As desired, a propylene splitter with a heat pump system was designed to produce both polymer-grade propylene and propane HD-5 at a rate of 5,501 and 576 barrels/day, respectively. The process was modeled, simulated, and optimized using Aspen HYSYS. Hand calculations were used to validate these results.

Economic analyses were conducted based on 10-year MACRS depreciation over a 10-year evaluation life starting in the year 2020. The estimated net present value is $80,400,000 with discounted cash flow rate of return 85%. Based on both NPV and DCFROR analyses, the fractionation system modification was determined to be economically attractive.