An Efficient Nonlinear Predictive Control Algorithm with Neural Models and Its Application to a High-Purity Distillation Process

Abstract

This paper is concerned with a computationally efficient (suboptimal) nonlinear model-based predictive control (MPC) algorithm and its application to a high-purity high-pressure ethylene-ethane distillation column. A neural model of the process is used on-line to determine the local linearisation and the nonlinear free response. In comparison with general nonlinear MPC technique, which hinges on non-convex optimisation, the presented structure is far more reliable and less computationally demanding because it results in a quadratic programming problem, whereas its closed-loop control performance is similar.