Control of a Refrigeration System Benchmark Problem: An Approach based on COR Metaheuristic Algorithm and TOPSIS Method

Abstract

Abstract The Proportional-Integral-Derivative (PID) controller is widely used in industrial applications. In order to evaluate the performance of distinct types of controllers, several benchmark systems are available in the specialized literature. In this work, an alternative approach to tune PID controllers based on the Competition Over Resources (COR) metaheuristic optimization algorithm and TOPSIS (Technique for Order of Preference by Similarity to Ideal Solution) method is proposed to solve a vapor compression refrigeration system problem, which is a benchmark control challenge. The proposed technique considered the normalization of multiple cost functions to simplify the selection of two PIDs’ parameters, reducing the need of understanding the influences of cost functions variations in complex problems. The proposed controllers outperformed the base line controllers, providing a performance index 68.39% better than the original approach. Finally, the proposed method was compared with other tuning methods.