Optimal Location of Coal Blending Plants by Mixed-Integer Programming

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Abstract
In order to meet increasingly stringent environmental standards, coal burned by utilities and industries must be of an acceptable lower sulfur content. One solution suggested in this paper is the establishment of centralized blending plants that could take coals of varying sulfur content and produce a coal product that would meet the coal consumers needs based upon effluent standards. A mixed integer programming model is developed for studying this problem. A case study is presented with coal data for the State of Indiana. Model results on the number of blending plants to be selected, their site locations, optimal blending ratios, transportation configuration, and cost savings are discussed.