Advanced process control (APC) system for pH neutralization plant based on multiple model controller

Client: National Iranian Oil Refinery & Distribution Company (NIORDC)

Date: 2010-2011

Director project: Dr. Alireza Fatehi

Project associate members: Dr. Ali Khaki-Sedigh

Project type: Design, Development and Pilot Plant Implementation

Project collaborator: K.N. Tossi University of Technology (KNTU)

Summary of project:

Without a proper control system, the production in any process plants, including refinery plants, cannot reach to technically high quality and economically compatible level. Therefore, any refinery plant needs an advanced process control (APC) beside its advanced automation system. However, conventional APC may be so complex that they cannot be practically operable in every process plants. In this project, a new configuration of APC is proposed for refinery plants. The controller is based on multiple model controller, in which simple linear controllers are designed for some operating points of the process. A careful, but transparent, supervisory algorithm selects each controller at any operating point. This reduces the complexity of the control system, while keeps the overall quality in high level. The controller has been experimentally tested on a pH neutralization pilot plant.

 

 

 

Experimental result on pH neutralization plant

Black: desired pH, Blue: Proposed Multiple APC, Red: Conventional adaptive APC