Republic of the Philippines
BATANGAS STATE UNIVERSITY
The National Engineering University
Alangilan Campus
Golden Country Homes, Alangilan Batangas City, Batangas, Philippines 4200
Tel Nos.: (+63 43) 425-0139 local 2121 / 2221
E-mail Address:[Link]@[Link] | Website Address: [Link]
CHAPTER 3 - CONVERSION OF STATE-SPACE TO TRANSFER FUNCTION
PRE-LABORATORY SIMULATION (MATLAB OFFLINE)
Procedures:
1. Open the script in MATLAB and familiarize yourself with the initial column parameters
defined for the time constants (t1init, t2init, t3init, t4init) of each tray.
2. Observe the predefined 4x4 Ainit matrix and the 4x1 Binit matrix that mathematically
represent the cascading dynamics of the distillation column.
3. Navigate to Part 1 to convert the State-Space matrices into a Transfer Function
representation. Use the command [num_sys, den_sys] = ss2tf(A_init, B_init, C_init,
D_init);.
4. Run the script to launch the "Distillation Digital Twin" dashboard.
5. Click "INJECT FEED" in the "Process Execution" panel to initiate the step response.
6. Adjust the sliders in the "Column Tray Holdup" panel to modify the time constants (tau)
and observe the real-time effects on the "Coefficient Flow" text, the "S-Plane Bridge",
and the 3D/2D column animations.
Guide Questions:
1. Based on the "Coefficient Flow: State Space to TF" equations panel, how does increasing
the Tray 1 Holdup (τ1) affect the value of the diagonal elements (ann) in the State-Space
matrix?
2. Looking at the "Time Domain: Column Composition Wave" plot, how does the
sequential cascade of the trays delay the response of the "Tray 4 (Bottom Product)" curve
compared to the "Tray 1 (Top)" curve?
Republic of the Philippines
BATANGAS STATE UNIVERSITY
The National Engineering University
Alangilan Campus
Golden Country Homes, Alangilan Batangas City, Batangas, Philippines 4200
Tel Nos.: (+63 43) 425-0139 local 2121 / 2221
E-mail Address:[Link]@[Link] | Website Address: [Link]
LABORATORY SIMULATION (MATLAB ONLINE)
Procedures:
1. Open the script within your MATLAB Online workspace.
2. Review STEP 1 to observe the initialization of a 4th-order system, noting specifically the
4x4 dimensions of the system matrix A.
3. Navigate to STEP 2 to examine the state-space to transfer function conversion. Pay
attention to how the command [num, den] = ss2tf(A, B, C, D); mathematically extracts
the polynomial arrays, which are then used to build the G_sys transfer function object.
4. Check STEP 3 to see how the pzmap(G_sys) function is utilized to automatically
calculate and plot the roots of those extracted polynomials directly onto the complex
s-plane.
5. Run the script. Compare the transfer function polynomial printed in your Command
Window with the visual placement of the poles (marked as 'x') on the generated Figure
window.
Guide Questions:
1. Examine the automated verification block in STEP 4. What is the highest power of s (the
polynomial order) found in the expected den array, and how does that specific number
logically correlate to the mathematical dimensions of the system matrix A defined in
STEP 1?
2. Looking at the generated pzmap figure from STEP 3, how many individual pole markers
('x') are plotted on the complex s-plane, and what does their position relative to the
vertical imaginary axis (𝑗ω) indicate about the bounded stability of this distillation
column model?