Topic 1

Introduction To Process Control

The University of Jordan

Chemical Engineering Department
Prof. Yousef Mubarak
 Goal of Plant Operation

 Safety

 Production schedule

 Product quality

 Maximum profit

Industrial Perspectives
 Accidents should be avoided (human, properties)
 Exploit the opportunities
 Enterprise image, loyal customers, competitiveness
 Game of survival

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 Classification of Processes

 Based on time: Steady-state (no variations with time) and unsteady state
(variations with time).

 Based on flowing streams: continuous, non-continuous, batch, and semi-

batch.

 Examples:

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 Examples:

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• What is Process Control?
- Monitor the process status
- To drive the process to desired condition
• By manipulating adjustable handles
• How to Monitor Process Status?
- Measure important process variables by sensors
- Estimate the important variable through indirect measurements
• What are Adjustable Handles?
- Process variables manipulated by actuators
- Example: flow rate by control valve, motor speed by inverter

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Example: refinery

Some Important Issues:

 Measure product quality
 Adjust energy input and product distribution
 Make more valuable products with least energy
 Not to violate any process constraints

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 Specific Objectives of Control:

 Increase product throughput

 Increase yield of higher valued products

 Decrease energy consumption

 Decrease pollution

 Decrease off-spec product

 Increase safety

 Extend life of equipment

 Improve operability

 Decrease production labor

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 Justifications of Process Control

 Stronger competition

 Tougher environment regulation

 Tougher safety regulation

 Rapidly changing economic conditions

 Highly integrated plants

 Strict quality control

 Due to the uncertainties:

o Imperfect process design

o Disturbances and changes in operating conditions

o Difficulties in startup and shutdown

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 Through Control, We Can Achieve

 Safe operation

 Satisfying environmental constraints

 Economic benefits

 Increased production level

 Reduced raw material cost

 Enhanced product quality

 Extended equipment life

 Potential benefits of improved process control

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 Process Control Terminology

 Controlled variables (CV’s): important process variables to be controlled at

some desired values (set points).

 Manipulated variables (MV’s): adjustable variables to keep the controlled

variables at their set-points.

 Disturbance variables (DV’s): also called “load” variables and represent input
variables that can cause the controlled variables to deviate from their
respective set points.
Remarks:

 All important variables to be controlled (CV) must be identified and measurable. (CVs
are usually direct or indirect quality variables).

 Manipulated variables (MV) to be adjusted must have significant impacts on

controlled variable. (MV’s are usually affect the CV’s)
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 Process Control Terminology

 Set-point change: implementing a change in the desired operating

conditions. The set-point signal is changed, and the manipulated
variable is adjusted appropriately to achieve the new operating
conditions. Also called servomechanism (or “servo”) control.

 Disturbance change: when a disturbance enters, also called

regulatory control or load change. A control system should be able to
return each controlled variable back to its set-point.

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 How to Control a Process?

Control Objective:
Maintain controlled variable at its set point, despite disturbances.

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 How to Control a Process?

- Manual control:

• Read the sensors, then decide the amount of change in adjustable

variable, then adjust the variable by changing the knob, or dialing
and so on.

• See if the controlled variable is moving toward the desired set point
(SP) fast enough.

• Repeat this procedure perpetually unless you are 100% sure that the
process will not deviate from set points.

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Example (crude oil furnace):

• Operator has to change two MV’s for one CV

• Operator relies on the observations and prior experiences

• Corrected by trial-and-error, inconsistent, unreliable

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- Automatic Control: Different Control Strategies

A. Feedback (FB) control

B. Feedforward (FF) control

C. Combined FF/FB control

D. Advance control…

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A. Feedback (FB) Control

 Widely used (e.g., PID controllers)

 Controller will adjust the fuel valve somehow until T is settled at set
point

 The fuel valve will be adjusted only after some change happen at the
measurement.

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• Distinguishing feature: measure the controlled variable and transmit its
value to the controller

• Advantages:

 Corrective action is taken regardless of the source and type of the

disturbance.

 Reduces sensitivity of the controlled variable to disturbances and changes

in the process ( shown later).

 Requires little knowledge about the process.

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• Disadvantages:

 FB control takes no corrective action until a deviation in the controlled

variable.

 FB control is incapable of correction a deviation from set point at the

time of its detection.

 Theoretically not capable of achieving “perfect control”.

 Very oscillatory responses, or even instability (process may not settle

out) for frequent and severe disturbances.

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B. Feedforward (FF) Control

 If there is a change in feed flow, controller will change fuel flow and exit
temperature will not deviate too much

 But the correction is based on the estimated effect of feed flow rate on T
and if it is not accurate, the exit T will not be at set point.

 Distinguishing feature: measure a disturbance variable and transmit its

value to the controller.

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• Advantages:

 Correct for disturbance before it upsets the process.

 Theoretically capable of “perfect control”.

 Does not affect system stability.

• Disadvantages:

 Must be able to measure the disturbance.

 No corrective action for unmeasured disturbances.

 Requires more knowledge of the process to be controlled (process model).

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C. Combined FF/FB Control

 Obtain combined advantages of FF and FB control:

FF control: attempts to eliminate the effects of measurable disturbances.

FB control: Corrects for unmeasurable disturbances, modeling errors, etc.

 But if there is a change in fuel pressure, this strategy will act only after the
effects appears at exit temperature.
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D. Advanced Control

Example: Cascade control

“Cascade Control of an exothermic chemical reactor”

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 Cascade Control (multi-loop)

 Distinguishing features:

1. Two FB controllers but only a single control valve ( or other-final

control element).

2. Output signal from the “master” controller is the set-point for “slave”
controller.

3. Two FB control loops are “nested” with the “slave”(or “secondary”)

control loop inside the “master” (or “primary”) control loop.

 Terminology:

Slave vs Master Secondary vs Primary Inner vs Outer

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 FF/FB + Cascade Control

 Better than the others (Best so far).

 There can be other requirements to enhance the control performance.

 Need to design controllers based on the objectives given.

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- Identification letters in instrumentation and process control:

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Instrument description examples

- TT : Temperature Transmitter

- LT: Level Transmitter

- LC: Level Controller

- FC: Flow Controller

- PI: Pressure Indicator

- TAH/L: Temperature Alarm High/Low, (Normal)

- TI: Temperature Indicator

- TR: Temperature Recorder

- TIRC: Temperature Indicator, Recorder, and Controller.

Etc….

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Illustrative example : Stirred-Tank blending system

Notation:
• w1, w2 and w are mass flow rates
• x1, x2 and x are mass fractions of component A

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Assumptions:

1. w1 is constant

2. x2 = constant = 1 (stream 2 is pure A)

3. Perfect mixing in the tank

Control Objective: keep x at a desired value (or “set point”) xsp, despite
variations in x1(t). Flow rate w2 can be adjusted for this purpose.

Terminology:

• Controlled variable (or “output variable”): x

• Manipulated variable (or “input variable”): w2

• Disturbance variable ( or “load variable”): x1

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Design Question. What value of 𝑤 is required to have 𝑥̅ = xSP?

(the overbar denotes nominal steady-state design values.)

Overall balance:

0 = w1 + w2 - w (1)

Component A mass balance:

w1x1 + w2 - w𝑥̅ = 0 (2)

• At the design conditions: x̅ = xSP but x̅2 = 1

• Solve Eqns.(1) and (2) for w̅2 to have:

̅
𝑤 =𝑤 (3)

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• Eq. (3) is the design equation for the blending system.

• If our assumptions are correct, then this value of 𝑤 will keep x̅ at xSP.
But what if conditions change?

Control question. Suppose that the inlet concentration x1 changes with time.
How can we ensure that x remains at or near the set point xSP?

As a specific example, if x1> x̅1 and w2= 𝑤 , then x>xSP

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Some possible control strategies:

Method 1. Measure x and adjust w2 manually.

• Intuitively, if x is too high, we should reduce w2;

Method 2. Measure x and adjust w2 automatically:

“Feedback control of composition (x) in Stirred-Tank blending system”

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Method 3. Measure x1 and adjust w2 automatically

• Thus, if x1 is greater than 𝑥̅ , we would decrease w2 so that w2< 𝑤

• One approach: Consider Eq. (1-3) and replace 𝑥̅ and 𝑤 with x1(t) and w2(t)
to get a control law:

xSP − 𝑥̅ 𝑡
𝑤 𝑡 =𝑤 (4)
1 − xSP

• Remark:

Because Eq.(3) applies only at steady state, it is not clear how effective the
control law (Eq.4) will be for transient conditions.

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Measure x1 and adjust w2 automatically

“Feedforward control of composition (x) in Stirred-Tank Blending

System”

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Method 4: Measure x1 and x, and adjust w2.

• This approach is a combination of methods 1 and 2.

Method 5. Use a larger tank

• If a larger tank is used, fluctuations in x1 will tend to be damped out due

to the larger capacitance of the tank contents.

• However, a larger tank means an increased capital cost.

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Table 1: Control strategies for the blending system

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 More illustrative examples:

 The level of the boiling liquid is measured and used to adjust the feedwater

flow rate.

 This control system tends to be quite

sensitive to rapid changes in the

disturbance variable, steam flow rate, as

a result of the small liquid capacity of

the boiler drum.

 Rapid disturbance changes can occur as

a result of steam demands made by “Feedback control of liquid level

in a boiler drum”
downstream processing units

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More illustrative examples:

 The feedforward control scheme in

the Figure can provide better control
of the liquid level.

 Here the steam flow rate is

measured, and the feedforward
controller adjusts the feedwater flow
rate

“Feedforward control of liquid

level in a boiler drum”

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More illustrative examples:

 In practical applications,
feedforward control is normally
used in combination with feedback
control.

 Feedforward control is used to

reduce the effects of measurable
disturbances, while feedback trim
compensates for inaccuracies in the
process model, measurement error,
“Feedforward-feedback control of
and unmeasured disturbances. liquid level in a boiler drum”

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 Classification of control strategies

• Based on the decision:

- Feedback control: based on measurement of CV

- Feedforward control: based on measurement of DV

- Open-loop control (manual): based on predetermined scenario

• Based on set point type:

- Regulatory control: follow constant set point overcoming the

disturbance

- Servo control: follow the changing set point

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 Classification of variables

• Input

- MV (manipulated Var.): Operator can adjust it.

- DV ( disturbance Var.): Decided by external reasons (feed flow, fuel

press.) (measured DV and unmeasured DV)

- Fixed inputs.

• Output

- CV (Controlled Var.): Decided by the changes in input variables

(assumed to be measured)

- Measured and unmeasured outputs.

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 In this course we will focus on the feedback control

 Elements of process control loop;

• Process

• Sensors

• Transmitters

• Controller

• Actuator

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 The block diagram of feedback control system is:

• In this course we will visit all the block elements of the control system,
first.

• Then, analyze the whole system all together.

• Then, consider the variations of the elements.

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Illustrative examples:

• Closed-loop artificial
Pancreas:

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 Illustrative examples:
 To keep the tank temperature T at the desired value TR by adjusting the
rate of heat input Q from the heater.
 Basic components in the feedback control loop•
 Process being controlled (stirred tank).
 Sensor and transmitter.

 Controller.

 Silicon controlled rectifier (SCR)

and final control element
(electrical heater) Actuator.

 Transmission lines (electrical

cables) between the various
instruments.
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 Illustrative examples:

“Block diagram for temperature feedback control system”

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 Major steps in control system development:

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 Performance assessment of process control:

 Closeness to set points

 Short transient from one set point to other set points

 Smaller overshoot and less oscillation ( stable control system)

 Smooth and minimum changes of variable manipulation

 Minimum usage of materials and energy

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