Control Proposal for a High Purity Column Based on the Separation of Variables by the Independent Component Analysis Method

Abstract

Many industries are complex when it comes to operation mode. In order to reduce the problems related to strong coupling in these processes, the search for the incorporation of artificial intelligence devices has shown an increasing trend in recent years. Due to this complexity and control in multivariable processes, diagnosis and fault monitoring in the processes have become increasingly difficult. Therefore, the application of these devices has achieved satisfactory results regarding the procedures performed with human operators. Independent Component Analysis (ICA) is a signal separation technique that is based on the use of higher order statistics to estimate each of the unknown sources, through observation of various mixtures generated from these sources. Although there are recent works on using the ICA in industrial processes, few studies have been made in cases involving distillation columns. This paper proposes a control strategy based on the ICA technique, which makes the control loops decoupled and hence the performance easier. Compared to the conventional method, the technique provided a great improvement in control performance. Control structures were implemented in Simulink/Matlab® in communication with a 1,2-dichloroethane (1,2-EDC) plant simulated in Aspen Plus Dynamics TM .