQ='None'
MODDP1='DP variable'
B-3:
type=BBXVAL
MODE='All Equations'
MODETOEQ='None'
MODDP1='DP variable'
C-1:
type=CUTVAL
MODE='Thermal Balance'
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 449
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MODDP='None'
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450 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 451
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PURPOSE
This type of UNIT allows you to model a distillation (or absorber) column based on a tray by tray
Liquid/Vapor equilibrium. Non equilibrium can be considered through the Murphree efficiency.
This new unit is delivered as is and requires a reasonable estimate of the composition and state of the
outlet streams in order to get convergence of the calculations.
Care should also be taken that the thermodynamic model is adequate to represent with sufficient
accuracy the Liquid/Vapor equilibrium of the corresponding mixtures. Using an inadequate
thermodynamic model may strongly bias the results.
Care should also be taken with compounds that do not appear in the column feed (but are defined in
the thermod) . These compounds should also be set to zero in the other inlet streams of the column
(reflux and reboiled stream) to avoid convergence problems.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
INLET STREAMS
Maximum number: 10
OUTLET STREAMS
Maximum number: 10
The STREAMS can be of L, V or LV state. It is however recommended to use the L state for each outlet
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452 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
stream that is specified as liquid, and the V state for each outlet stream that is specified as vapor.
This will lead to a much simpler equation system and, thus, to better convergence.
UNIT PARAMETERS
MODE (General)
1 Mass Balance only Only global mass balances of the column are taken
into account
2 Mass and Energy Balances Global mass and energy balances of the column are
taken into account
INIMOD (General)
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 453
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
2 Constant profile between all constant profile between two successive inlet and/or
streams outlet streams
4 Geometric profile between all geometric interpolation between two successive inlet
streams and/or outlet streams
10 From file (Simu profile) the column profile is initialized from a file (generated
by SIMU software or by VALI in a preceding run)
The column profile (temperature, pressure and composition) can be initialized from the inlet and/or
outlet streams, with various correction and interpolation options, or from a profile saved in a file.
EFFIMOD (General)
yi yi 1
Ei
K i .x i y i 1
where:
NBRPLT (Parameters)
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454 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
EFFIC (Parameters)
This parameter is only used if the efficiency mode is set to 1 (Murphree's Efficiency).
DPPLATE (Parameters)
DPTOTAL (Parameters)
Total pressure drop of the column. The variable is only created when all pressure drops are
considered as variables (i.e. the parameter PRESMODE of unit OPTVAL is set to the default value of
2).
PLT.IN (Parameters)
Indicates the plate destination of the inlet STREAMS. Plate 1 designates the top of the column, while
the special value 999 indicates the last (bottom) plate.
PLT.OU (Parameters)
Indicates the plate destination of the outlet STREAMS. Plate 1 designates the top of the column, while
the special value 999 indicates the last (bottom) plate.
TYP.OU (Parameters)
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 455
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
Attention: When connecting a new stream to a DISVAL unit, the corresponding parameter TYP.OU
is set as "Not defined" and must be updated by the user.
DP.IN (Parameters)
For each inlet stream a pressure drop can be specified between the stream pressure and the pressure
of the corresponding plate.
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456 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
PURPOSE
The DPVAL is used to model pressure drop through lines and valves. The pressure drop can be
linked to the stream rate and conditions as well as to the valve stem position.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
INLET STREAMS
1 material STREAM
OUTLET STREAMS
1 material STREAM
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 457
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
AFIT Othe rs Input Coefficients for the sigmoid port area curve
UNIT PARAMETERS
MODE (General)
0 Mass and Energy Balance Mass and energy balances are taken into account
1 Mass Balance only Only mass balances are taken into account
MODEDP (General)
where:
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458 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
where:
K: a measurable factor
4 Cv line ar Cv X
5 Cv square root Cv X
7 Cv hype rbolic 1
Cv
RANGE - RANGE - 1) * X
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 459
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
For all these modes, a pressure drop equation will be generated and the pressure drop will be a
function of the flow conditions according to an equation having the following form:
where:
METHODDP (General)
This mode models pressure drop for multiphase water/oil/gas mixes flowing across choke valves,
found in upstream applications. It is intended to be applied exclusively to WLV mixes. The
multiphase correlations can only be used with MODEDP Area Flex or Area Correlation if port area is
to be defined as a function of stem position.
where:
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460 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
where:
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 461
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
where:
λ: group parameter
α 1 : group parameter
where:
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462 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
where:
where:
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 463
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
n: polytropic exponent
where:
where:
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464 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
DP (Parameters)
DP = Pin- Pout
where:
K (Parameters)
EXP ( Parameters)
These two parameters are only use when MODEDP = 3 ('K factor').
X (Parameters)
CVMAX (Parameters)
RANGE (Parameters)
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 465
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
The valve range is equal to the ratio between the maximum controllable flow and the minimum
controllable flow
These three last parameters are only used in some cases (depending on the value of MODEDP).
DIAM (Parameters)
AREAMIN (Parameters)
AREAMAX (Parameters)
ACTAREA (Parameters)
YC (Parameters)
Critical downstream-to-upstream pressure ratio for sonic flow across the valve for WLV mixes
(type: Result).
YP (Parameters)
Actual downstream-to-upstream pressure ratio for sonic flow across the valve for WLV mixes (type:
Result).
Y (Parameters)
Downstream-to-upstream pressure ratio used in the selected WLV pressure drop equation (type:
Result).
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466 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
M2 (Parameters)
Mass flow rate calculated using WLV pressure drop equation (type: Result).
CD (Parameters)
CVFIT (Others)
Coefficients 1 thorough 7 (in increasing order) for the sigmoid Cv curve (type: Input).
AFIT (Others)
Coefficients 1 thorough 7 (in increasing order) for the sigmoid port Area curve (type: Input).
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 467
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PURPOSE
This type of UNIT is dedicated to the detail modeling of tube layers in vertical and horizontal heat
recovery steam boilers (HRSG). It includes predictions of heat transfer coefficients and pressure drop
on fumes and steam side. The same UNIT type can be used for the modeling of economizers,
vaporizers and super-heaters.
Attention: This type of unit is not part of the standard VALI installation. It is available as an add-in
to VALI under a special license agreement.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
INLET STREAMS
OUTLET STREAMS
THERMODS:
Corre sponding inle t and outle t STREAMS must use the same THERMOD.
Fumes can go up or down (both fumes hot-spots can be either inlet or an outlet).
The water/steam comes in from the upper left side to either the down right or down left side.
Mirroring the symbol will generate alternate configurations.
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468 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
PURPOSE
This type of UNIT allows you to model the heat and mass balances of heat exchangers of various lay-
outs. Up to ten different fluids may be considered as well as some thermal streams.
This unit does not check for temperature crossing between hot and cold streams during calculation.
To prohibit this behavior use units of type HEXVAL or PRHVAL. During the report phase,
temperature crossing will be detected and reported when the EEXVAL is modeling the heat exchange
between 2 material streams.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
The streams indicated in above figure must be material. Corresponding inlet/outlet streams must
use the same THERMOD. The unused hot-spots are optional.
The symbols of the second row allow you to handle any number of streams up to 10. The upper and
lower hot-spots can be used for any type of stream. The horizontal lanes can only be used for
material streams. The direction of these streams is free.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 469
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
UNIT PARAMETERS
MODE (General)
0 Mass and Energy Balance Mass and energy balances are taken into account
1 Mass Balance only Only mass balances are taken into account
No equations are considered for the heat exchanger performance (use HEXVAL instead).
LOAD (Parameters)
This parameter shows the amount of heat transferred by the unit. It does not need to be initialized
and is calculated after validation (only when the exchange concerns 2 material streams only).
UA1,UA2 (Parameters)
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470 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
MODEDP (Parameters)
where:
A value of MODEDP has to be given for each outlet stream, although it is only meaningful for material
streams
DP (Parameters)
DP = Pin- Pout
where:
DPX (Parameters)
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 471
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
MASSFX (Parameters)
CFDP (Parameters)
There is 1 UNIT :
UNIT : EEX
Type=EEXVAL
MODEDP1='DP=F(MASSF)'
MODEDP2='DP=F(MASSF)'
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472 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
STEAM: H2O
The THERMOD STEAM is readily available in the file Empty.bls. The THERMOD FMOD can easily be
derived from the THERMOD FUMES.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 473
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
474 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
PURPOSE
The EFFVAL is used to model mechanical and/or thermal efficiencies and/or losses.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
INLET STREAMS
Maximum number : 10
OUTLET STREAMS
Number: 2
UNIT PARAMETERS
MODE (General)
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 475
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
Effic (Parameters)
The efficiency is the ratio between the first outlet heat load or mechanical power and the sum of the
inlet heat load and/or mechanical power.
Losses (Parameters)
The relative losses are the ratio between the second outlet heat load or mechanical.
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476 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
PURPOSE
The EQUVAL is used to link the composition of 2 material streams.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
No connections are allowed on an EQUVAL.
UNIT PARAMETERS
>SNAME1 (Others)
>SNAME2 (Others)
The names of 2 streams that must have the same composition is specified in the Others page.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 477
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
B-1
type=BBXVAL
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478 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
EQU1
type=EQUVAL
NAT_GAS NG to B-1
RECYCLE NG to B-1
The list of measurements is given and results are given in tables below.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 479
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
480 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 481
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PURPOSE
The FLXVAL unit allows to :
Using FLEX language, you can access values of streams and units and perform calculations.
Thermodynamic routines can be used to calculate various thermodynamic properties and perform
physical equilibrium compositions. The results of these calculations (up to 9 values) are then stored
in the parameters VAR1 ... VAR9 of the unit. These parameters are dimensionless.
enter a "perfect" measurement (deviation=0) on the calculated value. This will define an
additional constraint
enter a measurement on the calculated value. This is then a user defined measurement
not enter any measurement. The calculated values will simply be available in the various
reports
Attention: A flex code can be associated to any equipment unit, defining additional constraints (all
residuals of the corresponding equations are assumed to be zero).
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
No stream can be connected to a unit of type FLXVAL.
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482 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
UNIT PARAMETERS
NEQU (General)
NEQU is the number of equations to be handled by the module and can range from 1 to 9. When
more equations are defined in the Flex program attached to the unit, only the first NEQU equations
are actually used.
VARi (Parameters)
These variables will contain the results of the equations defined in the Flex program. Measurements
can be defined on these variables. Note that these parameters are dimensionless.
Each equation must be defined in a separate FUNCTION (EQ1, EQ2, ...) and the result of the
calculations must be stored in the variable RES. The value of RES will automatically be available in
the variables VARi,. of the unit (VAR1 for equation EQ1, etc.).
Flex syntax is similar to FORTRAN Code. Syntax is described in chapter "Flex code".
Example:
FUNCTION EQi ! This the header for the first equation
! Declaration
REAL ...
! Selection of thermodynamic methods
CALL SELECT('Astream')
! Selection of variables
CALL GETALL(...)
CALL GETVAR(...)
CALL GETUVA(...)
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 483
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
CALL GTVARTAG(...)
CALL GTTAGVAL( )
! Calculations
...
RES = ...
END
HEX
type=HEXVAL
TUR
type=TURVAL
MODE='All equations'
FLX-01
type=FLXVAL
'2 equations'
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484 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 485
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
486 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 487
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PURPOSE
The FLEXLIB unit has been designed to contain Flex user-defined functions which can be referred to
in any Flex code. The functions are available throughout the complete model, even if you run only
selected PFDs that do not include that FLEXLIB unit or if the FLEXLIB unit is included in a PFD that
is OFF.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
No stream can be connected to a unit of type FLEXLIB.
When set to "FLEXLIB not used", the functions defined in the unit are ignored. This enables to keep
different versions of user-defined functions in a single model.
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488 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
PURPOSE
The GROSSERR unit is used to specify the settings of the Gross Error Management system, which
deals with suspect measurements that may bias the results of the data reconciliation problem. The
Gross Error Management system includes:
the "Highest impact" method evaluates successively the impact on the total penalty of
removing each measurement. The measurement which as the highest impact is then
selected and the procedure iterates as the quality criteria is satisfied. This method is
recommended
the "Highest measured penalty" method simply selects the measurements according to
their penalty, calculated on basis of the measurement accuracy
the "Highest correction penalty" method selects the measurements according to their
penalty, calculated on basis of the correction accuracy (VDI recommendation)
For all approaches, the "Failure probability factor" is a (multiplying) weighting factor that is used to
favor or un-favor the selection of measurements. Setting the Failure probability of a measurement to
0 will simply prevent the selection of the measurement in any case.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
No connections are allowed on a GROSSERR unit.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 489
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
MAXFAIL Parame te rs Input Maximum failure s for gross e rror corre ction
UNIT PARAMETERS
MODE (General)
0 Gross Errors are not the Gross Error management procedure is not
eliminated activated
1 Gross Errors are eliminated the Gross Error management procedure is activated
CRITERIA (General)
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490 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
1 Chi-Square Test Gross errors are eliminated until the Chi2 test is
satisfied
2 Chi-Square & Individual Test Gross errors are eliminated until the Chi2 test is
satisfied and no individual measurement is flagged
any more
PENALTY (General)
TYPEELIM (General)
1 Highest measured penalty Highest penalty: the measurements with the highest
penalty (weighted by the failure probability) are
removed first
NOCONV (General)
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 491
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
MODE2SL (General)
0 Allow switch between solvers Allow switch between solvers (when -2SL runtime
when -2SL option selected)
MODEREME (Parameters)
2 Serial Relaxation of all Gross Serial relaxation of uncertainties of all gross errors
Errors
MODEBND (General)
0 Solver Bounds Solver bounds (SL or SH) are considered for gross
error selection
1 Error Bounds Error bounds (LL or HH) are considered for gross
error selection
FAILPROB (Parameters)
FAILPROB defines the default probability of tags defined from tag files. This parameter is not used if
the tags are directly defined in the ValiModeller.
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492 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
MAXELIM (Parameters)
MAXELIM defines the maximum number of iterations of the gross error algorithm. A value of 0 is
equivalent to set the default value (10).
MAXFAIL (Parameters)
MAXFAIL defines the maximum number of convergence failure that can happen during correction of
a tag by the gross error algorithm. A value of 0 is equivalent to set the default value (10).
EVOCRIT (Parameters)
EVOCRIT is the threshold value used for the individual criterion. The default value corresponds to
the penalty created by a single measurement when it gets out of its 99% confidence interval.
EQUICRIT (Parameters)
EQUICRIT is the threshold value used for the identification of equivalent gross errors. Gross errors
are considered as equivalent if their impacts differ by less than EQUICRIT.
CORCROT (Parameters)
CORCRIT is the threshold value used for the identification of correlation between equivalent gross
errors. Equivalent gross errors are considered as correlated if their impact variation is greater than
CORCRIT
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 493
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PURPOSE
This UNIT models the cooling a nitrous gas mixture, taking into account reactions in the gas phase:
peroxidation:
NO + O2=>2 NO2
dimerization:
2 NO2<=>N2O4
The extents of these reactions are calculated on basis of BODENSTEIN kinetic equations.
The reactions are part of the model and must not be defined in the reactions page of the unit.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
INLET STREAMS (2)
THERMOD:
Both nitrous gas material streams must use the same THERMOD, which must contain the following
compounds in any order : NO, NO2, N2O4, O2, N2, H2O, HNO3. Any other compound is considered
as inert.
Both coolant streams(inlet and outlet) must use the same THERMOD.
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494 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
REACTIONS:
The reactions are part of the model and must not be defined in the Reactions page.
UNIT PARAMETERS
MODE (General)
0 Atomic and Energy Balance Atomic and energy balances are taken into account
1 Atomic Balance only Only atomic balances are taken into account
LOAD (Parameters)
VOL (Parameters)
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 495
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
The shell volume is taken into account into the Bodenstein kinetics.
HA (Parameters)
LOAD = HA . LNTD
DTSIDE1 DTSIDE2
LNTD =
ln DTSIDE1 / DTSIDE2
where:
DTSIDE1 and DTSIDE2 are the temperature differences on each side of the heat exchanger
DTSIDE1,2 (Parameters)
These parameters define the temperature difference of the streams at each side of the exchanger:
DTSIDE1 = Ti1-To2
DTSIDE2 = To1-Ti2
EXTENTi (Parameters)
MODEDP (Parameters)
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496 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
where:
DP (Parameters)
DP = Pin- Pout
where:
DPX (Parameters)
MASSFX (Parameters)
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 497
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
CFDP (Parameters)
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498 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
PURPOSE
This type of UNIT allows you to consider heat and mass balances of heat exchangers involving two
inlet and two outlet streams. The following equations can be handled:
The area and heat transfer coefficients as well as the temperature difference on both sides can be
entered as pseudo-measurements. The heat transfer can be due to convection and/or radiation and
can be made dependant on the flow rates.
The shell side and tubes side of the unit can be modeled separately as 2 different units (possibly in
two different PFDs).
SYMBOLS
The symbols Left/Right and Up/Down can be used to model the complete exchanger or only its shell
side. In the latter case the tubes side will be modeled via one of the two "Tubes side" symbols and the
two parts of the heat exchanger will be connected by a thermal stream.
CONNECTION RULES
INLET STREAMS
Corresponding inlet and outlet STREAMS must use the same THERMOD.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 499
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
The shell side is always considered as the first connections when modeling the unit in a single piece.
DTLN Parame te rs Re sult Logarithmic ave rage of the te mpe rature diffe re nce
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500 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
UNIT PARAMETERS
MODE (General)
0 Mass and Energy Balance Mass and energy balances are taken into account
1 Mass Balance only Only the mass balances are taken into account
If the DTLN method is selected (see METHOD), the performance equation (for MODE 10 to 70) is:
DTSIDE1 DTSIDE2
LNTD =
ln DTSIDE1 / DTSIDE2
where:
DTSIDE1 and DTSIDE2: the temperature differences on each side of the heat exchanger
CORDTLN: a correction factor that accounts for the deviation from true counter-
configuration (only for multi-passes exchangers, see parameter NPASSES)
If the NTU method is selected, only convective heat transfer can be modeled (MODE 10 or 20). The
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 501
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
NTU method is based on the notion of efficiency, the efficiency being defined by the ratio between the
actual heat load of the exchanger and the maximum heat load achievable assuming an infinite heat
transfer surface area.
The efficiency is calculated on basis of the number of transfer unit NUT according to various
formulas depending on the exchanger configuration and operation mode.
COUNTER-CURRENT CO-CURRENT
C = Cmin/ Cmax
where:
Cmax and Cmin: the total heat capacities of the streams (Massf * Cp)
With either methods (DTLN or NTU), you can define measurements on temperature differences
(DTSIDE1, DTSIDE2), heat load (LOAD), heat exchange area (A) and heat exchange coefficients (by
convection Uglob and by radiation G). Among these three latest variables (A, Uglob and G), at least
two of them must be, either measured, or set constant. Alternatively the heat transfer coefficient
Uglob can be calculated in function of the flow rates of the streams via the parameter MODEU.
CONNECT (General)
MODEU (General)
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502 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
1 Ushell and Utubes variables Uglob will be calculated in function of the film
heat transfer coefficients according to:
1/Uglob = FF + 1/(CFH.Uclean)
where:
where:
where:
MODEPASS (General)
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 503
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
1 1/(2 or more) one pass on shell side, 2 or more passes on tubes side
LOAD (Parameters)
AREA (Parameters)
This parameter is the area of the exchanger used for heat transfer.
UGLOB (Parameters)
This parameter is the heat transfer coefficient of the exchanger. It is only relevant when heat transfer
through convection is taken into account.
Attention: When a convection equation is used (MODE=10, 20, 60 or 70) it is necessary to define at
least one pseudo-measurement on AREA or on UGLOB.
If the heat exchanger area is unknown, you can set the surface area to 1 (Measurement with
expected deviation set to zero), and use the UGLOB parameter as a global UA factor.
DTSIDE1,2 (Parameters)
These parameters define the temperature difference of the streams at each side of the exchanger.
Streams used for definition depend on the type of exchanger.
Attention: The definition of the difference of temperatures leads to positive values only if the
connection is set appropriately through the parameter CONNECT. This is also the case for the heat
load parameter.
RTUB (Parameters)
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504 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
CFH (Parameters)
FF (Parameters)
CORDTLN (Parameters)
G (Parameters)
This factor is only re le vant whe n radiation is take n into account (Mode = 50, 60 or70). It include s the e ffe ct of
e missivity as we ll as the ge ome tric factor.
Attention: When the radiation equation is used (MODE=50, 60 or 70) it is necessary to define at least
one pseudo-measurement on A or on G.
If the heat exchanger area is unknown, you can set the surface area to 1 (Measurement with
expected deviation set to zero), and use the G parameter as a global GA factor.
DTLN (Parameters)
MODEDP (Parameters)
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 505
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
where:
A value of MODEDPi has to be given for each outlet stream, although it is only meaningful for
material streams.
DP (Parameters)
DP = Pin- Pout
where:
DPX (Parameters)
MASSFX (Parameters)
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506 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
CFDP (Parameters)
VFRAC1,2 (Parameters)
A value of VFRAC must be given for each outlet STREAM, although it will only be meaningful for
material STREAMS:
These parameters define the vapor ratio in the outlet stream. The value of this parameter has to be
set in the range of 0 to 1 : if the value is out of this range, saturation constraint is not considered. This
parameter is always a constant for the model.
Attention:
2. If you want to fix bubble or dew point with VFRAC, it is highly recommended to define the
corresponding Streams with L or V type instead of LV. This avoids mathematical instabilities due
to proximity of saturation.
Ui (Parameters)
REFERUi (Parameters)
MASSUi (Parameters)
Parameters used to calculate the film heat transfer coefficients in function of flow rates
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
There is 1 UNIT:
E-1:
type=HEXVAL
SYMBOL='Exchanger Left/Left'
MODE=''Counter-current exchanger'
CONNECT='Cold in Tubes'
MODEU='U=F(MASSF)'
1 FUMES to E-1
3 STEAM to E-1
The THERMODS STEAM and FUMES are defined in the file Empty.bls.
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508 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 509
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
510 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 511
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PURPOSE
The LLEVAL unit handles mass balances, energy balance and liquid-liquid equilibrium relationships
of a liquid-liquid separator. Heat can be extracted or provided to the separator via Thermal streams.
The temperature and the pressure of the liquid outlets are equal and it is possible either to consider a
pressure drop in the separator or to consider isobaric behavior.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
INLET STREAMS
Maximum number:
Material: 8
Thermal: 2
OUTLET STREAMS
Maximum number:
Thermal: 2
THERMODS
Attention:
1. The state of the outlet material streams can also be LV, LLV and WLV provided that there is more
than one component in the stream.
2. It is essential to initialize the composition of the outlet streams before attempting to activate the
L/L equations. Failure to do so can induce convergence problems or lead to a trivial solution
where both outlet streams have the same composition. The initialization can be performed
manually or automatically via the parameter FLASH.
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512 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
3. No assumption is made about the destination of solids that would be present in the inlet streams.
Composition measurements (or information coming from the downstream balances) should
define the split of solids between the two liquid phases.
UNIT PARAMETERS
MODE (General)
1 Mass Balance only Only the mass balances are taken into account
2 Mass and Energy Balance Mass and energy balances are taken into account
3 Mass and L/L equilibrium Mass and liquid-liquid equilibrium relationships are
taken into account
Attention:
1. The outlet streams are always set at the same pressure and temperature except in Mode 1 (Mass
balance only).
2. If the partial flow rate of some of the compounds is detected as being equal to zero in one of the
Streams, the related equilibrium relationship is not considered.
MODEDP (General)
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
FLASH (General)
REFDP (Parameters)
0 All inlets All inlet streams are set at the same pressure
MODEDP (General)
FLASH (General)
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
REFDP (Parameters)
0 All inlets All inlet streams are set at the same pressure
DP (Parameters)
DP = Pref- Pout
where:
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 515
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PURPOSE
This type of UNIT handles mass balances, energy balance and liquid-liquid-vapor equilibrium
relationships of a 3 phase separator. Heat can be extracted or provided to the separator via Thermal
streams.
The temperature and the pressure of the liquid and vapor outlets are equal and it is possible either to
consider a pressure drop in the separator or to consider isobaric behavior.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
INLET STREAMS
Maximum number:
Material: 6
Thermal: 2
OUTLET STREAMS
Maximum number:
Material:
1 stream of state V
Thermal: 2
THERMODS
Attention:
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516 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
1. The state of the outlet material streams can also be LV, LLV and WLV provided that there is more
than one component in the stream.
2. It is essential to initialize the composition of the outlet streams before attempting to activate the
L/L/V equations. Failure to do so can induce convergence problems or lead to a trivial solution
where all outlet streams have the same compositions. The initialization can be performed
manually or automatically via the parameter FLASH.
3. No assumption is made about the destination of solids that would be present in the inlet streams.
Composition measurements (or information coming from the downstream balances) should
define whether solids are going with the liquid or vapor phases.
UNIT PARAMETERS
MODE (General)
1 Mass Balance only Only the mass balances are taken into account
2 Mass and Energy Balance Mass and energy balances are taken into account
Attention:
1. The outlet streams are always set at the same pressure and temperature except in Mode 1 (Mass
balance only).
2. If the partial flow rate of some of the compounds is detected as being equal to zero in one of the
Streams, the related equilibrium relationship is not considered.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 517
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
MODEDP (General)
FLASH (General)
REFDP (Parameters)
0 All inlets All inlet streams are set at the same pressure
DP (Parameters)
DP = Pref- Pout
where:
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518 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 519
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PURPOSE
The purpose of a LOFUNIT (or PFD) is to define a List OF UNITs which are modeled together.
A maximum of 99 units are allowed in a LOFUNIT. A LOFUNIT may itself contain other units of
type LOFUNIT, up to a maximum level of embedding of 9.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
No connections are allowed on a LOFUNIT.
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520 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
PURPOSE
The LVEVAL unit handles mass balances, energy balance and liquid-vapor equilibrium relationships
of a liquid-vapor separator. Heat can be extracted or provided to the separator via Thermal Streams.
The temperature and the pressure of the outlets are equal and it is possible either to consider a
pressure drop in the separator or to consider isobaric behavior.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
INLET STREAMS
Maximum number:
Material: 8
Thermal: 2
OUTLET STREAMS
Maximum number:
Material:
Thermal: 2
THERMODS
Attention:
1. The state of the outlet material streams can also be LV, LLV and WLV provided that there is more
than one component in the stream.
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
2. It is essential to initialize the composition of the outlet streams before attempting to activate the
L/V equations. Failure to do so can induce convergence problems or lead to a trivial solution
where both outlet streams have the same composition. The initialization can be performed
manually or automatically via the parameter FLASH.
3. No assumption is made about the destination of solids that would be present in the inlet streams.
Composition measurements (or information coming from the downstream balances) should
define whether solids are going with the liquid or vapor phase.
UNIT PARAMETERS
MODE (General)
1 Mass Balance only Only the mass balances are taken into account
2 Mass and Energy Balance Mass and energy balances are taken into account
3 Mass and L/V equilibrium Mass and liquid-vapor equilibrium relationships are
taken into account
Attention:
1. The outlet streams are always set at the same pressure and temperature except in Mode 1 (Mass
balance only).
2. If the partial flow rate of some of the compounds is detected as being equal to zero in one of the
Streams, the related equilibrium relationship is not considered.
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522 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
MODEDP (General)
FLASH (General)
REFDP (Parameters)
0 All inlets All inlet streams are set at the same pressure
DP (Parameters)
DP = Pref- Pout
where:
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 523
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
There is 1 UNIT :
DRUM:
type=LVEVAL
MODE='All Equations'
MODEDP='DP variable'
The list of measurements and the results are given in tables below.
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524 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 525
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PURPOSE
This unit type has been primarily developed to model the complex network of pipes connecting
process units and a tank farm where the various tanks can be used on various products.
All units of type NETVAL ( in a given model) behave like a single Black Box where all streams coming
in or going out participate to different mass balances depending on a product attribute. This product
type is defined as a PRODUCT attribute via a MEA file. It can also be set by the first 8 characters of
the stream comments. A PRODUCT attribute can also be set on a Tank (TNKVAL unit) in which case
both inlet and outlet streams will receive the corresponding attribute.
The BALANCE PRODUCT syntax in a mea file automatically generates tags for each specified
products giving the opening and closing inventory, the charge and rundown from tanks, the import
and export as well as the production and consumption per product.
In addition, the IMBALANCE PRODUCT syntax enables an imbalance on the selected product and
generates an additional tag giving the identified product imbalance.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
INLET STREAMS
Maximum number: 10
Type: material
OUTLET STREAMS
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526 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
Maximum number: 10
Type: material
UNIT PARAMETERS
MODE (General)
EQUAMODE (General)
1 Outlet All outlet streams having the same attribute will have the same
Compositi composition
ons
Equalities
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 527
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
This example shows the use of Netval units (NET-1 and NET-2) to interconnect a process unit (GRU1,
Gas Recovery Unit) to five storage tanks (T-1 to T-5).
MIX
type=BBXVAL,
MODEDP='None'
NET-1, NET-2
type=NETVAL
T-1 to T-5
type=TNKVAL,
There are 20 Streams connecting the units as indicated in the flow-sheet. They all use the same
Thermod Steam. (In fact, any thermod involving a single compound could be used as only global
mass balances are to be performed).
The comments of the streams and the list of measurements and the results are given in tables below.
Attention:
1. It is assumed that tags have been defined for Mass Flow Rate on each process (feed, s1, s2, etc.)
and export stream (1os, 2os, …) and on the initial and final levels of each tank.
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528 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
3. The CUTOFF unit automatically sets OFF the streams for which the measured flow rate is below
0.01 t/h.
4. Stream LPGF (LPG failed) is automatically switched off because no tank contains failed LPG.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 529
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
T-1_MASS1 1000 5 t
T-1_MASS2 1500 5 t
T-2_MASS1 2000 5 t
T-2_MASS2 1500 5 t
T-3_MASS1 2000 5 t
T-3_MASS2 3000 5 t
T-4_MASS1 2000 5 t
T-4_MASS2 1000 5 t
T-5_MASS1 1000 5 t
T-5_MASS2 1500 5 t
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530 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 531
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PURPOSE
The OPTVAL unit allows to define various mathematical and reporting settings
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
No connections are allowed on an OPTVAL.
PRESMODE Ge ne ral Input De fine s the way stre am pre ssure s are handle d
SPLMODE Ge ne ral Input SPLVAL proce ssing for single compound mixture s
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532 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
VALIDITY Parame te rs Input Thre shold for flagging corre cte d me asure me nts
UNIT PARAMETERS
RESPRINT (General)
0 0: No Values of variables and equation residues are not printed in the r3v
report at each iteration
1 1: Yes Values of variables and equation residues are printed in the r3v report at
each iteration
INIT (General)
0 0: Use data Starting values for the state and link variables are the value available in
the data. If these starting values are not coherent, arbitrary values are
chosen
1 1: Use Starting values for variables and the link variables are the measured
measured values. For the unmeasured variables, the default values are used. When
values the initial values are not valid, arbitrary values are chosen (example:
negative flow rate)
Attention: When the variables are initialized with the available measurements, composition and
total flow rate measurements are used to initialize the partial flow rates.
NEGATFLR (General)
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
0 0:accepted When a partial flow rate is not used in thermodynamic calculations, the
(Soldog program accepts a negative value for this variable (no thermal balance on
only) the corresponding streams)
If NEGATFLR different from 1 or 0, it selects 1. This parameter is only relevant for the solver
SOLDOG.
EQUASOLV (General)
PRESMODE (General)
0 0:DP Stream pressures are handled as any other variable. Pressure drops are
constant if considered constant if not measured
not
measured
1 1:P and DP Stream pressures are considered constant when no measurement are
constant if defined on them. This was the behavior of VALI II
not
measured
2 2:P and DP Stream pressures and the unit pressure drops are always considered as
are variables
variable
FLEXMODE (General)
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534 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
1 Compiled Flex code is interpreted and compiled during the verification phase
(faster)
Attention:
1. FLEXMODE 0 is available only to insure 100% compatibility with preceding versions. The
compilation of the code is however not expected to cause problems of any order.
2. The use of user-defined routines is only possible when the code is compiled.
SPLMODE (General)
0 Normal Streams coming from a SPLVAL always share the same record for their
behavior partial flow rates
1 Optimized Single compounds streams do not share their rates, which diminishes the
behavior non-linearity of the system of equations
Attention: SPLMODE 0 is available to insure 100% compatibility with preceding versions. The
optimized behavior is however not expected to cause problems of any order.
SIGOR95C (General)
PENALSTD (General)
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 535
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
TRIVRED (General)
Removing trivial redundancies can significantly improve the convergence properties of the model.
CSTKEEP (General)
0 are set as Constants are removed from the system. The corresponding variables are
constants directly set to their appropriate values
1 are set via Constants (except partial rates that are set to zero) are kept as variables of
an the system and set constant through a link equation
equation
2 are set as Constants (except partial rates that are set to zero) are kept as variables of
measurem the system and set a measurements with an uncertainty of 10 -6 %
ents
(accuracy:
1E-06%)
Setting the constants via equations or via measurements with a low uncertainty can sometimes
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536 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
Setting the constants as measurements enables them to be eliminated by the gross error algorithm.
They will also appear in the results of the sensitivity analysis tool.
UNCTHER (General)
ITMAX (Parameters)
EPS (Parameters)
This value is used to evaluate the value of the sum of the squares of the residues, for which
convergence is considered. The default value is appropriate for molar rates in the range 0.01 to 1
kmol/s. If you work with significantly lower flow rates, you may have to reduce the value of this
parameter.
VALIDITY (Parameters)
Tags for which the validated value is outside the corresponding confidence interval will be flagged.
For the default value of 95%, this corresponds to a difference (between measured and validated
values) of about twice the expected deviation.
JACFREQU (Parameters)
The Jacobian is estimated after JACFREQU iterations, as long as this value is satisfactory for the
resolution routine. This parameter is only relevant when using the solver SOLDOG.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 537
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
CONSTR (Parameters)
This parameter defines the action on variables when one of these variables violates the constraints
submitted to iteration (SOLDOG solver only).
Only the variables that violate the constraints are brought back within agreed space at a distance
from the constraints, which is equal to :
CHI2CRIT (Parameters)
This parameter determines the level of confidence for the chi-square test. The chi-square is a
statistical that gives, for the given confidence level, a threshold for the total sum of measurements
errors. When the sum of penalty is above this threshold, there is suspicion that gross errors exist.
BNDTEST (Parameters)
This parameter controls the generation of warning messages for active bounds. Bounds are
considered active when the distance between the bound and the variable value is less than a
threshold defined as BNDTEST*REC.ACC. By default, this threshold corresponds to the validated
accuracy. Setting a higher value for BNDTEST will flags more variables as being on their bounds.
BNDCTRLU (Parameters)
This parameter controls the uncertainty set on the bound control auxiliary variable which is
activated when a variable gets close to its bound.
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538 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
PURPOSE
This type of UNIT allows to add up to 9 simple user's equations, involving process variables.
VAR = X1 # X2
where X1 and X2 are any Unit or Stream variable and # is one of the four basic mathematical
operators (+, -, *, /). Variables X1, X2, X3, etc. are designed by a TAG.
The result VAR is stored in the parameters VAR1..9 of the unit and can be measured. These
parameters are dimensionless.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
No connections are allowed on an OPXVAL.
UNIT PARAMETERS
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 539
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
1 + Addition
2 - Substraction
3 * Multiplication
4 / Division
This parameter represents the number of equations to be considered (ranges from 1 to 9).
In the same page you will specify the tags that are to be used for the equations. These tags do not
need to be defined, provided their name does follow the syntax used for building default tag names
from the stream or unit name and the parameters. For example the temperature of the stream LA11
can be defined through a tag as LA11_T.
If you want to use existing tags, you can simply drag them from the Tags defined table to the
Controlled variables table. Use the Mask to limit the number of tags shown in the Tags defined
table.
If you want to create a virtual tag, enter its name in the Mask and drag it to the Controlled variables
table.
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540 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
VARi (Parameters)
This example deals with a mixer of methane and steam for which it is requested that the molar ratio
of steam to methane is equal to a specific value.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 541
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
MIX:
type=BBXVAL
MODEDP='None'
RATIO:
type=OPXVAL
Equations: 1
C1 MIX to MIX
The THERMOD MIX can be derived from the THERMOD AIR available in Empty.bls and contains: C1,
N2 and H2O.
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542 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 543
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PURPOSE
The PIPEVAL unit models:
the pressure drop along lines and wells according to various equations (Blasious, Von
Karmann, Colebrook). It also takes into account pressure changes according to the initial
and final elevations of the pipe
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
INLET STREAMS
1 material STREAM
OUTLET STREAMS
1 material STREAM
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544 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
NSTEPS Parame te rs Input Numbe r of ste ps for ste pwise inte gration
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 545
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
UNIT PARAMETERS
MODE (General)
0 Mass and Energy Balance Mass and energy balances are taken into account
1 Mass Balance only Only mass balances are taken into account
MODEDEP (General)
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546 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
where:
where:
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 547
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
MODEFRIC (General)
2 Turbulent Flow
(Blasius)
(2000<Re<70000)
3 Turbulent Flow
(70000<Re<1E27)
(Von Karman)
(Colebrook)
MODETOEQ (General)
2 Inlet and outlet streams The inlet and outlet streams will have the same
temperature
MODETRAN (General)
Heat transfer equations are only available when the unit is calculated mass and energy balance.
Three different methods are available.
1 NTU method Flat temperature of external media (TEXTIN). The heat load is
calculated using the Number of Transfer Units method. The
NTU method is based on the notion of efficiency, the efficiency
being defined by the ratio between the actual heat load and the
maximum heat load achievable assuming an infinite heat
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548 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
where:
2 Stepwise integration The pipe is divided into a number of steps of equal length
(constant Cp on each (parameter NSTEPS). It is assumed that the pressure profile
step) inside the pipe is linear versus pipe length and that there is no
phase change in the pipe.
where:
Hi and Hi+1 are the enthalpy flow at the inlet and outlet
of step i [kW]
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 549
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
3 Stepwise integration The pipe is divided into a number of steps of equal length
(rigorous) (parameter NSTEPS).
where:
Hi and Hi+1 are the enthalpy flow at the inlet and outlet
of step i [kW]
PHASES (General)
This parameter is only used when MODETRAN=3. It indicates which phases have to be considered
when calculating the enthalpy from temperature and pressure.
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550 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
0 According to stream state state inside the pipe is the same as stream state
TPROFILE (General)
TPROFILE defines the shape of the temperature profile of the external media.
1 Linear Profile versus Depth the external media is interpolated between TEXTIN
and TEXOUT
2 Profile given through a table the temperature profile is given with the trajectory
TRAJECT (General)
1 Given through a table the pipe coordinates are given through an external
file
The table used to define pipe trajectory and/or temperature profile must be entered through a flat file
which is referenced in a mea file though the syntax:
TABINPUT SOMEFILE.TXT
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 551
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
MODETIME (General)
MODERHO (General)
0 Rho not variable of the Rho is not calculated at each iteration, value is
problem calculated after convergence is achieved
MODECFDP (Genreral)
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552 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
DP (Parameters)
DP = Pin- Pout
where:
DPX (Parameters)
MASSFX (Parameters)
CFDP (Parameters)
ZIN (Parameters)
ZOUT (Parameters)
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 553
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
DIAM (Parameters)
LENGTH (Parameters)
ROUGH (Parameters)
REYNOLDS (Parameters)
VISC (Parameters)
SPEED (Parameters)
FRICTION (Parameters)
NSTEPS (Parameters)
U (Parameters)
EFFICNTU (Parameters)
TEXTIN (Parameters)
TEXTOUT (Parameters)
DTEXT (Parameters)
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554 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
RESTIME (Parameters)
RHO (Parameters)
DPGRAV (Parameters)
DPFRIC (Parameters)
CFDPGRAV (Parameters)
CFDPFRIC (Parameters)
TFLOWi (Others)
PFLOWi (Others)
There is 1 UNIT:
PIPE
type=PIPEVAL
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 555
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
DIAM= 0.1 m
LENGTH= 1000 m
ROUGH= 0.0001 m
IN WATER to PIPE
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
556 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 557
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PURPOSE
The PRECIS unit allows to define precision on calculations.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
No connections are allowed on a PRECIS.
EPSLV2 Parame te rs Input Tole rance for LVE at P,T (inte rnal)
EPSLV3 Parame te rs Input Tole rance for LVE at P,T (e xte rnal)
EPSLV4 Parame te rs Input Tole rance for LVE at P,VAPF or T,VAPF (inte rnal)
EPSLV5 Parame te rs Input Tole rance for LVE at P,VAPF or T,VAPF (e xte rnal)
EPSLLV1 Parame te rs Input Pre cision LLVE crite ria for K of 2 liquids
EPSLLV2 Parame te rs Input Pre cision LLVE conve rge nce crite ria
EPSLLV4 Parame te rs Input Pre cision LLVE at P,VAPF or T,VAPF (inte rnal)
EPSLLV5 Parame te rs Input Pre cision LLVE at P,VAPF or T,VAPF (e xte rnal)
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558 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
EPSLLV7 Parame te rs Input Pre cision LLVE at T,P, calc. V/L+V and L1/L1+L2
EPCHM1 Parame te rs Input Pre cision molar flowrate in che mical e quilibria
ITMLV1 Parame te rs Input Maximum numbe r of ite rations for the rmodynamical
calculation of volume
ITMLV2 Parame te rs Input Maximum numbe r of ite rations for alf computation
be twe e n 0 and 1 (alf is the solution of S(alf)=0)
ITMLV3 Parame te rs Input Maximum numbe r of ite rations for isothe rmal flash
calculation whe n the re is more than 1 substance
ITMLV4 Parame te rs Input Maximum numbe r of ite rations for s(p/t) stabilization
ITMLV5 Parame te rs Input Maximum numbe r of ite rations for s(p/t)=1 re solution
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 559
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
UNIT PARAMETERS
EPSLV1 (Parameters)
EPSLV2 (Parameters)
EPSLV3 (Parameters)
EPSLV4 (Parameters)
EPSLV5 (Parameters)
EPSTHERM (Parameters)
EPSTRACE (Parameters)
EPSLLV1 (Parameters)
EPSLLV2 (Parameters)
EPSLLV3 (Parameters)
EPSLLV4 (Parameters)
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
560 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
EPSLLV5 (Parameters)
EPSLLV6 (Parameters)
EPSLLV7 (Parameters)
EPSLLV8 (Parameters)
EPSLLV9 (Parameters)
EPCHM1 (Parameters)
EPCHM2 (Parameters)
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 561
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
ITMLV1 (Parameters)
Maximum numbe r of ite rations for the rmodynamical calculation of volume (type:Input).
ITMLV2 (Parameters)
Maximum numbe r of ite rations for alf computation be twe e n 0 and 1 (alf is the solution of S(alf)=0) (type:
Input).
ITMLV3 (Parameters)
Maximum numbe r of ite rations for isothe rmal flash calculation whe n the re is more than 1 substance (type:
Input).
ITMLV4 (Parameters)
ITMLV5 (Parameters)
ITMTHERM (Parameters)
ITMLL2 (Parameters)
ITMLL4 (Parameters)
ITMLL5 (Parameters)
ITMLL6 (Parameters)
ITMLL7 (Parameters)
ITMLL8 (Parameters)
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
562 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
ITMLL9 (Parameters)
ITCHM1 (Parameters)
ITCHM2 (Parameters)
EPFABS1 (Parameters)
EPFABS2 (Parameters)
XWAT0 (Parameters)
XWAT1 (Parameters)
WLVMODE (Parameters)
1 1 Complete mode
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 563
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PURPOSE
The PRHVAL unit allows you to model preheaters where a vapor stream (typically steam) is de-
superheated, condensed and possibly sub-cooled to preheat a cold stream, without phase change.
Three different zones are considered: de-superheating, condensing and sub-cooling, with different
areas and heat transfer coefficients.
The sub-cooling zone can be merged with the condensing zone, in which case the possible sub-
cooling is not evaluated. The outlet stream is assumed to be liquid, but the distance from the bubble
point is not calculated.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
INLET STREAMS
2 or 3 material STREAMS
OUTLET STREAMS
2 material STREAMS
Corresponding inlet and outlet STREAMS must use the same THERMOD. The third inlet stream is
optional and represents a drain inlet. The same THERMOD must be used for the first and the third
inlet streams. The first inlet stream (going into the shell) is the hot vapor stream, while the cold
stream goes through the tubes.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
564 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
MODEDRDP Ge ne ral Input Mode for drain pre ssure drop e quation
LOAD1,2,3 Othe rs Me asurable He at load of the 3 se ctions (de -supe rhe ating,
conde nsing, sub-cooling)
UNIT PARAMETERS
MODE (General)
0 Mass and Energy Balance Mass and energy balances are taken into account
1 Mass Balance only Only mass balances are taken into account
10 Performance equations Mass, Ene rgy and Pe rformance e quation (he at transfe r
coe fficie nts)
The performance equation is for each of the three sections (1=desuperheating, 2=condensing,
3=subcooling) of the heat exchanger:
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 565
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
LOADi= Ai . Ui . LNTDi
DTSIDE1 DTSIDE 2
LNTDi =
ln DTSIDE1 / DTSIDE 2
where:
DTSIDE1 and DTSIDE2 are the temperature differences on each side of the section
MODEDRDP (General)
where:
This parameter determines how to calculate the pressure drop between the drain inlet stream and
the condensing zone pressure of the preheater.
MODESUB (General)
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
566 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
TOTLOAD (Parameters)
This is the total heat transferred in the three sections of the exchanger:
TOTA (Parameters)
TOTA = A1 + A2 + A3
DRAINDP (Parameters)
where:
DRDPX (Parameters)
DRMASSFX (Parameters)
DRCFDP (Parameters)
DTSC (Parameters)
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 567
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
This parameter indicates the temperature difference between the outlet condensate and its
saturation temperature.
MODEDP (Parameters)
where:
DP (Parameters)
DP = Pref- Pout
where:
DPX (Parameters)
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
568 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
MASSFX (Parameters)
CFDP (Parameters)
LOAD1,2,3 (Others)
A1,2,3 (Others)
U1,2,3 (Others)
PRHA,PRHB
type=PRHVAL
MODE='Performance equations'
MODESUB='With sub-cooling'
MODEDP1/2='DP variable'
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 569
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
570 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 571
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
572 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
PURPOSE
The PUMVAL unit allows you to model pumps.
Measurements can be defined on the efficiency and the mechanical power as well as the distance
from performance curves.
Note: When the Mechanical Stream is OFF, VALI will consider that the Material Stream go through
the pump with a pressure drop equal to 0.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
INLET STREAMS
1 material
1 mechanical
OUTLET STREAMS
1 material
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 573
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
EFFi Parame te rs Input Polynomial coe fficie nts for e fficie ncy curve
UNIT PARAMETERS
MODE (General)
0 All equations Mass and energy balances are taken into account. The
volumetric efficiency equation is generated as well
1 Mass Balance only Only mass balances are taken into account
2 Mass and Energy Balance Mass and energy balances are taken into account
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
574 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
MODEDP (Parameters)
MODEPERF (General)
EFFIC (Parameters)
where:
DP (Parameters)
DP = Pout- Pin
PRATIO (Parameters)
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 575
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PRATIO = Pout/Pin
RPMR (Parameters)
The reference pump speed corresponds to the pump speed for which the performance curves have
been identified.
RPMMIN (Parameters)
When the measured pump speed is below RPMMIN, the head curve equation is deactivated and the
efficiency is calculated for the minimum rotation speed.
VOLFMIN (Parameters)
VOLFMIN defines the lower bound of the validity range of the performance curves at the reference
rotation speed. When the flow rate is below VOLFMIN, the efficiency and head are calculated at
VOLFMIN.
NSTAGES (Parameters)
NSTAGES is used to calculate the overall head curve of a pump made of several stages.
EFFi (Parameters)
where:
HEADi (Parameters)
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
576 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
where:
DEFF (Parameters)
This parameter represents the distance between the actual pump efficiency and the theoretical
efficiency defined by the pump theoretical curve.
Typically, a tag will be defined on DEFF with an estimated value of 0 and an uncertainty
corresponding to the allowed distance between the actual and theoretical efficiency.
CFEFF (Parameters)
This parameter represents the actual efficiency relative to curve efficiency, as the ratio of actual
efficiency on curve efficiency:
EFFC (Parameters)
This parameter represents the efficiency calculated from theoretical curve. See EFFi above for more
information.
DHEAD (Parameters)
This parameter represents the distance between the actual pump head and theoretical head defined
by the pump theoretical curve.
where:
Typically, a tag will be defined on DHEAD with an estimated value of 0 and an uncertainty
corresponding to the allowed distance between the actual and theoretical efficiency.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 577
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
DHEADR (Parameters)
This parameter represents the difference between head at nominal speed and head from curve at
nominal speed:
HEAD (Parameters)
HEADR (Parameters)
This parameter represents the reduced head, i.e. the actual head at nominal speed.
HEADC (Parameters)
This parameter represents the head from theoretical curve, at actual speed.
HEADCR (Parameters)
This parameter represents the head calculated from the theoretical curve, at nominal speed. See
HEADi above for more information.
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578 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
There is 1 UNIT:
PUMP
type=PUMVAL
MODE='All equations'
MODEDP='None'
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 579
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
580 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
PURPOSE
The RCT-HNO3 unit models the conversion of NH3 according to the following reactions:
The conversion of the NH3 is complete. The percentage of NH3 which is converted to NO (according
to the second reaction) is defined by the SELECT parameter (selectivity).
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
INLET STREAMS
OUTLET STREAMS
THERMOD
The Thermod of the inlet stream must contain, in any order, at least the following compounds: NH3,
O2, N2, H2O.
The Thermod of the outlet stream must contain, in any order, at least the following compounds: NO,
NO2, N2O4, O2, N2, H2O, HNO3.
REACTION
The reactions are part of the model and do not need to be defined in the Reactions page.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 581
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
UNIT PARAMETERS
MODE (General)
0 Atomic and Energy Balance Atomic and energy balances are taken into account
1 Atomic Balance only Only atomic balances are taken into account
MODEDP (General)
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
582 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
where:
SELEC (Parameters)
DP (Parameters)
DP = Pref- Pout
where:
DPX (Parameters)
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 583
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
MASSFX (Parameters)
CFDP (Parameters)
EXTENT1,2 (Parameters)
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
584 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
PURPOSE
The RCTVAL unit allows you to model reactors and takes the atomic balances, energy balance and
pressure drop into account.
Contrary to the BATVAL unit, the chemical reactions must be defined. All reactions are considered
reversible.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
INLET STREAMS
Maximum number: 10
OUTLET STREAMS
Maximum number: 10
Type: one material as the first outlet (as shown on the symbols), thermal, mechanical
THERMOD
All chemical compounds involved in the chemical reactions must be present in the outlet THERMOD.
REACTIONS
Maximum number: 30
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 585
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
UNIT PARAMETERS
MODE (General)
0 Atomic and Energy Balance Atomic and energy balances are taken into account
1 Atomic Balance only Only atomic balances are taken into account
MODEDP (General)
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
586 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
where:
REFDP (Parameters)
0 All inlets All inlet streams are set at the same pressure
DP (Parameters)
DP = Pref- Pout
where:
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 587
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
DPX (Parameters)
MASSFX (Parameters)
CFDP (Parameters)
EXTENTi (Reactions)
The EXTENT of a reaction is the amount of reference product (with stoechiometric coefficient equal to
1) produced in the associated reaction.
For a particular component, the amount produced in a given reaction is the result of the
multiplication of the EXTENT of the reaction by the stoechiometric coefficient of the component (thus
value is negative for reagents).
This example deals with a chemical reactor for the synthesis of NH3.
There is 1 UNIT:
SYNT
type=RCTVAL
MODE='All Equations'
MODEDP='DP variable'
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
588 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
The THERMOD RCMOD can be derived from the THERMOS AIR available in Empty.bls and contains:
H2, N2, NH3 and Ar.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 589
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
590 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
PURPOSE
The REPVAL unit allows controlling the amount and the type of information printed out in the main
report file (r4v).
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
No connections are allowed on a REPVAL.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 591
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
UNIT PARAMETERS
SEQREP (General)
1 1: Yes The sequence report is the list of units that are in the
current model (only with text reports or with the
HTO runtime option):
GLOBBAL (General)
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592 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
UNIPAR (General)
UNISTR (General)
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 593
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
1 1: Streams Mass Balance Includes the measured and validated mass flow rates
of the streams connected to the unit:
3 3: Streams in Molar flow rates Includes (in vertical table) the parameters and
composition (molar flow rates) of each connected
stream:
T C 499.856
15.0020 1198.36
P bar 20.0650
VAPF % 100.000 20.0000
100.000 19.9650
100.000
MIXF % 100.000 100.000 100.000
H kJ/kmol 14494.0 -352.389 39069.7
S kJ/kmol/C 8.30863 -26.0002 33.2809
A kJ/kmol 12016.8 7399.56 29147.0
V m3/kmol 3.20309 1.19789 6.12769
MOLW kg/kmol 28.8503 16.0430 28.4506
HW kJ/kg 502.386 -21.9653 1373.25
MOLF kmol/s 2.35611 0.759138E-01
MASSF kg/s 67.9744 1.21788 2.43202
69.1923
O2 kmol/s 0.494782 ... 0.342955
N2 kmol/s 1.86132 0.00000
1.86132
H2 kmol/s ... 0.00000
...
H2S kmol/s ... 0.00000
...
CO2 kmol/s ... 0.00000
0.759138E-01
C1 kmol/s ... 0.759138E-01
...
C2 kmol/s ... 0.00000
...
C3 kmol/s ... 0.00000
...
I-C4 kmol/s ... 0.00000
...
N-C4 kmol/s ... 0.00000
...
N-C5 kmol/s ... 0.00000
H2O kmol/s ... ... ...
0.151828
SO2 kmol/s ... ... 0.00000
4 4: Streams in Mass flow rates Includes (in vertical table) the parameters and
composition (mass flow rates) of each connected
stream.
5 5: Streams in Molar fractions Includes (in vertical table) the parameters and
composition (molar fractions) of each connected
stream (only with text reports or with the –HTO
runtime option)
6 6: Streams in Mass fractions Includes (in vertical table) the parameters and
composition (mass fractions) of each connected
stream (only with text reports or with the –HTO
runtime option)
STRREP (General)
TAGREP (General)
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 595
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
2 2: Tags values Table with the measured and validated values of all
the tags:
REACREP (General)
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596 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
THERREP (General)
COMPREP (General)
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 597
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
C1
**
C 1 H 4
COMPOUND Comment: METHANE
H0F -74835.0000
G0F -50785.2656
MOLW 16.0429993
TB 111.657989
TC 190.549988
PC 46.0420685
VC 0.989999771E-01
OMEGA 0.719999895E-02
CPLA 82.5483856
CPLB -0.693272591
CPLC 0.483209919E-02
CPLD -0.720117441E-05
TMIN(PV) 81.6999970
TMAX(PV) 186.787842
PVAPA 13.0173359
PVAPB -1192.28540
...
VARREP (General)
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
598 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
BNDREP (General)
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 599
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
1 1: Active Bounds Table with all the active (solver) bounds defined on
the variables:
2 2: Bounds on all the variables Table with all the (solver) bounds defined on the
variables:
COBAREP (General)
1 1: Molar basis Table with the partial molar rates of all compounds
in the global inlet and outlet streams of the flow-
sheet:
2 2: Mass basis Table with the partial mass rates of all compounds in
the global inlet and outlet streams of the flow-sheet:
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
600 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
INDREP (General)
These indexes give an easy access to the units and streams information.
0 0: (none) No index
IMAGE (General)
1 1: Images in HTML Some images are include in the html. These images
are located in belsim/dat directory and will only be
correctly shown if present on the computer where
the report is browsed
2 2: Local Dir Images in HTML Some images are include in the html and are copied
in the local directory. When moving or copying the
html report you should also move or copy the
corresponding GIF files
ORDVAREP (General)
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 601
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
ZONEBAL (General)
When generating balances by zone, product balance tags are generated for each zone (starting by the
name of the zone as defined in the parent PFD).
Example:
A1_IMPORT_CRUDE_MASSF will be the total imported amount (in mass) of crude into zone A1.
ORDTAREP (General)
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
602 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
PURPOSE
The RKIVAL unit allows you to model reactors and takes the atomic balances, energy balance and
pressure drop into account.
The chemical reactions must be defined and you can give the kinetic equations of these reactions.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
INLET STREAMS
Maximum number: 2
OUTLET STREAMS
Maximum number: 2
THERMOD
All chemical compounds involved in the chemical reactions must be present in the outlet THERMOD.
REACTIONS
Maximum number: 30
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 603
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
UNIT PARAMETERS
MODE (General)
1 Mass Balance only Only the mass balances are taken into account
2 Mass and Energy balance Atomic and energy balances are taken into account
FLOWMODE (General)
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
604 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
REACTYPE (General)
MODEDP (General)
where:
FLEXMODE (General)
1 With Flex The kinetics defined in the Flex code are used
2 Without Flex The kinetics defined in the Flex code are not used
REFDP (Parameters)
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 605
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
0 All inlets All inlet streams are set at the same pressure
DIREAC (Parameters)
HREAC (Parameters)
ROCATA (Parameters)
DP (Parameters)
DP = Pref- Pout
where:
DPX (Parameters)
MASSFX (Parameters)
CFDP (Parameters)
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606 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
PHASE (Parameters)
EXTENTi (Reactions)
The EXTENT of a reaction is the amount of reference product (with stoechiometric coefficient equal to
1) produced in the associated reaction.
For a particular component, the amount produced in a given reaction is the result of the
multiplication of the EXTENT of the reaction by the stoechiometric coefficient of the component (thus
value is negative for reagents).
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 607
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PURPOSE
The RKPVAL unit allows you to model reactors where some of the reactions are equilibrated and
takes the atomic balances, energy balance and pressure drop into account.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
INLET STREAMS
Maximum number: 10
OUTLET STREAMS
Maximum number: 10
Type: one material as the first outlet (as shown on the symbols), thermal, mechanical
THERMOD
All chemical compounds involved in the chemical reactions must be present in the outlet THERMOD.
REACTIONS
Maximum number: 30
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608 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
UNIT PARAMETERS
MODE (General)
0 Atomic and Energy Balance Atomic and energy balances are taken into account
1 Atomic Balance only Only atomic balances are taken into account
MODEDP (General)
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
where:
DP (Parameters)
DP = Pref- Pout
where:
DPX (Parameters)
MASSFX (Parameters)
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610 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
CFDP (Parameters)
REFDP (Parameters)
0 All inlets All inlet streams are set at the same pressure
EXTENTi (Reactions)
The EXTENT of a reaction is the amount of reference product (with stoechiometric coefficient equal to
1) produced in the associated reaction.
For a particular component, the amount produced in a given reaction is the result of the
multiplication of the EXTENT of the reaction by the stoechiometric coefficient of the component (thus
value is negative for reagents).
DTEQi (Reactions)
The DTEQi parameter allows you to account for a deviation from equilibrium by calculating the
equilibrium constant at a temperature different (T + DTEQi) from the outlet stream temperature T.
Attention: When DTEQ > 100 C, no equilibrium constraint is generated. This has the same effect as
setting the parameter EQi to 0.
EQi (Reactions)
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This example deals with the same chemical reactor for the synthesis of NH3 as in the example for
RCTVAL. We use here the RKPVAL to determine the distance from the equilibrium composition.
This difference expressed in C can be considered as an indication of catalyst ageing.
There is 1 UNIT:
RCT
type=RKPVAL
MODEDP='DP Variable
The THERMOD RCMOD can be derived from the THERMOD AIR available in Empty.bls and contains:
H2, N2, NH3 and Ar.
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612 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 613
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
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614 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
PURPOSE
UNIT RLVVAL is a unit modeling a reactor where outlet streams are at liquid-vapor equilibrium.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
INLET STREAMS
Maximum number:
material: 8
thermal: 2
OUTLET STREAMS
Maximum number:
material:
thermal: 2
THERMODS
All chemical compounds involved in the chemical reactions must be present in the outlet THERMOD.
REACTIONS
Maximum number: 30
The state of the outlet material streams can also be LV, LLV and WLV provided that there is more
than one component in the stream.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 615
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
UNIT PARAMETERS
MODE (General)
0 All equations Atomic and energy balances are taken into account
1 Atomic Balance only Only atomic balances are taken into account
2 Atomic and Energy Balance Atomic and energy balances are taken into account
MODEDP (Parameters)
REFDP (Parameters)
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616 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
0 All inlets All inlet streams are set at the same pressure
DP (Parameters)
DP = Pref- Pout
where:
EXTENTi (Reactions)
The EXTENT of a reaction is the amount of reference product (with stoechiometric coefficient equal to
1) produced in the associated reaction.
For a particular component, the amount produced in a given reaction is the result of the
multiplication of the EXTENT of the reaction by the stoechiometric coefficient of the component (thus
value is negative for reagents).
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 617
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PURPOSE
This type of UNIT allows you to set the degree of saturation of a streams. It is possible to fix any
vapor fraction (between 0 and 1) with a possible temperature departure from the temperature
corresponding to a specified vapor fraction. Heat can be extracted or provided to this unit.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
INLET STREAMS
1 material
OUTLET STREAMS
1 material
The outlet Stream can be set in state L, V or LV. It is however recommended to use the L state when
the outlet stream that is specified at the bubble point, and the V state when the outlet stream is
specified at the dew point.
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618 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
UNIT PARAMETERS
MODE (General)
1 Mass Balance only Only mass balances are taken into account
2 Mass and Energy Balance Mass and energy balances are taken into account
3 Mass Balance and Saturation Mass and energy balances are taken into account
MODEDP (General)
where:
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
DP (Parameters)
DP = Pref- Pout
where:
DPX (Parameters)
MASSFX (Parameters)
CFDP (Parameters)
VFRAC (Parameters)
This parameter defines the ratio of vapor in the mixture. The value of this parameter has to be set in
the range from 0 to 1: if the value is out of this range, it will be corrected to the closer value.
DT (Parameters)
This parameter defines the temperature difference between the temperature of the thermodynamic
state defined from the vapor fraction parameter and the temperature of the real thermodynamic
state of the STREAM.
With this parameter, it is possible to define how much a liquid is subcooled or a vapor is
superheated.
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620 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
There is 1 UNIT:
E-1:
type=SATVAL
MODE='All equations'
MODEDP='DP variable'
DT= -5 K
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 621
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
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622 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
PURPOSE
This UNIT is used to consider heat and mass balances of a splitter where the outlet STREAMS have
the same composition.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
INLET STREAMS
1 material
OUTLET STREAMS
Maximum number: 10
Type: material
THERMOD
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 623
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
UNIT PARAMETERS
MODE (General)
0 Mass and Energy Balance Mass and energy balances are taken into account
1 Mass Balance only Only mass balances are taken into account
MODEDP (Parameters)
MODETOEQ (General)
1 between all outlet stream all outlet streams will be set at the same temperature
2 between first inlet and all all outlet streams and the first inlet stream will be set
outlet stream at the same temperature
Temperature equalities are only added when the unit is calculated in mass balance only. When the
energy balance is activated, these additional equations will never be generated.
DP (Parameters)
DP = Pin- Pout
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624 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
where:
FRACi (Parameters)
Each FRACi parameter represents the fraction of the inlet flow going in the corresponding outlet
stream.
FLOWFILT (Parameters)
When the inlet flow rate of a splitter is measured as well as all but one of its outlet streams, there is a
risk that the unmeasured outlet stream hits its lower bound.
This in particular the case on products routing in production accounting applications where the
main production flow rate is measured and the product routing is specified though manual inputs on
the flows that are redirected from the normal route (on-spec product) to slop tanks or recirculation
lines.
The automatic filtering (when enabled) creates an estimate on the unmeasured flow rate based on the
measured inlet and outlet flow rates. Should the estimated flow rate fall below a given cutoff value,
the unmeasured stream will be set off.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 625
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PURPOSE
This type of UNIT allows you to consider the material balance of a storage tank. Different modes can
be selected to model the tank: mass, volume or level basis, use of strapping tables, tracking of
composition change over the time window. In any case, the heat balance of the tank is never taken
into account.
Typically, storage tanks models are most often used in daily production balance models. In such a
case, the recommended approach is to use as initial inventory (measured as constants) the validated
inventory of the preceding period (usually day).
Attention: Unaccounted losses (or surpluses) will then be evidenced by a progressive drift between
the validated and measured inventory of the tank. From time to time (for example at the end of a
monthly period), validated tank inventories can be reset to measured inventory by enabling an
imbalance on the tank inventory (parameter IMBMODE).
the initial and final mass inventories (parameters MASS1 and MASS2)
or the initial and final tank levels, using a strapping table to convert levels in mass
inventories
the initial and final volume inventories (parameters VOL1 and VOL2)
or the initial and final tank levels and use a strapping table to convert them volume
inventories
In such cases, volumes need to be converted into mass terms to correctly calculate the material
balance. The density will be calculated either on basis of the composition of the tank contents
(COLDDENS approach) or on basis of a so-called conventional density which will be a measured
property independent of the tank composition (CONVDENS approach).
Several approaches are also possible to track the composition of the tank inventories:
assuming that the composition of the tank and of the connected streams are not related
assuming that the composition of the tank remains constant over the validation time
window
assuming that the composition of the tank can change over time
In the latter case, the initial composition of the tank needs to be measured. As for the inventory, the
usual approach is to use as initial composition (measured as constants) the validated composition of
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626 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
There is also the possibility to specify that the tank is used only in charge or rundown operation (no
simultaneous input and output) during the validation period of time, which avoids the
indetermination introduced by tanks used in parallel.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
INLET STREAMS
OUTLET STREAMS
THERMOD
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 627
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
UNIT PARAMETERS
MODE (General)
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628 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
10 No simultaneous Input and If the measured initial and final inventories indicate
Output that the tank is filling up, then the outlet stream is set
OFF, and vice versa.
The measured initial and final inventories that are
checked are:
1. MASS1 and MASS2
2. DMASS
3. VOL1 and VOL2
4. LEVEL1 and LEVEL2
5. LVLFRA1 and LVLFRA2
VOLMODE (General)
0 None Volumes are not taken into account, only masses are
considered
The density and volume variables are taken into account, assuming that the tank is at 15°C. The
densities used by the unit must be linked to the streams densities by setting the unit comment to
either COLDDENS (density calculated from composition) or CONVDENS (density based on
conventional density as measured on the stream).
COMPMODE (General)
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 629
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2 Composition is variable (outlet Composition is variable over the time window. The
= final) composition of the outlet stream is assumed to be
equal to the composition of the tank at the end of the
time window.
3 Composition is variable (outlet Composition is variable over the time window. The
is free) composition of the outlet stream is not assumed to be
equal to the final composition at the end of the time
window. The user has to specify the final
composition or the outlet composition to calculate
the balance.
The Composition page allows keeping track of the initial and final composition of the tank. This page
is only used when COMPMODE = 2:
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630 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
NTABLE (General)
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 631
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MODECURV (General)
OPTMODE (General)
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632 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
0 Level used as variable The tank level will be defined as a variable and linked
to the tank volume or mass by interpolation into the
strapping table all along the calculation
(reconciliation) phase
1 Volume/Mass used as variable The measured tank level will be converted into a
measured volume or mass before the calculation
(reconciliation) phase. This measured volume or
mass will be used for the calculation and converted
back into a reconciled level after the reconciliation
phase. This approach tends to be more stable as it
avoids possible discontinuity in the derivatives of
the tank volume or mass versus the level because of
the interpolation process. You need to create the
corresponding volume of mass tag and set it OFF
before using this mode
INITDENS (General)
1 Based on product code When based on product codes, the LL and HH filter
bounds on density tags will set on product default
values (set by the PRODUCT syntax in measurement
files)
IMBMODE (General)
DMASS (Parameters)
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 633
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
DTIME (Parameters)
DTIME = t2 - t1
WIMBAL (Parameters)
VIMBAL (Parameters)
These parameters are the computed imbalances on the tank. They will always be zero when the
parameter IMBMODE is set to zero (No Imbalance).
MASS1,2 (Others)
VOL1,2 (Others)
DENS1,2 (Others)
LEVEL1,2 (Others)
LVLFRA1,2 (Others)
When the volume mode is activated, all inventory variables (masses, volumes and densities) can be
measured.
The level variables are only used when a strapping table is defined (NTABLE = 1 ). Depending on the
way you define the strapping table, the level will be measured as a height (LEVEL)or as a percentage
(LVLFRA).
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634 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
PURPOSE
This type of UNIT allows to consider the energy balance of a turbine.
Information on the isentropic (or polytropic) efficiency and the mechanical power can also be
considered as measurements. Moreover a Stodola coefficient can be defined (or measured) to link the
flow rate through the turbine to the driving pressure drop.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
INLET STREAMS
1 material
OUTLET STREAMS
1 material
1 mechanical
THERMOD
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 635
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
UNIT PARAMETERS
MODE (General)
0 All equations Mass and energy balances are taken into account. The
isentropic efficiency equation is generated as well
1 Mass Balance only Only mass balances are taken into account
2 Mass and Energy Balance Mass and energy balances are taken into account
MODESTOD (General)
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636 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
1 Classical Equation
where:
EXP=2:
The Stodola equation links the pressure drop around the turbine to the flow rate.
MODEDP (General)
EFFIC (Parameters)
POLYEFFI (Parameters)
When negative, this parameter is ignored. When positive, an additional equation is generated to
calculate the polytropic efficiency.
Attention: the formulation of the polytropic efficiency assumes that the mixture behaves like an
ideal gas.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 637
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
STODOLA (Parameters)
DP (Parameters)
DP = Pin- Pout
where:
PRATIO (Parameters)
There is 1 UNIT:
TUR
type=TURVAL
MODE='All equations'
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638 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 639
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PURPOSE
A unit of type VARVAL gives access to 9 user defined variables which can be used in a Flex code or in
an OPXVAL unit.
The values of these variables are available in the parameters VAR1...9 of the unit and can be
measured. These parameters are dimensionless.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
No connections are allowed on a VARVAL.
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640 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
PURPOSE
This type of UNIT is used to account for heat losses through external walls of a vessel. The losses are
estimated on basis of the external or internal wall temperature. In the latter case, the wall thermal
resistance must be provided. In both cases, the wall temperatures will be validated.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
INLET STREAMS
1 thermal stream
RHD Parame te rs Input The rmal re sistance of Horizontal wall, facing down
TWHUEX Parame te rs Me asurable Horizontal wall (facing up) e xte rnal te mpe rature
TWHDEX Parame te rs Me asurable Horizontal wall (facing down) e xte rnal te mpe rature
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 641
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
UNIT PARAMETERS
MODE (General)
TAMB (Parameters)
This is the ambient temperature to be used for the heat loss calculation.
AVERT (Parameters)
AHU (Parameters)
AHD (Parameters)
These parameters respectively represent the vertical, horizontal facing up and horizontal facing
down areas considered in order to calculate the heat loss.
RVERT (Parameters)
RHU (Parameters)
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642 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
RHD (Parameters)
These parameters represent the thermal resistance associated to each area and only have to be
provided if the heat loss is calculated from the internal wall temperature.
TWVEX (Parameters)
TWHUEX (Parameters)
TWHDEX (Parameters)
These parameters are displayed for information and represent the external wall temperature.
TWV (Parameters)
TWHD (Parameters)
TWHU (Parameters)
These parameters are either the external or the internal wall temperatures. In the latter case
parameters TW.xxEX and Rxx are used.
This example deals with the heat loss of a vertical pipe. This heat loss is estimated from the external
wall temperature, so that the thermal resistance does not have to be provided.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 643
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PIPE
type=EEXVAL
WALL
type=WALVAL
IN STEAM to PIPE
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644 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 645
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PURPOSE
The WLEVAL unit models water decanting from an organic solution.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
INLET STREAMS
Maximum number:
Material: 8
Thermal: 2
OUTLET STREAMS
Maximum number:
Thermal: 2
THERMODS
Attention:
1. The state of the outlet material streams can also be LV, LLV and WLV provided that there is more
than one component in the stream.
2. Water is assumed to be pure and to be the heavy liquid stream and is therefore going through the
lower outlet stream. The solubility of water in the organic phase is based on the solubility in
kerosene.
3. Solids that would be present in the inlet streams will always end up in the organic phase.
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646 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
UNIT PARAMETERS
MODE (General)
1 Mass Balance only Only the mass balances are taken into account
2 Mass and Energy Balance Mass and energy balances are taken into account
3 Mass and W/L equilibrium Mass and water-liquid equilibrium relationships are
taken into account
Attention:
1. The outlet streams are always set at the same pressure and temperature except in Mode 1 (Mass
balance only).
XWAT1
XWAT0
EXP
T
MODEDP (General)
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 647
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
FLASH (General)
REFDP (Parameters)
0 All inlets All inlet streams are set at the same pressure
DP (Parameters)
DP = Pref- Pout
where:
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648 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
PURPOSE
This type of UNIT handles mass balances, energy balance and water-liquid-vapor equilibrium
relationships of a 3 phase separator with decantation of water as one of the liquid phases.
SYMBOLS
CONNECTION RULES
INLET STREAMS
Maximum number:
Material: 6
Thermal: 2
OUTLET STREAMS
Maximum number:
Material:
1 stream of state V
Thermal: 2
THERMODS
Attention:
1. The state of the outlet material streams can also be LV, LLV and WLV provided that there is more
than one component in the stream.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 649
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
2. It is essential to initialize the composition of the outlet streams before attempting to activate the
L/L/V equations. Failure to do so can induce convergence problems or lead to a trivial solution
where all outlet streams have the same compositions. The initialization can be performed
manually or automatically via the parameter FLASH.
3. Water is assumed to be pure and to be the heavy liquid stream and is therefore going through the
lower outlet stream. The solubility of water in the organic phase is based on the solubility in
kerosene.
4. No assumption is made about the destination of solids that would be present in the inlet streams.
Composition measurements (or information coming from the downstream balances) should
define whether solids are going with the liquid (organic) or vapor phase.
UNIT PARAMETERS
MODE (General)
1 Mass Balance only Only the mass balances are taken into account
2 Mass and Energy Balance Mass and energy balances are taken into account
Attention:
1. The outlet streams are always set at the same pressure and temperature except in Mode 1 (Mass
balance only).
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650 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 6
2. If the partial flow rate of some of the compounds is detected as being equal to zero in one of the
Streams, the related equilibrium relationship is not considered.
MODEDP (General)
FLASH (General)
REFDP (Parameters)
0 All inlets All inlet streams are set at the same pressure
DP (Parameters)
DP = Pref- Pout
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 651
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
where:
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652 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
CHAPTER 7
FLEX LANGUAGE
DESCRIPTION VII
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 7
SECTION 1: INTRODUCTION
1.1 WHAT YOU CAN DO WITH FLEX
Flex is a programming language, which allows users to define and obtain the computation of
mathematical expressions. In a VALI application, Flex programs can be used:
Using Flex language, you can access values of streams and units and perform various calculations.
Thermodynamic routines can be used to calculate various thermodynamic properties and perform
physical equilibrium compositions. You can define your own subroutines and refer them from
different units.
any units representing an equipment, for adding filtering operations, constraints and
reports
units of type FLXVAL for adding filte ring ope rations, calculating value s of the parame te rs of the
unit (var1, var2, e tc) which can the n be me asure d by cre ating a tag on the m, and ge ne rating
re ports
The section about the UNITS indicates how to access the Flex program.
The section dealing with "FLXVAL" describes how to use such units and gives a practical example.
This chapter describes the general syntax of the language Flex as well as the specific functions
available in the VALI implementation of Flex.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 655
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
interpreted at runtime, each time the program is executed during a run of a model
interpreted at runtime during the verification phase and executed each time the program
is executed during a run
The latter mode is quicker and is used by default. The first mode is only kept for compatibility reason
and can be reactivated using the parameter FLEXMODE of unit OPTVAL.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 7
The length of a Flex line is limited to 510 characters, while words and instructions are limited to 32
characters.
A line is made with a variable number of characters. It may contain one or more instructions,
separated by a ";". Instructions may not be split over different lines.
The exclamation mark "!" means the beginning of a comment, then carrying on up to the end of the
line. A "!" in a line forces (means) the end of the preceding instruction.
letters : capital and lower-case, which are differentiated only in printed text.
UPPER-CASE :A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
lower-case :a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z
numbers :0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
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separators
constants
variables
operators
keywords
3.1 SEPARATORS
The BLANK (spaces). You may have more than one space as a separator between two elements of
code. Blank is significant in character string constants (i.e. in string 'Results table').
The SEMICOLON is used to separate instructions written on the same line. An instruction may not
be split between lines.
The COMMA is used to separate elements of a function arguments list, or the elements of a printing
list (WRITE instruction).
The BRACKETS surround a function arguments list or a table index. The brackets also permit
changes in the order of calculation of complex relations.
The EXCLAMATION MARK means that the end of the line is a comment.
The EQUALS SIGN (=) or COLON (:) is used for the affectation instruction. It separates the name of
the target variable and the result to be stored.
X=3 ; X:3;
Both instructions store 3 in X .
3.2 CONSTANTS
Constants can be numerical values, elements for reference to an object (NAME), or character strings.
FLEX recognizes and represents numerical constants, as in the programming language FORTRAN:
optional sign, integer, decimal point, decimal, "E" symbol to define exponent to 10 and
integer exponent which may be preceded by a sign and have a range from -35 and up to
+35
integer, or decimal part is optional. When the decimal part is omitted, the decimal point
could then be omitted. Exponent is optional
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 7
Character strings may only be in the FLEX program if they are constant. They consist in an arbitrary
number of characters between two apostrophes. Therefore, the apostrophe is the only character,
which cannot be in a string of characters.
Constants of the NAME type are strings with 1 to 32 characters, without any spaces.
Re al_basi = [+ | -] Re al_not_signe d
c
3.3 VARIABLES
A variable is identified by its name, which is a string of 32 characters maximum (letters or numbers).
The first character must be alphabetic, but the code is not case-sensitive: capitals and lower-cases are
not distinguished in names.
real (REAL)
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inte ge r (INTEGER)
The type of variable and its potential index are notified to FLEX by non-executable declaration
instructions.
These instructions are made up with a keyword defining the type of variable (INTEGER, REAL or
NAME), followed by a list of variable names to be assigned.
Every variable not explicitly declared is supposed to be a real scalar variable and is created when
first used.
The initial values of numerical variables are zero and as far as character strings and variables of type
NAME are concerned, it is ' '.
Variables created (explicitly or implicitly) in a function are eliminated after the execution of that
function.
XXX(N) declares an array. XXX can be any name, N will be the size of array XXX
Example:
REAL VAP(3),LIQ(3),T,P
To declare integer variables, following syntax can be used:
INTEGER XXX(N), YYY
where:
XXX(N) declares an array. XXX can be any name, N will be the size of array XXX
Example:
INTEGER INDEX(3),LISTE(3),S1,K3(3*2-4)
To declare string variables, following syntax can be used:
NAME XXX(N), YYY
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 7
where:
XXX(N) declares an array. XXX can be any name, N will be the size of array XXX
Example:
NAME NAMES(3),ANAME
Operators define basic operations that can be made with variables and constants. Expressions are
made up of one or more operator applied on variables, constants or expressions:
logical operators:
| or .OR.: logical OR
= or .EQ.: equal
numerical operators:
+: addition
-: subtraction
*: multiplication
/: division
^ or **: power
numerical functions:
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EXP(X): exponential
functions calls
power (^)
logical OR (|)
The use of brackets allows users to modify the evaluation order, as the contents of inner brackets are
evaluated before the others. In any expression, the number of open brackets must be equal to the
number of closed ones.
Examples:
1
A+3
(-B+sqrt(B**2-4*A*C))/2/A
a=b&c>D.or.x(5)>=b^2-4*A*C
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 7
Expressions equal to zero are interpreted as FALSE logical expressions, else, TRUE.
FLEX uses some reserved keywords that cannot be used to name variables. These keywords are used
to build executable instructions and declarations.
REAL
INTEGER
NAME
FUNCTION
READ
WRITE
TAB
EDIT
CALL
RETURN
END
WHILE
ENDWHILE
UNTIL
ENDUNTIL
IF
THEN
ELSEIF
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ELSE
ENDIF
internal functions:
OPENIN
OPENOUT
DEBUG
TSTFUN
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 7
FLEX executes instructions sequentially, but it is possible to pack the instruction into blocks with a
control instruction. These instructions also allow you to control the sequence by using logical tests.
4.1 AFFECTATION
Stores the result of expression computation in a variable. FLEX is able to compute complex
expressions, syntax and priority in computation, which has already been discussed.
Examples:
A=2
B(2*j+5)=3*(A-6*C/B(3)+SQRT(D-4))
4.2 READ
Reads the value of a variable in a file or with a request on screen; in this case, a message with the
name of the variable to set is printed on screen. It is also possible to define a file to enter that value
with the use of OPENIN function.
Examples:
READ A
READ B(2*j-5)
4.3 WRITE
Prints the value of a variable or expression in a file or on screen. The destination of a write
instruction could be changed with the OPENOUT function. All the values of the same WRITE
instruction are printed on the same line if possible. The defaults for FLEX are the elimination of
redundant zeros of numerical values and the introduction of a space after each value. Each WRITE
instruction is followed by a jump to the next line, except if the list is ended by a colon (:).
TAB and EDIT keywords are used to modify the presentation of results.
TAB(Expression) prints the next variable in the column corresponding to the value of that expression.
EDIT(format), followed by an expression to be printed, prints the value of the expression with the
FORTRAN FORMAT, without elimination of the redundant zeros by FLEX.
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A=2.5
WRITE A 2.5
WRITE 2*A 5
WRITE A :
{INSTRUCTIONS}
ENDWHILE
If the logical expression test is TRUE, the instructions contained in the WHILE and ENDWHILE
keywords are executed and restarted "while" the condition is TRUE.
If the logical expression test is FALSE, go to the next instruction following ENDWHILE.
{INSTRUCTIONS}
ENDUNTIL
Flex EXECUTES the instructions ONCE until the ENDUNTIL keyword; then it estimates the logical
expression.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 7
If the result is TRUE, it goes to the instruction which follows the ENDUNTIL keyword.
If the result is FALSE, it returns to the first instruction of the UNTIL block.
4.6 IF BLOCK
if it is TRUE, then it executes the instructions preceding the next ELSEIF, ELSE or ENDIF
and then proceeds to the next instruction following the corresponding ENDIF keyword
if the logical expression is FALSE, it looks for an ELSEIF statement with a true logical
expression to proceed in the same way
if no IF or ELSEIF statement with a true logical function is encountered, FLEX then looks
for the ELSE instruction and executes the instructions until the ENDIF keyword is found
if no ELSE instruction is found, FLEX continues until the next ENDIF instruction is reached
Please note that instructions following keywords THEN or ELSE have to be separated by a semicolon
or to be written on the next line, i.e.:
IF A>0 THEN;RES='positive';ELSEIF A=0 THEN
RES='null';ELSE;RES='negative';ENDIF
4.7 END
Ends the execution of a function and returns to the next instruction of the calling function.
4.8 RETURN
Ends the execution of a function and returns to the next instruction of the calling function.
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Simple _in = Affe ctation | Re ad_inst | Write _inst | Call_inst | Re turn_inst | End_inst
str
Inde x = Arith_e xp
Format = any list of FORTRAN format acce ptable to tre at the "Arith_e xp"
Re turn_in = RETURN
st
End_inst = END
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668 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
application dependant functions: VALI, SIMU or other FLEX compatible programs give
access to a number of specific functions. These functions are discussed in a separate section
user defined functions: you can define your own functions and reuse them in different
places
CALLING A FUNCTION
These three types of functions are called using the same syntax:
CALL A_FUNCTION (ARGUMENTS)
If the name of the function is recognised, FLEX computes the parameters (which might be constants,
scalar variables, parts of arrays, or expressions), the number of these arguments is checked, and their
type has to be in agreement with those used in the function called.
After the execution of the function, the program continues with the next instruction within the
calling module.
Examples:
CALL TSTFUN(A)
CALL OPENIN('MYFILE')
CALL REPORT(3,A(8), 3*B-4,EXP(1.5))
ARGUMENTS
Arguments are transferred to the function either by address or by value.
If the argument is a variable or an element of an array, then the address of the argument is
transferred to the function. If the function modifies the argument contents, then theses changes will
be reflected in the variable of array element after the call of the routine.
If the argument is an expression, then FLEX creates temporary variables to store the results of the
expressions. In such a case if the called function changes the value of an argument, the result will not
be retrieved by the calling program.
In the following example, where TEST is a function affecting a value of 3 to its argument, it shows
that:
CALL TEST(A)
WRITE A :
A=5
CALL TEST(-A)
WRITE A
END
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FUNCTION TEST(X)
X=3
END
Printed result: 3 5
The variable A is modified during the first call. In the second call, whose argument is -A : an
expression, thus FLEX creates a temporary variable to store the value -5 and use it as a parameter.
This temporary variable is modified by the function, but A is not modified.
If the argument is between 1 and 2, FLEX prints each instruction before execution.
If it is bigger than 2, a complete trace, with coding of the expressions in inverse polish notation, is
printed.
Example:
CALL DEBUG(1)
5.2.2 TSTFUN
This function allows to test a function.
Example:
CALL TSTFUN(A)
5.2.3 OPENIN
This function allows to open a file from which data can be read.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 7
reading
In the following READ instructions, the values will be read in that file.
To reset the read target to the screen, call OPENIN with numerical argument equal to zero.
Example:
CALL OPENIN('MYFILE.DAT')
...
CALL OPENIN(0)
5.2.4 OPENOUT
This function allows to open a file to which data can be written.
CALL OPENOUT(FILE_NAME)
Uses a character string as its argument, in order to define the name of the file to print all WRITE
instructions.
To reset the written target to the screen, call OPENOUT with a numerical argument equal to zero.
Example:
CALL OPENOUT('REPORT.LIS')
...
CALL OPENOUT(0)
5.2.5 CONCAT
This function allows to concatenate two strings.
5.2.6 NAMEISEQUAL
This function allows to compare two strings.
TEXT1 and TEXT2 are the input strings you want to compare; RESULT is the output, it is a real. Its
value will be 1 if the strings are equal and 0 otherwise.
RESULT can then be used as a condition in a block: a RESULT of 1 will be evaluated as "true", and a
result of 0 will be evaluated as "false".
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Example:
...
CALL NAMEISEQUAL(TEXT1, TEXT1, RESULT)
IF (RESULT) THEN
WRITE 'these strings are equal'
ELSE
WRITE 'these strings are not equal'
ENDIF
5.2.7 FLXDLL
This function allows the user to call user-defined subroutines in a FLEX code.
To use it, the user can replace the dynamic linked library flx.dll with his own library; the dll must
contain the following subroutine:
SUBROUTINE(VARIN,VAROUT,PARAM,NUM,NIN,NOUT,NPAR)
It is then possible to call the subroutine in a FLEX code by using the command:
CALL FLXDLL(VARIN,VAROUT,PARAM,NUM,NIN,NOUT,NPAR)
where,
VARIN: input, double precision array, dimension (NIN); The array of input variables for
the user-defined subroutine
VAROUT: output, double precision array, dimension (NOUT); The array of output
variables for the user-defined subroutine
PARAM: input, double precision array, dimension (NPAR); An array of parameters used
by the user-defined subroutine
NUM: An input integer; it can be used to allow the user to select the subroutine used
between several (eg, with NUM=1, FLXDLL will compute the numerical derivative of the
input array, and with NUM=2, it will compute the FFT of the input array)
In VALI, only functions can be defined (up to 9 functions generating equations per unit), each function
defining the residual of one equation.
These functions can call other functions defined by the user. These user-defined functions can appear
in the Flex code page of any unit where a Flex code can be defined. They can be called from any other
Flex code of the same model, when the compiled Flex option is activated, which is the case by default.
If not, only functions defined in the same Flex code unit can be used. It is recommended to code user-
defined functions in a Flexlib unit, so that the functions are available anywhere in the model.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 7
When defining the functions calculating the residuals in VALI (FLXVAL units), the function name
must respectively be EQ1, EQ2, etc. In that case, no argument is used
The type of arguments cannot de defined in the user-defined function but will instead take the type
and dimension previously declared in the calling routine.
The function also inherits the entire environment defined in the calling routine. For example,
routines used to get values from streams (GETVAR, GETALL, etc) can refer to the streams by their
name or by their number. A positive (negative) number will correspond to an inlet (outlet) stream of
the calling module.
This makes the writing of generic user-defined functions quite easy, ensuring maximum reusability
of the code.
Return to the calling routine will be initiated by the RETURN command or when encountering the
END of the function.
Example:
! Calling the function POLYNOM to calculate fx = 0.1 + 0.3 x - 0.5 x2
!
CALL POLYNOM (0.1, 0.3, -0.5, 0.1, fx)
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674 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 7
FILTERING
In the filtering phase, you can define specific actions to deactivate parts of a model or flex equations,
or to change the measured value or precision of any measurement.
The corresponding Flex code can be defined on any unit and must follow the following syntax.
The specific functions available for the filtering are described in the paragraph FLEX SUBROUTINES
USED IN FILTERING below.
FUNCTION FILTER
…your filtering code …
END
PFDNAM: name of the PFD where the unit is located (type NAME)
Example:
FUNCTION EQi ! This the header for the first equation
! Declaration
REAL ...
! Selection of thermodynamic methods
CALL SELECT('Astream')
! Selection of variables
CALL GETALL(...)
CALL GETVAR(...)
CALL GETUVA(...)
CALL GTVARTAG(...)
CALL GTTAGVAL( )
! Calculations
...
RES = ...
END
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Attention: By default, if one of the units or streams referred by you flex code is OFF, then the
equation is not generated at all. However, if you use the function GTSTATUS, the equation is not
suppressed. It is then your responsibility to check each unit or stream that can be OFF. Indeed,
calling any function related to an object which is OFF will generate a fatal error.
REPORT PHASE
You can also use FLEX in report phase to design your own reports. The syntax is:
FUNCTION REPORT
…your reporting code …
END
Flex language can be used to define your own type of measurements on streams. The definition is
carried out in two steps:
coding the Flex function describing how the measured property is to be calculated
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 7
click twice the OK button (once in the Define New Model Measurement and once in the
Configuration window)
a message window is then displayed mentioning that you must now close the model file
and re-open it.
The result must be stored in the pre-defined variable RESUSR. The name of the stream on which the
measurement is defined us available in the pre-defined string variable STRNAM.
Example:
FUNCTION H_N
!================================
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I: number of the stream (positive for inlet stream, negative for outlet stream)
Examples:
CALL GETALL('FM','ALL')
! 'FM' is the STREAM inlet name, and must be placed between quotes
! 'ALL': to initialize STRPAR and RATESPAR arrays
For material streams, STRPAR and RATESPAR have the following structure:
STRPAR array:
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 7
Attention:
1. Only state variables are initialised. For material streams, state variables are usually: T, P,
RateFrac. For material streams involving a single compound and of LV, WLV or LLV, the state
variables are H, p, RateFrac. For these latter streams, the variable T can however be accessed by
using the GETVAR function. For non-material streams, state variables are the stream variables
that appear in an equation.
RATESPAR ARRAY: contains the partial flow rates of the STREAM (the others elements of
the array are set to zero) in the following form:
Attention: The array may be used as an argument for EQPHYS and PROPTY by giving RATESPAR
(3) as an argument.
7.3.2 GETVAR
This function retrieves values associated with a STREAM.
I: number of the stream (positive for inlet stream, negative for outlet stream)
'STREAM' or 'S': copies the state variables of the STREAM into the MYVAR array. For a
material STREAM:
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'RATES' or 'R': copies the partial molar flow rates of the stream in the MYVAR array.
Its size must be at least the same as the number of components. The MYVAR array
may be used as an argument for the EQPHYS and PROPTY functions.
state variable of material stream (xxx = P for pressure, VAPF for the vapour
fraction, T for the temperature, H for the enthalpy, MASSF for mass flow rate, MOLF
for molar flow rate)
any variable of the stream, provided a tag is defined on this variables (e.g.
COLDVOLF, COLDDENS, etc.)
Examples:
CALL GETVAR('FM','H',MYVAR(2))
!'FM' is the Stream Name.
!'H': reserved keyword for a material stream enthalpy.
!MYVAR(2): result array named MYVAR, cell 2.
CALL GETVAR(-3,'S',MYVAR)
CALL GETALL(-3,'STREAM',MYVAR)
!'to copy the Stream State variables (of the third outlet stream) in MYVAR array.
CALL GETVAR('FM','R',MYVAR)
CALL GETALL('FM','RATES',MYVAR)
!to copy the partial molar flow rates in MYVAR array.
CALL GETVAR('FM','WATER',MYVAR(1))
!'WATER' to copy the partial flow rate of Compound named WATER in MYVAR(1).
CALL GETVAR('FM','MFWATER',MYVAR(1))
!'WATER' to copy the molar fraction of Compound named WATER in MYVAR(1), assuming such a tag has been d
7.3.3 GETUVA
This function retrieves values associated with a UNIT.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 7
Attention: Only measurable variables of a unit can be accessed through GETUVA. This means that
referring to unit parameters such as a MODE type parameter or an Input parameter will not work
correctly.
Example
CALL GETUVA('SPLIT','DP', dp_split)
!'SPLIT' is the UNIT Name.
!'DP': reserved keyword for pressure drop of the unit.
!dp_split is the local variable
7.3.4 GTVARTAG
This function retrieves the validated value associated with a TAG. This is the actual variable
associated with the TAG and its value will change between iterations until convergence.
Example:
CALL GTVARTAG('TI-001',TI)
!'TI-001'' is the TAG Name
!TI: result variable
7.3.5 GTTAGVAL
This function retrieves the requested value associated with a TAG. This value does not change
between iterations.
MEA.VAL: the used value, i.e. value after filtering, compensation and CUTOFF
MEA.ACC: the used accuracy, i.e. accuracy after filtering, compensation and CUTOFF
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DEF.VAL: the default value, i.e. value entered manually in the model
DEF.ACC: the default accuracy, i.e. accuracy entered manually in the model
RAW.VAL: the raw measured value, i.e. value coming from measurement file. If no value
in mea file, the default value
RAW.ACC: the raw measured accuracy, i.e. accuracy coming from measurement file. If
no accuracy in mea file, the default accuracy
USED.VAL: the used value, i.e. value after filtering, compensation and CUTOFF. Same as
MEA.VAL
USED.ACC: the used accuracy, i.e. accuracy after filtering, compensation and CUTOFF.
Same as MEA.ACC
IS.BAD: 1 if tag value is BAD in measurement file, 0 otherwise. Refer to Bad data
handling for more information
IS.FLAT1: 1 if tag is FLAT1, 0 otherwise. Refer to Flat data detection for more
information
IS.FLAT2: 1 if tag is FLAT2, 0 otherwise. Refer to Flat data detection for more
information
Example:
CALL GTTAGVAL('TI-001','MEA.VAL',TI_MEAS)
!'TI-001'' is the TAG Name,
!'MEA.VAL' selects the measured value
!TI_MEAS: result variable.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 7
7.3.6 CONVER
This function converts a value from a physical unit to another.
7.3.7 ENTRY
This function returns the name of the object stored in location NUM of the dictionary of the model file.
7.3.8 GTSTATUS
This function returns the status of a given object (UNIT or STREAM): If the object is ON, the local
variable STAT will be set to 1, otherwise it will be set to 0.
'TYPE': the type of object ('U' for UNIT, 'S' for STREAM)
This function is particularly useful to adapt the formulation of equations depending on the state of
some UNIT or STREAM. If you don't use the GTSTATUS function, then the equation will not be
generated if any of the objects referred by your code is OFF. This default behaviour can be
deactivated by calling the function NOSTACHK.
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7.3.9 GETINFO
This function returns the content of any of the INFOi (i=1...9).
Attention: INFOi strings are 80 characters long while NAME variables are only 32 characters long.
Only the 32 first characters will be returned by GETINFO.
7.3.10 PUTINFO
This function sets the content of any of the INFOi (i=1...9).
MYVAR: variable that contains the text to set (type NAME). A string can be directly
provided
7.3.11 NOSTACHK
This function deactivates the automatic removal of Flex equations which are referencing a unit or
stream which is OFF.
7.3.12 REMOVEEQ
This function removes the current equation, and can only be used for debugging. This is useful
when some equations are linked to a stream or unit which has been set OFF for some reason.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 7
7.3.13 LOCATE
2 functions are available to access internal data of an external model file.
Attention: these functions must be manipulated with great care. We recommend that only highly
experienced VALI users work with those.
LOCATE1:
This function extracts a scalar value described by 4 input parameters from an external model file and
modifies the dictionary of the model file, so that the memory address points to the extracted value.
'STRUCTUR' or 'S': the list of values ; this keyword can only be used with numerical
values of input parameter 'NAME'.
Note: Using the keyword 'STRUCTUR' with the function LOCATE1 has not a lot of
sense, because the function only returns a scalar value (see example below). This
keyword will be useful with the second function.
'TYPE': the type of object ('U' for UNIT, 'S' for STREAM, 'R' for RATES or 'C' for
COMPOUND)
'NAME': either the name of the parameter (i.e. 'T' for Temperature, 'P' for Pressure, 'H'
for Enthalpy,...), or a number corresponding to the index of the parameter in the section of
the model file defined by the 'INFO', 'TYPE' and 'ID' parameters.
Examples:
CALL LOCATE1(TEMP,'D','S','STREAM.1','T')
TEMP=300
In this example, the LOCATE1 function will not only extract the value of the Temperature parameter
of the Stream called "STREAM.1" from a model file, but it will also point to the memory address of the
extracted value. As a result, you can replace the Temperature value in the model file using the second
command.
CALL LOCATE1(TEMP,'D','S','STREAM.1',2)
In this example the LOCATE1 function will return the value of the second parameter of the Stream
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called "STREAM.1" (which is the Pressure for a Material Stream for example), together with its
memory address.
CALL LOCATE1(TEMP,'S','S','STREAM.1',2)
This command is exactly the same than the previous one. In this example the LOCATE1 function will
return the second parameter of the list of values of the Stream called "STREAM.1" (which is the
Pressure for a Material Stream for example), together with its memory address.
LOCATEN:
This function extracts a vector of values described by 3 input parameters from an external model file
and modifies the dictionary of the model file, so that the memory address points to the extracted
vector.
'STRUCTUR' or 'S': the list of values ; this keyword can only be used with numerical
values of input parameter 'NAME'.
Attention: When using this keyword, the vector returned by the function LOCATEN has
a predefined structure depending on the type of object selected with input parameter
'TYPE' (see details below)
'TYPE': the type of object ('U' for UNIT, 'S' for STREAM, 'R' for RATES or 'C' for
COMPOUND)
Example:
REAL Struct(60)
CALL LOCATEN(Struct,'S','U',UniNam)
NFI = Struct(1)
CALL ENTRY(Struct(10+1),StrName)
CALL GETVAR(StrName,'T',t1)
CALL ENTRY(Struct(NFI+10+1),StrName)
CALL GETVAR(StrName,'T',t2)
When using the LOCATEN function, it is mandatory to declare the output parameter as a vector
first. Here, we initialize Struct as a vector of real numbers of length 60.
We use the LOCATEN function to extract the vector of parameters of the UNIT which name is stored
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 7
in the keyword UniNam , together with their memory address. We define the variable NFI as the first
element of the vector Struc , which is the number of inlet streams when using LOCATEN with inputs
'INFO'='S' and 'TYPE'='U'.
We use the ENTRY function to retrieve the name (StrName is the output of the function) of the 10+1
element of the vector Struct, which is the first inlet stream when using LOCATEN with inputs
'INFO'='S' and 'TYPE'='U'. Then, we use the GETVAR function to retrieve the Temperature of
this stream.
Finally, we use the ENTRY function to retrieve the name (StrName is the output of the function) of the
NFI+10+1 element of the vector Struct, which will be the first outlet stream when using LOCATEN
with inputs 'INFO'='S' and 'TYPE'='U'. Then, we use the GETVAR function to retrieve the
Temperature of this stream.
Content of the vector returned by the LOCATEN function when using the keyword 'STRUCTUR' or
'S' as 'INFO' input, depending on the 'TYPE' of object:
Notes:
When the ">" symbol appears in the table below, it means that the vector's cell contains
the specified value AND its memory address. Otherwise, it just contains the value.
For the UNIT vector, the 14th index doesn't always correspond to the number of Reactions,
it depends on the number of streams connected to the UNIT. For example, if the UNIT has 2
inlets streams and 3 outlets, indexes 11 to 15 will correspond to the streams, and index 16
will be the number of Reactions.
2 Nb of outle t - - -
stre ams
4 - - - DATA Rcd
6 > DATA format > DATA format > DATA format Nb Rcd Form
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
11 > Stre am1 TEXT Rcd > The rmod Ind CHKTHR
19 - - TEXT Rcd -
I: number of the stream (positive for inlet stream, negative for outlet stream)
The following FLEX variables and arrays are initialized when using the SELECT function:
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 7
Example:
CALL SELECT('AFLX-3') ! loads stream AFLX-3 as the reference stream.
7.4.2 EQPHYS
This function computes phase equilibrium. It is necessary to select a reference stream (with the
SELECT function) previously.
VEC2: array with partial molar flow rates of each compound. This array may be initialise d
with a call to GETALL or to GETVAR
VAP: array with a size of at least the number of compounds of the STREAM, including the
partial molar flow rates of the vapour phase after computation (kmol/s)
LIQ: array with a size of at least the number of compounds of the STREAM, including the
partial molar flow rates of the (first) liquid phase after computation (kmol/s)
SOL: array with a size of at least the number of compounds of the STREAM, including the
partial molar flow rates of the solid phase after computation (kmol/s)
LIQ2: array with a size of at least the number of compounds of the STREAM, including the
partial molar flow rates of the (second) liquid phase after computation (kmol/s)
'TYPE': a reserved KEYWORD that defines the type of equilibrium (flash) to perform:
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EPTA: Extension of EPT with vapour ratio given as an argument but only used in the
saturation zone of a single component stream, where T and P do not uniquely define
the stream state
The number of phases to be taken into account for the equilibrium computation is set with the
variable STTYPE, initialised by SELECT from the type defined for the stream in the model file.
It is possible to change it to compute other flash types: V, L, S, LV, LL, LLV, WL, WLV.
Attention:
1. It is mandatory to give initial values to variables used with the flash type defined; others can be
given as initial values.
2. The STRPAR array created by the GETALL (or GETVAR) subroutine has the same structure and
may be used as the first argument for EQPHYS.
7.4.3 PROPTY
This function computes physical and thermodynamic properties. It is necessary to select a reference
stream (with the SELECT function) previously.
where:
'FUNCTION' : one of the reserved keywords that defines the requested computation:
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 7
T: temperature (K)
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P: pressure (bar)
VEC1: array with partial molar flow rates of compounds (kmol/s). When calculating
properties for a given phase of a multiphase flow, the array VEC1 must contain the rates of
the corresponding phase. These rates can be calculated using the EQPHYS function
MYVAR: variable to store the result (type REAL). It is an array with a size of at least the
number of compounds when requesting for function of composition or fugacity.
The following functions are only available in the filtering phase. They cannot be used in the
calculation or report phase.
7.5.1 SETOFF
This routine sets an object (UNIT or STREAM) to OFF.
'TYPE': the type of object ('UNIT' or 'U' for a unit, 'STREAM' or 'S' for a STREAM)
7.5.2 SETAGVAL
This function changes values linked to a tag. The tag will be considered as filtered.
MEA.ACC: the measured accuracy (a negative value can be used, indicating relative
uncertainty)
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 7
AREF, BREF, CREF: the compensation parameters Aref, Bref and Cref
7.5.3 PUTAGVAL
This routine works similarly as the SETAGVAL routine but the tag will not be considered as filtered.
MEA.ACC: the measured accuracy (a negative value can be used, indicating relative
uncertainty)
AREF, BREF, CREF: the compensation parameters Aref, Bref and Cref
7.5.4 SETNOEQ
This routine removes the corresponding equation from the Flex code associated to a FLXVAL units.
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Example:
FUNCTION FILTER
CALL GTTAGVAL('TI-001','MEA.VAL',T1)
IF ( T1 < 283 ) THEN
CALL SETOFF('E-1','UNIT')
CALL SETNOEQ('FLX-1','EQ1')
ELSE
T2=T1+10
CALL SETAGVAL('TI-004','MEA.VAL',T2)
CALL SETAGVAL('TI-004','MEA.ACC',5)
ENDIF
END.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 7
There are two ways to use FLEX program. It can be used interpreted or compiled. The choice has to
be made in the OPTVAL module. If compiled is chosen it still possible to use interpreted FLEX. For
that, the comment !NOCOMPILE has to be included just under the instruction FUNCTION
identifying the kinetic. The compiled FLEX is faster than the interpreted one.
Before the execution of the FLEX program, some variables (like temperature, pressure and
composition) are created and initialised. They allow data exchange between the reactor resolution
module and the FLEX program that will evaluate the kinetic. The reactions are first calculated using
the kinetic parameters defined with the reaction. The FLEX code is then executed, giving the chance
to the user to change some or all the reaction velocities.
The following variables are automatically created and are available as input for the calculations:
The following variables are automatically created and can be overwritten by the Flex code:
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CHAPTER 8
SIMULATION
UNITS VIII
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
PURPOSE
This is an approximate calculation method for a distillation column based on the Fenske, Underwood
and Gilliland equations. This model can be used in simulation or in design mode.
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UNIT PARAMETERS
1 Simulation mode .
2 De sign by the e quations of Fe nske , Unde rwood and Gilliland, fe e d plate chose n by the Fe nske
e quation.
3 De sign by the e quations of Fe nske , Unde rwood and Gilliland, fe e d plate chose n by the Kirbride
e quation.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
These parameters are displayed in the Others page. They indicate the fractions of the key compounds
that are recovered in the distillat.
The reflux ratio is defined as the ratio between the reflux and the distillate molar flow rates.
This is the ratio between the actual and the minimum reflux ratio
The number of theoretical is used as input in simulation mode. It will be calculated in the design
modes
The feed plate number is used as input in simulation mode. It will be calculated in the design modes
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PURPOSE
The CTL010 unit is a controller involving one controlled variable and one manipulated variable.
These variables must be defined as Tags. For the controlled variable, the measured value of the Tag
will be used as set points.
For control loops involving several variables, you should use units of type CTL020 or OPT070.
Please note that, as any other convergence unit, the CTL010 unit should be the last unit of the
sequence defined by a Simulation PFD.
TEST Input Threshold value between relative and absolute precision tests on
variables
DFMAX Input Maximum ratio of the functions at two points for the secant method
DF0 Input Ratio used when the function ratio at two points is higher than DFMAX
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
Notebook. The list of existing Tags is shown in the Tags Defined list. You can use the Mask field to
limit the number of tags displayed in this list. A simple control loops involves two variables:
the controlled variable , for which a se t-point is spe cifie d via the Tag associate d to the variable . The
following type s of Tags are supporte d:
Mate rial Stre ams T, P, VAPF, MIXF, H, MOLF, MASSF, VOLF, Partial Flowrate s, MF, WF, MG,
WG
the manipulated variable which will be tune d in such a way that the controlle d variable re ache s the give n
se t-point. The me asure d value associate d to the TAG de fining the manipulate d variable is not use d, but its
safe ty bounds (SL and SH) will be use d as lowe r and uppe r bounds. The following type s of Tags are
supporte d:
Mate rial Stre ams T, P, VAPF, MIXF, H, MOLF, MASSF, Partial Flowrate s
Note: Some of the unit parameters can be either input (given) or output (result) depending on their
MODE of operation.
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UNIT PARAMETERS
When the manipulated variable belongs to a material stream, the parameter FLASH indicates how to
reinitialise the stream:
1 Stre am state is base d on its pre ssure and te mpe rature (EPT)
2 Stre am state is base d on its pre ssure and vapour fraction (EPA)
3 Stre am state is base d on its te mpe rature and vapour fraction (ETA)
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
If ITMAX > 0 the n ITMAX is the maximum numbe r of ite rations : The simulation is stoppe d if
conve rge nce is not achie ve d within ITMAX ite rations.
If ITMAX < 0 The simulation proce e ds e ithe r at conve rge nce , or afte r |ITMAX| ite rations.
TEST Input Threshold value between relative and absolute precision tests on
variables
DFMAX Input Maximum ratio of the functions at two points for the secant method
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DF0 Input Ratio used when the function ratio at two points is higher than DFMAX
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706 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
PURPOSE
The CTL020 unit is a controller involving up to five controlled variables and the same number of
manipulated variable. These variables must be defined as Tags. For the controlled variables, the
measured values of the Tag will be used as set points.
For single variable control loops, you should use units of type CTL010.
Please note that, as any other convergence unit, the CTL020 unit should be the last unit of the
sequence defined by a Simulation PFD.
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
the controlled variable , for which a se t-point is spe cifie d via the Tag associate d to the variable . The
following type s of Tags are supporte d:
Mate rial Stre ams T, P, VAPF, MIXF, H, MOLF, MASSF, VOLF, Partial Flowrate s, MF, WF, MG,
WG
the manipulated variable which will be tune d in such a way that the controlle d variable re ache s the give n
se t-point. The me asure d value associate d to the TAG de fining the manipulate d variable is not use d, but its
safe ty bounds (SL and SH) will be use d as lowe r and uppe r bounds. The following type s of Tags are
supporte d:
Mate rial Stre ams T, P, VAPF, MIXF, H, MOLF, MASSF, Partial Flowrate s
Note: Some of the unit parameters can be either input (given) or output (result) depending on their
MODE of operation.
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708 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
UNIT PARAMETERS
ITMAX > 0 The simulation is stoppe d if conve rge nce is not achie ve d within ITMAX ite rations.
ITMAX < 0 The simulation proce e ds e ithe r at conve rge nce , or afte r |ITMAX| ite rations.
Specifies the number of variables actually controlled. If more tags are defined in the Control Tags
page, they will be ignored.
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
If DX0i < 0 |DX0i| is the fraction by which the variable will be varie d for calculating the de rivative
If DX0i > 0 |DX0i| is the value by which the variable will be varie d for calculating the de rivative
When the manipulated variable belongs to a material stream, the parameter FLASHi indicates how
to reinitialise the stream:
1 Stre am state is base d on its pre ssure and te mpe rature (EPT)
2 Stre am state is base d on its pre ssure and vapour fraction (EPA)
3 Stre am state is base d on its te mpe rature and vapour fraction (ETA)
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
PURPOSE
Utily that handles the cuts for OPT070 convergence promoter.
The CUT010 UNIT must be the last UNIT in a Simulation PFD. This simulation PFD must be a sub-
PFD of the PFD containing the OPT070 optimiser unit.
Corresponding inlet and outlet streams must be of the same type. In addition, corresponding
material streams must use the same Thermod.
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UNIT PARAMETERS
5 The partial molar flow rate s and the molar e nthalpy are torn.
6 The partial molar flow rate s and the te mpe rature are torn.
8 LOAD
9 POWER
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
PURPOSE
FUR010 calculates the heat and mass balances of a burner. Optionally a stream can be heated up by
the fumes. Various modes are available to determine the air flow rate.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 713
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
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714 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
UNIT PARAMETERS
For MODEXC = 1..4, the flow rate of the Air inlet stream will be calculated.
BURNER MODES
MODECAL = 0 The fue l and air compositions, the ir te mpe rature s and the fue l flowrate s are give n.
The adiabatic te mpe rature and the composition of the fume s are calculate d
according to the spe cifie d Air Flowrate Calculation Mode .
The fue l and air composition, and the fue l flow rate are give n.
The composition of the fume s is calculate d according to the spe cifie d Air Flowrate
Calculation Mode .
FURNACE MODES
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MODECAL = 1 The fue l and air compositions, and the ir te mpe rature s are give n. The flowrate of the
stre am to be he ate d is also give n along with its inle t and outle t te mpe rature s. The
fume s outle t te mpe rature is spe cifie d.
The fume s composition and fue l flowrate , are calculate d according to the spe cifie d
Air Flowrate Calculation Mode .
MODECAL = 2 The fue l and air compositions, and the ir te mpe rature s are give n. The flowrate of the
stre am to be he ate d is also give n along with its inle t te mpe rature and its outle t
vapour fraction. The fume s outle t te mpe rature is spe cifie d.
The fume s composition and fue l flowrate are calculate d according to the spe cifie d
Air Flowrate Calculation Mode .
The SETPOINT is used for controlling the air flow rate, according to the Air Flow Rate Calculation
Mode defined by the MODEXC parameter. When MODEXC = 0, the air flowrate is given in the air
Stream.
Fluid outlet vapour fraction (MODCAL=2), the state corresponds to the bubble point or dew point
respectively if ALFOUT is equal to 0 or 1.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
PURPOSE
Calculates the energy balance and the heat transfer of a heat exchanger using a global HA factor:
LOAD = HA.DTLM
Where: DTLM is the logarithmic average temperature difference between the two streams.
There are two inlet streams and two outlet streams. The temperatures, pressures and compositions
of both inlets are known. Various design and simulation modes are available. In simulation mode,
the heat transfer coefficient and the pressure drops can be made linked to the flow rates.
Corresponding inlet and outlet streams must use the same Thermod
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UNIT PARAMETERS
In design modes, the Heat Transfer Factor HA is calculated in order to match various set-points:
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
In simulation mode, the Heat Transfer Factor HA is calculated on basis of the following formula:
1 1 1 1
In all cases, except MODE=0 (true simulation), the flow rate of the second stream will be adjusted in
order to match various conditions on the first or second outlet stream state.
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In design mode, this parameter is adjusted to get the required stream outlet conditions.
In simulation mode, this parameter is calculated on basis of the various thermal resistances.
These parameters are used in all modes to calculate the pressure drop on each side, according to the
following rules:
If DP_i = 0 the oule t stre am pre ssure is e qual to the inle t pre ssure
These parameters are used in the simulation modes to calculate the heat transfer factor.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
Depending on the calculation MODE, these parameters will be used to specify the required conditions
for the outlet streams.
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PURPOSE
The HTX040 UNIT simulates a heat exchanger where fumes going through the heating flue are
heating a gas or a liquid flowing through tubes (co-current or counter current flow exchanger).
Vaporisation can be performed in the tubes. These can either be smooth or finned tubes.
Corresponding inlet and outlet streams must use the same Thermod.
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722 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
UNIT PARAMETERS
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The number of tube passes is equal to 1 if the tubes are independent. When the tubes go through
different layers through connections between layers, then the number of tube passes will then be
equal to the number of connections + 1.
Attention:
1. The number of inlet tubes in the exchanger = NTUBES / NTUBPASS
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724 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
These parameters allow tuning the correlations so as to match the actual operation of the equipment.
If a negative value is entered, then the default value 1.0 will be used.
The number of layers must always be such that the ratio NLAYER/NTUBPASS is an integer value.
Relative precision required at convergence between the actual exchange surface and the calculated
surface.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 725
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PURPOSE
The HTX050 UNIT is a furnace simulation model used to heat up a gas.
The necessary air flowrate is calculated according to the calculation mode for the excess air
(MODEXC).
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
(1) : Air fe e d.
(2) : Fue l.
(1) : Fume s
The THERMOD associated with the fumes must be made up of all the Compounds which are present
in the air as well as in the fuel.
The THERMOD associated to the nth inlet STREAM must be identical to the one associated to the (n-1)
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
th outlet STREAM.
UNIT PARAMETERS
if MODECAL = 2
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
if MODECAL = 2
The heat exchange occurs by radiation and depends on the furnace type which is expressed by the
GEOMFACT parameter defined by the equation :
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Pre s. Drop - Re fe re nce pre ssure drop for input stre am (i+2).
DPi<0 -
Mass Flow - Re fe re nce mass flowrate for pre ssure drop (kg/s).
If DMASSi < 0 - first value of mass flowrate will be save d as re fe re nce value for ne xt
simulation.
Spe cif. Mass - Re fe re nce spe cific mass (kg/m3) for Pouti.
If DROi < 0 - the first value of spe cific mass will be save d as re fe re nce value for
the ne xt simulation.
Wall Te mp. - Tube wall te mpe rature for input STREAM i+2.
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730 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
PURPOSE
The HTX060 UNIT is simulation model for a boiler with an associated drum.
The fuel is liquid or gaseous and its combustion, as defined in the chemical reactions, is complete. The
necessary air flowrate is calculated according to the calculation mode of the excess of air (MODEXC).
The vapour fraction at the outlet of the vaporiser loop or the circulation flow rate in the vaporiser
loop is a simulation parameter to be set. The heat transfer is calculated on basis of radiation between
the fumes and the tubes.
Inle t STREAMS 1 Air Fe e d: mate rial stre am bringing the oxyge n (any state )
3 Fe e d Wate r to be vaporise d
The THERMOD associated with the fumes must, at least, contain all compounds that are present in
the air as well as in the fuel.
The water feed stream, the saturated vapour stream and the purge must use the same THERMOD
and this THERMOD must contain only one compound.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 731
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
UNIT PARAMETERS
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732 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
Note: The total exchange surface AREA is equal to PI * DEXT * LENGTH * NTUBES.
If CIRCFLOW <= 0, or if it is too low, the flow rate in the vaporiser loop is calculated in order to
match the specified outlet vapour fraction (ALF).
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 733
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
The SETPOINT is used for controlling the air flow rate, according to the air flow calculation mode
defined by the MODEXC parameter.
Fraction of the feed water flow rate which is extracted through the purge outlet stream.
This parameter is a correction factor of the heat transfer coefficients inside the tubes.
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734 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
PURPOSE
The HTX070 is a rigorous simulation model of a shell and tubes heat-exchanger device used in
vaporiser, condenser or traditional heat exchange mode. The exchanger is basically a counter-current
exchanger with possibly several tube passes and/or baffles. The heated fluid can either go through
the tubes or through the shell.
When a shift phase does occur, the exchanger is divided up into 4 sections (a section being defined as
a zone without phase change) and is calculated section after section. The heat load in each zone is
calculated as:
Q = Ui.Ai.F.DTLMi
1/Ui = FF + 1/(CFH.Uci)
Uci Cle an he at transfe r coe fficie nt as compute d from corre lations (kW/(K.m²))
F Factor of de viation from counte r-flow rate , according to the numbe r of passe s
at the tube s and she ll.
DTLMi Log Me an Te mpe rature Diffe re nce for the conside re d se ction.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 735
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
Inle t STREAMS 1 Material stream (any state) circulating through the shell
The corresponding inlet and outlet streams must use the same Thermod.
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736 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
UNIT PARAMETERS
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 737
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
DISPHV = 0 horizontal
DISPHV = 1 ve rtical.
BAFLAYOU = 11 One horizontal baffle with ve rtically cut se gme ntal baffle s.
BAFLAYOU = 12 One horizontal baffle with horizontally cut se gme ntal baffle s.
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738 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
1/Ui = FF + 1/(CFH.Uci)
Uci he at transfe r coe fficie nt for cle an e xchange r compute d from corre lations (kW/
(K.m²)).
The fouling factor enables you to account for the presence of adhering film or scale onto the surfaces.
This value may be negative.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 739
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PURPOSE
Calculates the energy balance on one side of a heat exchanger where a stream is heated up or cooled
down. Different calculation modes are available. The temperature and composition of the inlet
stream is always known.
Outle t STREAMS 1 mate rial stre am of any state , but using the same The rmod as the inle t stre am.
In addition one thermal stream can be connected to the unit either as inlet or outlet stream. If the
stream is connected as inlet (or outlet) stream, but heat is produced (or used), the thermal stream
load will be negative. If no thermal stream is connected, then the heat load will be zero.
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740 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
UNIT PARAMETERS
Depending on the MODE, these parameters will be used to fix the state of the outlet stream.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 741
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
If DP = 0 the outle t stre am pre ssure is e qual to the inle t pre ssure
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742 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
PURPOSE
The HTX100 allows modifying the state of the outlet stream, either by setting directly a combination
of its temperature, pressure or vapour fraction or by specifying a state variation (pressure drop or
enthalpy change) between the inlet and the outlet stream.
Outle t STREAMS 1 mate rial stre am of any state , but using the same The rmod as the inle t stre am.
In addition one thermal or mechanical stream can be connected to the unit either as inlet or outlet
stream. If the stream is connected as inlet (or outlet) stream, but heat or energy is produced (or used),
the thermal or mechanical stream load or power will be negative.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 743
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
UNIT PARAMETERS
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744 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
When MODE=1,4,7,9, the parameter ALFOUT is also used for single compound stream, as the
temperature and pressure dot not explicitly define its state in the liquid/vapour region.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 745
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PURPOSE
The INCREM unit enables to calculate several times in a row a given PFD, while incrementing some
variables (maximum 10) at each iteration. This is particularly useful to make a parametric
sensitivity analysis on a model. If more than 10 variables must be modified or for non standard
incrementation strategies, you can use a FLEX program associated to the INCREM unit (or any other
unit).
As other convergence units, the INCREM unit must be the last unit of the PFD.
The unit INCREM is usually combined with a REPORT unit that prints some key values in a separate
file (1 line per iteration) for subsequent printing or plotting.
If no unit of type REPORT is used, you can follow the results at each iteration by browsing the trace
file (r3s). The amount of information printed in this trace file varies with the value of the KPRINT
parameter of the different units included in the PFD.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
746 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
Mate rial Stre ams: T, P, VAPF, MIXF, H, MOLF, MASSF, Partial Flowrate s
The measured value of the Tags will be used for incrementing the corresponding variables at each
iteration.
Note: Some of the unit parameters can be either input (given) or output (result) depending on their
MODE of operation
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 747
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
UNIT PARAMETERS
1 : + (addition) at e ach ite ration the se le cte d variable s will be incre ase d by a give n value
2 : * (multiplication) at e ach ite ration the se le cte d variable s will be multiplie d by a give n value
The parameter ITMAX determines how many times the PFD will be executed.
The parameter NVAR determines the number of variables that are incremented at each iteration.
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748 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
When the manipulated variable belongs to a material stream, the parameter FLASHi indicates how
to reinitialise the stream:
1 Stre am state is base d on its pre ssure and te mpe rature (EPT)
2 Stre am state is base d on its pre ssure and vapour fraction (EPA)
3 Stre am state is base d on its te mpe rature and vapour fraction (ETA)
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 749
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PURPOSE
Promotes the convergence of the torn variables of STREAMS using the WEGSTEIN method.
Estimated values for the torn variables are provided in the outlet STREAMS according to the
situation. The process is then calculated to generate process answers which are available in the inlet
STREAMS.
The MAT010 UNIT compares the starting values and the results and checks that convergence has
been obtained. If convergence is not obtained, new values for the unknowns are proposed and the
process calculation is then resumed. This process is repeated until convergence is achieved.
The MAT010 UNIT must be the last UNIT in a simulation sequence (SEQUEN UNIT).
Type MAT.
Type MAT.
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750 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
UNIT PARAMETERS
5 The partial molar flow rate s and the molar e nthalpy are torn.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 751
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
The simulation is halted if convergence is not achieved within the ITMAX number of iterations.
The simulation proceeds either at convergence, or after the ITMAX number of iterations has been
reached.
Convergence indicator.
Application frequency of the WEGSTEIN algorithm. Successive (relaxed) substitution is applied for
other iterations.
Relaxation factor :
Angular coefficient.
If the angular coefficient of the WEGSTEIN segment lies between ANG1 and 1, it is set to ANG1 in
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752 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
Angular coefficient.
If the angular coefficient of WEGSTEIN segment lies between 1 and ANG2, it is set to ANG2 in order
to avoid abnormal extrapolation.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 753
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PURPOSE
This UNIT performs simultaneous convergence promotion, on a maximum of 10 STREAMS.
Total (they concern molar enthalpy, pressure and partial molar flow rates),
OR
The mathematical algorithm is based on the BROYDEN method, which takes into account the
interactions in the systems of non-linear equation systems.
As this UNIT is a convergence promotion UNIT, it must be the last in a group of UNITs gathered into
a SEQUEN type UNIT.
Prior to starting the simulation, outlet STREAMS and MIXDATs must provide a feasible
approximation of the solution.
WARNING
The NDIM's (number of torn variables) first iterations are used to calculate the Jacobian matrix by
altering the variables one after the other.
Type MAT.
Type MAT.
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754 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
UNIT PARAMETERS
MODE = 1 - If te ars are total (e nthalpy, pre ssure and flow rate s). An ise nthalpic
calculation is pe rforme d with the ne w value s of the variable s.
Partial molar flow rates, temperatures and pressures, lower and upper bounds.
If T maximum <= 0, the de fault value of T Min + 500 K is take n by the program.
If P minimum <= 0, the de fault value of 1.D-02 bar is take n by the program.
If P maximum <= 0, the de fault value of P Min + 100 bar is take n by the program.
The simulation is halted if convergence is not achieved within the ITMAX number of iterations.
The simulation proceeds either at convergence, or after the ITMAX number of iterations has been
reached.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 755
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
Convergence indicator.
DELTA Input Value used at first call to calculate the research direction
Newton if it is high,
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
756 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
PURPOSE
The MEC010 unit is a simulation model of a gas compressor, based on a given isentropic efficiency.
Various calculation modes are available (specified outlet pressure, compression ratio or power). The
stream flow rate can also be adjusted to match a given outlet pressure and compressor power.
2 Me chanical stre am
Outle t STREAM 1 Mate rial stre am (Liquid/vapour state ) using the same The rmod as the
mate rial inle t stre am
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 757
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
UNIT PARAMETERS
The inlet stream composition, pressure and temperature are always known, as well the compressor
isentropic efficiency.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
758 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
PURPOSE
The MEC030 unit is a simulation model of a turbine, based on a given isentropic efficiency. Various
calculation modes are available (specified outlet pressure, expansion ratio or power). The stream
flow rate can also be adjusted to match a given outlet pressure and expansion power.
Outle t STREAM 1 Material stream (Liquid/vapour state) using the same Thermod
as the material inlet stream
2 Mechanical stream
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 759
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
UNIT PARAMETERS
The inlet stream composition, pressure and temperature are always known, as well the compressor
isentropic efficiency.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
760 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
PURPOSE
The MEC050 unit is a simulation model of a pump, taking into account its volumetric efficiency. The
pump can be calculated for a given outlet pressure or a given pressure increase.
2 Me chanical stre am
Outle t STREAM 1 Mate rial stre am (any state involving a Liquid phase) using the
same The rmod as the mate rial inle t stre am
UNIT PARAMETERS
The outle t te mpe rature and the pump powe r are calculate d.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 761
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
762 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
PURPOSE
UNIT MEC110 simulates a gas compressor with a constant rotation speed.
1. The characteristic curve for isentropic efficiency, as a function of the flowrate factor.
2. The characteristic curve for isentropic head, as a function of the flowrate factor.
The flowrate factor is an undimensional parameter function of the inlet volumetric flowrate.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 763
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
State : V or LV.
Type MAT.
State : V or LV.
Associate d THERMOD First Inle t and outle t STREAMS must have the same THERMOD.
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764 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
UNIT PARAMETERS
The Organic Efficiency is the correction factor for the Isentropic Efficiency used to adjust the
calculated outlet temperature.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 765
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
In compressors, there is a minimum capacity at every speed, below which operation is unstable. This
instability (called pumping or surge) is to be avoided if possible:
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766 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
g
HEADCOEFFICIENT His*
U2
DN
U
60 N : rpm D : m
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 767
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PURPOSE
Simulates a gas compressor on the basis of the following knowledge :
its outlet conditions at the nominal point i.e. the point where the compressor works at its
maximum efficiency that is with the minimum losses.
The characteristic curves are converted to curves defined by the variables of the polytropic efficiency
and the pressure factor as a function of the flowrate factor.
PHI = Q/N
PSY = Hp/N2
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768 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
Furthermore, the polytropic efficiency must satisfy the gas-power requirement equation given by :
So for each point of the power - discharge pressure characteristic curves, a polytropic head and
polytropic efficiency must be calculated that will result in the discharge pressure and power
requirements shown on the curves.
TOPOLOGY
UNIT PARAMETERS
This polytropic efficiency field cannot be accessed since its value is being computed from the given
PHI and the coefficient values on the simulation mode. Only the physical unit field can be accessed for
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 769
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
The ETAPI and PSY coefficients are given in the MEC130 UNIT as well as the mechanical losses (if
any) and the rotation speed on the nominal point. The outlet pressure and temperature, the required
power and polytropic efficiency are calculated. The rotation speed of the actual conditions should
also be given in the mechanical stream of the compressor.
Attention: If there are large variations in the inlet conditions of the compressor, the accuracy of the
developed efficiency curve may deteriorate substantially due to the volume ratio effects (for
multiple compression).
In order to check the validity of the curve for the new conditions a variable Q (TETA) is calculated
where :
Q = _B_bc_((_F( µ ; k ))_S_up9(0.5)
for referenced and new inlet conditions, µ being the molecular weight of the gas stream (kg/kmol). If
the value of Q for the new conditions is within 5 % of its value for the old or reference conditions the
efficiency curve developed by this procedure is likely to be valid for the new conditions. So, the
efficiency curve has the advantage over the characteristic curves of the compressor, in that it can be
used for gas streams with different molecular weight.
The coefficients are identified by a PID010 UNIT containing ONLY the MEC130 UNIT.
The outlet pressure and the compressor's power in the MECSTRM should be given.
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770 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
Col. 1(blank) Variable for which the coe fficie nts are to be e nte re d. It contains two variable s :
A-E The value s of the corre sponding coe fficie nts are to be e nte re d.
This table is only take n into conside ration for the simulation mode (MODE = 1).
ETAPI ADJUSTMENT
This value represents an adjustment coefficient for the calculated polytropic efficiency.
PSY ADJUSTMENT
This value represents an adjustment coefficient for the calculated variable PSY.
LIMIT CONDITIONS
Limit working conditions are needed in order to define the limit line and surge line of the
characteristic curves.
Two sets of values are needed to define each line. They are optional, but if given a verification of the
compressor being within function boundaries is permitted in simulation mode.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 771
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
POWER (PWRNOM)
RPM (RPMNOM)
These values are not necessary except for the mechanical losses and the rotation speed at the nominal
point that are needed for the calculation of the mechanical losses at the given conditions. Also, if a
value for TETA is given, the program will perform a test on the validity of the curves for the inlet
conditions.
MODE = 2 The first 5 values i.e. the highlighted ones are needed and the rest calculated.
CALCULATION INDICATIONS
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772 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
PURPOSE
This unit is obsolete. Use unit HTX110 instead.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 773
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PURPOSE
Calculates the mass and energy balances of a mixer. The outlet stream pressure will be the minimum
of the inlet streams pressure.
Different calculation modes are available: straight forward mixing of the inlet streams or control of
some inlet flow rates to reach a required flow rate and/or temperature of the outlet stream.
Associate d THERMODs The The rmod of the outle t stre am must contain all compounds that actually
appe ar in any of the inle t stre ams.
UNIT PARAMETERS
The temperature and the composition of every inlet streams are known. Different calculation modes
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
774 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
can be selected:
2 Mass balance only. In this case the state of the outle t stre am is le ft unchange d.
3 The flow rate of the se cond inle t stre am is calculate d to obtain the te mpe rature spe cifie d in the
outle t stre am data.
4 The flow rate of the se cond inle t stre am is calculate d to obtain the flow rate spe cifie d in the outle t
stre am data.
5 The flow rate s of both inle t stre ams are calculate d to obtain the te mpe rature and flow rate
spe cifie d in the outle t stre am data.
When the set-points given in the outlet streams can not be met (Mode =3, 4 and 5), the simulation is
stopped.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 775
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PURPOSE
Calculates the heat load or the mechanical power of one of the connected STREAMS so that the energy
balance is verified.
UNIT PARAMETERS
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776 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
PURPOSE
UNIT PERMEA is a model for a device separating gas across a membrane. Two modes are available:
Counter-Current and Cross Plug Flow.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 777
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
DPB Measurable Pressure drop (BP side) (not used in Cross Plug Flow)
UNIT PARAMETERS
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778 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
1: Counte r-curre nt
TYPE = 1: 10*n+k
Whe re : k = impre ssion coe fficie nt (0 to 5) : controls the amount of information printe d in the trace
file
n = orde r numbe r of the compound for which an e volution profile is wante d in re te ntate
and pe rme ate stre ams. The total molar flowrate is also printe d.
TYPE = 2: If KPRINT is gre ate r than 0 the n the compounds molar flowrate , total molar flowrate and
pre ssure profile s are printe d.
Only if ITYPE = 1
0: Simulation : Inle t flowrate s and pe rme ance s are known. Outle ts are calculate d.
N: Re gulation : The "fe e d_in" stre am flowrate is adjuste d to obtain an impose d molar
fraction for the Nth compound in the re te ntate . (Re te ntate
composition must be initialise d).
-N : Re gulation : The "fe e d_in" stre am flowrate is adjuste d to obtain an impose d molar
fraction for the Nth compound in the pe rme ate . (Pe rme ate
composition must be initialise d).
100 : Adjustme nt : Pe rme ance s are calculate d to obtain flowrate and compositions fixe d
in re te ntate .
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 779
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
DPB Measurable Pressure drop (BP side) (not used in Cross Plug Flow)
-1 : kmol/s/m²/bar
-2 : Nm³/h/m²/bar
Membrane permeance for the different compounds (unit defined by UNIT parameter). These
parameters must always be initialised even if MODE = 100.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
780 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
PURPOSE
Optimises a user defined objective function subject to equality and non-equality constraints while
solving recycle convergence loops at the same time.
As any convergence unit, this Unit must be the last one in the sequence defined by a simulation PFD.
Only one unit of type OPT070 should be active in the simulated PFD and its sub-PFDs.
The objective function will be defined through a flex program pointing to the parameter FOBJ of the
unit.
The variables to be optimised are selected by the tags listed in the manipulated tags window. The
Safety lower and upper bounds defined on these tags will be taken into account. Up to 100 variables
can be handled.
In addition to the recycle constraints defined by the units CUT010 defined in the sub-PFDs,
additional constraints can be defined by tags pointing to variables that must be equal to (equality
constraints) or greater than (inequality constraints) the measured value of the tags. These tags must
be listed in the controlled tag table displayed in the Control Tags page.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 781
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
UNIT PARAMETERS
1: Shortcut
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
782 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
3: as 2 + the list of variable s and constraints is printe d at e ach major ite ration
If ITMAX < 0 The simulation proceeds either at convergence, or after |ITMAX| iterations.
The first NEQ tags defined in the controlled tags table will be considered as equality constraints. At
convergence the variables pointed by these tags will be equal to the value specified on the Tags.
The next NINEQ tags defined in the controlled tags table will be considered as inequality constraints.
At convergence the variables pointed by these tags will be greater than or equal to the value
specified on the Tags.
The first NVAR tags defined in the manipulated tags table will indicate the variables on which the
optimiser will act to minimise its objective function while satisfying the specified constraints. The
Safety bounds defined on these tags will be taken into account as the maximum range of values for
the variables.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 783
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
1: Automatic scaling
Depending on the problem, an appropriate scaling of the objective function, of the constraints and of
the optimised variables might be necessary. A dedicated scaling parameter exists for the objective
function (SCALOBJ). For the variables and the constraints, the scaling factor can be entered via
measurement files using the syntax.
The scaling factors should be set in such way that the range of values obtained by multiplying the
variables and constrained values by one is about 1.
Estimation of the maximum noise present in the residuals and the objective function.
The value of the objective function (to be minimized) is usually defined by a Flex code attached to the
unit.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
784 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
PURPOSE
The RCT010 is a general-purpose reactor model where the outlet stream composition is calculated on
basis of a combination of equilibrated reactions and fixed conversion reactions. A mode is also
available where a White equilibrium is calculated (no reaction scheme specified). In each case, a
distance from equilibrium can be considered, through a Delta T parameter. When equilibrated
reactions are used, the reactor effluent MUST be gaseous.
Outle t STREAMS 1 mate rial stre am of any state , but using the same The rmod as the inle t stre am.
In addition one thermal stream must be connected to the unit either as inlet or outlet stream. If the
stream is connected as inlet (or outlet) stream, but heat is produced (or used), the thermal stream
load will be negative.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 785
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
UNIT PARAMETERS
The outle t stre am state and the the rmal stre am are le ft unchange d.
The outle t te mpe rature of the re actor is give n (parame te r TOUT) and the he at to be re move d or to
be supplie d is calculate d toge the r with the outle t composition.
The he at to be re move d or to be supplie d is give n and the outle t te mpe rature is calculate d toge the r
with the outle t composition
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
786 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
The KPs of the che mical re actions are calculate d from the compounds data. The che mical
compounds involve d in the se re actions must be gase ous and a de viation from the e quilibrium may
be conside re d for e ach re action.
The fre e e ne rgy of the outle t gas, calculate d on basis of compounds data, is minimise d by the
WHITE me thod. This me thod can only be use d with gase ous che mical compounds. A unique
te mpe rature de viation from the e quilibrium may be conside re d
Calculated heat load. A positive value corresponds to heat supplied to the reactor.
For White Method only (if METH=2): temperature deviation from equilibrium. The equilibrium is
calculated at the following temperature: TOUT + GLOBDTEQ
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 787
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
REFFLOW = 0 Pout = Pin - DPREF and REFFLOW is se t to the curre nt mass flow rate (ide ntification
mode )
For each reaction (see Reactions page of the unit notebook), you specify the TYPEi of calculation:
Conversion the parame te r CONVERi se ts the conve rsion of the compound indicate d by CORDERi
Equilibrium the re action is calculate d at che mical e quilibrium for the te mpe rature TOUT + DTEQi
Attention:
1. The equilibrated reactions must appear (and will be calculated) together after all reactions
calculated at a given extent or conversion.
2. The reactions at given conversions or extents are calculated successively. For example,
specifying 50% conversion on a given compound for the second reaction means that 50% of the
remaining amount of this compound, after calculation of the first reaction will be converted in the
second reaction.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
788 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
4. For equilibrated reactions, the corresponding EXTENTi parameter will be calculated and
reused as starting point in the subsequent calculations
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 789
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PURPOSE
The RCT110 is a NH3 synthesis reactor, with four catalytic beds and inter bed quenches.
The feed of the first bed is preheated in a feed/effluent exchanger, which is integrated in the RCT110.
Temperature control is achieved by a by-pass of the exchanger on the feed side.
The reaction is defined internally and uses the following kinetic equation:
PN2, PH2, PNH3 are the partial pre ssure of the re spe ctive compounds (bar)
Both streams must refer to the same Thermod, which in addition must use N2, H2 and NH3 as the
three first compounds.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
790 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
FRACi Measurable Fraction of inlet flow rate going to bed i (see Others page)
UNIT PARAMETERS
Overall heat transfer factor of the feed/effluent exchanger. The heat transfer is calculated as
Q = HA . DTLN
The by-pass on the feed/effluent exchanger will be controlled so as to reach the set temperature.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 791
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
FRACi Measurable Fraction of inlet flow rate going to bed i (see Others page)
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
792 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
PURPOSE
The RCT140 is a model simulating a furnace where the fluid flowing through the tubes undergoes
chemical reactions.
When equilibrated equations are used, the reactor outlet must be gaseous.
The fuel can be either a gaseous or liquid substance. Combustion is considered to be complete and the
necessary air flow rate can be calculated according to the air excess or the percentage of O2 or CO2 in
the fumes.
The heat exchange occurs by radiation. The heat transfer coefficient and the pressure drop inside the
tubes is calculated through internal correlations.
The unit can be calculated for a given fuel flow rate or for a given reactor effluent temperature.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 793
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
3 Re actor Fe e d
2 Re actor Efflue nt (LV state ), using the same The rmod as the Re actor
fe e d
The Thermod used by the Fumes streams must contain at least all the components that are present in
the air and the fuel feed streams.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
794 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
UNIT PARAMETERS
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 795
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
For MODEXC = 1..4, the flow rate of the Air inlet stream will be calculated.
The te mpe rature re actor outle t stre am is calculate d from the he at balance
The fue l flow rate is calculate d in orde r to ge t the spe cifie d re actor outle t te mpe rature
The KPs of the che mical re actions are calculate d from the compounds data. The che mical
compounds involve d in the se re actions must be gase ous and a de viation from the e quilibrium may
be conside re d for e ach re action.
The fre e e ne rgy of the outle t gas, calculate d on basis of compounds data, is minimise d by the
WHITE me thod. This me thod can only be use d with gase ous che mical compounds. A unique
te mpe rature de viation from the e quilibrium may be conside re d
The corresponding first reactions are used to describe the combustion. Complete combustion is
always assumed.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
796 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
For White Method only (if METH=2): temperature deviation from equilibrium. The equilibrium is
calculated at the following temperature: TOUT + GLOBDTEQ
The SETPOINT is used for controlling the air flow rate, according to the air flow calculation mode
defined by the MODEXC parameter.
This multiplying factor can be used to tune the pressure drop correlation equation to actual plant
conditions. If CFPD <= 0, no correction is applied
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 797
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
This multiplying factor can be used to tune the heat transfer correlation equation to actual plant
conditions. If CFPD <= 0, no correction is applied.
The corresponding fraction of the furnace heat load is a considered as heat losses and put in the
optional thermal outlet stream when present.
For each reaction (see Reactions page of the unit notebook), you specify the TYPEi of calculation:
Combustion use d for the first NRC re actions. For the se re actions the othe r parame te rs are not
use d
Conversion the parame te r CONVERi se ts the conve rsion of the compound indicate d by
CORDERi
Equilibrium the re action is calculate d at che mical e quilibrium for the te mpe rature TOUT + DTEQi
Attention:
1. The equilibrated reactions must appear (and will be calculated) together after all reactions
calculated at a given extent or conversion.
2. The reactions at given conversions or extents are calculated successively. For example,
specifying 50% conversion on a given compound for the second reaction means that 50% of the
remaining amount of this compound, after calculation of the first reaction will be converted in the
second reaction.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
798 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
4. For equilibrated reactions, the corresponding EXTENTi parameter will be calculated and
reused as starting point in the subsequent calculations.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 799
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PURPOSE
Calculates the outlet composition, taking into account specifications such as :
the user can give his own values for chemical equilibrium ratio and
Specifications are optional depending on the user's choice. By default, all the reactions are considered
at chemical equilibrium.
As a principle, all reactions are fluid phase reactions (liquid or vapour). However, it may be possible
to consider reactions involving solids, if we have the right value for the GIBBS' free energy of
formation (for the pure solid at 25 C and 1 atm). It may also be possible to consider reactions in a LV
phase reactor provided ALL reactions are fixed conversion reactions. If the WHITE method is used to
solve the problem, reactions MUST be in the vapour phase without solids.
RCT010 and RCT201 units are similar, but differs on several aspects for the reactions at equilibrium:
RCT010 only supports vapour phase, while RCT020 supports both full vapour and full liquid
phases.
RCT010 allows to set a different temperature deviation for each reaction while RCT201 only allows
a global temperature deviation from equilibrium.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
800 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
In addition one thermal stream can be connected to the unit either as inlet or outlet stream. If the
stream is connected as inlet (or outlet) stream, but heat is produced (or used), the thermal stream
load will be negative.
UNIT PARAMETERS
The outle t stre am state and the the rmal stre am are le ft unchange d.
The outle t te mpe rature of the re actor is give n (parame te r TOUT) and the he at to be re move d or to
be supplie d is calculate d toge the r with the outle t composition.
The he at to be re move d or to be supplie d is give n and the outle t te mpe rature is calculate d toge the r
with the outle t composition
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 801
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
The KPs of the che mical re actions are calculate d from the compounds data. The che mical
compounds involve d in the se re actions must be gase ous and a de viation from the e quilibrium may
be conside re d for e ach re action.
The fre e e ne rgy of the outle t gas, calculate d on basis of compounds data, is minimise d by the
WHITE me thod. This me thod can only be use d with gase ous che mical compounds. A unique
te mpe rature de viation from the e quilibrium may be conside re d
Calculated heat load. A positive value corresponds to heat supplied to the reactor.
Temperature deviation from equilibrium. The equilibrium is calculated at the following temperature:
TOUT + GLOBDTEQ
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
802 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
REFFLOW = 0 Pout = Pin - DPREF and REFFLOW is se t to the curre nt mass flow rate (ide ntification
mode )
For each reaction (see Reactions page of the unit notebook), you specify the TYPEi of calculation:
Conversion the parame te r CONVERi se ts the conve rsion of the compound indicate d by
CORDERi
Equilibrium the re action is calculate d at che mical e quilibrium for the te mpe rature TOUT + DTEQ,
the KPs of the re cations be ing calculate d from the compounds data
Kp the re action is calculate d at che mical e quilibrium for the te mpe rature TOUT + DTEQ,
the KPs of the re actions be ing calculate d from the parame te rs KA and KB of the
re action, as give n by the use r: ln(K) = KA - KB/R/T.
Attention:
1. The equilibrated reactions must appear (and will be calculated) together after all reactions
calculated at a given extent or conversion.
2. The reactions at given conversions or extents are calculated successively. For example,
specifying 50% conversion on a given compound for the second reaction means that 50% of the
remaining amount of this compound, after calculation of the first reaction will be converted in the
second reaction.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 803
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
4. For equilibrated reactions, the corresponding EXTENTi parameter will be calculated and
reused as starting point in the subsequent calculations
5. The compounds selected as reference for the conversions must be reagents (negative
stoichiometric coefficients in the reaction.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
804 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
PURPOSE
Calculates the outlet composition on basis of White method, by minimising the free energy of the
outlet stream at an equilibrium temperature calculated from the actual stream temperature and a
temperature deviation (DTEQ).
The reactions occur in vapour phase. Solid compounds can be taken into account.
The reactor can be calculated at a given outlet temperature or at a given heat input or output.
In addition one thermal stream can be connected to the unit either as inlet or outlet stream. If the
stream is connected as inlet (or outlet) stream, but heat is produced (or used), the thermal stream
load will be negative.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 805
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
UNIT PARAMETERS
The outle t te mpe rature of the re actor is give n (parame te r TOUT) and the he at to be re move d or to
be supplie d is calculate d toge the r with the outle t composition.
The he at to be re move d or to be supplie d is give n in the parame te r HEATLOAD and the outle t
te mpe rature is calculate d toge the r with the outle t composition
The he at to be re move d or to be supplie d is give n in the the rmal stre am and the outle t te mpe rature
is calculate d toge the r with the outle t composition
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
806 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
Calculated or specified (MODE=2) heat load. A positive value corresponds to heat supplied to the
reactor.
Temperature deviation from equilibrium. The equilibrium is calculated at the following temperature:
TOUT + GLOBDTEQ
REFFLOW <=0 Pout = Pin - DPREF and REFFLOW is se t to the curre nt mass flow rate (ide ntification
mode )
For each reaction (see Reactions page of the unit notebook), you specify the TYPEi of calculation:
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 807
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
Conversion the parame te r CONVERi se ts the conve rsion of the compound indicate d by
CORDERi
Equilibrium the re action is calculate d at che mical e quilibrium for the te mpe rature TOUT + DTEQ,
the KPs of the re cations be ing calculate d from the compounds data
Kp the re action is calculate d at che mical e quilibrium for the te mpe rature TOUT + DTEQ,
the KPs of the re actions be ing calculate d from the parame te rs KA and KB of the
re action, as give n by the use r: ln(K) = KA - KB/R/T.
Attention:
1. The equilibrated reactions must appear (and will be calculated) together after all reactions
calculated at a given extent or conversion.
2. The reactions at given conversions or extents are calculated successively. For example,
specifying 50% conversion on a given compound for the second reaction means that 50% of the
remaining amount of this compound, after calculation of the first reaction will be converted in the
second reaction.
4. For equilibrated reactions, the corresponding EXTENTi parameter will be calculated and
reused as starting point in the subsequent calculations
5. The compounds selected as reference for the conversions must be reagents (negative
stoichiometric coefficients in the reaction.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
808 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
PURPOSE
UNIT RCT300 is a simulation model for a chemical integral plug flow reactor, and can be used in
simulation (reactor volume is given) or sizing mode (the reactor volume is calculated
Up to 21 reactions can be defined, while the reactor itself can be divided in up to 5 zones.
Outle t stre am 1 Mate rial outle t stre am (LV state ), using the same The rmod as the
inle t stre am.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 809
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
UNIT PARAMETERS
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
810 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
0-1 No printing
Catalytic re actor in homoge ne ous phase : BETA is e xpre sse d in kmol cata/m³
ri = Vi . Ei
Whe re : Vi is the reaction velocity (in kmole/s or kmol/(s.kmol cata) or kmol/(s.kg cata))
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 811
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
The way Vi and Ei are calculated is determined in the Parameters page of the Reaction notebook.
Attention:
1. As a general rule, all the reactions should be defined on basis of the same type of
equilibrium and velocity equations.
2. However, it is allowed to use the equilibrium equation of type "8" (Ei = 1) for any reaction
3. When the reaction velocity boils down to a constant (when the overall order is 0) the
equilibrium equation must be set to "8" (Ei = 1).
4. The fugacity coefficients (when used) are calculated on basis of the conditions at the inlet of
each zone.
2 Sizing mode: the re actor volume (1 zone maximum) is calculate d in orde r to re ach a give n
conve rsion for a re fe re nce compound.
These parameters are only used in Sizing mode and indicate the conversion of a reference compound.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
812 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
Ti = TINZOi + DTZOi * L
Where : L is the normalised length for each zone, and goes from 0 to 1.
Assuming a heat transfer towards or from an isothermal environment at temperature TR, the heat
exchanged with this isothermal environment is computed by the program.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 813
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
The parameter EPSVR and ITMV are used only in sizing mode.
If EPSVAPF < 0, then the program chooses the default value: 10-4.
If PROFILE <= 0, then the program chooses the default attribute of 10.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
814 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
PURPOSE
UNIT RCT320 is a simulation model for a chemical integral plug flow reactor with detailed modelling
of a coolant media. The reactor can be split up in three zones with different catalyst activities.
Outle t STREAMS 1 Mate rial outle t stre am (LV state ), using the same The rmod as the
first inle t stre am.
2 Outle t coolant stre am using the same The rmod as the inle t coolant
stre am
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 815
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
816 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
UNIT PARAMETERS
EXCHMODE = 0 Co-Curre nt
DISPHV = 0 horizontal.
DISPHV = 1 ve rtical.
Controls whether a separate file (named from the unit name and the extension grf) is created with the
reactor profile (T, P, and molar flow rates). The number of steps is controlled by the parameter
NSTEPS
ISAVIN = 0 No.
ISAVIN = 1 Ye s.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
818 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
0-1 No printing
Catalytic re actor in homoge ne ous phase : BETA is e xpre sse d in kmol cata/m³
ri = Vi . Ei
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 819
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
Whe re : Vi is the reaction velocity (in kmole/s or kmol/(s.kmol cata) or kmol/(s.kg cata))
The way Vi and Ei are calculated is determined in the Parameters page of the Reaction notebook.
Attention:
1. As a general rule, all the reactions should be defined on basis of the same type of
equilibrium and velocity equations.
2. However, it is allowed to use the equilibrium equation of type "8" (Ei = 1) for any reaction
3. When the reaction velocity boils down to a constant (when the overall order is 0) the
equilibrium equation must be set to "8" (Ei = 1).
4. The fugacity coefficients (when used) are calculated on basis of the conditions at the inlet of
each zone.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
820 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
The fouling factor enables you to account for the presence of adhering film or scale onto the surfaces.
This value may be negative.
1/U = FF + 1/(CFH.Uc)
Uc he at transfe r coe fficie nt for cle an e xchange r compute d from corre lation (kW/(K.m²)).
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 821
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
If EPSVAPF < 0, then the program chooses the default value: 10-4.
This parameter is used in the external convergence loop on the coolant outside temperature, as an
indicator of inadequate starting point. Should the temperature difference between the coolant and
the reacting mixture be higher than this value, a new loop is then restarted with a lower outside
temperature
Fraction of catalyst and corresponding relative activity for each of the maximum three zones.
The corresponding will be used as reference compound to calculate reactor conversion and
selectivity.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
822 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
PURPOSE
This unit is obsolete, use RCT420 in place.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 823
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PURPOSE
The unit RCT420 models a fluid bed reactor. The feed stream must be in vapour state at the inlet of
the reactor.
Various cooling modes are possible: adiabatic, cooling through horizontal or vertical tubes or
through the external wall. When present this cooling media can in co-current or counter-current
flow.
The flow pattern is determined from the inlet stream conditions and is not recalculated for the
varying conditions in the reactor.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
824 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
Outle t STREAMS 1 Mate rial outle t stre am (LV or V state ), using the same The rmod as
the first inle t stre am.
2 Outle t coolant stre am using the same The rmod as the inle t coolant
stre am (LV, L or V state )
When the reactor is in adiabatic mode then only the first inlet and first outlet streams can be
connected.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 825
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
826 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
UNIT PARAMETERS
2 Two phase model: two phase s are conside re d in the be d: the de nse phase and the fluid phase
2 Plug Flow
1 Adiabatic reactor
1 Counter-Current exchange: an e xte rnal conve rge nce loop is handle d to de te rmine the outle t coolant
stre am te mpe rature
2 Co-Current exchange
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828 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
2 Porous Plate
1 Cooling media
2 Heating media
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 829
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
830 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 831
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PURPOSE
The unit RCT500 models a perfectly mixed (continuous stirred) reactor.
2 Vapour product
The Thermod of the liquid outlet stream must contain all compounds, including solids, if any.
The Themod of the vapour outlet stream must contain all fluid compounds. In addition it can also
contain the solid compounds if any.
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832 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
The inlet and outlet coolant streams must use the same Thermod.
The heat of reaction of each reaction must be defined in the reaction parameters (parameters DHR
and REFT).
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 833
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
834 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
UNIT PARAMETERS
2 External blanket: the re actor is coole d down by a coolant flowing in an e xte rnal blanke t
These parameters are only used when MODE=1 (Coolant flowing through tubes).
These parameters are only used when MODE=2 (Coolant flowing through an external blanket).
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836 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
REFDP <= 0 DP = 0
When the reference terms (REFFLOW or REFDENS) are negative or zero, then the corresponding
dependence is ignored.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 837
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PURPOSE
The REPORT unit enables to print-out the value of up to 10 variables at each execution of the unit in
an ASCII file (named from the unit name and the extension rep).
This unit can for instance be used in combination with an INCREM unit for a parametric sensitivity
analysis on a model. It can also be used as a debugging tool in convergence loops.
The first two lines of the report file display the names and the physical units of the variables. The
following lines (1 line per iteration) contain the values of the selected variables. This file can be
imported into Excel for further processing like charts generation.
UNIT PARAMETERS
This UNIT has no parameter.
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838 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 839
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PURPOSE
Splits a mixture into a maximum of 10 outlet STREAMS, according to the user specified split
fractions. Temperatures, pressure and the compositions of the outlet streams are identical to those of
the inlets.
This type of UNIT may also be used for mass balance calculations. In this case the contents of the
outlet streams remain unchanged.
UNIT PARAMETERS
The outle t stre ams are se t in the same state as the inle t stre am.
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840 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
If only one FRACi is undefined (<0), it is calculated by difference (1-sum of defined fractions). In this
case, the sum of defined fractions has to be lower than 1.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 841
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PURPOSE
This UNIT calculates mass and energy balances of a liquid-vapour separator, together with the
liquid-vapour equilibrium.
Several inlet streams may be considered and their temperatures and compositions are given.
The rmods: Both outle t stre ams must use the same The rmod.
Attention:
Q > 0 if heat is supplied to the reactor.
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842 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
UNIT PARAMETERS
If the vessel pressure is calculated according to the procedure described below, three modes are
available.
The te mpe rature , flowrate s of both liquid and vapour stre ams are calculate d
toge the r with both phase compositions.
MODE2 = 2 - FIXED.TOUT The ve sse l te mpe rature is give n. Flowrate s and compositions of
both outle ts are calculate d toge the r with the he at to be re move d or provide d.
MODE2 = 3 - FIXED.ALFOUT The molar vapour fraction is give n (ratio of vapour and liquid
molar flowrate s). The te mpe rature and compositions of both phase s are
calculate d toge the r with the he at to be re move d or provide d.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 843
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
MODE1 = 1 - The vessel pressure is equal to the smallest inlet pressure multiplied by
the expansion factor (POUT) which is given.
MODE1 = 2 - The vessel pressure is equal to the smallest inlet pressure minus the given
pressure drop (POUT).
MODE1 = 4 - The molar vapour fraction is given (ratio of vapour and liquid molar
flowrates) together with the heat to be removed or provided. The
temperature, pressure and compositions of both outlets are calculated.
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844 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
PURPOSE
The SEP030 UNIT is a 'black box' ensuring the mixing of inlet streams and the separation of this
mixture into two outlet streams of different compositions, according to user specified compounds
distribution laws. This unit can be used as a short-cut model for any separation equipment.
The two outlet streams must use the same Thermod. In addition, this Thermod must contain all
compounds that actually appear in any of the inlet streams.
An additional Thermal stream can be connected either as the last inlet or as the last outlet stream, to
close the heat balance.
Attention: By mirroring the symbol vertically, the Y stream will become the (apparent) bottom
stream allowing to define the compound split fractions on the (apparent) bottom stream.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 845
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
UNIT PARAMETERS
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
846 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
The partial flow rate of e ach compound in the Y (top) stre am is e xpre sse d as a fraction of its partial
rate in the (total) fe e d stre am.
The molar fraction of e ach compound in the Y (top) stre am is e xpre sse d in function of its molar
fraction in the X (bottom) stre am.
The parame te rs FRACi e xpre ss the composition of the Y (top) stre am. In addition the molar
fraction of a ke y compound is give n for the X (bottom) stre am.
The parame te rs FRACi e xpre ss the composition of the Y (top) stre am. In addition the total molar
flow rate of the top stre am is give n in the parame te r YTOT.
This parameter defines how the state of the corresponding outlet stream is calculated
The stre am is se t and the pre ssure and te mpe rature give n in the parame te rs POUTi and TOUTi.
For a single compound mixture the parame te r ALFOUTi will also be use d.
The stre am is se t at the pre ssure and vapour fraction give n in the parame te rs POUTi and ALFOUTi
.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 847
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
In Mode 3, the parameter AKEY indicates the molar fraction of KEYcompound in the X (bottom)
stream.
In Mode 4, the parameter YTOT gives the total molar flow rate of the Y (top) stream.
For each compound (in the order set in the Thermod) the factor FRACi must be specified.
These parameters are used to set the state of the outlet streams as defined by the parameter TYPTHj.
If Pout < 0 outle t pre ssure = minimum of inle t pre ssure + Pout
Attention: when POUT is used as a pressure drop (POUT < 0), it must be expressed as an absolute
pressure. Specifying POUT in barg or psig would produce wrong results.
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848 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
PURPOSE
The SEP050 unit allows you to draw-off, from a given stream, a secondary stream with the same
composition. This drawn-off stream is the first outlet stream.
All the streams should use the same Thermod and state.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 849
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
UNIT PARAMETERS
The outle t stre ams are se t in the same state as the inle t stre am
FLOWRATE = -1 The se t-point on the flow-rate to be draw off is take n from the curre nt flow rate
of the first outle t stre am itse lf.
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850 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
PURPOSE
The unit SEP060 is a separation drum for a liquid/liquid mixture. Entrainment between the 2 phases
can be modelled. Different calculation modes are available (adiabatic or given operating
temperature).
Inle t STREAMS 1-10 Inle t mate rial stre ams. (LL or LLV state , although othe r state s can be
use d for stre ams that do not involve two liquid phase s).
Outle t STREAMS 1 He avy liquid mate rial stre am (LL or LLV state , L is also acce pte d if
the re is no e ntrainme nt be twe e n the two phase s.
2 Light liquid mate rial stre am (LL or LLV state , L is also acce pte d if
the re is no e ntrainme nt be twe e n the two phase s.
2. If a vapour phase appears, an error message is issued and the simulation is stopped.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 851
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
UNIT PARAMETERS
This parameter ranges from 0 up to 1 and indicates the fraction of the heavy liquid phase that is
entrained in the light liquid phase. This allows to model non-ideal separators.
This parameter ranges from 0 up to 1 and indicates the fraction of the light liquid phase that is
entrained in the heavy liquid phase. This allows to model non-ideal separators.
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852 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
PURPOSE
The unit SEP070 is a liquid/liquid/vapour separation drum.. Entrainment between the phases can be
modelled. Different calculation modes are available (set pressure or vapour fraction).
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 853
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
Attention:
1. All components present in the inlet Streams should also be found in the outlet Streams.
2. Should the phase equilibrium calculation result in foretelling only one liquid phase,
calculations are resumed by setting the flowrate of the second outlet to 0.
UNIT PARAMETERS
MODE = 4 - If you want a vapour fraction VAP.FRAC to be se t (The n the re late d outle t
pre ssure is calculate d).
This parameter range is from 0 up to 1 (0\H\1) If HEAVYRAT < 0, default value 0 is chosen by
program.
Note : The calculation of equilibrium composition and outlet flow rates is based on the assumption
that separation between liquid phases is perfect. Then a branch fraction equal to the entrainment
rate is added to each outlet branch.
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854 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
Note : Entrainment rates are applied to the liquids first, then to the vapour phase.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 855
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PURPOSE
UNIT SEP080 is a model for a device separating solid phases from fluid phases. Several feed streams
are possible.
Outle t STREAMS 1 Mate rial stre am for the solids (bottom stre am)
2 Mate rial stre am for the fluid (top stre am). Its state should be se t in
accordance with the inle t stre am.
All compounds defined in any of the Thermod of the inlet streams should be defined as well in the
Thermod of the outlet streams.
Attention: by mirroring the symbol vertically, the solid stream will be at the top and the fluid stream
will be at the bottom.
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856 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
LIQRATE Input Entrainment rate of the fluid phase into the solid phase
SOLRATE Input Entrainment rate of the solid phase into the fluid phase
UNIT PARAMETERS
LIQRATE Input Entrainment rate of the fluid phase into the solid phase
Fraction of fluid compounds that is trapped into the solid stream, expressed as a fraction of the total
inlet flow rate of the fluid compounds.
SOLRATE Input Entrainment rate of the solid phase into the fluid phase
Fraction of solids compounds that is entrained into the fluid stream, expressed as a fraction of the
total inlet flow rate of the solid compounds.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 857
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PURPOSE
The SIMFLX unit allows :
defining up to ten parameters, used by the same unit or by any other unit in the same
model
Using FLEX language, you can access values of streams and units and perform calculations.
Thermodynamic routines can be used to calculate various thermodynamic properties and perform
physical equilibrium compositions.
A FLEX program can also be added to most of the SIMU units. It is possible to limit to execute the
code before, after or both before and after the code the unit itself is executed.
Tags can be defined on the parameters of the SIMFLX unit, making it possible to use them as either
controlled or manipulated variables of various controllers.
UNIT PARAMETERS
These parameters can be used to store various calculation results or user settings.
When starting to calculate your model, enter the name of the file into the corresponding field
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858 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
Attention: When SIMU saves the results after a successful run, the Flex program is written into the
PDB file. The program is then kept for further runs and it is no longer necessary to reload the Flex
program.To modify the Flex program, you must reload it. It is also possible to add a Flex code to
most of SIMU units.
Flex syntax is similar to FORTRAN Code. Chapter 6 describes this syntax in detail.
Example: &&&COMMENT FLX1 ! File He ade r for fle x code of unit FLX1
NOCALL =
! De claration
REAL ...
! Se le ction of variable s
CALL LOCATE1(...)
CALL LOCATEN(...)
! Calculations
...
END
...
...
&&&EOF ! e nd of file
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 859
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
before and after each calculation of the unit in simulation phase (Phase 3),
before and after calculation of the unit in the report phase (Phase 4).
The NOCALL variable is used to suppress some of these calls, by allocating it a string of up to eight
characters, obtained by concatenating the following strings:
Example: to suppress the flex code execution before unit calculation used the following instruction:
NOCALL = 'ISIR'
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860 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
PREDEFINED VARIABLES
IHELP e rror flag: the calculation stops if this variable is se t to a non ze ro value
1 ve rification,
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 861
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
The following FLEX variables and arrays are initialised when using the CHOOSE function:
Name (i) RATPARNM Associate d RATES NaMe s of the compone nts (array).
Name (i) SUBTYPE Compone nts (SUBstance s) TYPE (i.e . : EPIC or SOLID).
For non material streams, the STRPAR array contains the variables of the stream and the RATESPAR
is undefined.
For material streams, STRPAR and RATESPAR have the following structure:
STRPAR ARRAY :
Attention: The structure of STRPAR allows you to use it directly to call EQPHYS.
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862 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
RATESPAR ARRAY :
Contains the total and partial flow rates associated to the Stream in the following form.
Attention:
1. To obtain the real flow rates of the stream, you must multiply the elements of RATESPAR
by the Rates fraction (RATEFRAC).
2. The array may be used as an argument for EQPHYS and PROPTY by giving RATESPAR(3)
as an argument.
CHOOSE(1) ! loads the first inle t stre am as the re fe re nce stre am.
INTRODUCTION
The procedure LOCATE1 and LOCATEN create a link between a local variable (or array) of the Flex
code and a variable (or array) corresponding to a unit, stream or compound. After the link is created,
the local Flex variable and the corresponding object variable are pointing to the same physical
memory location. This means that changing the Flex variable value will change the corresponding
object variable and vice-versa.
The procedure ENTRY returns the name of an object from its pointer in the dictionary.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 863
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
'INFO' can be :
'S' : structure re cord
'TYPE' can be :
'U' or 'UNIT' : the obje ct is a unit
N for a stre am, indicate s his position as inle t (positive ) or outle t (ne gative ) stre am.
! The local variable Pre s is now linke d to the se cond variable of the first inle t stre am
CALL LOCATEN(MYARRAY,'INFO','TYPE','OBJECT' OR N)
This function links the local array MYARRAY to the variable defined by 'INFO', 'TYPE'and either
'OBJECT' or N.
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864 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
'INFO' can be :
'S' : structure re cord
'TYPE' can be :
'U' or 'UNIT' : the obje ct is a unit
N for a stre am, indicate s his position as inle t (positive ) or outle t (ne gative ) stre am.
! The local array STREAM is now linked to the data record of stream F1
CALL LOCATEN(STREAM,'D','S',-2)
! The local array STREAM is now linked to the data record of the second outlet
stream
CALL ENTRY(NUM,NOM)
The procedure returns, in the variable NOM (of NAME type), the name of the object stored in location
NUM of the dictionary of the PDB.
CALL GTTAGVAL('NAME','VALUE',MYVAR)
This function copies the requested value associated with the tag into the local variable MYVAR.
These values do not change between iterations.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 865
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'NAME' is the Name of the TAG from which the value is to be obtaine d.
'VALUE': re se rve d ke yword with the name of the value of the TAG to acce ss.
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866 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
VEC2 array with partial molar flow rate s of e ach compone nt.
VAP array including afte r computation the partial molar flow rate s of the vapour phase .
LIQ array including afte r computation the partial molar flow rate s of the (first) liquid phase .
SOL array including afte r computation the partial molar flow rate s of the solid phase .
LIQ2 array including afte r computation the partial molar flow rate s of the (se cond) liquid phase .
'TYPE' a re se rve d KEYWORD which de fine s the type of e quilibria (flash) to pe rform.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
Attention:
1. It is mandatory to give initial values to variables used with the flash type defined, others can
be given as initial values.
2. The STRPAR array created by the GETALL (or GETVAR) subroutine has the same structure
and may be used as the first argument for EQPHYS.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 867
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
VEC2 : Array with partial molar flow rate s of e ach compone nt (kmol/s).This array may be initialise d
with a call to GETALL or to GETVAR.
VAP : Array with a size of at le ast the numbe r of compone nts of the structure , including afte r
computation the partial molar flow rate s of the vapour phase (kmol/s).
LIQ : Array with a size of at le ast the numbe r of compone nts of the structure , including afte r
computation the partial molar flow rate s of the (first) liquid phase (kmol/s).
SOL : Array with a size of at le ast the numbe r of compone nts of the structure , including afte r
computation the partial molar flow rate s of the solid phase (kmol/s).
LIQ2 : Array with a size of at le ast the numbe r of compone nts of the structure , including afte r
computation the partial molar flow rate s of the (se cond) liquid phase (kmol/s).
EPTA: Exte nsion of EPT with vapour ratio give n as an argume nt but only use d in the
saturation zone of a single compone nt stre am, whe re T and P do not unique ly
de fine the stre am state .
The number of phases to be taken into account for the equilibrium computation is set with the
variable STTYPE, initialised by CHOOSE from the type defined for the stream in the PDB.
It is possible to change it to compute other flash types: V, L, S, LV, LL, LLV, WL, WLV.
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868 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 8
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 869
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
VEC3: Array with partial molar flow rate s of compone nts (kmol/s).
MYVAR: Variable to store the MYVAR. It is an array with a size of at le ast the numbe r of
compone nts whe n re que sting for function of composition or fugacity.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
870 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
CHAPTER 9
VALIREPORT
IX
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 9
SECTION 1: INTRODUCTION
1.1 WHAT CAN YOU DO WITH THIS APPLICATION?
to store in a database (ACCESS or MS-SQL) the values of a number of Tags for successive
runs you perform with VALI: measurement, measured precision, validated value,
validated precision, filtered value, filtered precision, penalty, gain, status (filtered,
eliminated, etc.) physical unit and comment
to retrieve all the values stored in the database for a given run
to produce charts showing the evolution of selected Tag values with time
to design or import reports and flow-sheets of a process and display selected Tags values
or aggregated values
The application uses Excel Workbooks and a number of procedures stored in an Excel Add-In.
ValiReport is interfaced with ValiEngine, which provides the tags values in a run data file named
from the name of the main PFD (e.g. main.arc) and with ValiModeller, which writes the structure file
(e.g. main.str) which relates each tag to one or two model units.
In an online environment, the tags values will be automatically loaded in the database using the
ValiDBLoader application, while in an offline environment, you will directly load the data in your
database from ValiReport itself.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 873
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
1.2 REQUIREMENTS
For a proper use of ValiReport, you should satisfy the following requirements:
Software requirements:
For Acce ss database : Microsoft Acce ss 97, 2000, 2002 (part of Office XP) or 2003/2007 (a runtime is
sufficie nt).
Before you can use ValiReport Add-in, you must install it on your computer (see installation
procedure) and then load it in Microsoft Excel. To load ValiReport use the Tools|Add-ins Menu
command and select ValiReport add-in. If it is not listed in the Add-Ins available box, click Browse,
and select it in the ValiReport installation folder. Once loaded, the command ValiReport will appear
in the Tools menu.
This Manual uses the following style for Excel menu commands: File|Open . This means that you
pull down the File menu and select the Open command. Depending on the installation language of
your Office applications, some menu commands might appear in a different language. For example in
a French installation, the menu command Tools will be displayed as Outils.
Some menus and menu items have accelerator keys that appear underlined in the menu bar.
The most important tasks can be executed by using either the menu bar or the toolbar.
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874 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 9
You can create as many databases and ValiReport Workbooks as you want. Several Workbooks can
share the same database. However, a given ValiReport Workbook can only access one database at a
time.
Should you use SQL Server to store your data, you need to perform some configuration work before
creating any ValiReport as described in sub-section "SQL-Server database".
You can create a ValiReport Workbook from any Excel Workbook, using the following procedure:
in the Save As dialog box, enter the name you wish to give to your ValiReport workbook
and click Save
By default, ValiReport uses the following sub-folders (starting from the folder where you saved the
workbook):
The arc files are assumed to be located in the same folder as the ValiReport excel file. If you want to
use other folders, you will need to change these settings afterwards.
specify the name or IP address of the Belsim LicenseServer and the type of database
(Access or SQL Server) you will use. Click OK to proceed
Attention: The default address of the license server is read from the Belsim.ini file in the dat folder
of the Vali installation
if you select a SQL Server database, you will be prompted to define the plant name as
defined in Belsim License Manager (e.g. SQLPLANT) and the database name as defined in
the SQL Server (e.g. validata). Click OK to proceed
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if you selected an ACCESS database and if no database exists in the Access folder, you will
be prompted to give a name for the new database.
if a database already exists in the Access folder, you will be prompted to select an existing
database.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 9
or
You are then ready to proceed with your ValiReport application. The next time you will open the
corresponding Excel file, it will be recognised as a ValiReport application. The configuration
information is stored in an ini file with the same name as the ValiReport workbook.
The most useful commands are also grouped on the ValiReport toolbar:
Database:
Runs:
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Application:
Unmark ValiReport: convert the ValiReport workbook into a standard excel workbook
Display|Struct Sheet: create a structure sheet showing the tags sorted out by units
ValiReport Help:
By default, when opening a ValiReport, the last run (on basis of its date and time) will be loaded from
the Vali Database.
Optionally, a sheet called STRUCT can be created and presents the tags grouped by units.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 9
You can copy (or move) your ValiReport workbook as you wish, provided you copy (or move) its
associated ini file at the same time.
Attention: In a given Excel session, you can use only one ValiReport workbook. To work with
several ValiReport workbooks, you need to start several Excel sessions.
Setting the parameter ReadOnly of the ini file to 1, will set the ValiReport workbook in Read-only
mode, deactivating all menu commands related to ValiDatabase as well as the menu commands
enabling to store or delete runs from ValiDatabase.
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CREATING A DATABASE
You create a new database by choosing the menu item Database|Create DB… . Within the
displayed dialogue box you must enter the name for the new database.
It will initialise the new database with the necessary tables and relationships.
DELETING A DATABASE
The same way you create a database you can delete an existing one, by giving or by choosing the
database name in the dialog box. Therefore choose Database|Delete DB… from the menu bar and
the same dialogue box, as for creating a database, will appear.
Take care that all data stored in the Database will be lost forever, except if you have a backup.
If you delete runs from a database, it is recommended to compact it in order to decrease its size.
PRELIMINARY CONFIGURATION
If you wish to use a MS-SQL server database, you will need to create the SQL database using
ValiDatabaseCreator application (accessible from Vali 4 Windows menu).
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 9
User name: login name of administrator account used to create the database
ValiDataBase (mandatory):
Create Database & Tables: a new Database must be created at the same time
Create Plant (optional): must be checked if you want to create a new plant in Belsim license
server in order to access the database. If not checked, it is assumed you will use a plant
already defined in Belsim license server:
Create SQL User check-box: if checked the (Login) user will be created in the SQL server:
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The Show SQL Script button shows the SQL script code that needs to be executed. This enables to
execute the corresponding script at the SQL server management tool level.
The Plant can also be defined through Belsim LicenseManager under the Plant tab:
Runs: List of runs with their Date, and the associated model file, problem (main PFD),
model and Vali Engine version, Info strings, exit code and duration of the validation period
Tags: List of tags, with their comment, aggregation mode and a pointer to their Physical
Units
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 9
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The RUN sheet will contain all the tags data related to a particular run or aggregated values related
to runs between two selected dates. The data can be either be read from an archive file created by
ValiEngine or from ValiDatabase (see section "Retrieve Run Stored in the Database").
Attention: Run data files are to be created using the ARCHIVE command in a measurement file,
followed by the list of Tags to be included in the RUN or using "-ARC" Vali runtime option.
In addition to the tag values the RUN sheet also displays coloured bullets in front of the tag names.
By default the bullet is green. It will be red if the corresponding stream or unit was OFF during the
run. No bullet is displayed for pseudo tags like the number of equations or the name of the model file.
Attention:
1. The default directory where ValiReport will search for the run files can be modified in the Option
dialogue (menu item Application|Options…)
2. The sheet "RUN" is protected, it's therefore not possible to make any change to the table.
3. Excel filters are activated on the top of each column, enabling to filter the data according to
various conditions on the contents of the columns.
4. The bullet colouring is not displayed by default. To activate the option, select the command
Application|Display|ON/OFF Status from the menu bar.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 9
Status: bit settings defining whether the tag is eliminated, flagged, filtered, etc.
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Used: value used by the reconciliation engine, that if after filtering and compensation
VDI.Pen: penalty calculated using VDI formula on basis of the used value
InUse: flag indicating whether the tag was actually used in the current run
Eliminated: flag indicating whether the tag was eliminated by the gross error detection
mechanism
nnter the date and time of the run. If a "RUNDATE" tag has been specified at the creation of
the run file, it will be used by default. Otherwise, "DATE" and "TIME" tag will be used if
present in the run file. If no such information tags are present in the run file, the default
date and time will be the current one
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 9
The auto insert Run stores ALL arc files from the default Input Files directory in the database
without prompting the user. The date and time of the run must be specified in the arc file..
The way runs will be inserted in the database depends on the settings defined in the DB Settings page
of the Application|Options notebook.
FIGURE 11 - DB S ETTINGS
Re place : any e xisting run with the same date and time will be re move d and the ne w data will
be put in place , re using the highe st ID run numbe r.
Appe nd the data will be me rge d with the run with the same date and time and highe st ID. If
some tags are duplicate d the n the ir value will be update d with the ne w data.
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If you want to see the contents of a given run that is stored in the database:
select the desired run from the dialogue box, from the list of available runs for the active
database and click OK
Attention:
1. The runs are normally identified by a run number, which is unique in the database, and a date/
time that you have entered when storing it in the database.
2. The run continues to be stored in the database and all kind of changes do not affect the database
contents. You can however choose the Runs|Insert Run… command from the menu bar to store
it as a new run into the database.
You can also retrieve aggregated data from runs between two selected dates. The type of aggregation
that will be made is specified in ValiModeller in the historian page of the tags.
When using the aggregation mode, the measured, used and validated values of the tags will be
aggregated according to the user selected aggregation mode, the flags (filtered, compensated, …) will
be summed up (giving thus the number of runs in which the tag has been filtered, compensated, …)
and all other values (accuracies, penalties, gain) will be averaged.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 9
choose the Runs|Remove Run… command, which displays the dialogue box shown in
figure below
If you defined a structure file (see section Working Directory) an additional sheet called STRUCT will
be created. It presents the same king of information as the RUN sheet but the tags will be grouped by
units according to the contents of the structure file.
Attention: The Struct sheet is not created by default. To activate the option, click on the ValiReport
menubar: Application|Display|Struc Sheet. The Struct sheet will be created the next time you insert
a run.
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 9
To create a table, activate the menu command Runs|Create Table and Chart to open the Create Table
and Chart dialog box. If a table already exists in the current sheet, you need to select the New Sheet
option.
In the left side of the dialog box you will select the tag values to be written in the table. You can use
the mask field to limit the number of tags that are displayed in the selection box.
In the right side of the dialog box, you can select the runs in different ways. You can also request to
select only converged runs avoiding polluting the data with inconsistent data
When you have selected the tag values and the runs click OK to generate the table.
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You create charts using the same dialog box as for creating Tables.
select whether you want you chart in a separate Chart sheet or embedded in the same
sheet as the table
Attention: Once charts have been defined you can modify their appearance as you would do for any
Excel chart.
To update a Table (and its associated charts), select the corresponding worksheet and click the Runs|
Create Table and Chart menu command. The dialog box will open again with the option Update
Sheet activated. You can modify the selection of runs and tags to be displayed in the Table.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 9
Another feature is to change the colour of the cells containing suspect tags, i.e. with high PENALTY.
If wanted, you can activate this feature only for some cells.
Add a new worksheet by right-clicking the mouse on the sheet tabs at the bottom of the sheet
window. Select the Insert… item from the list and double-click on the worksheet's icon to create it.
The worksheet is inserted at the left side of the active sheet.
Rename the worksheet, if you wish so, by double-clicking it on the sheet tabs at the bottom of the
sheet window. You can name it for example as Flowsheet1 to distinguish it from the worksheets
that supports the charts.
Use the drawing tools of Excel to draw the objects on your flow-sheet or import an existing drawing.
Display the toolbar by activating the check mark near Drawing in the dialogue box that appears
when selecting the View|Toolbars command. You can then use the different design functions as you
like.
If you already have examples of flow-sheets it is very easy to import them into ValiReport. However
you must ensure that the flow-sheet has a *.wmf (Microsoft Windows MetaFile) extension. This file
extension is, at the moment, the only way to add near your design objects tag references selected
directly from the run in sheet RUN.
On the worksheet where you want to insert it select Insert|Picture|From File… and look, in the
dialogue box, for the directory where it is stored.
Once the object is in the worksheet select Format|AutoShape…, choose the Colors and Lines pad and
activate option button No Fill from Fill group.
Now you have, simultaneously, access to the flow-sheet and to the cells.
To have a better view of your flow-sheet it is possible to customise the columns size as well as the
flow-sheet's zooming factor. Left-click and drag the right border on the columns header of the desired
column to resize it. Change the zoom of the flow-sheet in the dialogue box that you activate by
selecting View|Zoom.
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 9
Select tag name from the drop-down list box and activate any of the types of values you want to
select from the RUN sheet. Click OK and the value will be inserted in the flow-sheet's active cell.
If you also wish to mark the cells containing suspect tags, i.e. high Penalty, activate the check box
near Highlight Cell with PENALTY Value of the Measurement. The cell's colour will change
according to the selected colours and the threshold value in the Options Dialog from the item menu
bar Application|Options.
The default value corresponds to the text displayed when ValiReport don't find a value for the
corresponding tag.
The dialogue box will create a call to the function FSTAG in the corresponding cell:
FSTAG ("TAGNAME", RUNS, IDFIELD, IDCOLOUR, [DEFAULT VALUE])
where:
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"TAGNAME" : the name of the tag. Can refer an Excel cell (should not be enclosed in double
quotes in this case)
1: tag name
2: measured value
3: measured accuracy
4: validated value
5: validated accuracy
6: physical unit
7: comment
8: penalty
9: status
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 9
"TAGNAME" : the name of the tag. Can refer an Excel cell (should not be enclosed in double
quotes in this case)
1: tag name
2: measured value
3: measured accuracy
4: validated value
5: validated accuracy
6: physical unit
7: comment
8: penalty
9: status
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CRITERIA: an optional criteria on the selected field (Example: "> 4" will select only values
above 4)
Example:
=blstagc("14A2470";"1/9/2006";"1/10/2006";2;"AVG")
will calculate the average of tag 14A2470 between the 1st September and the 1st October 2006.
If you want to change a FSTAG tag reference, double-click on it and make the desired changes on the
displayed dialogue box.
Alternatively you can edit the contents of the cell direclty. This mode also applies for BLSTAGC
function.
To delete a tag reference, click simply the Delete button on the dialogue box.
By default, the application assigns no colour to the cell if its PENALTY is less than 4, and red if it is
bigger than or equal to 4. The user can modify these default colours and the threshold value in the
Option dialog from the item menu bar Application|Options.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 9
Each colour can be manually defined by clicking on the background and/or on the text of the boxes. A
set of predefined couple of colours can be selected in the drop down boxes.
The threshold value defined the colours of an ValiReport cell by comparing the penalty of the
measurement with that value. You can also toggle OFF the colouring of all cells or colour every cells
with the penalty value whatever you selected for each measurement display.
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To change the working directories, use the menu bar item Application|Options.
All databases must be in the respective working directory. If you change the working directory, the
databases of the former directory will not be accessible from ValiReport interface.
The input files (with the termination "-arc") should be placed in the corresponding directory. When
the user load an "arc" file from the interface, he can however browse for another directory. On the
other hand, the ValiDBLoader application doesn't prompt any question to the user and only look for
available information in that directory.
The structure file is used to group the tags in the Struct page (see sub-section Groupings Tags by
Units).
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 9
Attention: You can use the ini file associated to your ValiReport as ini file for ValiDBLoader
ValiDBLoader reads all run data files (*.arc) and stores the data into ValiDatabase to be exploited
through ValiReport. The file ValiDBLoader.log contains the log of the operations
FIGURE 21 - VALIDBLOADER
Alternatively you give as second parameter the name of an arc (or mea) file to ValiDBLoader, in
which case only the designated file will be loaded into the ValiDatabase.
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[LicenseServer]
URL of the Be lsim Lice nse Se rve r
Url=localhost
[Parameters]
TypeDataBase=ACCESS
Type of DataBase
Replace=DBReplace
DBRe place , DBMe rge or DBAdd
[Directory]
Input File=D:\Projects\ValiReport_MR\InputFiles\
Input File s folde r
[ACCESS]
Directory=D:\Projects\ValiReport_MR\Access\
Database Folde r
DataBase=test.mdb
Database Name
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 9
[LicenseServer]
Url=belsim08
URL of the Be lsim Lice nse Se rve r
[Parameters]
TypeDataBase=SQLSERVER
Type of DataBase
Replace=DBReplace
DBRe place , DBMe rge or DBAdd
[Directory]
Input File=D:\Projects\ValiReport_MR\InputFiles\
Input File s folde r
[SQLSERVER]
PlantName=VALIREPORT_OL
Plant Name in Lice nse Se rve r
DataBase=VALIREPORT_OL
Database name
You can now change the behavior of the program regarding the optional second argument by adding
the following section in the INI file:
[SECOND ARGUMENT]
StoreArcFile=0
Arc File is re name d (1) or not (0)
StoreMeaFile=0
Me a File is re name d (1) or not (0)
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[MULTIPLE LOAD]
LoadArcFiles=1
All Arc File s will be loade d (1) or not (0)
LoadMeaFiles=0
All Me a File s will be loade d (1) or not (0)
StoreArcFiles=1
Arc File s are re name d (1) or not (0)
StoreMeaFiles=0
Me a File s are re name d (1) or not (0)
Log system:
[LOGFILE OPTION]
Path=
Path of the log file
File=
Name of the log file
LogLevel=INF
Error Me ssage s Le ve l
Backup Option=BACKUP
MAXSIZE=10
Maximum size of the log file (in MB)
Some values that must be interpreted by the program are not constant (in a MEA file). So, a
dictionary file can be specified to interpret these values.
[DICTIONARY]
Path=Dictionary\Dictionary.mea
Path of the dictionary file
Production Accounting:
For Production Accounting applications, the product movements data can be stored in dedicated
tables.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 9
[PRODUCT]
LoadProduct=
Product move me nts data will be loade d (1) or not (0)
LogDirectory=
Path of the log file spe cific to Production Accounting
LogFile=
Name of the log file
BlsFile=
Name of the VALI 4 mode l file with its path. ValiDBLoade r
will re trie ve the Are as, Move me nts and Sub-Move me nts
from the mode l file .
ProductDictionary=
The Products.dic file with its path. ValiDBLoade r will re trie ve
the list of products from this dictionary file .
At the end of its execution, ValiDBLoader produces a file named ValiDbLoader_log.ini containing the
keyword EXITCODE followed by a numeric code:
Example:
[EXITCODE]
ExitCode=0
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To activate this option use either the menu command Application|Run Vali or press the button
from the toolbar. This opens a new Notebook where you can specify the Vali runtime options.
In this page you specify the settings of VALI (written in the pc.vif file):
the names of the Measurement, Tag and Flex sheets: each of these sheets will be written
under the name <sheet1>.mea, <sheet2>.tag and <sheet3>.rea and will passed over to VALI,
Clicking on "Run" button will execute VALI once and will use a ValiOffline license.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 9
whether to run VALI once (default option) or let Excel execute VALI several time in a row
running VALI,
writing back result into a PIMS (using an external tool like ValiLink),
the Begin Date and either End Date or Duration period to be considered for the Validation.
These settings are used by ValiLink application,
Executing VALI several times uses a ValiOnline Engine license. See the MultiRun tab for detailed
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
configuration explanation.
Clicking on the button "Advanced <<" will send you back to the non advanced settings.
In the page VALI you specify the settings of VALI (written in the pc.vif file):
the names of the Measurement, Tag and Flex sheets: each of these sheets will be written
under the name <sheet1>.mea, <sheet2>.tag and <sheet3>.rea and will passed over to VALI,
In the Advanced Configuration page you specify the settings for ValiLink :
the name of the INI file for reading from the PIMS,
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 9
In the MultiRun page you specify the settings to execute VALI several times in a row:
First Run [input]: the number ID of the first run, can be linked to an excel cell
Last Run [input]: the number ID of the last run, can be linked to an excel cell
Current Run [output]: the number ID of the current run, must be linked to an excel cell
VALI will be processed several times starting from the First Run ID to the Last Run ID by increment
of 1. The First Run and Last Run can be specified directly in the text box or linked to an Excel cell. The
current run ID will be printed in the linked cell to enable dynamic behaviour of the measurement
sheet.
Example:
First Run = 5
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Last Run = 11
C2 for the cell located in the second row and third column if you link the text box to a cell
of the Excel sheet used as measurement file
Sheet1!C2 for the cell located in the second row and third column if you link the text box to
a cell of the Excel sheet "Sheet1":
FIGURE 26 - MULTIRUN
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910 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
CHAPTER 10
VALIANALYTICS
X
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 10
SECTION 1: INTRODUCTION
ValiAnalytics is an easy to use graphical user interface for sensitivity analysis of your results and
your model. All results for the sensitivity analysis can be accessed through this interface, there is a
graphical view of the results. Navigation between related tags is also easy in this interface. In
addition, general information about the model can be found in this interface.
The error detectability of measurements, which is the maximum error that can occur on a
measured value before the gross error mechanism can detect and remove the error
The maximum bias of measurements, which is the maximum error that will occur on the
reconciled value of the variable just before the error detectability limit for the
corresponding measurement is reached
The robustness of KPIs, which is an indication whether errors on measured values will or
not be detected before some given KPI is biased by an amplitude exceeding its uncertainty
ValiAnalytics can be found in the bin sub-directory of Belsim installation directory. It can also be
opened directly from ValiModeller, using the ValiAnalytics button in the toolbar.
1. A global view, displaying general results about your model, such as number of redundancies,
value of chi-square test, a distribution of gain on tags in your model, average gain on each
measurement type, etc.
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2. An individual view, showing information about a selected tag, such as Gaussian distribution of
uncertainty, list of contributors to uncertainty, list of tags dependent on selected tags, etc.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 10
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When processing runs, ValiEngine produces a file called <main>.fmt where <main> is the name of the
pfd or unit which was last run, and containing various information about current run.
If Vali is run with option -SNS (by checking "Sensitivity report"), this file will be processed by the
sensitivity analysis program, which will calculate sensitivity results for each measured value.
Variables set as constants will be shown, but influence of these variables is not shown (impact of
constants can de obtained by setting parameter "Constants" to "are set as measurements" in unit
OPTVAL). The sensitivity analysis program can also be used as a stand-alone program. For more
information, please refer to Sensitivity analysis help.
The sensitivity analysis program produces a file called <main>_xml.res containing all sensitivity
analysis results, as well as some general information about current run (number of measurements,
redundancies, value of chi-square test...). Definition of the different information produced for each tag
can be found in the Tags table description. Definition of the relation between related tags can be
found in the Precedents/dependents tables description. Be aware that this file can be quite big.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
916 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 10
SECTION 3: GENERALITIES
This section gives general information about ValiAnalytics, and serves as a getting started guide.
toolbar
status bar
general functionalities
3.1 TOOLBAR
The toolbar is located at the top of the window and can be used to access ValiAnalytics main
functionalities.
FIGURE 4 - TOOLBAR
Hovering the mouse on any of the button will display a tooltip describing the function of this button.
OPEN FILE
To open a file, simply click on the open file button. Clicking this button will open a file browser
window, allowing you to open sensitivity analysis results file (<main>_xml.res). In the case where
ValiEngine was last executed without sensitivity analysis selected, a prompt window will ask you if
you wish to execute a sensitivity analysis for this later run.
FIGURE 5 - VALI RES ULTS MORE RECENT THAN S ENS ITIVITY RES ULTS
OPEN HELP
The open help button will open this help. You can also press the F1 key to display the help at any
time.
RELOAD FILE
The reload file button allows you to reload the current file, i.e. to read the last version of the file, for
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
example in the case where you would execute a sensitivity analysis outside of ValiAnalytics. In that
case there is no need to browse to find the file again. An error message will be displayed if no file has
been opened yet.
PREVIOUS/NEXT TAG
These buttons enable navigation between previously selected tags. These buttons are disabled when
first starting the application, as no tag has been previously selected. Button previous will be enabled
once a second tag is selected; button next will be enabled after button previous has been clicked.
SWITCH VIEW
ValiAnalytics offers two views. Views can be switched by selecting desired view in the toolbar.
FIT CONTENT
The different parts of the ValiAnalytics window can be resized independently, allowing you to focus
on the zone you're interested in. By pushing the fit content button, the different parts of the window
will be automatically resized to divide the screen in four equal parts.
HIDE/SHOW BUTTON
This button, located at the extreme right of the window, allows to show or hide the right hand part
of the window, offering the possibility to have a better overview of tags table. This button's text
changes according to the action performed when clicked.
The status bar displays general information about the current run, as well as the name of the current
user and the name of the License Server to which you are connected.
The different elements that are displayed in this status bar are (in order, from left to right):
Current status of application, i.e. if application is loading file ("Loading...") or idle ("For
help, press F1")
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918 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 10
ABOUT TABLES
Tables can be customized in ValiAnalytics. By right-clicking on a table, you will get access to a list of
optional columns that can be displayed. The options you choose are saved in <user>.ini file, and are
reused each time you open ValiAnalytics.
By right-clicking on tables, it is also possible to export displayed results to Excel, and to print current
table.
ABOUT CHARTS
All presented charts can be viewed in an external window. To open this window, simply double click
on a chart. This operation opens a second window, presenting the chart in bigger size, and enabling
to save this chart in selected format. Saved file will be located next to sensitivity analysis results
(same folder as <main>_xml.res file).
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
File name is set to tag name by default.This name can be changed using text box located at the bottom
of the window. Format of output file can also be chosen between png, jpg, bmp and gif, using drop-
down menu. Size of saved picture is the same as the display size. To save chart, just click the Save
button. This will close the window.
ABOUT HELP
Help file can be displayed any time, by pressing F1 key, or by clicking on the help button ( ) in the
toolbar.
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920 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 10
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
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922 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 10
RUN INFORMATION
The run information part gives a general overview of reconciliation results, and a graphical
representation of the chi-square curve, with actual point plotted.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 923
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
The global tags table is visible in both global and individual view. It contains all information related
to tags, i.e.:
Measured value and its accuracy (in absolute): actual measured value and the accuracy for
this value
Reconciled value and accuracy (in absolute): value after reconciliation, and accuracy
calculated by error propagation mechanism
Penalty: a value that reflects the difference between the measured and reconciled values
Error detectability: the maximum error that can occur on a measurement before it is
eliminated by gross error elimination mechanism
Maximum bias: the maximum error that will occur on a reconciled value if an error occurs
on the measured value, just before error detectability limit is reached for that measured
value
Measured and reconciled values and accuracies, gain and penalty can also be found in ValiModeller,
html reports, and are available through ValiReport. Refer to VALI help for more information on these
modules.
Error detectability and maximum bias are only available in ValiAnalytics. The error detectability
represents the deviation that can occur on a measured value before it is eliminated by gross error,
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924 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 10
assuming there is no error on any other measurement. The maximum bias represents the change on
the reconciled value if an error equal to error detectability occurs on the measured value of this tag, i.
e. just before gross error elimination.
FILTERING
At the top of the table, you can find text boxes allowing to filter the global tags table. This can be used
to search on tags, but also to get information on parts of the model, as global gain charts and gain by
measurement type charts are synchronized with the global tags table.
Name: filtering the name of tags. Enter the name of the tag(s) you are looking for.
Wildcards can be used (? for one character, * for several consecutive characters)
At the top-right of the tags table, the number of displayed tags vs. total number of tags is given.
TAGS INFORMATION
At the bottom of the table, several boxes give you information about currently selected tag:
Tag name
Owner name: the name of the object (unit or stream) on which the tag is defined
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
RIGHT CLICK
Right clicking on the table offers the possibility to export the table to MS Excel or to wordpad, and to
show hidden columns, which are:
Penalty
Gain
Error detectability
Maximum bias
The chart on the upper right part of the window gives a graphical representation of distribution of
gain in accuracy on tags of the model. This chart is synchronized with tags table, which means that
only tags that are displayed in the global tags table are taken into account in this chart.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
926 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 10
For each zone, the number of tags that have gain in this interval is given in the legend of the chart, as
well as the percentage of tags that this number represents.
The lower left part of the window contains general information about current run.
Total number of tags defined in the model (can be different than number of tags used for
reconciliation: streams or units OFF...)
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 927
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
Next to this table, a chart shows the chi-square curve, with actual value marked by an orange line
and the value of the objective function is represented by an orange square. This value is below the
curve when quality number is lower than one and above the curve when quality number is greater
than one (the lower quality the better).
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928 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 10
The lower right part of the window presents the average gain by measurement type. For each
selected measurement type, the average gain on measurement of this type is represented. This chart
is synchronized with the global tags table, which means that only tags that are displayed in the tags
table are taken into account in this chart.
The different measurement types available in the model can be displayed by right-clicking on the
chart, and selecting desired type.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 929
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
930 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 10
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 931
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
932 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 10
PRECEDENTS/DEPENDENTS TABLES
The precedent and dependent tables show the list of tags contributing to uncertainty of selected tag
and tags of which selected tag contributes to their uncertainty.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 933
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PRECEDENTS/DEPENDENTS CHARTS
The precedents and dependent charts show different charts related to precedent and dependent tags,
that can be switched using drop-down menu.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
934 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 10
The global tags table is visible in both global and individual view. It contains all information related
to tags, i.e.:
Measured value and its accuracy (in absolute): actual measured value and the accuracy for
this value
Reconciled value and accuracy (in absolute): value after reconciliation, and accuracy
calculated by error propagation mechanism
Penalty: a value that reflects the difference between the measured and reconciled values
Error detectability: the maximum error that can occur on a measurement before it is
eliminated by gross error elimination mechanism
Maximum bias: the maximum error that will occur on a reconciled value if an error occurs
on the measured value, just before error detectability limit is reached for that measured
value
Measured and reconciled values and accuracies, gain and penalty can also be found in ValiModeller,
html reports, and are available through ValiReport. Refer to VALI help for more information on these
modules.
Error detectability and maximum bias are only available in ValiAnalytics. The error detectability
represents the deviation that can occur on a measured value before it is eliminated by gross error,
assuming there is no error on any other measurement. The maximum bias represents the change on
the reconciled value if an error equal to error detectability occurs on the measured value of this tag, i.
e. just before gross error elimination.
FILTERING
At the top of the table, you can find text boxes allowing to filter the global tags table. This can be used
to search on tags, but also to get information on parts of the model, as global gain charts and gain by
measurement type charts are synchronized with the global tags table.
Name: filtering the name of tags. Enter the name of the tag(s) you are looking for.
Wildcards can be used (? for one character, * for several consecutive characters)
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 935
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
At the top-right of the tags table, the number of displayed tags vs. total number of tags is given.
TAGS INFORMATION
At the bottom of the table, several boxes give you information about currently selected tag:
Tag name
Owner name: the name of the object (unit or stream) on which the tag is defined
RIGHT CLICK
Right clicking on the table offers the possibility to export the table to MS Excel or to wordpad, and to
show hidden columns, which are:
Penalty
Gain
Error detectability
Maximum bias
The upper right part of the individual view shows the Gaussian distribution of measured and
reconciled values, and bars representing the value of gain and penalty of currently selected tag.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
936 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 10
The tag chart is made of 3 different parts: the gain bar, the penalty bar and the Gaussian distribution
of the tag.
GAIN BAR
The gain bar displays the gain (between 0% and 100%). The ability to reconcile the tag can be viewed
directly based on color:
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 937
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
PENALTY BAR
The penalty bar displays the penalty. Quality of measured value can be viewed based on color:
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938 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 10
When error detectability is too big (i.e. greater than 100*reconciled uncertainty), the distribution's
minimum and maximum axis values will be calculated according to the uncertainty of the tag, and
minimum and maximum values of error detectability will not be visible. In this case, the Expand
button will be enabled; by clicking on this button, minimum and maximum values of error
detectability will be displayed on chart. In this case, the Gaussian distribution can be very narrow.
The lower left part of the individual view contains two similar pages that can be accessed using tabs:
the precedents table, containing the list of tags that contribute to the uncertainty of
currently selected tag
the dependents table, containing the list of tags which selected tag contributes to their
uncertainty
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 939
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
These two tables contain the same information about each tag. Based on which table you are looking
at, the meaning of some information can differ. Information that can be found in this table is listed
below:
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
940 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 10
Derivative value (sensitivity) Derivative value of selected tag Derivative value of dependent
with respect to current tag with respect to selected tag,
precedent, i.e. how much will i.e. how much will change
change selected tag if precedent dependent tag if selected tag is
is increased by 1 increased by 1
Value covariance Value indicating how selected Value indicating how selected
tag value and precedent tag tag value and dependent tag
value are correlated value are correlated
Deviation covariance Value indicating how selected Value indicating how selected
error on selected tag value and error on selected tag value and
precedent tag value are dependent tag value are
correlated correlated
Refer to tags table to get more information about error detectability and maximum bias.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 941
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
TAGS INFORMATION
At the bottom of the table, several boxes give you information about currently selected tag:
Tag name
Owner name: the name of the object (unit or stream) on which the tag is defined
INTERACTION
Right clicking on the table offers the possibility to export the table to MS Excel or to wordpad, and to
show hidden columns, which are:
Gain
Penalty
Maximum bias
Error detectability
Robustness
Value covariance
Uncertainty covariance
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942 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 10
By right clicking and selecting "Filter Values...", you also get the possibility to set some filters on
values displayed, i.e. to show only tags that have accuracy contribution, derivative value and
robustness in a chosen interval.
Double clicking on a tag will select this tag in the general tags table. If tag is hidden due to filtering, a
window will propose you to remove filtering in order to show requested tag.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 943
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
The lower right part of the individual view of ValiAnalytics displays several charts related to
precedent tags.
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944 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 10
The different charts show information related to up to 10 precedents, corresponding to the 10 main
contributors to uncertainty of the selected tag. If the selected tag has more than 10 precedents, these
will be gathered under the term "Others". 9 different charts can be shown:
Contribution Pie chart: Pie chart representing the partition of contribution of precedent
tags to uncertainty of currently selected tag. Contribution to uncertainty, in percentages,
of each precedent is given in the legend of the chart.
Contribution bar graph: Bar graph representing the contribution of precedent tags to
uncertainty of currently selected tag.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 945
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
Value correlation coefficient: Bar graph representing Value correlation coefficient of main
contributors.
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946 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 10
Penalty bar graph: Bar graph representing the penalty of main contributors.
Derivative value bar graph: Bar graph representing derivative values of selected tag with
respect to precedents
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 947
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
Gain bar graph: Bar graph representing the gain in uncertainty of main contributors
Error detectability bar graph: Bar graph representing error detectability of main
contributors
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948 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 10
Max bias bar graph: Bar graph representing maximum bias of main contributors
Robustness bar graph: Bar graph representing robustness of selected tag according to
main contributors
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 949
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
A definition of all the concepts shown in these charts can be found in the table of description of
parameters.
SHOW/HIDE BUTTON
When opening ValiAnalytics individual view, one chart is displayed. By clicking the Show button
located at the upper right of the chart, a second chart, similar to first will be displayed. These two
parts can be shown independently to show two different charts next to each other. Once the second
chart is displayed, the button is renamed Hide. Clicking this button hides the second chart.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
950 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
CHAPTER 11
LICENSEMANAGER
XI
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 11
SECTION 1: INTRODUCTION
The use of Belsim software is controlled by the Belsim LicenseServer, which controls:
the access of the user to the various modules of Belsim software according to the licenses
acquired by the customer and to the rights granted to the users
the list of tags and their corresponding name in external systems (PIMS, DCS, etc.)
Several LicenseServers can be available on a given network. The server specified in the belsim.ini file
is selected by default.
To configure the LicenseServer and maintain the list of users, plants and tags, you will use the
LicenseManager. It also enables to release licenses held by applications and to make back-up of the
database of registered tags.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 953
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
Different licensing policies are applied on the various modules of Belsim software family. They
combine the notion of:
simultaneous users : the total number of instances of a given module at a given moment
cannot exceed the licensed number of "simultaneous users"
tags: the total number of tags used in all models that are maintained cannot exceed the
licensed number of tags
ValiProduction Application: the set of VALI modules (shared or not shared) required to
compute and report on the mass or material balance of a given production facility for the
production accounting of the said facility
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
954 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 11
Any application requesting a license from the LicenseServer has to provide a user name, which by
default is the login name of the user in the operating system. Should this user not been defined in the
LicenseServer he will be granted the rights associated to the special user GUEST. These rights
concern:
User rights are defined through the LicenseManager by administrators. The status of administrator
can be granted to any user by any administrator.
Existing users are by default Active. They can be set as Disabled by an administrator. A Disabled
user cannot perform any action.
In addition to the rights devoted to all administrators, the user ADMIN is the only user who can
change his own rights as well as the rights of the user GUEST.
The default password of the ADMIN user is "admin". This password should be changed after the
installation of LicenseServer.
Attention: The notion of administrator is completely independent from the administrator status of
Windows operating system.
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Each time a user starts an application, the availability of the corresponding license will be checked. If
a license is available, a handler is allocated to the application. The handler is released when quitting
the corresponding application.
If for any reason, the application would be abruptly terminated, its handler will be de-activated after
a configurable time-out (which is by default 15 minutes but can be increased via the
LicenseManager). This de-activation frees up the corresponding license.
2.4 TAGS
The number of tags you can handle with a given license server is limited in two ways:
at any time, the total number of registered tags cannot exceed the number of tags you have
been licensed
in a given month you cannot import more tags than the number of tags you have been
licensed
using ValiModeller when loading a model which contains tags that are not yet registered
using the LicenseManager, when importing a list of tags (and possibly their DBname).
Note that only the new tags will be considered as imported. The already existing tags will
simply be updated
In case of emergency, you can reset the number of imported tags to zero by contacting Belsim hotline
support.
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956 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 11
2.5 PLANTS
Each tag of a model must be associated to a PLANT. This enables to easily track the tags at the
License Server level.
The notion of PLANT is also used by ValiLink to communicate with external systems. For each plant,
you will indicate the type of system (for example PI or MS-SQL) that gives access to this tag as well as
the IP address (or UNC) and the username and password to be used for the connection.
ValiManager is the set of VALI modules (shared or not shared) required to compute and report on the
mass or material balance of a given production facility for the production accounting of the said
facility. ValiManager applications are configured through ValiManager client application.
ValiPerformance is the set of VALI modules required to compute and report on a performance
monitoring application. ValiPerformance applications are configured through ValiScheduler
application.
2.7 SUB-LICENSES
The Sub-Licensing features allow the USER to work on models created on other LicenceServers (e.g.
Corporate Servers), with the local LicenceServer installed on the USER own laptop or workstation.
Additional Tags and Plants registration or importation on the local LicenseServer are not required.
The present section aims at describing the Sub-Licensing feature. A typical situation is given as an
example in order to illustrate the Sub-Licensing concept.
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the Corporate LicenseServer (licA) owns 800 Tags out of 1000 allowed
the USER Workstation LicenseServer (licB) owns 100 Tags out of 300 allowed
The licB USER working on his own PC (orange colored), would like to work on the model owning 800
Tags that has been created on licA.
As the USER LicenseServer (licB) maximum Tags allowed is 300, and as 100 Tags have already been
registered, the USER is only allowed to register 200 more Tags. The 800 Tags model can thus not be
imported on the USER workstation and the tags cannot be registered as the number of tags to be
registered exceeds the 200 tags free.
the USER working on his own workstation using licB, is allowed to share the tags defined
on licA while licB still have the 200 tags free
the USER working on his own workstation using licB, is allowed to work and modify the
imported model. The USER can create up to 200 new tags in the imported model
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958 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 11
under Export section, define the location where you want to save the ZIP file
under Import section, select “From Zip” option and locate the ZIP file previously exported
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click OK
you can define up to 10 Sub-Licenses on the local LicenseServer. When you import a
database already defined as a Sub-License, the TAGs/Plants are automatically overwritten
by the ones defined in the new Zipped database
if you add TAGs to the model of a Sub-License, these new TAGs will be saved/registered in
the local database
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960 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 11
At start up, the application will require your identification (name and password) and the address of
the LicenseServer (IP address or computer name); This address can be selected using the drop-down
list. Leaving the address empty will select the current computer as LicenseServer (localhost).
IP addresses can be added and removed using Edit button. This will open a new window allowing to
add and remove IP addresses/computer names, and selecting the default IP address, that will be used
by all Belsim applications. ValiScheduler and ValiManager offer the choice of the LicenseServer that
will be connected:
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The settings of LicenseManager are accessed via a notebook that has 8 pages:
To unlock your LicenseServer, please contact Belsim hotline support to obtain a password then
follow the next steps:
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962 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 11
The General page displays the basic information about available licenses:
Next Automatic Reset: date at which the number of imported tags will be reset
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License Time Out: time-out after which a license can be reallocated when the application is
inactive
Use the Reset button to manually reset the number of imported tags. (A password must be
requested from Belsim).
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964 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 11
a name
the IP/UNC of the computer with the ValiService that will process the application
the path where the application files will be saved (path of the application)
If the status of the application is set to ON, the application will start to be processed immediately.
After creating a ValiProduction application, the authentication settings must be defined according to
a number of roles:
Master: gives full access to the application including runs approval and changes to official
model but not to configuration panel neither to ValiModeller
Operator: enables to modify settings (ValiMask) and manual corrections on official runs
and to ask for reruns
Modeller: enables to work in manual mode but not to save as Official model or Official run
Reader: can only see results (overview of processed runs and access to ValiReport)
The Add Application button is used to define a new application in the LicenseServer. Some
information must be provided to create a new application:
Application Type: (Production or Test). A test application doesn't write back values in the
database (ValiLink Out)
Status (ON/OFF): if set to OFF, ValiService will not process this application
Folders Creation: if checked, all folders and files needed to run an application will be
created
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The Refresh key is used to refresh the complete list of ValiProduction application according to their
last modifications at the License Server level.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 11
a name
the IP/UNC of the computer with the ValiService that will process the application
To add a ValiPerformance, press the Add Application button and enter the required settings:
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
The Refresh key is used to refresh the complete list of ValiPerformance application according to their
last modifications at the License Server level.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 11
The Tag page displays the list of tags that have been defined together with:
The two groups of settings above the Tag list can be used to limit the number of tags displayed in the
Tag list by specifying their name, associated plant or owner, and according by their date of last use.
You can combine the various conditions and use wildcards for the names (tag, plant, owner).
After any change in these settings use the Search Now button or press Enter key to reprocess the list
according the new conditions.
The Owner button enables to reallocate the selected tags to another user.
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The Export button is used to export the list of selected tags as an ASCII file with the data included in
each column:
the owner
The Import key is used to import a similar list. Only the first 3 columns will be used for the import,
they must include the following information:
Please note that in a given month you cannot import more tags than the number of tags you have
been licensed.
The Refresh key is used to refresh the complete list of tags according to their last modifications at the
License Server level.
Attention: You will use the Export/Import facility for example to update the tag name / Dbname
association via a Text Editor.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 11
their owner
the DB name
The New and Duplicate button allows creating a new plant either from scratch or by using the data
of an existing plant.
The LogName/Password button is used to modify the log name password associated to a given
plant.
The Delete button enables to delete a plant. You can only delete a plant if no tags are associated to it.
The Refresh key is used to refresh the list of plants according to their last modifications at the License
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Server level.
their status:
Inactive: the user is defined but currently disabled; he will not be authorized to access
any of the licensed software modules
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972 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 11
The Password button is used to modify the password associated to a given user. Administrator
status is required in order to change the password of other users.
The New and Duplicate button allows creating a new user either from scratch or by using the data of
an existing user (administrators only).
The Delete button enables to delete a user (administrators only). You can only delete a user if he does
not own any tag.
When creating a new user, a Network Identifier will be automatically detected using Windows
Active Directory. The Network Identification can be changed manually by clicking on the button
in the "Network Identification" column.
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
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974 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 11
The Maintenance page displays the list of back-up of the database together with:
Use the Back-up button to create a new back-up of the database. You can create as many back-up as
you want.
Use the Restore button to restore the selected bac-up. Please note that you can restore only one back-
up per month. A special password must be requested from Belsim to overcome this limitation
through the Reset button
Use the Install License Key button to upload a new license key provided by Belsim.
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
it activity (NO means that the application has not been active for a duration of time
greater than the time-out)
The Delete button enables to delete a handler in order to free up the corresponding license
(administrators only).
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976 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
CHAPTER 12
VALIPERFORMANC
E XII
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 12
With VALI, you move from data to information, from information to knowledge and finally from
knowledge to action.
VALI converts the raw measurement data into reliable information by applying data validation
technique involving among others heat and mass balances.
1.1 ValiPerformance
ValiPerformance is oriented towards online process performance monitoring, i.e. online reporting of
the key performance information of a process such as process yield, reaction selectivity, delta_T
approach to the equilibrium, energy consumption, equipment efficiency (e.g. heat transfer coefficient,
turbine and compressor efficiency...).
The application calculates detailed heat and mass balances of the units, including utilities (steam and
fuel-gas). These balances are calculated using all available measurement redundancy to determine a
single set of values consistent with conservation of heat and mass. This data represents the most
likely point of actual plant operation.
Identify heat loads, heat transfer coefficients and fouling factors on heat exchangers
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
Calculate various Key Performance Indicators such as (this list is not exhaustive):
Yields
Efficiencies
Compound mass balances, heat balance and pressure drop balances are generated around each
equipment. Liquid/Vapour separators also include L/V equilibrium constraints. Reactors are
modelled either by atomic balances or according to defined reaction schemes. Chemical equilibrium
constraints are also taken into account where necessary.
ValiAnalytics, a Graphical User Interface used for sensitivity analysis of your model and
your results
ValiReport : a tool integrated in MS Excel® and designed for the visualisation and
reporting of results and that is configurable according to user needs
ValiFilter : a data filtering module, which ensures an optimal operation of VALI through a
pre-processing of raw measurement data
ValiEvent : an add-on that analyses the online measurement data in a fixed time interval
and reports on the detected events
ValiLink : data connection module between VALI and an external system (can be PIMS,
DCS, LIMS…)
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980 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 12
ValiManager : an application that runs on top of VALI and that handles different aspects of
production accounting as access authorizations, periodic runs, database storage, model
versioning, etc. ValiManager deals with total site production accounting on a stated period
of time (typically one day)
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CHAPTER 13
VALILINK
XIII
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 13
SECTION 1: INTRODUCTION
ValiLink is a generic application allowing to transfer information between VALI and external
systems such as PIMS, DCS or more generally data bases. The currently supported systems are:
PI (OSIsoft ©)
PlantConne ct (ABB ©)
WinIS (Sie me ns ©)
Microsoft SQL Se rve r 7.0 or late r (using SQL Se rve r .NET Data Provide r)
ASCII file s.
ValiLink can be used both for reading or writing data from and to the external system. Typically you
will use ValiLink before starting a ValiEngine (online or offline) to get data from one or several data
sources and you will start it again after the run to store the results.
ValiLink can be called directly from ValiReport and ValiScheduler. It can also be launched manually
or via another application.
ValiLink directly reads the list of tags to be acquired (or written) in the bls file. This
procedure can only be used with direct access system, not with SQL like databases
ValiLink reads the description of operations to be performed in an INI file, which will in
turn refer to ASCII files with the list of tags to be read from (or written to) the external
system
ValiLink reads the description of operations to be performed in an INI file, and reads in the
bls file the list of tags to be read from (or written to) the external system
The INI file can easily be configured using ValiLinkBuilder application or can be edited using a text
editor.
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
the name of the server (external system) to be connected to is read from the bls file (defined
through the plant associated to each tag), while the userid and password to be used are
read from LicenseServer
the TAG values are then read from the server and written in a file called Valilink.mea
the name of the server (external system) to be connected to is read from the INI file, while
the userid and password to be used are read from LicenseServer
the INI file specifies for each action the name of a model file where the list of tags to be
acquired will be read
the TAG values are then read from the server and written in the Output File specified in
the INI file (e.g. ValiLInk.mea)
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986 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 13
FIGURE 2 - CONFIGURING VALILINK INPUT VIA AN INI FILE AND A MODEL FILE
the name of the server (external system) to be connected to is read from the INI file, while
the userid and password to be used are read from LicenseServer
the list of tags to be acquired is read from an ASCII file specified in the INI file
the TAG values are then read from the server and written in the output file specified in the
INI file
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ValiLink receives as arguments the name of the bls file as well as the operation (OUT) and
the time window
the name of the server (external system) to be connected to is read from the bls file (defined
as the plant associated to each tag), while the userid and password to be used are read
from LicenseServer
the TAG values are then read from the bls file and written to the external system
ValiLink receives as arguments the name of the INI file as well as the time window
the name of the server (external system) to be connected to is read from the INI file, while
the userid and password to be used are read from LicenseServer
the list of tags and their values are read from the InputFile specified in the INI file
In some cases the names of the tags in your Vali model will be different from the names of the tags as
defined in the external system.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 13
the tagname which is the usual tag name defined in the VALI model
the Dbname which is the name used in the external system. This second name will be
stored in the LicenseManager and will therefore be available for all models referring to the
same tag
The Dbname is defined when creating the tag with ValiModeller. It can be redefined afterwards using
LicenseManager or ValiModeller.
When getting (writing) values from (to) an external system, ValiLink will use the Dbname (if defined)
in place of the Tagname when communicating with the external system. Moreover, ValiLink will
add any defined prefix or suffix to the Dbname (or tagname if no Dbname is defined) when writing
the values to the external system.
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
ValiLink has been designed to be automated through ValiReport or ValiScheduler. However it can
also be automated through other applications.
the physical units of the duration: S, s, SEC, Sec, sec, M, m, MIN, Min, min, Hour, H, h,
HOUR, Hour, hour, Day, D, d, DAY, Day, day
the name of an information file (ini file) describing the actions to be performed
the physical units of the duration: S, s, SEC, Sec, sec, M, m, MIN, Min, min, Hour, H, h,
HOUR, Hour, hour, Day, D, d, DAY, Day, day
Example:
C:\Program Files\Belsim\bin\ValiLink.exe -BLS C:\Demo\coal.bls IN 20040826_162839 24 H
C:\Program Files\Belsim\bin\ValiLink.exe C:\Demo\SomeActions.ini 20040826_162839 24 H
The date and time format used in the argument of the command line is YYYYMMDD_hhmmss
Example:
20040826_162839 corresponds to 26 August 2002 at 16:28:39 (4:28:39 pm)
The Time Window of the validation run is delimited by two dates: BeginDate and EndDate.
If the duration value is positive, then the given date is the BeginDate and the EndDate will calculated
as:
If the duration value is negative, then the given date is the EndDate and the BeginDate will calculated
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 13
as:
Examples:
C:\Belsim\BinDemo\ValiLink.exe SomeActions.ini 20080327_120000 24 H
The BeginDate will be March 27, 2008 at 12:00:00
Attention: The date will automatically be written in the generated output file as RUNDATE field.
At the end of its execution, ValiLink produces a file named ValiLink_log.ini containing the keyword
EXITCODE followed by a numeric code:
Example:
[EXITCODE]
ExitCode=0
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Go to Start Menu|Programs|Belsim|Vali4|ValiLinkBuilder
First, save the ValiLink file (commonly named ValiLink_IN.INI or ValiLink_OUT.INI for
measurements reading and writing respectively), then choose the Database type from/to which
measurements are read/written:
The ValiLinkBuilder main interface displays the data base type that has been previously chosen:
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 13
for measurements reading, go to the ValiScheduler - Tab ‘Acquisition’ and press the Edit
button related to the existing ValiLink file
for measurements writing, go to the ValiScheduler - Tab ‘Storage’ and press the Edit
button related to the existing ValiLink file
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 13
The main window allows specifying the general settings for ValiLink.
The Database Type [a] contains the type of database chosen when creating a new ValiLink file. With
PI (OSIsoft ©), there are two ways of querying the database:
PI API is the default interface. To use PI SDK for connection, the "use PI SDK" checkbox has to be
checked.
The Plant information [b] contains information related to the database server. The Plant Name is to
be selected amongst the plants defined in the LicenseManager and provides information related to
the external database:
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the Server (TCP-IP/UNC) of the external database or its Windows Network Name
Attention: the database server related to the chosen plant should be of the same type as the one
defined at the ValiLink file creation [a].
Database [c] is the database used by default when no database has been defined in the
Actions section [r]
Short Date Format [d] is the format of the date used for SQL transactions
Long Date Format [e] is the format of the date and time used for SQL transactions
Max. Failed Tags [f] is the maximum allowed number of tags for which ValiLink is unable
to retrieve values. If the maximum allowed number is exceeded, the acquisition step status
is failed
Offset Time [g] aims at taking into account the possible time difference in between the
ValiScheduler time zone and the external system time zone. The offset time is the time
added to the time range (begin and end dates) given as an argument to the ValiLink
Number of Retry [h] is the number of trials processed by ValiLink in case of connection
failure with the external system for example
Retry Delay [i] is the time duration in between two trials [h]
Validity File [j] gives the path and name of the Validity file which contains the date and
time from which given measurement data are to be acquired (Syntax of Validity file:
TAGNAME yyyymmdd_hhmmss). Before the mentioned date and time, the specified
measurement data are not valid. Note that the path is relative to the ValiLink
configuration file
Bad Data Mode [k] is the mode selected for handling bad data (i.e. unavailable data, -
999.999, etc.):
NONE: The key word BAD is used as the tag value (Example of outputs: TAGNAME
BAD)
HISTORY: If the data is bad at time T, the values in the database at time T-1 to T-n are
checked (n is expressed as a multiplication factor of the aggregation period set for
calculation and is defined at section Bad Data Max Age [l]). The first valid value that is
found, started from T-1, is retrieved and takes the place of the bad data (Example of
outputs: TAGNAME 10°C BAD)
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 13
MEA: If the data is bad at time T, the values in the backup directory at time T-1 to T-n is
checked (n is expressed as a multiplication factor of the aggregation period set for
calculation and is defined at section Bad Data Max Age [l]). The first valid value that is
found, started from T-1, is retrieved and takes the place of the bad data (Example of
outputs: TAGNAME 10°C BAD)
Bad Data Max Age [l] is used when either HISTORY or MEA Bad Mode are selected [k]. It
defines the n parameter used in the Bad Data Mode [k] and is expressed as a multiplication
factor of the aggregation period set for calculation
Compare Mode [m] is the mode selected for handling data comparison and detecting flat
tags (i.e. data that are showing a constant value over time). Tags that are showing a same
value over the previous run is specified as FLAT 1 while tags that are showing a same
value over the previous n run is specified as FLAT 2 (see Nb of Points to Compare [n] for
definition of the n parameter)
HISTORY: The acquired measurement data at time T are compared with the ones
coming from the database at time T-1 to T-n (n is expressed as a multiplication factor of
the aggregation period set for calculation and is defined at section Nb of Points to
Compare [n])
MEA: The acquired measurement data at time T are compared with the ones coming
from the backup directory at time T-1 to T-n (n is expressed as a multiplication factor
of the aggregation period set for calculation and is defined at section Nb of Points to
Compare [n])
Nb of Points to Compare [n] is used when either HISTORY or MEA Compare Mode are
selected [m]. It defines the n parameter used in the Compare Mode [m] and is expressed as a
multiplication factor of the aggregation period set for calculation
Max Flat [o] is the allowed percentage of flat tags (expressed in percentage). The percentage
is computed based on valid values only (i.e. bad values are not taken into account). If the
allowed percentage is exceeded then an action will be taken. The action is defined at section
Flat Mode [p]
Flat Mode [p] defines the action to be taken in the case allowed percentage [o] of flat
measurements is exceeded
FAILED: an ERF (error file) is generated and the ValiLink action status is failed
OK: no specific action is taken and the ValiLink action status is considered as succeeded
SERVER: ValiLink action is restarted and ALL tags are acquired on a secondary server.
This action is useful in case flat measurements are due to a replica problem in between
databases, i.e. the database from which we read data is not synchronized with the
database connected to the installation
Dictionary [q] defines the name and path of the Dictionary file which contains the
keywords used for digital tags in the external system. Note that the path is relative to the
ValiLink configuration file
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In case a dictionary file is referenced, the parameters for either time fraction or time
duration calculation are defined through the Actions section [r] (Fields [43] [49] [50] [53]).
The Actions [r] allows editing/creating/deleting actions to be carried out, related to the reading/
writing from/to external systems. Please see the Actions section for further information.
The Log File Settings contains the settings of the logging system. This section is not mandatory.
Default data will be used in case fields are left blank.
Path [t] refers to the path where the ValiLink log file is to be stored. By default, the path is
the same as the ValiLink.INI file
File Name [u] gives the name of the ValiLink log file. If the field is left blank, the default
name is ValiLink.log
Error level to log [v] is used to filter the level of information and error messages to be
written in the log file. The log level is to be chosen amongst: NONE, INF, WRN, ERR, ERS
and ERF. Messages of a level higher than the one chosen for the log file are written. For
instance, if the Error level to log is ERR, the ERR, ERS and ERF messages will be printed
only. If the field is left blank, the level INF is used by default
BACKUP: the old file ValiLink.log is renamed as ValiLink_bck.log and messages of the
current run are logged into a new file ValiLink.log. If the field is left blank, BACKUP is
used by default
APPEND: messages of the current run are appended to the old file ValiLink.log
Maximum Size [x] refers to the maximum allowed size of the log file. If the field is left
blank, the default size is 10 Mb
Bad Data Mode is intended for applications where retrieving and re-using the last valid
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 13
The latest valid measurement values present in the database or backed-up files will be retrieved and
used in the reconciliation step, but marked as BAD in the log and results files.
Bad data mode parameters are defined at fields [k] and [l] of the main page of the ValiLink Builder.
Two kinds of Flat measurements are distinguished, namely FLAT 1 and FLAT 2:
FLAT 1 is related to measurement data for which the value is the same as the previous run
(n=1)
FLAT 2 is related to measurement data for which the value is the same as the n consecutive
previous runs, where the n parameter is defined by the User (see 'Nb of points to compare'
field [n])
Flat Data detection over the n previous runs (n is set at ‘Nb of points to compare’ field [o]) is intended
to detect flat measurement and taking an action (action is set at ‘Flat mode’ field [p]) in case the
percentage of flat data has exceeded the allowable limit (limit set at ‘Max Flat’ field [o]). Flat data
mode parameters are defined at fields [m], [n], [o] and [p] of the main page of the ValiLink Builder.
Flat data are indicated by the following syntax in the ValiLink output file:
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
Note that the flat data syntax is handled by the ValiEngine as if it was a regular tag.
Attention:
Flat mode should not be used for binary tags as those tags can have a same value (e.g.
OPEN) over time
Actions section aims at describing how to carry out the reading/writing from/to the external
systems. The actions are defined via the ValiLink Action graphical interface. Several actions can be
defined, each ones having a unique number (Action i where i is a unique incremental number). Note
that the actions will be performed successively according to the order in which they appear in the
ValiLink.INI file and not according to their name numbering i.
To edit/create/delete an action, press the Edit/Add/Remove button of the Actions window [r]
respectively:
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 13
Depending on the database type (defined in Database Type), the ValiLink Action window is
automatically adapted.
The description of the fields of the ValiLink Action window are given below. A number is associated
to each field, and their description can be found in the recapitulative table (see Fields Recapitulative
Table). The numbering legend is
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The FILE plug can only be configured to read data, as described in following section.
The FILE plug differentiates from other plugs in many ways. It is to be considered as a tool to copy
files from one working directory (possibly located on an external server) [1] to another working
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 13
directory [13] rather than getting or writing tag values individually. The plug also enables
interpreting the contents [19] of the source file or backing-up the copied file [3] in a separate folder
[11].
For the specified Begin_Date, ValiLink will search a source folder for a file named according to the
following scheme:
FilePrefixYYYYMMDD_HHMMSSFileSuffix.FileExtension
where:
If the file is found, ValiLink will copy the corresponding file in the output directory [13].
Please refer to Fields recapitulative table for further information on all fields.
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FIGURE 11 – EDIT VALILINK ACTION WINDOW FOR PI, PLANTCONNECT AND OPC HDA PLUGS
The action aims at acquiring from an external system, N values [36] (set by default at 1) of type
defined at ‘Value Type’ field [30] between BeginDate and EndDate time, for each tags listed in the
InputFile [27].
The input file [27] can be either a model file or a text file. In case a model file is used, the type of values
to be read are to be defined at Tags…Historian Tab of the ValiModeller:
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 13
Tags are classified by Plant Name and by Value Type (ReadDB: BEGINDATE, AVERAGE, etc.).
Consequently, ValiLink will retrieve amongst the tags defined in the model file, only the ones that
correspond to the Value Type [30] defined in the actions.
MANDATORY FIELDS
Action [26]: READDB
Attention: In case several types of aggregation mode are used, an action should be defined per
aggregation mode.
OPTIONAL FIELDS
Prefix [31]
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Suffix [32]
EndofLine [33]
Default [35]
DataBase [45]
Comment [41]
Please refer to Fields recapitulative table for further information on all fields.
The action aims at writing data to an external system for each tags specified in the InputFile [27].
MANDATORY FIELDS
Action [26]: WRITEDB
InputFile [27]
OPTIONAL FIELDS
Prefix [31]
Suffix [32]
DataBase [45]
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
time fraction
duration calculation
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 13
TIME FRACTION
ValiLink can detect the time fraction during which a given condition is satisfied for a given tag and
over a given period.
For instance, if a digital tag indicates that a piece of equipment is functioning or not, ValiLink can
detect the time fraction over which this unit has been stopped during a specific time span (e.g. 5
hours before the present run).
This allows taking preventive actions if a transient behavior is expected after the restarting of a piece
of equipment (example: well restart).
ValiLink will output in a mea file, a value in between 0 and 1 associated to a new tag, composed of
the original tag name and the suffix “_TIMEFRAC”. Because of the variation range of those values
[0;1], those tags can directly be used as status tags in ValiModeller.
The condition to be satisfied can be either related to digital, analogical or string tags. In case of a
digital tag, the conditions are 0 or 1 (Note that the mapping to explicit keywords such as OPEN,
CLOSED, etc. is done through the dictionary file [q]).
Attention: For activating the time fraction calculation, the Value Type field [30] has to be defined to
“Time_fraction”.
DURATION CALCULATION
For a specific tag, ValiLink can evaluate the time duration for which a given condition is satisfied.
For instance, a digital tag has 2 values: 0 or 1, meaning that a piece of equipment in functioning or not
respectively. At the current run, the unit is functioning. ValiLink can detect the time duration over
which the piece of equipment has been active.
The output will be written in a mea file and is expressed in seconds. It will be associated with a tag
composed of the original tag name and the suffix “_DURATION”.
Attention: For activating this feature, the Value Type field [30] has to be defined to “Duration”.
Please refer to Fields recapitulative table for further information on all fields.
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FIGURE 13 – EDIT VALILINK ACTION WINDOW FOR S QL, ACCES S , ORACLE, IP21 AND ODBC PLUGS
The action aims at acquiring from an external system, NValue [36] values (by default 1) for each of
the tags specified in the InputFile [27], through the execution of a SELECT query [46]. The results are
written in the OutputFile [28].
MANDATORY FIELDS
Action [26]: READDB
InputFile [27]
OutputFile [28]
StrSQL_SELECT [46]
OPTIONAL FIELDS
Prefix [31]
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 13
Suffix [32]
EndofLine [33]
Default [35]
DataBase [45]
Please refer to Fields recapitulative table for further information on all fields.
The action aims at writing data to an external system for each tags specified in the InputFile [27]
through the execution of an INSERT [47] and/or UPDATE [48] query.
MANDATORY FIELDS
Action [26]: WRITEDB
InputFile [27]
StrSQL_INSERT [47]
StrSQL_UPDATE [48]
OPTIONAL FIELDS
Prefix [31]
Suffix [32]
QueryOrder [44]
DataBase [45]
Please refer to Fields recapitulative table for further information on all fields.
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1010 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 13
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1 Value OK
String
2 Value failed
[25] Quality Map Quality Map =
01010101 3 Failed with substitute value
4 Value hidden
[AVG | MEAN |
[30] Value Type Specify the type of values to be transferred:
MIN | MAX |
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 13
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Phys Unit
[37] Not used Not used
Concordance
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 13
used by default
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 1015
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
1016 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 13
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[FOLDER]
[64] Server Type Specify the
[FTP]
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 13
Examples:
342.524
0.485640E-01
-23813,3
0.244926E+14
SEPARATION CHARACTERS
Tab and Space can be used as separation character.
Example:
PI-001
TI-002
FI-001
...
Typically the Input File will have been generated by VALI as an OUTPUT measurement file.
Example:
PI-001 27.3000 barg
TI-001 192.000 C
FI-001 1003.42 t/h
...
The tag values acquired from an external system will be written in the Output File in a format
directly readableby VALI as measurement file.
Physical units (also known as engineering units) are written in the output file by the application
when they are provided by the external system. Should a space character appear in these physical
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
units, it will be replaced by the underscore character: "_". For example, Bar g will be converted into
Bar_g.
The three fields (tag name, value and physical units) are separated by a tab.
Example:
PI-001 <tab> 27.3000 <tab> barg
TI-001 <tab> 192.000 <tab> C
FI-001 <tab> 1003.42 <tab> t/h
...
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 13
INF: Information:
WRN: Warning:
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
For further technical details regarding the PI server configuration, please visit OsiSoft support site at
support.OSIsoft.com.
or through PI Advanced Programming Interface (API). The PI connector uses the API
routines included in the PIAPI32.dll library. ValiLink is compliant with PIAPI32.dll
version 1.3.8.0 and later.
Any of the following separate installation will enable a working connection on the client side:
the PI-software development kit (PI-SDK version 1.2.0): The PI Software Development Kit
(PI-SDK ) is a programming tool providing access to PI Servers. The software consists of an
ActiveX in-process server, an ActiveX control, and supporting code libraries
PI ProcessBook (PI-PB version 2.31): A graphics package that allows users to create
dynamic, interactive graphical displays featuring real-time PI data
The PI connector must be installed on the computer where VALI software is installed. No further
software is needed.
On top of the requirements described above, the customer will enable the connection at the network
level: generally, customer network security policies do not interfere with the connection between
ValiLink and the PI server.
A working PI connection can be tested thanks to the PI ProcessBook on the computer where VALI is
installed.
ValiLink is compliant with PI Trust to simplify the connection with PI DAHS that are managed
through PI Trust.
Attention:
1. When reading a value, ValiLink will always retrieve the extrapolated value.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 13
6.2 IP21
For further technical details regarding the IP21 server configuration, please visit AspenTech support
site at support.aspentech.com.
On top of the requirements described above, the customer will enable the connection at the network
level: generally, customer network security policies do not interfere with the connection between
ValiLink and the IP21 server.
ODBC CONFIGURATION
ValiLink uses ODBC connection to provide data access to the IP21 Database.
ODBC (Open Database Connectivity) is a standard database access method. The goal of ODBC is to
access data from any application, regardless of which DataBase Management System (DBMS) is
handling the data. ODBC manages this by inserting a middle layer, called a database driver, between
an application and the DBMS. The purpose of this layer is to translate the application's data queries
into commands that the DBMS understands. For this to work, both the application and the DBMS
must be ODBC-compliant that is, the application must be capable of issuing ODBC commands and
the DBMS must be capable of responding to them.
Before connecting to the Database, the user must first create a DSN (Data Source Name) via the "
ODBC Data Source Administrator" program found in the client computer's Control Panel (in
Administrative Tools menu). Make sure to create a SYSTEM DSN (not a USER DSN).
Click "add" in the menu and choose in the list "AspenTech SQLplus" to create a new data source.
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
The AspenTech IP21 ODBC connection uses the Windows login to connect to the database. There are
no identifying and password to introduce in the configuration.
a short description
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 13
REQUEST WORD
The reserved word "request" is used to specify the type of data returned. By default, the value is 1 but
in our case, value must be set to 2 (used for instant value). For more information, please refer to the
SQLplus help.
SELECT QUERIES
ValiLink enables to use all the SQL language detailed in the SQLplus help to read and write data to/
from IP21 Databases.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 1025
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
INSERT-UPDATE QUERIES
The INSERT commands always insert a new value, even if there is already a record with same data.
It is therefore recommended to always use the UPDATE command first.
Attention:
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1026 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 13
[LOGFILE OPTION]
Path=
LogLevel=0
Backup Option=BACKUP
[Action1]
InputFile=ToSQL_all.txt
OutputFile=FromSQL.mea
StrSQL_select=SELECT VALUE, Phys_Unit FROM db WHERE NAME = '%INPUT1%' AND Date =
'%BeginDateLong%';
[Action2]
QueryOrder=update
InputFile=SQLtest.out
StrSQL_update=Update "%INPUT1%" SET IP_TREND_VALUE = %INPUT2% WHERE IP_TREND_TIME =
TIMESTAMP'%EndDateLong%';
StrSQL_insert=INSERT INTO "%INPUT1%"(IP_TREND_VALUE,IP_TREND_TIME) VALUES
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
(%INPUT2%,TIMESTAMP'%BeginDateLong%');
6.3 PLANTCONNECT
The PlantConnect server must be configured to enable reading and receiving data from VALI. A
dedicated user with the appropriate rights must be created to enable the access to PlantConnect.
For further technical details regarding the PlantConnect server configuration, please contact ABB
technical support.
On top of the requirements described above, the customer must enable the connection at the network
level: generally, customer network security policies do not interfere with the connection between
ValiLink and PlantConnect.
6.4 MS-SQL
The MS-SQL server must be configured to enable reading and receiving data from VALI. A dedicated
user with the appropriate rights must be created to enable the access to the MS-SQL database.
For further technical details regarding the Oracle server configuration, please visit Microsoft support
site at http://www.microsoft.com/sql/support/default.mspx.
OLEDB
ODBC
ValiLink requires the following software installed on client computer for MS-SQL connection:
The .NET framework must be installed on the computer where VALI software is installed. No further
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1028 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 13
software is needed.
On top of the requirements described above, the customer must enable the connection at the network
level: generally, customer network security policies do not interfere with the connection between
ValiLink and MS-SQL.
ValiLink and all Belsim tools support Windows Authentication to connect to SQL server, in addition
to SQL classic authentication.
6.5 ORACLE
The Oracle server must be configured to enable reading and receiving data from VALI. A dedicated
user with the appropriate rights must be created to enable the access to the Oracle database.
For further technical details regarding the Oracle server configuration, please visit Oracle support
site at www.oracle.com.
The Oracle 9.2 Client Release must be installed on the computer where VALI software is installed. No
further software is needed.
On top of the requirements described above, the customer must enable the connection at the network
level: generally, customer network security policies do not interfere with the connection between
ValiLink and the Oracle server.
Using the "Net Manager" tool given with the Oracle Client installation.
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
click on the left arrow to create a new alias in the tnsnames.ora file:
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 13
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
finish the configuration by testing the connectivity with the Oracle Database Server
You can manually edit the file tnsnames.ora to add your own alias. The file is located in the directory
Oracle installed on the client machine:
[InstallationDir]NETWORK\ADMIN\TNSNAMES.ORA
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 13
VALIDATA =
(DESCRIPTION =
(ADDRESS_LIST =
(ADDRESS = (PROTOCOL = TCP)(HOST = belsim04)(PORT = 1521))
)
(CONNECT_DATA =
(SID = validata)
)
)
Oracle .NET Data Provider: optimized for .NET application (as ValiLink)
6.6 PHD
For further technical details regarding the PHD server configuration, please contact HoneyWell
technical support.
Install the core components setup file OPC Core Components 2.00 Redistributable 2.00.msi (available
in [Belsim InstallDir]\SystemNT) on the computer where ValiLink runs and restart the computer.
On top of the requirements described above, the customer must enable the connection at the network
level: generally, customer network security policies do not interfere with the connection between
ValiLink and the PHD OPC server.
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
in IP/UNC, enter the IP address or name of the computer where the OPC server is installed
Enter the instance name of the server as parameter Database of the Server settings section of the ini
file.
Example:
Database=OPC.PHDServerHDA.1
For further technical details regarding the OPC HDA server configuration, please contact Matrikon
technical support.
Install the core components setup file OPC Core Components 2.00 Redistributable 2.00.msi (available in
[Belsim InstallDir]\SystemNT) on the computer where ValiLink runs and restart the computer.
On top of the requirements described above, the customer must enable the connection at the network
level: generally, customer network security policies do not interfere with the connection between
ValiLink and the OPC HDAserver.
in IP/UNC, enter the IP address or name of the computer where the OPC server is installed
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 13
Enter the instance name of the server as parameter Database of the Server settings section of the ini
file.
Example:
Database=OPC.ServerHDA.1
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 1035
CHAPTER 14
VALIFILTER AND
VALIEVENT XIV
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 14
SECTION 1: INTRODUCTION
The main purpose of ValiFilter is an intelligent filtering of raw data to give an adequate set of input
measurement data to VALI so that convergence rate is maximized.
ValiFilter analyses and filters raw measurement data before the execution of the validation step of
ValiEngine or ValiOnlineEngine. It provides the following functionality:
setting OFF units or streams when a measured value falls under a given CUTOFF value
the detection and reporting on events on a given period, an event being a scatter, constant
gradient (slope) or discontinuities (sudden changes) in the trend of the corresponding
measured values
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SECTION 2: VALIFILTER
ValiFilter is integrated with ValiEngine. It filters measured values, ensuring that they are within the
alarm bounds defined on the Tags. It also enables to cut-off streams or units when the measured
value is below a given cut-off values.
The syntax FILTERED enables to manually filter any measurements (ValiFilter license required) from
a measurement file.
Eventually, specific filtering strategies can be defined through the use of Flex code.
When a measured value is outside the alarm bounds (LL, HH) the measured value, the precision and
the failure probability are replaced as indicated by the user. The calculation of VALI will be based
according to these replacement values.
A tag will be considered as filtered if a filter, a control string or a Flex Filter code (SETAGVAL
function) has modified its value or has set it's accuracy to OFF.
You can also filter tags manually, replacing the measured value and optionally the accuracy by some
manual input using the syntax FILTERED in measurement files (see "Using measurement files").
The filter settings are defined in the Filter page of the Tags notebooks.
The LL and HH fields define the acceptable range of values for the measured value.
The Value field defines the action to be performed on the measured value if it is outside its acceptable
range. It can be one of the following keywords:
MID: the measured value is replaced by the average of the bounds (LL+HH)/2
LAST: the measured value is replaced by the validated value of the corresponding tag
(as obtained during the last successful and saved run)
The Accuracy field defines the action to be performed on the measured accuracy if the measured
value is outside its acceptable range. It can be one of the following keywords:
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 14
MID: the accuracy is replaced by half the difference between the bounds (HH-LL)/2
Value: the accuracy is replaced by the given value (a negative value corresponds to a
relative accuracy expressed in %)
The Type defines the type of the filtered accuracy when it is specified as a value.
The FailProb field defines the action to be performed on the failure probability if the measured value
is outside its acceptable range. It can be a value or NONE, in which case no action is taken on the
failure probability.
The CUTOFF field defines the threshold value for the measured value under which the
corresponding stream or unit will be set OFF. It can be a value or NONE, in which case no CUTOFF
action is taken.
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
ValiFilter detects measured values that are outside ERROR bounds (LL-HH interval) and updates
their value, precision and failure probability according to user settings. These settings are defined in
the model file. They can be updated using one of the two following syntaxes.
TAGNAME FILTER MEASURED ACCURACY FAILPROB
where:
MID: the measured value is replaced by the average of the bounds (LL+HH)/2
LAST: the measured value is replaced by the validated value of the corresponding tag
(as obtained during the last successful and saved run)
MID: the accuracy is replaced by half the difference between the bounds (HH-LL)/2
Value: the accuracy is replaced by the given value (a negative value corresponds to a
relative accuracy expressed in %)
FAILPROB: defines the action on the Failure probability and can be:
Example:
POWER_POWER LL 10 HH 17 MW
POWER_POWER FILTER DEF -5 50 %
AIR.1_T LL -20 HH 40 C
AIR.1_T FILTER BND 10 NONE
The second syntax allows to update several tags in one shot by using wildcards:
UPDATETAG TYPE TAGTYPE FILTER MEASURED ACCURACY FAILPROB
UPDATETAG NAME TAGNAME FILTER MEASURED ACCURACY FAILPROB
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 14
where:
TAGTYPE and TAGNAME are strings defining which tags are to be changed (based on their
type or name) and can contain wildcards
Example:
! Changes
01LCQ01CF001 FILTER 0.1 t/h -5 NONE
! Sets the filter settings of all tags starting by TI to MID MID NONE
!
UPDATETAG NAME TI* FILTER MID MID NONE
Attention:
1. The penalty reported in the model and in the result files will be calculated both on basis of the
raw measured value as on basis of the filtered value.
2. The control strings and test on CUTOFF value are based on the raw measured value
It is also possible to specify a CUTOFF value on the filter settings of an individual tag (ValiFilter
license required). If the value of the measurement is below the specified value, the corresponding
object (STREAM or UNIT) will be set OFF. The syntax is:
TAGNAME CUTOFF VALUE PU
TAGNAME CUTOFF NONE
where:
VALUE: is the value under which the stream will be set OFF
Attention: It is also possible to specify a CUTOFF value on an individual tag via control strings (see "
Using control strings").
Remember also that the STATUS measurement enables a binary tag value to set a stream OFF.
The CUTOFF operation whether defined as a filter or through a control string uses the measured
value (before filtering), except in case of manual filtering through a measurement file, in which case
the filtered value is used.
More generally, if a control string is defined on the tag, its operation will be based on the measured
value and it will over-write whatever has been made by the filter.
On the other side, if a control strings changes the value or the accuracy of a tag, the latter will be
considered as filtered.
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2.5 REPORTS
VALI flags with a F (in the reports r4v, r5v and r6v) the measurements on which automatic actions
have been taken. The "measured" value is here the used value (as used by ValiEngine for the
calculations).
Example:
A dedicated section in the r4v and r5v reports lists all the tags that have been filtered. The penalty is
there calculated on basis of the original measured value.
Example:
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 14
Please refer to the Flex Language chapter of ValiModeller Manual for further information.
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SECTION 3: VALIEVENT
3.1 OPERATION
The application (ValiEvent.exe) processes trends of measured values used in a VALI model. It aims at
detecting events such as scatter, constant gradient (slope) or discontinuities (sudden changes) in the
trend of the corresponding measured values in order:
Any event in the trend of one of the selected measurements is reported in an html report which is
linked to the main VALI reports
variance (or scatter): this event is detected on basis of an acceptable scatter of the followed
variable around its average value. The comparison is made on an individual standard
deviation of the tag, the estimation being performed on the sample of measured data of the
followed variable. An event is detected when this standard deviation (sigma) is larger
than the threshold value
Attention: The standard deviation (used as threshold) is expressed in absolute (not relative) and is
not necessarily the value used by VALI (which is not known by ValiEvent).
gradient (or slope): this event is detected on basis of an acceptable slope of the linearised
trend ( ) of the followed variable. An event is detected when the absolute value of the slope
|b| is larger than the threshold value
discontinuity (or sudden change): this event is detected by a statistical analysis of the
second derivative of the signal. If the biggest and/or lowest values of the latter function are
away from the average value by more than a configurable number (Criter) of times the
standard deviation, an event is detected. A configurable number of highest (NvalHi) and
lowest (NvalLo) values are eliminated before calculating the average and the standard
deviation
Attention: If all the measured values are within 1 sigma (threshold value) around the average value
of the sample, then the third criterion (discontinuity) is not computed.
For each event detected, an excel readable file (csv file) is created. Opening it with excel enables to
easily create charts of the values of the measurement.
It requires as argument the name of the INI file with the configuration settings as well as the list of
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 14
Here is the format of the TagList input file (that can be used also as input file of ValiLink):
TAGNAME STDEV [GRADIENT]
where:
GRADIENT: the acceptable gradient (or slope) expressed as a delta over the dimension of
the time interval
The 2 first columns (TagName and Sigma) are mandatory but the 3rd column (Gradient) is optional:
if there is no Gradient, a default value is taken as: GRADIENT = (2 * STDEV) over the dimension of the
time interval.
tags not found: tags for which no value can be retrieved from the external system
interpolations on tags: tags for which not all values can be retrieved from the external
system, missing data are replaced by interpolated values.
events detected: tags for which an event has been detected. The criteria that is not satisfied
is pinpointed in red
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
The event detector is configured through the file ValiEvent.ini which is formatted according to
Windows INI files and has two sections [INIT] and [DIR]. It can also be configured directly from
ValiScheduler.
NVALUE: maximum number of values that will be analyzed for each tag
DIMENSION: the physical units of the duration: S, s, SEC, Sec, sec, M, m, MIN, Min ,min,
Hour, H, h, HOUR, Hour, hour, Day, D, d, DAY ,Day, day
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 14
Attention: Default values for duration and dimension are respectively 1 day
The section [DIR] specifies the name of the input files as well as the working folder for the CSV files:
TAGLIST: name of the input file with the list of tags to be analyzed including their
acceptable standard deviation and gradient
Example:
[Init]
Criter= 6.0
NvalHi= 4
NvalLo= 4
Nvalue= 100
Duration= 2
Dimension= h
[DIR]
DataFile=events.mea
CsvDir="C:\Vali\PlantA\events"
TagList=input.txt
Attention: If ValiEvent is launched from ValiScheduler, entries marked with a (*) have to be
introduced manually in the initialization file (ValiEvent.ini).
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CHAPTER 15
VALI ONLINE
ENGINE XV
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 15
SECTION 1: INTRODUCTION
ValiOnlineEngine is the online version of the computation tool of VALI. It is optimized to run in an
automated procedure generating online validation results.
getting the measurement data from a DCS, a PIMS or any other databases (ValiLink)
filtering the measurement data (ValiFilter, which is integrated into the ValiOnlineEngine)
running ValiOnlineEngine
Although ValiScheduler is devoted to automated operation it also features a manual mode that can
be used for testing purpose.
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
ValiOnlineEngine has been designed to be automated through its coupled ValiScheduler. However it
can also be automated through other applications.
To start ValiOnlineEngine:
start the application Vali.exe in the <installdir> folder (by default Program
Files\Belsim\bin)
When starting, ValiOnlineEngine needs to know which model gas to be run as well as the TAG and
MEA files to be used.
This information is defined in a Vali Information File (default extension vif). If not given as argument,
VALI will look by default for a file named pc.vif. If this file is not present in the current folder, the
information will be requested interactively.
Example:
gt.bls
GT
-htm -sqp
GT.MEA
GT.TAG
For more information about the runtime options, see "How to run your data validation model".
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 15
At the end of a run, VALI produces a file named valiexit.log with one line containing the keyword
EXITCODE followed by a numeric code:
-2: system error - installation issue: missing directory, wrong version number
1: the run was successful but gross errors are suspected to be present (according to Chi-
square test)
Example:
EXITCODE 0
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
start the ValiScheduler via the Windows Start Menu: (Start Menu|Programs|Belsim|
Vali4|ValiScheduler)
At start up, the application will ask whether to connect to a remote ValiService or to open a local
ValiScheduler configuration file.
Using local mode, an INI file will be requested. To create a new application, you simply need to enter
a new name for the INI file. To open an existing file, simply browse to open it.. ValiScheduler also
requires the name of a Plant defining a connection to a ValiDatabase. This allows ValiScheduler to
create all runs in the database when starting to process runs.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 15
Using service mode, ValiScheduler will open a TCP/IP connection with the ValiService application
and retrieve the settings remotely. The IP address of the server where application is defined can be
selected using the drop-down list (see "Belsim LicenseManager" to add new IP addresses).
When using ValiScheduler coupled to ValiService, the tasks will be processed by the computer where
ValiService is installed.
The settings of ValiScheduler are accessed via a notebook that contains 8 pages:
Acquisition: options for getting measurement data from a DCS, a PIMS, or other databases,
The General page allows specifying the settings for scheduling either online run, re-run, or manual
run as well as the steps to be performed:
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Real Time Run is the fully automated procedure to process real time data
Manual Run is used to test the online/rerun procedure or parts of this procedure
Attention: Real Time runs and Reruns can be performed at the same time. Manual run can be started
once Online runs and Reruns are stopped.
The "Overview" table is used to show to the user an overview of the whole process. The top of the
page is divided in three parts:
Reruns
Manual Runs
: process is stopped
: in real time mode, it indicates that some reruns are being processed and that
online runs will be processed further
Progression: progress bar indicating the number of runs already processed compared to
the number of runs to be processed. For real time processing, indicates the number of
reruns to be processed before starting online processing
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 15
The table in the bottom of the page displays information about the last runs (Real Time/Rerun/
Manual):
Date: date of the run (based on the beginning of the time period)
: step failed
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
FIGURE 5 - GENERAL PAGE OF VALIS CHEDULER US ED WITH REMOTE CONNECTION TO VALIS ERVICE
ValiForms: this button opens ValiForms. The xml file ("ValiForms.xml") describing the
contents of the Forms has to be located next to the ValiScheduler INI file
Upload: only available when working with ValiService, this functionality allows you to
upload files located on your computer into the application directory located on the
ValiService computer. This window can also be used to download files located in the
application directory of the server
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 15
FIGURE 6 - UPLOAD PAGE OF VALIS CHEDULER US ED WITH REMOTE CONNECTION TO VALIS ERVICE
Refresh: only available when working with ValiService, this functionality allows you to
manually reload the content of the configuration file (run results, values...) and refresh the
graphical user interface
Queue: this functionality shows you an overview of the process queue list. This allows
you:
to determine how many runs are waiting in the process queue list
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
FIGURE 7 - VIEW QUEUE PAGE OF VALIS CHEDULER US ED WITH REMOTE CONNECTION TO VALIS ERVICE
Log: When running ValiScheduler locally, the button opens a window that will display
the content of the ValiScheduler log file. When ValiScheduler is used with remote
connection to ValiService, the button opens a window that will display the content of the
ValiService log file located on the remote server
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 15
FIGURE 8 - VIEW LOG PAGE OF VALIS CHEDULER US ED WITH REMOTE CONNECTION TO VALIS ERVICE
The Validation results will be reloaded automatically every second. You can click on the button
"Refresh" to refresh the results manually.
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
The processing of the runs will start directly when you click on the "OK" button. The "Start Real
Time" button of the general page will be renamed "Stop Real Time". Once official runs are under
processing, you can not change the configuration settings. To stop the official run execution, click on
the button "Stop Real Time". The button will be renamed "Stopping Real Time". If tasks are under
execution, ValiScheduler will wait till the current tasks are finished.
The "Start From" table is used to specify the date of the first run to be processed:
Last Processed: the date of the last processed run will be used for the first run
Last Successful Run: the date of the last successful run will be used for the first run
Now: ValiScheduler calculate the next real time date to process. This date will be used for
the first run
Rerun Only non Converged Runs: if selected, ValiScheduler will use the status of the run
specified in the associated ValiDatabase (defined by the Plant) to determine if the run must
be processed or not
If the start date specified is different from "Now", all the runs processed in the past will be considered
as "Reruns". Once ValiScheduler has processed the old runs and is back online, the next processed
run will be considered as "Real Time".
The "Schedule Settings" table is used to specify the settings of the automated procedure:
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 15
Agg. period: the time frame for aggregating the data from historian system. For example,
one can be interested to make only one run per day, but based on hourly data (not daily).
In this case, the runs frequency should be set to 24 hour and the aggregation period to 1
hour. Another example is the case where one wants to validate every hour the data from
the past 24 hours. In this case the runs frequency should be set to 1 hour and the
aggregation period to 24 hours
Time Delay: for real time runs, waits the time specified before starting execution of the
tasks. This option is useful to ensure that all data are available in the PIMS before starting
the acquisition
Time Out: time period allowed for each task of the run. If the task lasts for a longer time
period the task is cancelled. No time out will be applied if this value is negative. During the
reconciliation step, ValiScheduler publishes a file next to the model file, called VALI.STOP,
once the timeout is reached. During resolution, ValiEngine will check for the existence of
such a file. If it exists, ValiEngine will stop its resolution, publish the reports and close. If
ValiEngine takes more than 2 minutes between the publishing of VALI.STOP and its
closing, ValiScheduler kills ValiEngine process and free its license (as well as the ValiFilter
license)
The "Steps" table is used to specify the tasks that will be executed in the automated procedure:
Data Acquisition: If selected, ValiScheduler will launch the retrieval of measurement data
from DCS, PIMS, or other databases:
Online Mode: Start acquisition tasks defined in "Acquisition" page with "Online Mode"
selected
Backup Mode: Typically used with "Rerun", start tasks defined in "Acquisition" page
with "Backup Mode" selected and restore backup files (See "backup" page for more
details about restoring backup files)
Event Detection: if selected, ValiScheduler will launch the event detection (ValiEvent) on
measurement data (See ValiEvent documentation)
Data Storage: if selected, ValiScheduler will launch the storing of results after the
validation step
Backup: if selected, ValiScheduler will back-up the selected files after the validation step
Email: if selected, ValiScheduler will launch the automatic emailing according to the
parameters specified in the "Email" page
The time window of the validation tasks is delimited by two dates: BeginDate and EndDate. The
difference between both dates corresponds to the Time Interval:
The Time Interval is equals to the time span value of "Run every".
ValiScheduler will start the tasks execution when the [BeginDate + TimeDelay] is lower than the
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
current local time. If the [BeginDate + TimeDelay] value is higher, ValiScheduler will wait till the
local time is higher.
After a run is terminated, the next BeginDate will be set as the old EndDate.
When executing ValiScheduler without ValiService (using a configuration file), ValiScheduler needs
to be open to execute tasks automatically. If you close ValiScheduler, the automatic execution of tasks
will be stopped.
When executing ValiScheduler with ValiService, you can close the ValiScheduler application safely
without altering ValiService operation. ValiService will start automatically from the last processed
run in case of computer or network connection to the LicenseServer failure. When coming back in the
graphical interface of ValiScheduler, all the parameters and the status of the process are
automatically refreshed according to ValiService operation.
The processing of the runs will start directly when you click on the "OK" button. The "Start Rerun"
button of the general page will be renamed "Stop Rerun". Once runs are under processing, you cannot
change the configuration settings. To stop the run execution, click on the button "Stop Rerun". The
button will be renamed "Stopping Rerun". If tasks are under execution, ValiScheduler will wait till
the current run is finished.
The "Start Rerun" table is used to specify the date of the first run:
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 15
To: the date of the last run to be processed. After this run will be processed, ValiScheduler
(or ValiService) will stop the processing of runs
Rerun Only non Converged Runs: If selected, ValiScheduler will use the status of the run
specified in the associated ValiDatabase (defined by the Plant) to determine if the run must
be processed or not
The "Rerun Date List" table is used to specify in a text file a set of dates that have to be processed
(mainly used for testing purpose). Dates are defined line by line in the input text file (one date per
line). The date format must be YYYYMMDD_HHMMSS. If the "Rerun Date List" option is checked,
then the classical dates selection (From / To) and the frequency of calculation (Run Every) are not used
anymore. Other rerun options are still used.
The "Schedule Settings" table is used to specify the settings of the automated procedure:
Agg. period: the time frame for aggregating the data from historian system. For example,
one can be interested to make only one run per day, but based on hourly data (not daily).
In this case, the runs frequency should be set to 24 hour and the aggregation period to 1
hour. Another example is the case where one wants to validate every hour the data from
the past 24 hours. In this case the runs frequency should be set to 1 hour and the
aggregation period to 24 hours
Time Out: time period allowed for each task of the run. If the task lasts for a longer time
period the task is cancelled. No time out will be applied if this value is negative. During the
reconciliation step, ValiScheduler publishes a file next to the model file, called VALI.STOP,
once the timeout is reached. During resolution, ValiEngine will check for the existence of
such a file. If it exists, ValiEngine will stop its resolution, publish the reports and close. If
ValiEngine takes more than 2 minutes between the publishing of VALI.STOP and its
closing, ValiScheduler kills ValiEngine process and free its license (as well as the ValiFilter
license)
The "Steps" table is used to specify the tasks that will be executed in the automated procedure:
Data Acquisition: If selected, ValiScheduler will launch the retrieval of measurement data
from DCS, PIMS, or other databases:
Online Mode: Start acquisition tasks defined in "Acquisition" page with "Online Mode"
selected
Backup Mode: Typically used with "Rerun", start tasks defined in "Acquisition" page
with "Backup Mode" selected and restore backup files (See "backup" page for more
details about restoring backup files)
Event Detection: if selected, ValiScheduler will launch the event detection (ValiEvent) on
measurement data (See ValiEvent documentation)
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
Data Storage: if selected, ValiScheduler will launch the storing of results after the
validation step
Backup: if selected, ValiScheduler will back-up the selected files after the validation step
Email: if selected, ValiScheduler will launch the automatic emailing according to the
parameters specified in the "Email" page
The time window of the validation tasks is delimited by two dates: BeginDate and EndDate. The
difference between both dates corresponds to the Time Interval:
The Time Interval is equals to the time span value of "Run every".
After a run is processed, the next BeginDate will be set as the old EndDate.
When executing ValiScheduler without ValiService (using a configuration file), ValiScheduler needs
to be open to execute tasks automatically. If you close ValiScheduler, the automatic processing of
runs will be stopped.
When executing ValiScheduler with ValiService, you can close the ValiScheduler application safely
without altering the ValiService operation. ValiService will start automatically from the last
processed run in case of computer or network connection to the LicenseServer failure. When coming
back in the graphical interface of ValiScheduler, all the parameters and the status of the process are
automatically refreshed according to ValiService operation.
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1068 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 15
The execution of the tasks will start directly when you click on the "OK" button. The "Start Manual"
button of the general page will be renamed "Stop Manual". Once a run is under processing, you
cannot change the configuration settings. To stop the run execution, click on the button "Stop
Manual". The button will be renamed "Stopping Manual".
Using ValiScheduler without ValiService, ValiScheduler will wait till the current tasks are finished.
Using ValiScheduler with ValiService, if the manual run has not yet been processed by ValiService,
ValiScheduler will remove the run from the process queue of ValiService. Otherwise, ValiScheduler
will wait till the current tasks are finished.
The "Start From" table is used to specify the date of the first run.
The "Schedule Settings" table is used to specify the settings of the automated procedure:
Time Out: time period allowed for each task of the run. If the task lasts for a longer time
period the task is cancelled. No time out will be applied if this value is negative. During the
reconciliation step, ValiScheduler publishes a file next to the model file, called VALI.STOP,
once the timeout is reached. During resolution, ValiEngine will check for the existence of
such a file. If it exists, ValiEngine will stop its resolution, publish the reports and close. If
ValiEngine takes more than 2 minutes between the publishing of VALI.STOP and its
closing, ValiScheduler kills ValiEngine process and free its license (as well as the ValiFilter
license)
The "Steps" table is used to specify the tasks that will be executed in the automated procedure:
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Data Acquisition: If selected, ValiScheduler will launch the retrieval of measurement data
from DCS, PIMS, or other databases:
Online Mode: Start acquisition tasks defined in "Acquisition" page with "Online Mode"
selected
Backup Mode: Typically used with "Rerun", start tasks defined in "Acquisition" page
with "Backup Mode" selected and restore backup files (See "backup" page for more
details about restoring backup files)
Event Detection: if selected, ValiScheduler will launch the event detection (ValiEvent) on
measurement data (See ValiEvent documentation)
Data Storage: if selected, ValiScheduler will launch the storing of results after the
validation step
Backup: if selected, ValiScheduler will back-up the selected files after the validation step
Email: if selected, ValiScheduler will launch the automatic emailing according to the
parameters specified in the "Email" page
The time window of the validation tasks is delimited by two dates: BeginDate and EndDate. The
difference between both dates corresponds to the Time Interval:
The Time Interval is equals to the time span value of "Run every".
When executing a manual run, the application will be locked and will wait till the tasks are finished.
When using ValiScheduler coupled to ValiService, the tasks will be processed by the computer where
ValiService is installed. If ValiService is already processing tasks, the manual run will be processed
after all the tasks currently in processing.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 15
The Acquisition page is used to specify the options for getting measurement data from DCS, PIMS, or
other databases.
The "acquisition" table is used to specify the acquisition settings. The first row allows you to launch
ValiLink using the settings define in the Model file (through ValiModeller). For other rows, you can
customize the action to execute:
Online: if selected, the action will be executed for processing in "Online Mode". To specify
"Online Mode", select "Online Mode" under "Acquisition" in the "Start Operation" page
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Backup: if selected, the action will be executed for processing in "Backup Mode". To specify
"Backup Mode", select "Backup Mode" under "Acquisition" in the "Start Operation" page
Path: specify the path and name of the ValiLink configuration file, batch file or
ValiDBLoader configuration file
Edit: allows you to edit the configuration file specified under "Path". Without ValiService,
default editor will be started (notepad,...). With ValiService, a Belsim editor is used to
retrieve content of the file through ValiService, modify it and send it back to ValiService.
This allows to remotely editing the file installed on the application server
Required: if checked, the result of this task is taken into account to determine the final
status of acquisition step. According the status of acquisition, Data Reconcilation will be
launched or not
The Reconciliation page contains a VALI 4 tab and a VALI 5 tab, respectively allowing you to launch
the calculation using the VALI 4 Engine on a VALI 4 model or using the VALI 5 Engine on a VALI 5
application.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 15
In the VALI 4 Reconciliation page you specify the settings of ValiOnlineEngine (written in the pc.vif
file):
the names of the auxiliary files (Measurement, Tag and Flex files)
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In the VALI 5 Reconciliation page you select the VALI 5 Application on which you wish to run the
calculation, from a drop-down list displaying all the applications defined in the VALI 5 workspace.
The Edit button allows you to edit the calculation settings of your application through VALI 5
ValiStudio.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 15
The Storage page is used to specify the options for storing results of the validation step.
The "Storage" table is used to specify the data storage settings. The first row allows you to launch
ValiLink using the settings defined in the Model file (through ValiModeller). For other rows, you can
customize the action to execute: ValiLink, MS-DOS Batch file, ValiDBLoader or ValiForms.
Any of these steps can be temporarily de-activated (Active check box) and executed or not according
to the status of ValiEngine execution: No Check, Converged, No Gross Error, Failed.
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
ValiEvent is used to analyze measurement data and detect any sudden change in the gradient of one
of those measurements. ValiEvent works generally with time intervals higher than the validation
process itself in order to have a better insight of the plant operation (steady or unsteady) and detect
efficiently measurement events.
The Event notebook allows to specify options for ValiLink in this particular automated process and
options for ValiEvent itself:
the frequency (Event duration) to be considered for this particular automated process
the ini files to be used by ValiLink to get the data for ValiEvent
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 15
The Back-up procedure is used for example to have a more detailed information of the runs
performed (Vali results files) or to be able to rerun special sets of data.
The "Restore" column is used to specify what files must be restored during acquisition phase when
running in "Backup Mode".
The listed files are then copied into the Backup folder according as followed:
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<BackupDir>\<DateTime>\File
<BackupDir>\<DateTime>\Folder
<DateTime> is the start date and time of the run under the format "yyyymmdd_hhmmss".
File Name : name of the log file (if left blank, the default name is ValiScheduler.log)
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 15
Error Level to log: used to filter the level of information and error messages to be written in
the log file. The log level can be one of the following: 0, INF, WRN, ERR, ERS, ERF, NONE,
Only messages with levels higher than the log level are written. For instance, with ERR
specified as log level, only ERR, ERS and ERF message will be printed. NONE means no
message is logged, 0, means all message are logged
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The Email tab allows to configure the automatic sending of e-mails according to predefined criteria.
Up to 10 different e-mails can be sent, each based on different criteria. Clicking the Edit button
opens a new window for the configuration of an e-mail, where following
parameters can be defined:
the recipient(s) of the e-mail; several recipients can be specified, and have to be separated
by a semicolon (;)
the text of the e-mail (pre-defined keywords can be accessed using the Keywords button)
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 15
files to be sent together with the e-mail; these files can be compressed in a zip file
SMTP button is used to configure the SMTP information required by the system to send emails. This
button will open a configuration window:
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The Test button allows you to test the configuration of each email, by sending selected e-mail.
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SECTION 4: VALISERVICE
4.1 INTRODUCTION
ValiService is an application that will interact with ValiScheduler and ValiManager as a client-
server network architecture.
ValiService is a NT Service (Win32 Application without graphical interface). It will act as a TCP/IP
Server on the network and will be managed remotely through ValiScheduler and ValiManager.
ValiService will be used to process online validation with all the other tasks associated such as
ValiLink, ValiDBLoader, ValiEvent, etc.
ValiService can be configured to restart automatically after a computer shutdown and will process
all missing validation tasks to ensure no data is missing.
ValiService integrates security management, using Windows Active Directory, to control the access
authentication to the working VALI directory. These security settings are used with ValiManager
and are configured with LicenseManager (see LicenseManager for more information).
ValiService can be configured to restart automatically with the computer it's installed on. When
starting, ValiService will initialize a TCP/IP server and read a configuration file to fix internal
settings. ValiService will then connect to the LicenseServer to get the list of validation application to
process. In case of connection troubles (LicenseServer not started, network failure …), ValiService
will continue trying new connection till it succeeds. It will then initialize the "Processing Queue List"
and retrieve the application settings from the LicenseServer. ValiService will then start its scheduler
and every 5 seconds will check if there is a new validation task to process. The tasks to process are
sent to the "Process Queue List" and ValiService continues its scheduling job.
The Scheduler engine can process several different applications. Stopping the real time run for one
application will remove that application from the scheduling. It will also remove all the associated
tasks from the "Process Queue List". Starting an online validation will add the application to the
ValiService scheduling engine.
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Whenever ValiService detect a validation application has to be processed, it will send all the required
information to the "Process Queue List". Once a validation tasks is added to the "Process Queue List"
it can not be modified. Stopping ValiService scheduling of one application will remove all the
associated tasks from the "Process Queue List".
"Process Queue List" will check continually if a task has to be processed according to different
priorities. He will process one task at a time. When the tasks are terminated, it will save the
validation results then delete the task from the queue list. It can now process the next task in the
queue list.
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The notion of priority is based on three lists, three levels of priority. When ValiService needs to
launch a task, this one is added to the corresponding list according to the type of the task (Manual,
Real Time run,...).
When the "Process Queue list" needs to launch a task, it will look in the list of priority 1, if something
has to be done. If this list is empty it will then look in the list of priority 2 and eventually in the lists
of priority 3.
There will be as many lists of level 3 as ValiPerformance applications handled by ValiService. This
enables load balancing between the reruns of applications, a run being picked up alternatively
between the active lists.
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choose «Services»
to start the application, you just need to click in the arrow of the toolbar
to access the properties of the Service, right click on «Belsim ValiService» and choose
properties
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ValiService generate a log file (ValiService.log) in the directory «App» of the Belsim installation. The
Service acts as a TCP/IP server and uses the TCP port 4601 by default. It is possible to modify the port
used by the server and the clients. To do that, execute the following steps on the server/clients:
If the server uses a firewall, it is mandatory to open the port 4601 to allow connection between
clients' applications and ValiService.
Please refer to LicenseManager help files to have more details on how to define an automatic runs
processing using ValiService.
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CHAPTER 16
VALIPRODUCTION
XVI
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SECTION 1: INTRODUCTION
1.1 VALI SOFTWARE SUITE
VALI is a process oriented software aiming at determining and improving production efficiency,
productivity and energy consumption while reducing production and maintenance costs.
With VALI, you move from data to information, from information to knowledge and finally from
knowledge to action.
VALI converts the raw measurement data into reliable information by applying data validation
technique involving among others heat and mass balances.
1.2 VALIPRODUCTION
On a daily basis all information about production levels of each unit, inventories and receipts and
shipments is reconciled providing a coherent site material balance. Thanks the functional
redundancy provided by the plant model, the validated data set is highly accurate and reliable.
This coherent site material balances, obtained on a daily basis, leads to:
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accurate and coherent data import in ERP systems, a must for correct working of ERP
systems
ValiProduction consolidates, on a daily basis, the material balances of the different production units
existing on a given site or even on several interconnected sites. These material balances can be
performed either:
on a global mass balance basis : measured mass (or volume) flow rates, in terms of tons
(or m3) entering and tons (or m3) going out of each production unit, are reconciled to
generate a coherent mass balance of the whole site. This approach is typically applied in
refineries and covers the whole site including the tank farm
In both cases, ValiProduction will be fed with data about the shipments and receipts, raw data about
inventories (feedstock, intermediate and final products) and about the production levels.
For yet better performance and profitability, ValiProduction can also be fed with validated data
coming from ValiPerformance applications (see below synergy between ValiPerformance and
ValiProduction).
The validated production rates, inventories and yields are the most accurate values that can be
obtained using the existing data. The so-produced information corresponds to the most probable
plant operation because the set of corrected values respect coherent (closed) balances (mass,
compounds and sometimes heat and thermodynamic balances).
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ValiPerformance is a software solution for detailed process performance monitoring of process units:
most often implemented online and based on consistent mass, heat and thermodynamic balances,
this product computes and reports on the key performance indicators of a process such as process
yields, reaction selectivity, delta_T approach to the equilibrium, energy consumption, equipment
efficiency (e.g. heat transfer coefficient, turbine and compressor efficiency, etc.).
Based on the same data validation technology as ValiProduction, it uses more detailed models and
provides more insight about the internal operation of each production unit. Running on a different
time schedule (typically each hour or each 15 min) it takes advantage of the additional information
coming from detailed energy and thermodynamic balance to produce performance indicators of
unequalled quality in terms of reliability and accuracy.
By feeding ValiProduction with validated values from ValiPerformance applications, one benefits at
the global level of this high quality data, making ValiProduction results even more reliable and
accurate.
By essence, ValiProduction application interacts with other elements of the enterprise. A number of
modules are available to ease the integration and provide the users with a convenient yet efficient set
of tools for the deployment and maintenance of the system.
The access to the different parts of the application is performed through ValiManager application
which provides the necessary framework for multi-users usage with adequate security measures,
model versioning, operations logging, etc.
Authorized users maintain the production model using an efficient graphical user interface
ValiModeller.
Interfacing with external systems (ERP, SQL database, PIMS, LIMS and DCS systems) is performed
through a generic application ValiLink which provides different "plugs" for each system to be
connected. Manual input can also be taken into account, through customized interfaces.
Data provided by ValiLink is then filtered giving an adequate set of input measurement data to
ValiEngine so that convergence rate of the computation engine is maximized.
After validation through the ValiEngine, results are, on one side, sent to external systems using again
ValiLink interfacing application and, on the other side, stored in ValiDatabase for further processing
like analysis, reporting or consolidation.
Customs reports are easily created through the ValiReport extension of Microsoft Excel.
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The work-flow of each application is different and takes into account the following elements:
multiple users: different users can be involved in the work flow with different roles:
acquiring data, either automatically from a data historian or through manual input
The work-flow is defined in the ValiDatabase, according to the concepts of phases and steps.
Phases are used to logically associate a number of steps and have a status (ON HOLD, IN PROGRESS,
COMPLETED) derived form the status of their steps.
The steps are the core elements of the work-flow and correspond to the individual actions that must
be performed to establish the production balance. The steps have various properties:
conditions of processing that must be met before the task is executed: availability of data,
completion of other steps in the same daily run or in other runs, conditions on date and
time
control access specifying which users can interact with the step
detailed description of the task to be performed, including configuration files, report files
and log files
Depending on the type of action to be performed and to configuration settings, different statuses are
used.
For an automatic step, that is a step without direct user interaction during the execution, the
following statuses are used:
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QUEUED: the conditions are now satisfied, the action has been queued
WARNING: the step has been executed and reported a warning status
After the step execution, various user actions can be performed according to the execution status.
If the step was successfully executed ( DONE) or reported some warning ( WARNING), the
following options are available:
designated users are required to approve the results: they can then choose to approve the
results, to rerun the step after some corrections or (depending on the configuration) to skip
the step
If the step failed ( FAILED), the designated users will have the options to rerun the step after some
corrections or (depending on the configuration) to skip the step.
For a manual step, where users have to enter data, the following statuses are used:
QUEUED: the conditions are now satisfied, the action has been queued
ValiManager is designed as the primary portal for the follow-up of the ValiProduction work-flow. It
provides the following features:
user profile: Master, Operator, Modeller, etc. According to the user profiles, different access
rights will be granted: model creation and modification, input of manual data, manual
correction of raw data, approval of validated results, etc.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 16
traceability and versioning: model changes are documented and the evolution of the model
is monitored so that old data can be reprocessed with their corresponding model
task scheduling: authorized users determine when the validation runs are performed.
They verify the relevance of validation results, introduce manual corrections where
necessary and finally approve the results and make them official
system maintenance: comprehensive log files enable to quickly trace failures of the system,
like interfacing problems, networking problems, unavailability of critical data, inadequate
operation modes, etc.
reporting: various reports are issued and can be accessed by the users according to their
needs: production data, inventories, suspect sensors for instrumentation maintenance, etc.
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ValiManager: client process through which users will use and maintain the
ValiProduction application. Several ValiManager client sessions can be used at the same
time on the same ValiProduction application
a ValiDatabase: an SQL Database contains the configuration settings of the application, the
status of the daily runs and the validation results
Belsim LicenseServer: server process that handles security related settings like user rights
or license allocation
Each of these four components can be installed on different computers or on a single computer.
Refer to the "Installation Procedure" for practical details of installation strategy and procedure.
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The user rights are defined through Belsim LicenseManager/Server according to a number of roles:
Master: gives full access to the application including runs approval and changes to official
model but not to configuration panel neither to ValiModeller
Operator: enables to enter manual input data and manual corrections on official runs
(using for example ValiForms) and to ask for reruns of steps
Modeller: enables to work in manual mode but not to save as Official model or Official run
Reader: can only see results (overview of processed runs and access to ValiReport)
Additionally, specific user rights, based on user names, can be specified when configuring the
various steps of the application.
DIRECTORY STRUCTURE
Each ValiProduction application has its own root directory, which must be accessible through a
unique path from ValiService on the ValiProduction server as well as from each ValiManager client.
In particular, if a network drive is used, it must be defined on all computers that need to access the
application.
The following folders are used (MyApplic standing for the ValiProduction application name):
AUTOMATIC PROCESSING
According to a user-defined schedule, the runs are automatically processed according to the
following procedure:
at a selected time of the day, new runs are created when necessary. Typically, a new run is
created each day for the preceding day. In case the ValiService has been shutdown for
some days, the missing days will be automatically created. The application files are
automatically copied from the Official folder to the run directory in the RunsAuto folder
and all steps of the new runs are set to ON HOLD.
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each step of the workflow is scanned on a regular basis to analyse if some work must be
performed, according to steps status and conditions.
To create a new ValiProduction, you must proceed through the following steps on the
ValiProduction server:
install VALI software (including ValiService) and reboot the server,(see installation
procedure)
create a ValiManager application using Belsim License server setting it OFF and set-up
user rights. The ValiProduction application folders will be automatically created on the
server by ValiService
copy the files of the application (model files, measurement files, configuration files for
ValiLink, etc) in the Official folder of the ValiProduction application folder
configure the application workflow in ValiDatabase using the MS-SQL Enterprise Manager
(Tables Steps_Definition, Steps_Conditions, Steps_Interaction, Phases_Definition)
activate the ValiProduction application using Belsim License Manager (setting it ON)
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 16
User name: login name of administrator account used to create the database
ValiDataBase (mandatory):
Create Database & Tables: a new Database must be created at the same time
Create Plant (optional): must be checked if you want to create a new plant in Belsim license
server in order to access the database. If not checked, it is assumed you will use a plant
already defined in Belsim license server:
Create SQL User check-box: if checked the (Login) user will be created in the SQL server:
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The Show SQL Script button shows the SQL script code that needs to be executed. This enables to
execute the corresponding script at the SQL server management tool level.
The Plant can also be defined through Belsim LicenseManager under the Plant tab:
For each ValiProduction license that you have you can define up to two ValiProduction applications:
one in "Test" mode, which enables to define and use a ValiProduction application without
any interaction with the official application, for example for testing or for training purpose
Attention:
1. A "Test" application will never return any result to external systems (PIMS, databases).
2. You can also set both applications in "Test"mode, but you can never have both applications in
"Production" mode.
To create a new ValiProduction you must have the ValiProduction Admin rights (at Belsim
LicenseServer level):
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 16
set-up user rights by adding authorised users using the Add_User button and specify
their role:
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Each step has a unique ID, a short and a long description, and belongs to a phase:
NextPosition: order of the step: the next position defines the order of the steps in the
execution sequence
Next_Enabled( 1/0): when set to 0 the step will not be considered. This setting indicates a
step that is not used any more and must therefore not be considered in the work-flow
The Action_ID defines the action to be executed during the step (see Table below).
Depending on the action, some files used by the task must be defined in the Action_File. The Log_file
is the name of the logging file created by the task, enabling authorized users to review the task
execution while the Results field indicates the name of any result file created by the task.
The Send Mail ini file must contain two sections Message and EMAIL (replace words in italics by
relevant information, use %RUNDATE% to include the run date):
[Message]
From=myname@mycompany.com
To=someone@mycompany.com
CC=
Subject=Information about run %RUNDATE%
Content File=Somefile.txt
[EMAIL]
Server=SMTPSERVER
Port=25
User=
Password=
The Copy Last ini file must contain one section FILES:
[FILES]
From=filetobecopied
To=targetfile
Overwrite=1 or 0
Log=name of log file
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1 no action at all
2 N/A
7 Batch file (.bat ) Batch file name and Log file (if Re sult file (if any)
argume nts any)
9 N/A
10 N/A
16 Re store Backup - - -
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Use r_type : type of use rs in charge of the ste p (0: no use r de fine d, 1: use r de fine d by role , 2: use r
de fine d by name )
Names: any user name. Several ames can be entered, and have to be separated by a |
if no user is defined, then only the Master can approve, skip or re-run the step
a ne gative value re fe rs to a ste p re lative ly to the curre nt ste p (-1 me ans the pre ce ding ste p)
All steps between the re-run step and the current step are set back to ON HOLD.
Auto_Complete (0/1): the step is automatically completed if the step executed successfully
Auto_Complete_Wrn (0/1): the step is automatically completed if the step executed with
warning status
If a step is optional, its status is not used to determine whether a phase has been completed or not.
When the ValiProduction application is in Test mode, the step is not executed. The step is
automatically set to DONE once its conditions are satisfied (for a manual input step) or when
reaching the In Progress status (for an automatic processing step).
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(bit 1 is Monday)
2 Month days The first 31 bits are use d to se le ct the days of the month.
Used by ValiEvent actions to select a duration different then the default run duration.
Usually the Short_Description is used to describe the step while the Long_Description is used to
describe the condition.
Condition_Type: inte ge r
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These fields indicate that an interaction must be made when the step Step_ID is set (manually or
automatically) to the given Status.
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1 ON HOLD 6 WARNING
2 PENDING 7 FAILED
3 QUEUED 8 COMPLETED
4 IN PROGRESS 9 SKIPPED
5 DONE
1 INFOi 6 Pe nalty
5 Validate d accuracy
The status of the phase is linked to the status of the steps that are part of the phase:
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COMPLETED: all the ste ps (e xce pt the one s spe cifie d as optional) are comple te d or skippe d
STEPS INTERACTION
To track the changes made by the different users in the system, Who changed What and When,
ValiProduction workflow will create a log file called Security.log.
The log file is saved in the subdirectory of the day like this one:
\MYAPPLIC\RUNSAUTO\YYYYMMDD_HHMMSS
For the day in reference, the log file (security.log) is unique and the successive changes are appended
to the previous ones.
Example of security.log file:
[9/02/2012 09:46:04] INF 11085: App: D_000_MEB - Run: 20120116_000000 - User 'bruno' changes stat
[9/02/2012 10:40:47] INF 11086: App: D_000_MEB - Run: 20120116_000000 - User 'bruno' launch repro
[9/02/2012 10:43:00] INF 11085: App: D_000_MEB - Run: 20120116_000000 - User 'bruno' changes stat
[9/02/2012 10:46:27] INF 11085: App: D_000_MEB - Run: 20120116_000000 - User 'bruno' changes stat
[9/02/2012 10:46:37] INF 11085: App: D_000_MEB - Run: 20120116_000000 - User 'bruno' changes stat
MANUAL INPUTS
In the ValiProduction workflow, the User can change the Manual Inputs of the model via ValiForms.
A track changes log file is created in the directory of the ValiForms XML file, enabling to log all
changes made by users.
The log file is created or updated when the ValiForms is “saved” or “saved and approved” and the
name of the file is based on the ValiForms XML file (XML_changes.log).
Example of valiforms_changes.log file:
[12-03-13 17:34:09] INF 18033: User Christophe changed overwrite value of tag 111-FY-0035 from 92
[12-03-13 17:34:17] INF 18039: User Christophe changed product 111-NHT_STATUS from Shutdown to On
[12-03-13 17:34:20] INF 18041: User Christophe changed switch 111-NHT_REACTOR_DOWN from Running t
[12-03-13 17:34:36] INF 18035: User Christophe changed final value of tank 111-NHT-HOLDUP_MASS1 f
[12-03-13 17:35:39] INF 18035: User Christophe changed final value of tank 111-NHT-HOLDUP_MASS2 f
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To start ValiManager:
start ValiManager by selecting the ValiManager application in the Vali 4 Programs Start
Menu
log in using your user name and password. IP address of the LicenseServer can be changed
using the drop-down list (see "Belsim LicenseManager" to add new IP addresses):
if several applications are defined, ValiManager will present the list of ValiProduction
applications to which you have access, otherwise the ValiProduction application is
directly selected
the list of automatic runs that are available is then displayed starting from the most recent
ones
The "Overview" table is used to show to the user an overview of the whole process. By default the
runs are displayed starting from the last run until the first day of the current month.
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In addition, two fields give information regarding the last run and the last step that have been
processed:
You can change the list of runs that are displayed by changing the start and end dates at the top of
the page and pressing the button.
The overview of the daily runs provides for each run the following information:
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Penalty: total penalty of the measurement corrections for the last validation of the run
Quality: ratio of the Penalty by the Chi2 test value, a value above 1 indicating a suspicion
of gross error
Refresh: manually refresh the graphical user interface. In any case, results are reloaded
automatically every minute
Archive: close and archive runs older than a date to be specified. After archiving, runs can
not be reprocessed anymore
View Queue: ove rvie w of the proce ss que ue list. This allows you:
to determine how many runs are waiting in the process queue list
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View Log: display the content of the ValiService log file located on the remote server
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Process Time: time of the day when the new runs are created
Vali Time Out: time period allowed for the validation run. If the run lasts for a
longer time period, the run is cancelled. No time out will be applied if this value is
negative
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The Log File tab allows you to define properties of ValiService Log file:
Path: path where the Log File will be generated by ValiService (by default
[InstallDir]\belsim\App)
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These settings are saved in the ValiProduction.ini file located in the App folder of VALI installation.
The use of the different buttons of the ValiManager is restricted depending on user roles:
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1118 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 16
TABLE 6 - US ER ROLES
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
Clicking on the button at the left of the run date expands the information on the run.
Step Name: short description of the step. Moving the mouse above the short description
displays the long description of the step
: PENDING: the conditions are now satisfied; the action is pending for user input
: QUEUED: the conditions are now satisfied, the action has been queued
: WARNING: the step has been executed and reported a warning status
: FAILED: the execution failed
: APPROVED: the step has been either automatically or manually approved
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 16
: SKIPPED: the user decided to skip the step (if allowed by the configuration)
User status: action of the user. The field can only be modified by authorized users.
Depending on the task status, the user can:
/ : button to open the log file of the task/button to start ValiForms for manual input
from the user
: button to reprocess the step. Reprocessing a step will reset to ON HOLD all the steps
that are depending on the current step in the logical execution sequence, according to the
step conditions (in the current run as well as in the following runs)
Right click on the date of a run allows to open the corresponding run directory (where the
application files are located) of the RunsAuto folder. In addition to the application files (model file,
measurement files, reconciliation results, initialization files,...), each run directory contains a log file
("security.log" ) to track activities performed by the different users through ValiManager on a run by
run basis.
Example:
[9/02/2012 09:46:04] INF 11085: App: MYAPPLIC - Run: 20120116_000000 - User 'Bruno' changes statu
[9/02/2012 10:40:47] INF 11086: App: MYAPPLIC - Run: 20120116_000000 - User 'Bruno' launch reproc
To start the execution of rerun tasks, click on "Start Rerun" button. A configuration window will be
opened with the runs settings. The "Start Rerun" page is used to specify the date of the first run and
the first step that will be reprocessed.
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From: date of the first run to be reprocessed. The rerun will affect all the runs in between
this starting date and the date of the last created run
Steps: step to be reprocessed. Reprocessing a step will reset to ON HOLD all the steps that
are depending on the selected step in the logical execution sequence, according to the step
conditions (in the current run as well as in the following runs) except the steps that have
been SKIPPED
Synchronize files: if selected, the list of files available in the official directory of your
ValiManager application appears on the left hand side of the window. Selected files will
first be copied from the official directory to the directories of all runs to be reprocessed
Backup: if selected, ValiManager will save the directories of all runs to be reprocessed
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1122 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 16
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 1123
CHAPTER 17
VALIFORMS
XVII
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 17
SECTION 1: INTRODUCTION
1.1 VALIFORMS OBJECTIVES
ValiForms is a configurable user interface primarily used to handle manual inputs of a Vali
application through multi-pages forms:
The manual inputs will be stored in one or several mea file, to be later read by ValiEngine or
ValiDBLoader.
ValiForms is also used to generate pre-configured reports based on the data stored in ValiDatabase:
The reports can either be browsed in interactive mode (and possibly printed as PDF file) or directly
generated as PDF files, in background mode.
an xml file, generated with ValiFormsBuilder application, describing the contents of the
Forms
an auxiliary mea file, giving the initial counter and tank inventory data
an historian file with measured values coming from an external historian (typically
generated by ValiLink)
a ValiDatabase, giving validated values and initial counter and tank inventory data
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ValForms
Mea Files
ValiForms can handle several mea files, each mea file being displayed in a separate section (Area 1,
Area 2, etc… in the example below).
Each section is split up in several sub-sections (Unit 1, Raw Materials, Unit 2/3 in the example below),
enabling to logically group and organize related input data.
Each sub-section contains a number of fields defining input data (tags, tanks, counters, switches, etc.)
which will generate one or several lines in the mea files.
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1128 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 17
an xml file, generated with ValiFormsBuilder application, describing the contents of the
Forms
ValiDataBase
ValForms
As for input Forms, the report can be split up in several sections (Rapports in the example below)
and sub-sections (Unit1 and Unit 2/3, etc… in the example below).
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Each sub-section contains a number of fields defining the report (tag values, tank data, trends, etc.).
When used in a ValiProduction application, ValiForms can be called from ValiManager, presenting
the data related to the currently selected run and step. The user can browse through the data from
different daily runs, but only the data relative to the current run and current section can be edited by
the user.
When saving the data, the user can also approve the step, indicating that the input data have been
entered and checked, so that the current step can be considered as completed.
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1130 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 17
The objects panel, containing the tree view, located on the left
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1132 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 17
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 1133
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1134 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 17
MENU BAR
The menu is located at the top of the window. It provides a quick access to all main functionalities of
the program:
File
New: creates a new file (keyboard shortcut: ctrl+n; drag and drop the General node
of the tree on the left)
Save All: saves all files opened in current session of the program (keyboard
shortcut: ctrl+shift+n)
Exit: closes program (keyboard shortcut: alt+F4). If some files are unsaved, a prompt
invites you to save modified files.
View
Full Screen: toggle view to full screen mode (removes window header)/normal view
(keyboard shortcut: F11)
Fields:
Tools
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Help
TOOLBAR
Toolbar is located below menu. It provides quick access to most common functions. A description of
the function is given if the mouse remains on a button.
OBJECTS PANEL
The objects panel contains the object tree view. All objects that can be added on a ValiForms are
contained in this tree. To add an object, drag it from the tree and drop it on the tab view. The
different types of objects are described in input section fields and output section fields.
The objects panel can be hidden using the pin located at the top-right of the panel. The panel will
then auto-show when th mouse is placed on the tab located on the left of the window.
TABS VIEW
The tabs view is the most important part of the window. This is the area where sections, sub-
sections and fields are placed.
PROPERTIES PANEL
The properties panel is the place where properties of currently selected object are displayed.
Properties can be changed on this panel.
The properties panel can be hidden using the pin located at the top-right of the panel. The panel will
then auto-show when th mouse is placed on the tab located on the right of the window.
STATUS BAR
The status bar displays general information about currently loaded file.
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1136 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 17
AGGREGATION
The aggregation settings define a default aggregation period for the Form:
Month to Date
Last Month
Last Week
Week to Date
Last Year
Year to date
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
DICTIONARY
The dictionary shows the automatic title strings that will be written when generating titles. You can
choose your own naming convention for the listed fields.
LOG FILE
The log file settings are only used when ValiForms is called in background mode. This section is not
mandatory; default data will be used in place of any missing information item. Following fields have
to be provided:
Back-up option:
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1138 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 17
BACKUP: the old log is renamed by appending _log to the filename and the messages of
the current run are logged into a new file (default setting)
ARCHIVE: messages are written in a new file named by appending the current run
date to the selected file name
APPEND: messages are written at the end of the existing log file
File Name: name of the log file (the extension .log will be automatically added)
Level: used to filter the level of information and error messages to be written in the log file.
The log level can be one of the following: INF, WRN, ERR, ERS, ERF. Only messages with
levels higher than the log level are written. For instance, with ERR specified as log level,
only ERR, ERS and ERF message will be printed
Path: path of the log file (by default, path of the xml file)
PDF options allow you to specify options when generating PDF files using ValiForms in background
mode:
FIGURE 16 - PDF
PRODUCTS LISTS
Products allows you to define list of products that will be used in products fields.
FIGURE 17 - PRODUCTS
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
To edit the products list, click on the button that appears when clicking on (Collection). This
button will open a new window that allows you to create new products list:
To add a new products list, click on the Add button. To remove a list, click on the Remove button. The
Name of the collection is defined in the right part of the window. To define the list of Products in a
list, click on the button that appears when clicking on (Collection). A new window appears that
allows you to define the list of products (one per line):
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1140 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 17
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SETTINGS
Setting allows to define some other general settings linked to the configuration of ValiForms.
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1142 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 17
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VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
ValiFormsBuilder is all about drag & drop. To add any kind of objects (open or create file, add a
section, sub-section or field), simply drag it from the tree view and drop it onto the file.
To delete an object, right-click on it and select Delete. Field can also be deleted by right-clicking and
selecting delete.
To create an input section, drag the Input section node from the tree and drop it on the working sheet.
This will create a new section tab. Input sections are divided in sub-sections where input fields are
placed. An input sub-section is created by dragging the input sub-section from the tree view.
To create an input form, it is required to have at least one input section containing at least one input
sub-section. A field is added by dragging it from the tree view and dropping it on the sub-section
sheet.
Input sub-section is a grid containing two columns and an unlimited number of lines. A field can be
placed on any free space of the grid. The grid can be showed/hidden using keyboard shortcut ctrl+g
or by selecting View|Grid.
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1144 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 17
Some fields have a counterpart named FieldNameTitle, that simply represents titles to be displayed
above corresponding field, to give more information above the different parts of a field
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 1145
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COMMON PROPERTIES
Comment: some text that is displayed in front of the control (not used for title fields)
Name: name of the control, also used as name of the tag associated with the control (tag for
which value will be retrieved, or tag for which output will be written). This property is
mandatory for Free Input field
Location: the location of the control on the grid, indicated by the row and column number
All fields can be duplicated. To duplicate a field, right click it and select Duplicate.
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
1146 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 17
Counter measurements are converted to an actual measured value using the difference between the
final and initial values of the counter and a conversion coefficient:
Depending on the section settings (Init from DB and Mea Aux), the initial value will either be read
from ValiDatabase or from the auxiliary mea file.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 1147
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
The information contained in this document is proprietary to BELSIM s.a. The information in this
1148 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 17
Formula
A Formula field allows to calculate a resulting value from operations on other input data.
The formula is calculated through a succession of elementary operation (+,-,*,/) applied to two
variables, which can refer to any field value, including other formula, in any section. It can also refer
directly to a numeric value or to the result of an elementary operation of the formula itself.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 1149
VALI Help Belsim VALI 4.12
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1150 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 17
If a tag value is used, it is mandatory that a Tag Input field is created on this tag.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 1151
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Free Input
A Free Input field enables to enter a freely formatted text into the measurement file. The only
constraint is of course that this text complies with the various syntaxes available in measurement
files.
Product
A Product field enables to allocate a product to a Vali unit (tank) or stream.
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1152 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 17
Status
A Status field enables to assign different values to a tag according to a pre-defined status.
Switch
A Switch field enables to enter pre-configured mea file commands into the mea file according to a
user selection between a number of values for the switch.
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Table
A Table field enables to enter input data in a table form, like for example the amount of materials
used in various operation units.
The input data will be associated to tags that will be defined manually by entering a tag name in a
cell or automatically using an auto-naming strategy. In the first case, only cells associated with a tag
will be editable in ValiForms, and the measured value of the tag will be retrieved. In the second, all
cells are editable.
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1154 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 17
TagCalc
A TagCalc field allows to recompute a value of a tag based in another tag, using a multiplicating
coefficient
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 1155
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TagFormula
A TagFormula field allows to calculate three consecutive resulting values from operations on other
input data.
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1156 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 17
The formula is calculated through a succession of elementary operation (+,-,*,/) applied to two
variables, which can refer to any field value, including other formula, in any section. It can also refer
directly to a numeric value or to the result of an elementary operation of the formula itself.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 1157
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1158 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 17
If a tag value is used, it is mandatory that a Tag Input field is created on this tag.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 1159
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TagInput
A Tag Input field allows to change measured value of a tag.
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1160 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 17
Tank
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 1161
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1162 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 17
COMMON PROPERTIES
Comment: some text that is displayed in front of the control (not used for title fields)
Name: name of the control, also used as name of the tag associated with the control (tag for
which value will be retrieved, or tag for which output will be written). This property is
mandatory for Free Input field
Location: the location of the control on the grid, indicated by the row and column number
All fields can be duplicated. To duplicate a field, right click it and select Duplicate.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 1163
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1164 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 17
Phys Unit
A Phys Unit field displays the physical units of a tag.
TagBlock
A TagBlock field lists various properties of several tags in a single block.
The first 4 columns define various settings of a selected tag. You can add columns to display various
values of these tags (none, comment, measured, used or validated value or accuracy, penalty)
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Click on the button that appears when clicking on (Collection) to select tags and properties to
display:
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1166 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 17
Rows can be added and deleted using buttons located at the bottom right of the table.
To add properties, select Add Col, and then select the property to display in the drop-down menu
(TAGNAME, COMMENT, NONE, Measured, Validated, Penalty, Mea.Acc., Mea.Fil., Val.Acc., Acc.Fil.,
PhysUnit).
Tags for which information will be displayed can be chosen using the tag editor button:
This window allows you to select the tag name from a bls file or from your LicenseServer.
TagText
A TagText Field displays general information associated to a run: file name, model or main PFD name,
model or VALI engine version, any INFOi field.
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TagValue
A TagValue Field displays a single value from a tag.
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1168 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 17
TankBlock
A TankBlock field lists various properties of several storage tanks in a single block.
Show Validated Value: display the FIGURE 59 - TANK BLOCK FIELD PROPERTIES
validated value
Click on the button that appears when clicking on (Collection) to select tags to display:
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This window allows you to configure tags for tank monitoring by setting:
Text Field
Text field is used to enter free text on the form.
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1170 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 17
Trend
A Trend field displays historical trends of selected tag values.
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document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement. 1171
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1172 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 17
Axis:
Min/Max Y: minimum/maximum
value of the vertical axis
Chart area
General
Comment
Name
Plot:
Tags:
Trend:
When clicking on the button that appears when clicking on (Collection), or right clicking on the
trend and select properties, data to display can be selected:
This window allows to choose the tag to display, which value to trend (Acc.Fil., Compensated,
Eliminated, Filtered, Gain, In Use, Measured, Mea.Acc., Mea.Fil, Penalty, Status, Used Penalty,
Validated, Val.Acc., VDI Penalty), the color and the style of the lines and symbols, a multiplier for the
value and a legend.
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1174 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 17
double click the application ValiForms.exe in the bin folder of VALI installation
To start ValiForms in background mode, start ValiForms in <installdir>\bin folder (by defaut C:
\Program Files\Belsim\bin or C:\Belsim\bin) with the following mandatory arguments:
the run date (in format yyyyMMdd_HHmmss, optionally surrounded by double quotes )
the keyword –I (or –O) to print only the input (or output) section. By default, only the
output section is printed
Examples:
C:\Program Files\Belsim\bin\ValiForms.exe –BG 20110314_000000 1 H "D:\Tests\ValiForms\test.xml"
C:\Program Files\Belsim\bin\ValiForms.exe –BG 20110314_000000 1 H "D:\Tests\ValiForms\test.xml" –I
C:\Program Files\Belsim\bin\ValiForms.exe –BG "20110314_000000" 1 H "D:\Tests\ValiForms\test.xml"
Attention:
1. You can also start ValiForms using a short-cut pointing to the application.
2. You can provide the name of the xml file as argument to the application.
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3. In a ValiProduction application, ValiForms can be called directly from ValiManager, opening the
section corresponding to active run and step.
Depending on the configuration of the xml file, some of the options described below may be
deactivated. For example, the aggregation and date browsing option will only be operational when
in connection with a ValiDatabase or with a ValiProduction application.
The user can only enter data in the blank fields. All other fields are either static data, read-only data,
calculated or validated values.
Aggregation: aggregate data from consecutive runs between two selected dates
Save and Approve: saves the input data and sets the step as being completed (available
only when ValiForms is run from a ValiProduction application)
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1176 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 17
Close: closes the application. Take care that input data are not saved when closing the
application
The Print command activates first a selection screen to specify what needs to be printed out.
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: activate the hand tool, to move the report in the preview window
: go to previous page
: go to next page
: go to last page
: go to preceding view
: go to next view
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1178 document is not to be reproduced. It is provided to C ustomers under a special license agreement.
CHAPTER 18
THERMO
XVIII
VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 18
SECTION 1: INTRODUCTION
Thermo is a tool dedicated to thermodynamic calculations, such as:
Thermo handles calculations for both pure components and mixtures. The components can either be
defined by the USER or loaded from the BELSIM database which contains more than 830 compounds
(including acetylene, acids, alcohols, aromatics, olefins etc.). Pseudo-compounds are also available for
petroleum fractions, fuel-oil and coal modeling.
ideal gas/liquid
Peng-Robinson
Soave
Lee-Kesler-Plöcker
LASSC, Redlich-Kwong
Curl-Pitzer
NRTL
UNIQUAC
UNIFAC
Chao-Seader
Grayson-Streed
Braun K10
Please refer to Section 3 of the ValiModeller help file for more information on the thermodynamic
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methods.
The necessary input for Thermo is a BELSIM model file <model.bls>. Please refer to Section 4 of the
ValiModeller help file on how to build model files. The model file defines:
the stream thermod, i.e. the group of thermodynamic methods that are defined on the
stream
Thermodynamic calculations are performed within the library Thermo4.dll which is the core engine
of Thermo while Thermo.exe is used for the graphical user interface.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 18
To start Thermo go to the bin directory of the VALI installation folder and double-click on “Thermo.
exe”.
Thermo opens by default the model file loaded during the last use. If Thermo does not find the model
file or if Thermo is opened for the first time, most functions are disabled until a model file is loaded.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 18
The Menu bar provides an access to all main functionalities of the program.
File
use File| Save model to save current stream properties into the model file
use File| Export to Excel to export the displayed results in an Excel file
Tools
use Tools|Physical Units to define the physical units and the number format of
properties to be displayed
use Tools|Load Results to load results that have been saved previously
Application
use Application| Draw Chart to draw customized charts. For a given stream, any of
its properties can be plotted as a function of a state variable or a partial compound rate
Help
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2.4 TOOLBAR
The toolbar provides a quick access to main functions of the menu bar described above.
Open (File|Open)
Calculate (Application|Calculate)
The tabs view contains all the information about the selected stream. There are three major types of
tab:
General tab: it displays the selected stream information and enables to set the
computation mode. It also displays results of the computation
Graph tab: it displays the created graphs. One graph is plotted per Tab
Tab can be closed by middle-clicking on it or by right-clicking to open the context menu and selecting
the Delete button.
It is also possible to rename the tabs by the context menu, as shown below.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 18
The label on the left side of the status bar indicates the state of the last operation performed by
Thermo.
To open an existing model file, click on the Open button in Menu|File or in the toolbar.
Attention: model files created with the 4.6 or higher version of VALI can be opened by Thermo.
Models created with an older version of VALI must be converted prior to using Thermo. The model
file will be automatically converted once opened through the upgraded ValiModeller version
When a valid model file is loaded, the properties of the first stream (alphabetically ordered) are
automatically displayed in the General tab.
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TREEVIEW
On the Thermo window left side, the Tree View shows the following nodes:
the Stream node: it lists all the streams contained in the model file. It enables to load one
stream by double-clicking on it
the Thermod node: it displays the methods used in each Thermod and groups streams that
use the same Thermod. It enables to load a stream by double-clicking on it
the Charts node: it groups created charts by stream. It enables to display a chart by
double-clicking on it
Click on the symbol to expand or on the symbol to collapse the corresponding node of the Tree
View.
Thermodynamic properties calculation can be performed once a model file has been correctly loaded.
The Stream information frame in the General tab displays the essential parameters used in the
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 18
calculations.
Stream list: it shows the current stream selected. To select another stream, use the drop
down list or the Tree View.
Thermod: it indicates the Thermod of the selected stream. The Thermods are defined in the
model file and cannot be modified trough Thermo. Modifications of the Thermod have to be
done via ValiModeller
State: it indicates the state of the selected stream. To select another state, use the drop
down list. The State field sets the phases that can be present in the selected stream:
LL: two Liquid phases (if the model behavior enables demixing)
Mode: it indicates the calculation mode of the selected stream. To select another mode, use
the drop down list. The Mode field sets the two state variables used to determine the
stream properties.
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The cells containing the values related to the selected calculation mode are highlighted in green.
Double click on the green cells to modify the values of the state variables.
Once stream information and parameters of calculation are selected, click on the Calculate button
in the Menu|Application or in the toolbar to run the calculation. Results are displayed in the data
grids.
Note: Thermo only takes into account the green cells to perform the calculations.
FIGURE 8 - S TREAM INFORMATION FRAME AND DATA GRIDS OF THE GENERAL TAB
DATA GRIDS
The data grid displays the stream properties and rates. These values are classified in five columns
according to the phases of the selected stream. Two liquid phases can be represented if the model
behavior allows demixing. The total phase represents the properties of the whole mixture.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 18
Copy: copy the value of the selected cell into the clipboard
Set as Total Column: fill the values of the Total column with the ones of the selected
columns
Show old: when activated, the results of the previous calculation are shown when the
mouse quits the data grid
To change the physical units, click on the Physical Units button in Menu|Tools or in the Tree View.
The physical unit window is displayed and shows the current physical units used and their number
format.
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to change the physical units, use the drop down list below the Physical Units label
to change number format, use the drop down list below the Decimals label
to hide/show a physical property in the data grids, use the drop down list below the Show
property label
The three check boxes at the bottom of the window enable to respectively:
set the same number of decimal for all elements of data grids at once
take into account the enthalpy of formation for the enthalpy calculation
automatically use the selected stream physical units as defined in the model file when
selecting a stream in the General tab
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 18
To save stream properties calculated by Thermo into the currently loaded BLS model file, click on the
Save model button in Menu|Tools or in the toolbar.
A dialog box appears allowing you to select the stream of the model file into which the results are to
be saved. The stream can be selected via the Destination Stream drop down list. The Source Phase
drop down list enables to save the results of a specific phase. The Source Stream shows the stream
results that are to be saved.
Note: it is not possible to save the displayed results of a stream into another model file than the one
currently loaded by Thermo.
To export the displayed results of the data grids in an Excel file, click on the Export to Excel button
in Menu|File or in the toolbar.
A dialog box appears for browsing the directory and the name of the Excel file to be saved.
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The structure of the data in the excel file is similar to the one of the data grids.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 18
This method calculates the Liquid Vapor Equilibrium curves of a mixture as a function of one
changing compound rate at constant pressure or constant temperature.
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Select a changing element: it selects the partial fraction flow rate to be plotted
Selected element range: it sets the range and step of the changing element
Once the parameters are set, click on the OK button. The graph is plotted in a new tab.
By default, the name of this tab is Liquid Vapor.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 18
The function Draw Chart aims at plotting the evolution of any properties in function of either a
linearly changing state variable or a stream compound.
To draw a customized chart, click on the Draw Chart button in the Menu|Application or in the
toolbar. A dialog box prompts you to set the graph parameters.
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Basic Option frame: it enables to change the calculation parameters as the Mode, the
Composition and the State
The X axis element can only be a state variable, a partial or total rates flow. Note that only
state variables taken into account for calculation are displayed. Change the Mode to
display other state variables
Y elements frame: it enables to choose any property or any of the partial rates to be
plotted on the vertical axis. To select an element to be plotted:
select the element in the Y elements frame (the first box contains the thermodynamics
properties and the second the compounds of the mixture)
select the stream phase in the list box below the State label to get the values of the
selected property related to the specific phase
Selected Element frame: It shows the selected elements to be plotted in the Y axis. To
remove one of these elements from the list, select it and click on the Remove
button
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 18
Important note: the X axis element is chosen depending on the selected mode while the other state
variables of the stream (including composition) are determined through the data grids of the
general tab. Please go to the general tab and double-click on the variable cell to change its value.
Once the graph parameters are set, click the OK button. The graph is plotted in a new
tab. By default, the name of this tab is Chart.
FIGURE 17 - AN EXAMPLE OF CUS TOMIZED CHART (VAPOR FRACTION OF THE AIR IN FUNCTION OF THE
TEMPERATURE)
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 18
use Copy as text to Copy the chart data in an Excel format in the clipboard
use Paste to merge a graph that has been previously copied as text with the one currently
displayed
The toolbar on the top of the Graph tab provides access to specific functions
use Show Values to show the values of each point of the graph
use Export to Excel to export the graph data in a new Excel file
use Show Legend to show or hide the legend of the graph. The legend gives information
about the parameters used to plot the graph such as the composition, the changing
property, the stream or the model file used.
CHART LAYOUT
The preference window is composed of four tabs enabling to customize the graph layout.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 18
The Legend tab enables to see the legend of the graph and to set the information to be shown.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 18
By clicking on the Values button, a grid is displayed showing the values of the
calculated points of the selected curve.
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The White Equilibrium function performs a thermodynamic equilibrium of a stream using the
WHITE method. It takes into account all the possible chemical reactions in the mixture and
minimizes the free Gibb's Energy in a range of temperature or enthalpy. WHITE method involves
chemical reaction and therefore it uses the formation enthalpy for enthalpy display.
To start the equilibrium computation, click on the White Equilibrium button in Menu|
Application or in the toolbar.
EPH (adiabatic reactor): equilibrium calculated at the enthalpy and pressure set in the
General tab
EPT (isothermal reactor): equilibrium calculated at the temperature and the pressure set in
the General tab
The Delta Temperature (Enthalpy) represents the deviation from the equilibrium. It means that the
Gibb's Enthalpy is minimized at a temperature in a range T +/- DELTA T (enthalpy of H +/- DELTA H)
to find the equilibrium. The mixture properties are shown for the temperature T (enthalpy H).
Note: White equilibrium is designated for VAPOUR phases only and calculations will be done
assuming a vapor phase mixture.
The White Equilibrium tab is displayed once the white equilibrium has been calculated.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 18
The two grids on the left side display the properties before and after the runs for the vapor phase.
The graph on the right side gives an overview of the variation of the composition.
SAVING RESULTS
It is possible to save the displayed stream properties in Thermo in order to reload them later on or to
compare them with other computations.
The stream, the model file and the calculation parameters used are saved together with the results.
To save results:
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LOADING RESULTS
Once the results are saved, they can be reloaded by clicking on the Load Results button in Menu|
Tools. It opens a dialog box with all the previously saved results. Select the saved results by the check
box on the right side and click on the load button. The model file is automatically loaded and the
saved results are displayed in data grids of the General tab.
COMPARE RESULTS
The Load Result dialog box also enables to select several results to be compared. Select the saved
results by the check boxes on the right side and click on the Compare button. Under the condition
that selected streams have the same Thermod, a new tab is created with the selected streams.
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VALI 4.12 Belsim CHAPTER 18
Stream information frame is similar to the one of the General tab. It contains:
Stream number: it indicates the number of the stream. This number is used as a reference
to the stream in the data grids
The data grids contain the results of the streams comparison. Columns that correspond to those
phases that have all rates equal to zero are not shown to ensure a better readability of the results.
Column header names are composed of the stream phase followed by a number (the Stream number)
that refers to the streams loaded. For example, if the stream number is 0, the Vapor 0 column
designates thermodynamic properties of the stream in the Vapor phase.
Through this window, thermodynamic properties calculation on several streams can be done at
once.
For each stream of the Stream List, set the stream parameters and computation mode in the Stream
information frame. The parameters can be different for each stream.
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Enter the state variables and partial compounds rate (green cells) with desired values and click the
Calculate button located under the Stream information frame to launch the computation. The results
are displayed in data grids.
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