At the 2025 Ovation Users’ Group Conference, Emerson’s Mike Painter and Melanie Novacek presented Unleash Efficiency with Performance Optimization Software. Mike and Melanie opened by highlighting the challenges in energy and electrification. The global population is expected to grow from 7.8 billion to 9.7 billion people. Today, approximately 770 million people lack access to electricity, and the use of lithium and cobalt in battery technology is projected to increase by 600% to meet this demand. Net Zero goals challenge this growth.
One specific area to drive improvements in plant performance and optimization is with the Aspen Utilities Planner. The Ovation Global Performance Advisor provides performance calculations around critical assets based on ASME performance test codes (PTCs). Those calculations have been migrated to the Aspen Utilities platform. It gives a more modern and capable infrastructure, enabling you to go beyond just displaying performance calculations to running what-if scenarios and layering optimization on top.
This new “what-if” capability enables users to analyze different modes of operation, so that the impacts on overall plant performance can be seen before putting a process change into service. Users can evaluate the implications and prioritize maintenance. If you have to choose between cleaning a fouled heat exchanger or overhauling a large pump, given time and budget constraints, which option will yield the greatest improvement in plant performance? This can now be modeled, and the results can be seen before proceeding.
Ovation Performance Optimization Software is available in three tiers. They include:
- Tier 1 – Online model-based performance calculations
- Tier 2 – Offline “what-if” performance calculations and root cause analysis
- Tier 3 – Optimization of plant performance
Tier 1 provides data validation and reconciliation via mass and energy balance models. It displays actual value, reconciled values, and deviations from actual. The online model-based performance calculations use reconciled model-based inputs and calculate performance based on the ASME PTCs, calculating actual, design, and deviation from design.
These calculations provide equipment performance for maintenance planning, run-time operation decisions, and enhanced efficiency opportunities. Detailed heat rate information is available on the Ovation graphics.
Some examples shared for performance optimization include steam turbines, cooling towers, condensers, and pumps.
Tier 2 provides fault analysis with root cause analysis displayed on Ovation graphics. It helps you drill down to the root cause of efficiency losses on plant assets such as boilers.
This Tier 2 software can perform offline “what-if” analysis. It uses an online snapshot for initial values. Analysis may include modifying equipment availability and fuel consumption, and viewing results on the model or in an Excel spreadsheet to highlight performance results for future forecasting.
Tier 3 derives optimization setpoints to minimize operating costs. It provides optimization setpoints for future forecasting and calculates these setpoints to maximize power output. These optimizations can be closed or open loop for key parameter setpoints.
Visit the Power Plant Optimization Software section on Emerson.com for more information on how to drive performance improvements in your operations.
