Delay compensated control of the Stefan problem and robustness to delay mismatch

This paper presents a control design for the one‐phase Stefan problem under actuator delay via a backstepping method. The Stefan problem represents a liquid‐solid phase change phenomenon which describes the time evolution of a material's temperature profile and the interface position. The actuator delay is modeled by a first‐order hyperbolic partial differential equation (PDE), resulting in a cascaded transport‐diffusion PDE system defined on a time‐varying spatial domain described by an ordinary differential equation (ODE). Two nonlinear backstepping transformations are utilized for the control design. The setpoint restriction is given to guarantee a physical constraint on the proposed controller for the melting process. This constraint ensures the exponential convergence of the moving interface to a setpoint and the exponential stability of the temperature equilibrium profile and the delayed controller in the norm. Furthermore, robustness analysis with respect to the delay mismatch between the plant and the controller is studied, which provides analogous results to the exact compensation by restricting the control gain.     

Stability and stabilization for singularly perturbed systems with Markovian jumps

This article focuses on the stability and stabilization problems of singularly perturbed jump systems. Here, the singularly perturbed parameter (SPP) is also with Markov switching and satisfies any with positive bound predefined. First, stability conditions expressed ?_i‐free but involving its bound are developed by constructing an ?_i‐dependent Lyapunov function. Then, a method for state feedback stabilization controller depending on SPP is proposed, whose conditions are given in terms of linear matrix inequalities. Moreover, some special cases about deterministic SPP are considered too. Finally, two practical examples are used to demonstrate the effectiveness and superiorities of the proposed methods.     

Stochastic stabilization and destabilization of nonlinear and time‐varying hybrid systems by noise

The aim of this article is to design a suitable strength function g(t,x,r(t)) such that the Wiener noise g(t,x(t),r(t))dw(t) either stabilizes or destabilizes a given nonlinear and time‐varying hybrid system . To this end, the basic properties, including the existence and uniqueness of the local and global solutions and the nonzero property of solutions of the nonlinear and time‐varying hybrid stochastic systems, are first investigated as the theoretical basis of the article. Second, two theorems and the corresponding corollaries on the stability and instability of the hybrid stochastic systems are established. Third, the design method for the noise strength g(t,x,r(t)) is then proposed based on the established theorems. We also point out that the Markov jump r(t) may have a stabilizing (respectively, destabilizing) effect when we design the noise strength g(t,x,r(t)) so that the introduced noise g(t,x(t),r(t))dw(t) stabilizes (respectively, destabilizes) the corresponding hybrid system. Finally, we illustrate our method using two examples. Compared with the existing literature, our method is suitable for a wider class of nonlinear and time‐varying systems with weaker conditions than quasi‐linear systems.     

H∞ control for uncertain one‐sided Lipschitz nonlinear systems in finite frequency domain

The current article discusses the H_∞ disturbance attenuation control design problem for one‐sided Lipschitz systems in finite frequency domain. Models containing norm‐bounded parameter uncertainties, disturbances, and input nonlinearities are considered. By contrast to existing full frequency methods, the H_∞ controller is computed depending on the frequency ranges of disturbances. The finite frequency disturbance attenuation index is initially defined. Thanks to Finsler's lemma, sufficient and less conservative analysis conditions are also derived for the closed‐loop system. Then, synthesis conditions in the low, middle, and high frequency ranges as well as the whole frequency range, are formulated in terms of linear matrix inequalities. At last, to prove the effectiveness and the superiority of the proposed approach, a physical example is used and a comparative study is done.     

Robust optimisation of sustainable food grain transportation with uncertain supply and intentional disruptions

The proliferating need for sustainability intervention in food grain transportation planning is anchoring the attention of researchers in the interests of stakeholders and environment at large. Uncertainty associated with food grain supply further intensifies the problem steering the need for designing robust, cost-efficient and sustainable models. In line with this, this paper aims to develop a robust and sustainable intermodal transportation model to facilitate single type of food grain commodity shipments while considering procurement uncertainty, greenhouse gas emissions, and intentional hub disruption. The problem is designed as a mixed integer non-linear robust optimisation model on a hub and spoke network for evaluating near optimal shipment quantity, route selection and hub location decisions. The robust optimisation approach considers minimisation of total relative regret associated with total cost subject to several real-time constraints. A version of Particle Swarm Optimisation with Differential Evolution is proposed to tackle the resulting NP-hard problem. The model is tested with two other state-of the art meta-heuristics for small, medium, and large datasets subject to different procurement scenarios inspired from real time food grain operations in Indian context. Finally, the solution is evaluated with respect to total cost, model and solution robustness for all instances.     

PAN纤维共聚单体作用机理的光电离质谱研究

本工作以丙烯腈/衣康酸（IA）二元共聚原丝以及丙烯腈/IA/丙烯酸甲酯（MA）三元共聚原丝为研究对象，利用热重分析仪（TG）和热解-同步辐射真空紫外光电离质谱（Py-SVUV-PIMS）对其热稳定化过程进行研究。TG结果表明，氮气气氛下，二元共聚原丝（PAN/IA）和三元共聚原丝（PAN/IA/MA）分别呈现三阶段和两阶段的热分解过程，其中PAN/IA的第一和第二阶段均对应PAN线型分子链的断裂，但前者是由自由基环化反应放热引发的，后者则是由正常温度下的热分解所致，而单体MA的加入显著抑制了自由基环化反应，使得PAN原丝的热稳定化能够以单体IA诱导的离子型环化反应为主较平缓地进行，相应的热失重过程也由两阶段转变为了单阶段。Py-SVUV-MS的实验结果表明，两种共聚PAN原丝在程序升温过程中会生成包括含氮小分子、丙烯腈单体及低聚物、成环化合物在内的三类主要热解产物，对比各类产物的生成趋势和产量，推断单体MA通过降低PAN结构的规整度，使其无定形化，从而增加环化反应的引发点，促进PAN原丝向稳定的预氧丝转变，同时由典型热解产物——甲基丙烯腈的生成路径可知，MA本身并不参与PAN大分子的环化反应，属于中性共聚单体。空气气氛下，CO₂的产量差异也间接证明了MA单体能够有效提升PAN纤维的固碳能力，采用三元共聚方法制得的PAN纤维热稳定性能更佳。     

Robust predictive extended state observer for a class of nonlinear systems with time-varying input delay

ABSTRACT

This paper deals with asymptotic stabilisation of a class of nonlinear input-delayed systems via dynamic output feedback in the presence of disturbances. The proposed strategy has the structure of an observer-based control law, in which the observer estimates and predicts both the plant state and the external disturbance. A nominal delay value is assumed to be known and stability conditions in terms of linear matrix inequalities are derived for fast-varying delay uncertainties. Asymptotic stability is achieved if the disturbance or the time delay is constant. The controller design problem is also addressed and a numerical example with an unstable system is provided to illustrate the usefulness of the proposed strategy.     

Robust orientation control of multi‐DOF cell based on uncertainty and disturbance estimation

Multiple degrees‐of‐freedom (multi‐DOF) cell orientation control is a vital important technique involved in single cell surgery applications. Currently, few studies have been performed toward automation of multi‐DOF cell orientation control using robotically controlled optical tweezers. In this paper, a robust control framework is developed to perform multi‐DOF cell rotational control with consideration of model uncertainties and external disturbances. Both simulation and experimental studies are presented to illustrate the performance of the proposed control strategy. The main contributions of this work lie in that this is the first time to develop a unified framework to achieve multi‐DOF cell orientation control without the need for accurate dynamic model parameters and/or any knowledge about uncertainty characteristic, which greatly enhances the robustness of the overall system.     

Pinning exponential synchronisation and passivity of coupled delayed reaction–diffusion neural networks with and without parametric uncertainties

In this paper, we focus on the pinning exponential synchronisation and passivity of coupled reaction–diffusion neural networks (CRDNNs) with and without parametric uncertainties, respectively. On the one hand, with the help of designed nonlinear pinning controllers and Lyapunov functional method, sufficient conditions are established to let the CRDNNs with hybrid coupling and mixed time-varying delays realise exponential synchronisation and passivity. On the other hand, considering that the external perturbations may lead the reaction–diffusion neural networks (RDNNs) parameters to containing uncertainties, the robust pinning exponential synchronisation and robust pinning passivity for coupled delayed RDNNs with parametric uncertainties are investigated by designing appropriate pinning control strategies. Finally, the effectiveness of the theoretical results are substantiated by the two given numerical examples.     

Enhanced sludge stabilization coupled with microbial fuel cells (MFCs)

This study presents research results on electricity production from waste activated sludge using MFCs during stabilization process. Different MFC configurations equipped with various electrodes were used. Voltage measurements were continuously done during 35 days of MFC operation. Experimental results showed that bioelectricity generation was linked to volatile solids (VS) and protein reductions as a fraction of extracellular polymeric substances (EPS). Double chamber MFC reactor equipped with graphite electrodes had better power and current densities as 312.98 mW/m² and 39.07 μA/cm² while single chamber MFC equipped with titanium electrodes revealed better power and current densities as 97.60 mW/m² and 17.63 μA/cm², respectively. Molecular results indicated that power outputs of MFCs effected by diverse microbial communities in anode biofilms. Although organic matter degradation is reported as 35%–55% VS reduction for digesters, this research provided a promising approach for sludge stabilization with enhanced degrading of organic matters up to 75% by using MFCs.