Model Predictive and Nonlinear Control of Transport-Reaction Process Systems

• Author / Creator

  Xu, Qingqing

• Distributed parameter systems (DPS) are models of fundamental conservation laws in industrial processes, such as chemical, petroleum, metallurgical and solar thermal energy processes. The major drawback of DPS models is that they take form of partial differential equations (PDEs) containing higher order derivatives in space and time. The complexity of PDEs models lies in spatial approximation arriving to a finite dimensional model representation amenable for subsequent controller, observer and/or monitoring device design. This thesis provides foundation of systematic modelling framework for linear DPS which uses a finite and low dimensional setting for controller/observer/estimator design without application of any spatial approximation or order reduction. First, we develop a linear model predictive controller design for a class of linear DPS account for a constrained optimization based problem. The discrete model of a linear DPS is obtained by using energy preserving Cayley-Tustin transformation. We present our results applied to the DPS emerging from chemical transport-reaction processes and solar boreal thermal energy processes. Second, we address the servo controller design for a class of DPS described by coupled hyperbolic PDE and ODE. The simple and easily realizable servo control algorithm is applied to the solar thermal system with borehole seasonal storage in a real commercial community. Finally, we propose the nonlinear controller design for a class of distributed parameter system described by nonlinear hyperbolic PDEs. The nonlinear control methodology is an extension of single-step formulation of full state feedback control design which lies in the fact that both feedback control and stabilization design objectives given as target stable dynamics are accomplished in one step. The performance of controllers is assessed by numerical simulation with application on different distributed parameter systems.

• Subjects / Keywords

  • Single-step State Feedback Control
  • Model Predictive Control
  • Transport-Reaction Process

• Graduation date

  Spring 2017

• Type of Item

  Thesis

• Degree

  Doctor of Philosophy

• DOI

  https://doi.org/10.7939/R39P2WJ5N

• License

  This thesis is made available by the University of Alberta Libraries with permission of the copyright owner solely for non-commercial purposes. This thesis, or any portion thereof, may not otherwise be copied or reproduced without the written consent of the copyright owner, except to the extent permitted by Canadian copyright law.