Backstepping-based cascade control scheme for batch distillation columns

✍ Scribed by Rosendo Monroy-Loperena; Jose Alvarez-Ramirez

• Publisher: American Institute of Chemical Engineers
• Year: 2004
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 267 KB
• Volume: 50
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0001-1541
• DOI: 10.1002/aic.10184

✦ Synopsis

Abstract

Nonstationary dynamics, finite‐time operation, large thermodynamical uncertainty and delayed composition measurements make the control of batch distillation processes a challenging and interesting problem. In this paper, a cascade control design to regulate the overhead composition of a batch distillation column is presented. The controller is designed within the framework of robust nonlinear control with modeling error compensation techniques in conjunction with a backstepping approach. The result is a cascade controller with a master loop that, driven by the composition regulation error, produces a time‐varying set point for the temperature in a certain tray; and with a secondary controller that manipulates the internal reflux ratio to track the time‐varying set point determined by the master composition loop. How to extend the controller design to have multiple slave temperature controllers, to improve the regulation of the overhead composition in a batch distillation column, is also presented. The proposed control approach is illustrated by numerical simulations on a full dynamical model. © 2004 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 50: 2113–2129, 2004