UNIT III

CONTROL SYSTEMS WITH MULTIPLE LOOPS

CONTENTS

1. INTRODUCTION
2. CASCADE CONTROL
2.1 Simple feedback Control
2.2 Cascade control
3.0 SELECTIVE CONTROL SYSTEM
3.1 Override Control
3.2 Auctioneering control systems
4. SPLIT RANGE CONTROL
5. FEEDFORWARD CONTROL
5.1 Feedforward Control of Various Processing Units
5.2 Relative advantages and disadvantages of Feedforward and
Feedback Control loops
6 .RATIO CONTROL
7. ADAPTIVE CONTROL
7.1. Programmed or Scheduled Adaptive Control
7.2 Self Adaptive Control
8. INFERENTIAL CONTROL
9. Summary
10. Questionnaire
1. INTRODUCTION

 The feedback control configuration involves one measurement

(output) and one manipulated variable in a single loop.
 However, in multiple loops
 More than one measurement and one manipulation
or
 One measurement and more than one manipulated
variables
 Examples
 Cascade control
 Feed forward Control
 Selective control systems
 Split range control
 Ratio control
 Adaptive control
 Inferential control

2. CASCADE CONTROL

In cascade control configuration, we have one manipulated

variable and more than one measurement. With a single manipulation,
we can control only one output.

Example: Cascade Control for a jacketed CSTR

Consider the CSTR shown in fig 3. 1. The reaction is exothermic

and the heat generated is removed by the coolant, which flows in the
jacket around the tank. The control objective is to keep the
temperature of the reacting mixture, T, constant at a desired value.
Possible disturbances to the reactor include the feed temperature T i
and the coolant temperature T c. The only manipulated variable is the
coolant flow rate
cAi, Ti,FFc.i

Reactant
Fc, Tc0

Fc, Tci cA, T, F

Coolant Product

Fig 3.1 CSTR with cooling jacket

 Feed

T
TT

Set point
TC

A B

Tc product
coolant Fc

Fig 3.2a Temperature control of jacketed CSTR- conventional feedback

2.1 Simple feedback Control

If we use simple feedback, take the control configuration is shown in

fig [Link] measure temperature T and manipulate coolant flow rate F c.
It is clear that much will respond faster to changes in T i than to
changes in Tc. Therefore the simple feedback control of Fig 3.2a will be
effective in compensating forFeedchanges in T i and less effective in
compensating for changes in Tc.
TT

Set point TC
T
Set point
TC TT
Tc

A B

product
coolant Fc

Fig 3.2b Temperature control of jacketed CSTR- cascade

 2.2 Cascade control
The response of simple feedback control to changes in the
coolant temperature can be improved by measuring T c and taking
control action before its effect has been by the reacting mixture.
Thus if Tc goes up, increase the flow rate of coolant to remove the
same amount of heat. Decrease the coolant flow rates when T c
decreases.

Hence we can have two control loops using two different

measurements, T and Tc but sharing a common manipulated
variable, Fc.

How these loops are related is shown in fig 3.2b

 The loop that measures T(controlled variable) is the dominant or

primary loop or master loop and uses a set point supplied by the
operator, while
 The loop that measures Tc uses the output of the primary
controller as its set point and is called secondary or slave loop.

The control configuration with these two loops is known as

cascade control and is very common in chemical process.

To generalize consider the process consisting of two parts shown

in fig 3.3a: process I and process II. Process I (primary) has as its
output the variable we want to control. Process II (secondary) has
an output that we are not interested in controlling but which
affects the output we want to control.

For the CSTR system(in eg). Process I is the reaction in the tank
and the controlled output Overall process
in the temperature T. Process II is the
jacket and its output Tc affects process I(reactor) and consequently
T. d11 d1
+
Fig 3.3b shows +
Manipulated Process II the simple feedbackProcess
control
I system and fig controlled
3.3c
variableshows the general
(secondary) form of cascade control.
(primary) output
+ +

Fig 3.3 a Schematic representation of open loop process

controlled
output
 d11 d1
+
Set +
point + Controller Process II Process I
(secondary) + (primary) +
-

Measuring device

Fig 3.3 b Schematic representation of conventional feedback

Primary loop
Controlled
output
Secondary loop
d1
d11
+
+
Set + Primary + Secondary Process II Process I
point Controller Controller (secondary) + (primary) +
- -

Measuring
device

Measuring
device

Fig 3.3c Schematic representation of Cascade control

 Benefit of cascade control
Disturbance arising within the secondary loop are corrected by the
secondary controller before they can affect the value of the primary
controlled output. This benefit has led to the extensive use of cascade
control in chemical process.

d11
d1
+ + y
+
ysp + Gc,I + Gc,II Gp,II Gp,I +
- -
Secondary loop

Primary loop

Fig 3.4 a Block diagram of cascade control system

d11

1
1  Gc , II G p , II d1
+ + y
ysp + Gc,I Gc , II G p , II Gp,I +
1  Gc , II G p , II +
-

Primary loop

Fig 3.4 b Simplified form

Consider the block diagram of a general cascade system
shown in fig 3.4a.

The closed loop response of the primary loop is influenced by the

dynamics of the secondary loop, whose open loop transfer
function is equal to

G secondary = Gc,II Gp,II (3.2.1)

The stability of secondary loop is determined by the roots of its

characteristic equation

1+Gc,IIGp,II=0 (3.2.2)

Fig 3.4b shows a simplified form of the general block diagram

where the secondary loop has been considered as a dynamic
element.

For the primary loop the overall open loop transfer function is

Gprimary = Gc,I Gp,I (3.2.3)

and consequently the characteristic equation whose roots
determine the stability of the primary loop is the following:

1+Gc,I Gp,I = 0
(3.2.4)

Remarks
1. Two controllers of a cascade control system are standard
feedback controllers (P,PI,PID). Generally a proportional control
is used in the secondary loop. Any offset caused by P control in
the secondary loop is not important since we are not interested
in controlling the output of secondary process.
2. The dynamics of the secondary loop are much faster than those
of the primary loop. Consequently the phase lag of the closed
secondary loop will be less than that of primary loop. This
feature leads to a important result in cascade control: The cross
over frequency for the secondary loop is higher than that for
the primary loop. This allows us to use higher gain in the
secondary in order to regulate more effectively the effect of a
disturbance occurring in the secondary loop without
endangering the stability of the system.
 3. The tuning of two controllers in cascade control system
proceeds in two steps:
a) First we determine the settings for the secondary
controller using Cohen-Coon or Zeigler-Nichols. The open
loop transfer function that we use for tuning the
secondary controller is given in eq 3.2.1.
b) Second from the Bode plots of the overall system we
determine the cross over frequency using the settings
for the secondary loop we found above. Using the
frequency response techniques, we can choose the
settings for the primary controller. The open loop
transfer function of the primary loop needed for the
construction of the bode plots is given by eq 3.2.3.

3.0 SELECTIVE CONTROL SYSTEM

 The control systems that involve one manipulated variable and

several controlled outputs.
 Since with one manipulated variable we can control only one
output, the selective control systems transfer control action from
one controlled output to anther according to need.
 Types of selective control systems
 Override control for the protection of process equipment.
 Auctioneering control
Discharge line
3.1 Override Control steam

 During the normal operation of a plant or during its start up

or shut down it is possible that dangerous
Loopsituations
1 may
arise which may lead to destruction of equipment and
operating personnel.
 In such cases it is necessary to change from the normal PT
control action and attempt to prevent a process variable
from exceeding an allowable upper limit or lower limit.
 This can be achieved through the use of special types of
Boiler switches. The high selector
Loop 2 switch(HSS) is used whenever a
variable should not exceed an upper limit and low selector
LSS
switch(LSS) is employed
LT to prevent aLC
process variable from PC
exceeding a lower limit.
Heating coil
Water Example: Protection of a boiler system

Very hot gases

Fig3.5 Override control to protect a boiler system
 The steam pressure in a boiler is controlled through the use of a
pressure control loop on the discharge line(Loop 1 in Fig 3.5)
 At the same time the water level in the boiler should not fall below
a lower limit which is necessary to keep the heating coil immersed
in water and thus prevent its burning out.
 Fig 3.5 shows the override control system using a low switch
selector(LSS).According to this system, whenever the liquid level
falls below the allowable limit , LSS switches the control action
from pressure to level control (loop2 in fig 3.5)and closes the valve
on the discharge line.

3.2 Auctioneering control systems

 Such control configurations select among similar measurements

the one with the highest value and feed it to the controller
 Thus it a selective controller , which possess several measured
output and one manipulated input.

Example: Catalytic tubular reactors with highly exothermic

reactions.
Hot spot
 Several highly exothermic reactions take place in tubular reactors
filled with a catalyst bed.
 Typical examples are hydrocarbon oxidation reactions. Fig 3.6
shows the temperature profile along the length of the tabulator
reactor.
Temperature

Length of tubular reactor L

0

Fig 3.6 Temperature profiles in a tubular catalytic reactor

  The highest temperature is called hot spot.
 The location of hot spot moves along the length of the reactor
depending on the feed conditions(temperature, concentration
and flow rate).
 The value of the hot spot temperature also depends o the factors
listed above and the temperature and flow rate of the coolant.
 The primary objective is to keep the hot spot temperature below
an upper limit. Therefore we need a control system that can
identify the location of the hotspot and provide the proper
control action. This can be achieved through:
 Placement of thermocouples along the length of the
reactor.
 Use of auctioneering system to select the highest
temperature which will be used to control the flow rate of
the coolant.(fig 3.7)
Reactants
Products

TT TT TT TT

Auctioneering Systems

TC

coolant
Fig 3.7 Auctioneering control system for a tubular catalytic reactor
 [Link] RANGE CONTROL

 Split range control configuration has one measurement only

(controlled output) and more than one manipulated variable.
 Since there is only one controlled output, we have only one
control signal, which is thus split into several parts, each
affecting on of the available manipulations.
 In other words, we can control a single process output by
coordinating the actions of several manipulated variables, all
of which have the same effect on the controlled output.
 Such systems are not common in chemical process, but
provide added safety and operational optimality.

Example: Split Range control of Chemical Reactor

Consider the reactor shown in fig 3.8a , where a gas phase

reaction takes place. Two control valves manipulate the flows
of the feed and the reaction product. It is clear that in order to
control the pressure in the reactor, the two valves cannot act
independently but should be coordinated.
Fig 3.8b indicates the coordination of the two valves
actions as a function of the controller’s output signal(Table 3.1).
Fig 3.8b indicates the coordination of the two valve’s
action as a function of the controller’s output signal.
PC

PT

Reactants Reactor
Products
V1 V2

Fig 3.8a Reactor system with split range control

 Valve stem
position

open

V2
V1

closed
3 6 9 psi
Controller’s output signal

Fig 3.8b Action of two valves

Let the controller’s output signal corresponding to the desired

operation of the reactor be 6 psig. From fig 3.8b , we see that
valve V2 is partly open while valve V1 is completely open.
When for various reasons the pressure in the reactor
increases, the controller’s output signal also increases. Then it
is split into two parts , affects the two valves simultaneously
and the following actions takes place:
 As the controller output increases from 6 psig to 9
psig, valve V2 is open s continuously while V1 remains
completely open. Both actions lead to a reduction in
the pressure.
 For large increase in the reactor’s pressure, the
control output may exceed 9 psig. In such a case,
valve V2 is completely open while valve V1 starts
closing. Both actions again lead to a reduction in
pressure until the reactor has returned to the desires
operation.
 Table 3.1 Output Signal and valve Coordination

5. FEEDFORWARD CONTROL

 A Feedback control loops can never achieve perfect control of a

chemical process, that is, keep the output of the process
continuously at the desired set point value in the presence of
load or set point changes. The reason is simple: A Feedback
controllers react only after it has detected a deviation in the
value of the output from the desired set point.
 A Feed forward control configuration measures the disturbance
(load) directly and takes control action to eliminate its impact on
the process output. Therefore, Feed forward controllers have the
theoretical potential for perfect control.
 In this section we study the characteristics of Feed forward
control systems and describe the techniques that are used for
their design.

Logic of Feedforward Control

Controller’s & Valve V1 stem Valve V2 stem

output signal position position
3 psig Open Closed
9psig Open Open
15 psig T
Closed open
h
Q
&

Condensate

Fst
Steam
 Fig 3.9 Stirred Tank Heater

 Consider the stirred tank heater shown in the above figure 3.9.
The control objective is to keep the temperature of the liquid in
the tank at a desired value (set point) despite any changes in the
temperature of the inlet stream.

Disturbance
Manipulated Controlled
Variable Output
PROCESS

CONTROLLER

Fig 3.9 Structure of Feedback Control Schemes

 The figure 3.9 above shows the conventional feedback loop,

which measures the temperature in the tank and after
comparing it with the desired value, increases or decreases the
steam pressure, thus providing more or less heat into the liquid.
 A Feedforward control system uses a different approach. It
measures the temperature of the inlet stream (disturbance) and
adjusts appropriately the steam pressure (manipulated variable).
Thus it increases the steam pressure if the inlet temperature
decreases and decreases the steam pressure when the inlet
temperature increases or goes up.

CONTROLLER Disturbance

PROCESS
Manipulated Controlled
Variable Output
 Fig 3.10 Structure of Feedforward Control Schemes

 The figure 3.10 shows the general form of a Feedforward control

system. It measures the disturbances directly and then it
anticipates the effect that it will have on the process output.
Subsequently, it changes the manipulated variable by such an
amount as to eliminate completely the impact of the disturbance
on the process output (Controlled Variable). Control action starts
immediately after a change in the disturbance has been
detected.
 It is very clear that feedback acts after the fact in a
compensatory manner, whereas Feedforward acts beforehand in
an anticipatory manner.

5.1 Feedforward Control of Various Processing Units

1. Feedforward control of a heat exchanger where the objective is

to keep the exit temperature of the liquid constant by
manipulating the steam pressure. There are two principal
disturbances (loads) that are measured for Feedforward control:
liquid flow rate and liquid inlet temperature.

2. Feedforward control of a CSTR where inlet concentration and

temperature are the two disturbances, and the product
withdrawal flow rate and the coolant flowSteamrate are the two
manipulations. There are two objectives: to maintain constant
temperature and composition within the CSTR.
Fsteam
3. Feedforward control of a drum boiler is shown below and the
objective is to keep the liquid level
FT in the drum constant. The two
disturbances are the steam flow from the boiler, which is
dictated by varying demand elsewhere in the plant, and the flow
of the feed water. The last is also the principal manipulated
variable.
Feedforward
Controller
Heat Drum Boiler

FT

Fwater

Feed Water
 Fig 3.11 Feedforward Control of drum boiler
Remarks

 As the examples above have indicated, Feedforward control

systems can be developed for more than one disturbance. The
controller acts according to which disturbance changed value.
 The Feedforward control of CSTR indicates that the extension to
systems with multiple controlled variables should be rather
straightforward.
 With the exception of the controller, all the other hardware
elements in a Feedforward loop are the same as for a feedback
loop (sensors, transducers, transmitters, final control element).
The Feedforward loop retains all the external characteristics of a
feedback loop. Thus it has a primary measurement which is
compared to a set point signal and the result of the comparison
is the actuating signal for the main controller.
 It is clear that a Feedforward controller cannot be a conventional
feedback controller (P, PI, and PID). Instead it should be viewed
as a special-purpose computing machine. This is the reason that
it is sometimes referred to as a Feedforward computer.
 Feedforward control depends heavily on a good knowledge of the
process model. Perfect control necessitates perfect knowledge of
process and disturbances, which is not practically possible. This
is the main drawback of Feedforward control.

Feedforward control has the potential for perfect control but it also
suffers from several inherent weaknesses.
 1. It requires the identification of all possible disturbances
and their direct measurement, something that may not be
possible for many processes.
2. Any change in the parameter of the process (e.g. deviation
of a catalyst with time, reduction of a heat transfer
coefficient due to fouling, etc.,) cannot be compensated by
a Feedforward controller because their impact cannot be
detected.
3. Feedforward control requires a very good model for the
process, which is not possible for many systems in
chemical industry.

On the other hand, feedback control is rather insensitive to all

the above three drawbacks but has poor performance for a
number of systems (multicapacity, dead time, etc.,) and raises
questions of closed loop stability. The following table summarizes
the relative advantages and disadvantages of the two control
loops.

5.2 Relative advantages and disadvantages of Feedforward

and Feedback Control loops

Advantages Disadvantages

Feedforward

1. Requires identification of
1. Acts before the effect of a
all possible disturbances
disturbance has been felt
and their direct
by the system.
measurement.

2. It is good for slow systems. 2. Cannot cope with

(Multicapacity) or systems unmeasured disturbance.
with significant dead time.

3. Sensitive to process
3. It does not introduce
parameters variations. And
instability in the closed-
it requires good knowledge
loop response.
of the process model.

Feedback
 1. It does not require 1. It waits until the effect of
identification and the disturbances has been
measurement of any felt by the system, before
disturbance. control action is taken.

2. It is unsatisfactory for slow

2. It is insensitive to modeling
processes or with
errors.
significant dead time.
3. It is insensitive to 3. It may create instability in
parameter changes. the closed-loop response.

6 .RATIO CONTROL
 Ratio Control is special type of Feedforward control where two
disturbances (loads) are measured and held in a constant ratio to
each other.
 It is mostly used to control the ratio of flow rates of two streams.
“Wild Stream”
Both flow rates are measured but only one can be controlled.
A  The stream whose flow rate is not under control is usually
referred to as wild stream.
The figure 3.11a and 3.11b show two different ratio control
configurations for two streams. Stream A is the wild stream.
1. In FTconfiguration 1(Figure 3.11) we
Desired measure both flow rates
Ratio
and take their ratio. This ratio is compared to the desired ratio
(set point) and the deviation (error) between the measured
and desiredMeasured
ratios constitutes the actuating signal for the ratio
controller. Ratio
+ Ratio
2. In configuration 2 (Figure 3.11b) we measure the flow rate of
Divider Controller
the wild stream A and multiply it by theGdesired
R’ ratio. The
result is the flow rate that the stream B should have and
constitutes the set point value Errorwhich is compared to the
measured flow rate of stream B. The deviation constitutes the
actuating signal for the controller, which adjusts appropriately
the
FT flow of B.

B
Controllable Stream
Valve
FT: Flow Sensor Transmitter
Figure 3.11a :Configuration 1 of Ratio Control Systems
 Wild stream

FA

FT

Desired
Ratio

Measured
Ratio + Ratio
Controller
GR’

Error

FT

FB

B
Controllable Stream
Valve
FT: Flow Sensor Transmitter

Figure 3.11 b:Configuration 2 of Ratio Control Systems

Ratio Control is used extensively in chemical processes with the
following as the most commonly encountered examples:

1. Keep a constant ratio between the feed flow rate and the steam
in the reboiler of a distillation column.
2. Hold constant the reflux ratio in a distillation column.
3. Control the ratio of two reactants entering a reactor at a desired
value.
4. Keep the ratio of fuel/air in a burner at its optimum value(most
efficient combustion)
5. Hold the ratio of a purge stream to the recycle stream constant.

7. ADAPTIVE CONTROL

 Adaptive is called a control system, which can adjust its

parameters automatically in such a way as to compensate for
variations in the characteristics of the process it controls.
 The practical implementation of adaptive control is complicated
and involves extensive computations and is accomplished
through the use of digital computers.
 The various types of adaptive control system differ only in the
way the parameters of the controller are adjusted.

Why adaptive control is required in chemical process?

 There are two reasons. First, most chemical processes are non-
linear. Therefore, the linearized models that are used to design
linear controllers depend on a particular steady state(around
which the process is linearized).It is clear that as the desired
steady state operation of the process changes, the “best” values
of the controller’s parameters change. This implies the need for
controller adaptation.
 Second is most of the chemical processes are nonstationary (i.e.
their characteristics change with time). This change leads again
to deterioration in the performance of the linear controller, which
was designed using some nominal values for process
 parameters, thus requiring adaptation of the controller’s
parameters.

What is the objective of the adaptation procedure?

 Clearly, it is not to keep the controlled variable at the specified

set point. This will be accomplished by the control loop.
 We need a additional criterion, an objective function that will
guide the adaptation mechanism to the “best” adjustment of the
controller’s parameters. To phrase it differently, we need a
criterion to guide the adaptive tuning of the controller. Any of the
performance criteria such as one quarter decay ratio, Integral of
the square error or gain or phase margins could be used.

There are two different mechanisms for the adaptation of the

Controller parameters:

1. Programmed or Scheduled Adaptive Control

2. Self Adaptive Control

7.1. Programmed or Scheduled Adaptive Control

 Suppose that the process is well known and that an adequate

mathematical model for it as available.
 If there is an auxiliary process variable which correlates well with
the changes in process dynamics, we can relate ahead of time
the “best” values of the controller’s parameters to the value of
the auxiliary process variable.
 Consequently, by measuring the value of the auxiliary variable
we can schedule or program the adaptation of the controller
parameters. The figure 3.12 shows the block diagram of a
programmed adaptive control system.
 We notice that it is composed of two loops. The inner loop is an
New Values of
ordinary feedback control loop. The outer loop includes the
Controller Parameters
parameter adjustment (adaptation) mechanism and it is
Adjustment
comparable to Feedforward compensation. A typical example is
Mechanism
Gain Scheduling adaptive control.
Auxiliary
Outer Loop Measurement
Set Point
Controller Process

Controlled
Inner Loop Output

Fig 3.12 Programmed Adaptive Control Mechanism

Example of Programmed or Scheduled Adaptive Control: - Gain
Scheduling Adaptive Control

 In a normal feed back control loop the control valve or another of

its components may exhibit a nonlinear character. In such a case
the gain of the nonlinear component will depend on the current
steady state. Suppose that we want to keep the total gain of the
overall system constant. From the figure shown in fig 3.13a we
find easily that the open-loop gain is given by

Constant
where Kp, Km, Kc, Kf represents the gain of process, measuring sensor,,
controller and final control element respectively.

 It is clear then that as the gain of the nonlinear valve changes,

the gain of the controller, , should change as follows:

 We assume that as the gain and are known exactly.

Furthermore, if the characteristics of the control valve are known
well, then its gain can be calculated from the stem position.
 Therefore by measuring the stem position (auxiliary
measurement) we can compute . Then the equation above
yields the adaptation mechanism of this simple gain scheduling
adaptive controller. The fig 3.13b below shows the resulting
control structure.
 Controlled
Set Point Output
Controller Valve Process
+
-

Measuring
Sensor

Fig 3.13a Feedback Control Loop

Stem Position
Adaptation (Auxiliary Measurement)
Mechanism

Controlled
Set Point Output
Controller Valve Process
+
-

Measuring
Sensor

Fig 3.13b Gain Scheduling Adaptive Control

7.2 Self Adaptive Control

 If the process is not well known, we need to evaluate the

objective function on-line (while the process is operating) using
the values of the controlled output.
  Then the adaptation mechanism will change the controller
parameters in such a way as to optimize (maximize or minimize)
the value of the objective function (criterion).
 In the following section we examine the logic of the two special
self adaptive control systems : – model reference adaptive
control (MRAC) and self-tuning regulators (STRs)

Example of Self adaptive control system: - Model Reference

Adaptive Control (MRAC)

 The following figure 3.14 illustrates a different way to adjust the

parameters of the controller. We postulate a reference model
which tells us how the controlled process output ideally should
respond to the command signal (set point).
 The model output is compared to the actual process output. The
difference (error ) between the two outputs is used through a
computer to adjust the parameters of the controller in such a
way as to minimize the integral square error:

Minimize

 The model chosen by the control designer for reference purposes

is to a certain arbitrary. Most often a rather simple linear model
is used.

Reference Model Output

Model +

Outer loop

Adaptation -
New Values for Mechanism
Controller Parameters

+
Controller Process
Set Point Controlled
- Output
Inner loop

Fig 3.14 Model – Reference Adaptive Control

  We notice that the model-reference adaptive control is
composed of two loops. The inner loop is an ordinary feedback
control loop. The outer loop includes the adaptation mechanism
and also looks like a feedback loop. The model output plays the
role of the set point while the process output is the actual
measurement.
 There is a comparator whose output (error ) is the input to the
adjustment mechanism. The key problem is to design the
adaptation mechanism in such a way as to provide a stable
system (i.e. bring the error to zero).

Example of Self adaptive control system: - Self Tuning

Regulators (STR)

 Consider the block diagram shown in the figure 3.15. It

represents the structure of a self-tuning regulator, which
constitutes another way of adjusting the parameters of a
controller.
 The STR is composed again of two loops. The inner loop consists
of the process and an ordinary linear feedback controller. The
outer loop is used to adjust the parameters of the feedback
controller and is composed of (1) a recursive parameter
estimator and (2) an adjustment mechanism for the controller
parameters.

Parameter
Adjustment
Mechanism

New Values for

Controller Parameters Outer loop Parameter y
m
Estimator

Manipulated Variable
+ y
m
Controller Process
Set Point Controlled
- Output
Inner loop
 Fig 3.15 Self Tuning Regulator

 The parameter estimator assumes a simple linear model for the

process

 Then using measured values for the manipulated variable m and

the controlled output y, it estimates the values of the parameters
, employing a least-square estimation technique. Once the
values of the process parameters , are known, the
adjustment mechanism can find the “best” values for the
controller parameters using the design criteria such as, Phase
margin or gain margin or the Integral of the squared error etc.

 Both the parameter estimator and the adjustment mechanism

require involved computations. For this reason the STR can be
implemented only through the use of digital computers.

8. INFERENTIAL CONTROL

 Quite often, the controlled output of a processing unit cannot be

measured. Consequently we cannot use feedback control or any
other configuration which necessitates direct measurement of
the controlled variable.
 If the disturbances that create the control problems can be
measured and an adequate process model is available, we could
use feed forward control to keep unmeasured output at its
desired value.
 What happens if the disturbances cannot be measured?
 None of the control configurations studied so far can be used to
control an unmeasured process output in the presence of
unmeasured disturbances. This is the type of control problems
where inferential control is the only solution.

Consider the block diagram of the process shown in

fig3.16a with one unmeasured controlled output y, and one
secondary measured output, z. The manipulated variable
 m and disturbance d affect both outputs. The disturbance
is considered to be unmeasured.

The transfer functions in the block diagram indicate the

relationship between the various inputs and outputs, and
they are assumed to be perfectly known.

Unmeasured
d disturbance

Gd1 Gd2

+
Manipulated
m variable Gp1 + y Controlled output
(unmeasured)
+
+
Gp2 + z Secondary+
controller +
setpoint Process measurement
Gc (Fig a) +
+
+
-
Fig 3.16 a Process with need for inferential control

Gd 1
G p1  G p2
Estimate of Gd 2
unmeasured
output
+
Gd 1
+ Gd 2 +

Estimator

Fig3.16 b Corresponding inferential control system

From fig 3.16 a we derive the input-output relationships.

(3.8.1)
(3.8.2)

From eq 3.8.2 we solve with respect to and find the following

estimate of the unmeasured disturbance:

(3.8.3)

Substitute the estimate above in eq 3.8.1 and the following

relationship is found

(3.8.4)

Eq 3.8.4 provides the needed estimator which relates the unmeasured

controlled output to measured quantities like m and z.

Fig 3.16b shows the structure of resulting inferential control system.

The estimated value of unmeasured output plays the same role as a
regular measured [Link] it is compared to the desired setpoint and
the difference is the actuating signal for the controller.

Remarks
  The success of an inferential control scheme depends
heavily on the availability of a good estimator, which in
turn depends on how well we know the process.
 In chemical process control the variable that is most
commonly inferred from secondary measurements is
composition. This is due to the lack of reliable, rapid and
economical measuring devices for a wide spectrum of
chemical systems.
 Thus inferential control may be used for the control of
chemical reactors, distillation columns and mass transfer
operations such as driers and absorbers. Temperature is
the most common secondary measurement used to infer
the unmeasured composition.

9. SUMMARY

 The feedback control configuration involves one measurement

(output) and one manipulated variable in a single loop.
 In control systems with multiple loops, more than one
measurement and one manipulation or one measurement and
more than one manipulated variables
 In cascade control configuration, we have one manipulated
variable and more than one measurement. With a single
manipulation, we can control only one output.
 Selective control systems are control systems that involve one
manipulated variable and several controlled outputs.
 Types of selective control systems
 Override control for the protection of process equipment.
 Auctioneering control
 Split range control configuration has one measurement only
(controlled output) and more than one manipulated
variable.
 A Feed forward control configuration measures the disturbance
(load) directly and takes control action to eliminate its impact on
the process output.
 Ratio Control is special type of Feedforward control where two
disturbances (loads) are measured and held in a constant ratio to
each other.
 Adaptive is called a control system, which can adjust its
parameters automatically in such a way as to compensate for
variations in the characteristics of the process it controls.
 Inferential control can be used to control an unmeasured process
output in the presence of unmeasured disturbances.
10. QUESTIONNAIRE

1. What is cascade control?

2. Explain how cascade control can give better performance than a
single loop controller with an example?
3. What is the main advantages and disadvantages of cascade
control?
4. When cascade control will give improved performance than
conventional feedback control?
5. What is ratio control?
6. Give an example of ratio control?
7. When to go for feedforward control?
8. What is the advantage and disadvantage of feedforward control?
9. Explain the feedforward control strategy for a typical process?
10. What is meant by auctioneering control?
11. What is meant by selective control system? How many different
types of selective control systems are available? Discuss their
characteristics.
[Link] is split-range control? Describe a situation where you could
use split-range control?