Author/Authors :
Lisa Hopkins، نويسنده , , Paul Lant and Bob Newell، نويسنده ,
Latin Abstract :
This paper seeks to expose the relative merits of output structural controllability (OSC) as an integrative
tool for process design and control. Output structural controllability assists the design engineer in flowsheet
selection, via the elimination of uncontrollable flowsheets, and in control structure synthesis. The
qualitative nature of the technique means that it can be performed at the early stages of design, when
alternative flowsheets have been proposed, but quantitative design parameters are unknown. As such,
OSC may significantly reduce the amount of quantitative modelling required, thereby providing a significant
cost saving. Two industrial case studies are examined: a wet grinding circuit and the purification
section of an ethylene oxide production plant. In both cases, a control structure is synthesised using a
protoype software package developed at The University of Queensland. The control structure designs are
seen to be operable recommendations, and similar to those employed by both operating companies;
designs which were probably the result of much trial-and-error, many iterations and based on far greater
(quantitative) information. The integration of process design and control is a difficult problem. This paper
demonstrates that OSC is one tool which may be employed by process design and control engineers to
address this problem.
