The advanced-step NMPC controller: Optimality, stability and robustness

Widespread application of dynamic optimization with fast optimization solvers leads to increased consideration of first-principles models for nonlinear model predictive control (NMPC). However, significant barriers to this optimization-based control strategy are feedback delays and consequent loss of performance and stability due to on-line computation. To overcome these barriers, recently proposed NMPC controllers based on nonlinear programming (NLP) sensitivity have reduced on-line computational costs and can lead to significantly improved performance. In this study, we extend this concept through a simple reformulation of the NMPC problem and propose the advanced-step NMPC controller. The main result of this extension is that the proposed controller enjoys the same nominal stability properties of the conventional NMPC controller without computational delay. In addition, we establish further robustness properties in a straightforward manner through input-to-state stability concepts. A case study example is presented to demonstrate the concepts.     

Real-time energy management for electric arc furnace operation

Electric arc furnaces are used extensively in the steel industry for steel production. Development of energy savings strategies for the highly energy-intensive batch process is extremely challenging due to the complexity of the process and lack of measurements due to the harsh operating conditions. Here we introduce a new energy management approach that effectively curtails the energy cost in real-time through the implementation of economically optimal operating decisions. An economics- oriented shrinking horizon nonlinear model predictive control (NMPC) algorithm that exploits time-varying electricity prices is coupled with a multi-rate moving horizon estimator (MHE) to form an integrated decision- making framework. With a detailed first-principles dynamic model functioning at the core, the multi-variable interactions and plant variations are successfully incorporated into the control strategy to achieve reliable performance. We also present a novel initialization scheme for obtaining fast on-line solutions of the economic NMPC and multi-rate MHE dynamic optimization problems. Using this initialization algorithm, we show that the optimal input decisions are obtained with sufficient computational speed for real-time implementation. The energy usage optimization results indicate a significant reduction in the operating cost and peak electricity demand compared to the case where the electricity price profile is not updated.     

Theoretical analysis of unconstrained nonlinear model predictive control

Model predictive control (MPC) is a well-established controller design strategy for linear process models. Because many chemical and biological processes exhibit significant nonlinear behaviour, several MPC techniques based on nonlinear process models have recently been proposed. The most significant difference between these techniques is the computational approach used to solve the nonlinear model predictive control (NMPC) optimization problem. Consequently, analysis of NMPC techniques is often connected to the computational approach employed. In this paper, a theoretical analysis of unconstrained NMPC is presented that is independent of the computational approach. A nonlinear discrete-time, state-space model is used to predict the effects of future inputs on future process outputs. It is shown that model inverse, pole-placement, and steady-state controllers can be obtained by suitable selection of the control and prediction horizons. Moreover, the NMPC optimization problem can be modified to yield nonlinear internal model control (NIMC). The computational requirements of NIMC are considerably less than NMPC, but the NIMC approach is currently restricted to nonlinear models with well-defined and stable inverses. The NIMC controller is shown to provide superior servo and regulatory performance to a linear IMC controller for a continuous stirred tank reactor.     

Multirate sliding mode disturbance compensation for model predictive control

In this paper, a novel hierarchical multirate control scheme for nonlinear discrete‐time systems is presented, consisting of a robust nonlinear model predictive controller (NMPC) and a multirate sliding mode disturbance compensator (MSMDC). The proposed MSMDC acts at a faster rate than the NMPC in order to keep the system as close as possible to the nominal trajectory predicted by NMPC despite model uncertainties and external disturbances. The a priori disturbance compensation turns out to be very useful in order to improve the robustness of the NMPC controller. A dynamic input allocation between MSMDC and NMPC allows to maximize the benefits of the proposed scheme that unites the advantages of sliding mode control (strong reduction of matched disturbances, low computational burden) to those of NMPC (optimality, constraints handling). Sufficient conditions required to guarantee input‐to‐state stability and constraints satisfaction by the overall scheme are also provided. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Explicit output-feedback nonlinear predictive control based on black-box models

Nonlinear model predictive control (NMPC) algorithms are based on various nonlinear models. A number of on-line optimization approaches for output-feedback NMPC based on various black-box models can be found in the literature. However, NMPC involving on-line optimization is computationally very demanding. On the other hand, an explicit solution to the NMPC problem would allow efficient on-line computations as well as verifiability of the implementation. This paper applies an approximate multi-parametric nonlinear programming approach to explicitly solve output-feedback NMPC problems for constrained nonlinear systems described by black-box models. In particular, neural network models are used and the optimal regulation problem is considered. A dual-mode control strategy is employed in order to achieve an offset-free closed-loop response in the presence of bounded disturbances and/or model errors. The approach is applied to design an explicit NMPC for regulation of a pH maintaining system. The verification of the NMPC controller performance is based on simulation experiments.     

Robust stability of economically oriented infinite horizon NMPC that include cyclic processes

Nonlinear model predictive control (NMPC) with economic objective attracts growing interest. In our previous work [1], nominal stability of economically oriented NMPC for cyclic processes was proved by introducing a transformed system, and an infinite horizon NMPC formulation with discount factors was proposed. Moreover, the nominal stability property for economically oriented NMPC was analyzed in [2] for a class of systems satisfying strong duality. In this study, we extend the previous stability analysis in [1] to a general infinite horizon NMPC formulation with economic objectives. Instead of the strong duality assumption, we require the stage cost to be strongly convex, which is easier to check for a general nonlinear system. In addition, robust stability of this NMPC controller is also analyzed based on the Input-to-State Stability (ISS) framework. A simulated nonlinear double tank system subject to periodic change in electricity price is presented to illustrate the stability property. Finally, an industrial size air separation unit case study with periodic electricity cost is presented.     

Design of observer based nonlinear model predictive controller for a continuous stirred tank reactor

Model predictive control (MPC) schemes are now widely used in process industries for the control of key unit operations. Linear model predictive control (LMPC) schemes which make use of linear dynamic model for prediction, limit their applicability to a narrow range of operation (or) to systems which exhibit mildly nonlinear dynamics.

In this paper, a nonlinear observer based model predictive controller (NMPC) for nonlinear system has been proposed. An approach to design NMPC based on fuzzy Kalman filter (FKF) and augmented state fuzzy Kalman filter (ASFKF) has been presented. The efficacy of the proposed NMPC schemes have been demonstrated by conducting simulation studies on the continuous stirred tank reactor (CSTR). The analysis of the extensive dynamic simulation studies revealed that, the NMPC schemes formulated produces satisfactory performance for both servo and regulatory problems. Simulation results also include an inferential control case, where the reactor concentration is not measured but estimated from temperature measurement and used in the NMPC based on FKF and ASFKF formulations.     

Nonlinear model predictive control of fed-batch fermentations using dynamic flux balance models

Fed-batch fermentation is an important production technology in the biochemical industry. Using fed-batch Saccharomyces cerevisiae fermentation as a prototypical example, we developed a general methodology for nonlinear model predictive control of fed-batch bioreactors described by dynamic flux balance models. The control objective was to maximize ethanol production at a fixed final batch time by adjusting the glucose feeding rate and the aerobic–anaerobic switching time. Effectiveness of the closed-loop implementation was evaluated by comparing the relative performance of NMPC and the open-loop optimal controller. NMPC was able to compensate for structural errors in the intracellular model and parametric errors in the substrate uptake kinetics and cellular energetics by increasing ethanol production between 8.0% and 14.7% compared with the open-loop operating policy. Minimal degradation in NMPC performance was observed when the biomass, glucose, and ethanol concentration and liquid volume measurements were corrupted with Gaussian white noise. NMPC based on the dynamic flux balance model was shown to improve ethanol production compared to the same NMPC formulation based on a simpler unstructured model. To our knowledge, this study represents the first attempt to utilize a dynamic flux balance model within a nonlinear model-based control scheme.     

A general NMPC framework for a diesel engine air path

This paper presents the formulation of a parameterised nonlinear model predictive control (NMPC) scheme to be applied on a diesel engine air path. The most important feature of the proposed controller is that it uses no structural properties of the system model. Therefore, the proposed NMPC scheme can be applied to any nonlinear system, leading to a general framework for a diesel engine air path. Moreover, the computational burden is substantially reduced due to an optimisation problem of low dimension obtained by means of the parameterised approach. Simulation results and an experimental validation are presented in order to emphasise the controller's efficiency and the real-time implementability.     

Data-driven model reduction-based nonlinear MPC for large-scale distributed parameter systems

Model predictive control (MPC) has been effectively applied in process industries since the 1990s. Models in the form of closed equation sets are normally needed for MPC, but it is often difficult to obtain such formulations for large nonlinear systems. To extend nonlinear MPC (NMPC) application to nonlinear distributed parameter systems (DPS) with unknown dynamics, a data-driven model reduction-based approach is followed. The proper orthogonal decomposition (POD) method is first applied off-line to compute a set of basis functions. Then a series of artificial neural networks (ANNs) are trained to effectively compute POD time coefficients. NMPC, using sequential quadratic programming is then applied. The novelty of our methodology lies in the application of POD's highly efficient linear decomposition for the consequent conversion of any distributed multi-dimensional space-state model to a reduced 1-dimensional model, dependent only on time, which can be handled effectively as a black-box through ANNs. Hence we construct a paradigm, which allows the application of NMPC to complex nonlinear high-dimensional systems, even input/output systems, handled by black-box solvers, with significant computational efficiency. This paradigm combines elements of gain scheduling, NMPC, model reduction and ANN for effective control of nonlinear DPS. The stabilization/destabilization of a tubular reactor with recycle is used as an illustrative example to demonstrate the efficiency of our methodology. Case studies with inequality constraints are also presented.     

A wave propagation approach for reduced dynamic modeling of distillation columns: Optimization and control

Reduced models enable real-time optimization of large-scale processes. We propose a reduced model of distillation columns based on multicomponent nonlinear wave propagation (Kienle 2000). We use a nonlinear wave equation in dynamic mass and energy balances. We thus combine the ideas of compartment modeling and wave propagation. In contrast to existing reduced column models based on nonlinear wave propagation, our model deploys a hydraulic correlation. This enables the column holdup to change as load varies. The model parameters can be estimated solely based on steady-state data. The new transient wave propagation model can be used as a controller model for flexible process operation including load changes. To demonstrate this, we implement full-order and reduced dynamic models of an air separation process and multi-component distillation column in Modelica. We use the open-source framework DyOS for the dynamic optimizations and an Extended Kalman Filter for state estimation. We apply the reduced model in-silico in open-loop forward simulations as well as in several open- and closed-loop optimization and control case studies, and analyze the resulting computational speed-up compared to using full-order stage-by-stage column models. The first case study deals with tracking control of a single air separation distillation column, whereas the second one addresses economic model predictive control of an entire air separation process. The reduced model is able to adequately capture the transient column behavior. Compared to the full-order model, the reduced model achieves highly accurate profiles for the manipulated variables, while the optimizations with the reduced model are significantly faster, achieving more than 95% CPU time reduction in the closed-loop simulation and more than 96% in the open-loop optimizations. This enables the real-time capability of the reduced model in process optimization and control.     

Nonlinear Model Predictive Control of Electrical Submersible Pumps based on Echo State Networks

Employed for artificial lifting in oil well production, Electrical Submersible Pumps (ESP) can be operated with Model Predictive Control (MPC) to drive an optimal production, while ensuring a safe operation and respecting system constraints. Due to the nonlinear dynamics of ESPs, Echo State Networks (ESNs), a recurrent neural network with fast training, are employed for efficient system identification of unknown dynamic systems. Besides the synthesis of highly accurate prediction models, this work contributes by designing two Nonlinear MPC (NMPC) strategies for the control of an ESP-lifted oil well: a standard Single-Shooting NMPC that embeds the ESN model completely, and the Practical Nonlinear Model Predictive Controller (PNMPC) that approximates the NMPC through fast trajectory-linearization of the ESN model. Another contribution is the implementation of an error correction filter to reject disturbances and counter modeling errors in both NMPC strategies. Finally, in computational experiments, both ESN-based NMPC strategies performed well in controlling simulated ESP-lifted oil wells when the model of the plant is unknown. However, PNMPC was more efficient and induced a similar performance to standard NMPC.     

考虑侧倾的无人车NMPC轨迹跟踪控制

针对高速行驶工况下,无人车转弯时的侧倾易导致车辆模型非线性程度增加,引起轨迹跟踪精度下降和状态失稳的问题,设计一种考虑车辆侧倾因素,基于非线性模型预测控制(NMPC)的无人车轨迹跟踪控制器.根据拉格朗日分析力学和车辆运动学,考虑车辆侧倾几何学和载荷转移效应,建立考虑侧倾因素的非线性车辆模型,包括车体动力学模型和修正的“Magic Formula”轮胎模型;基于此车辆模型,构建非线性模型预测控制器(NMPC)的预测模型,并设定控制器的线性、非线性约束,以保证车辆的运动状态处于稳定区域内.在Carsim和Simulink联合仿真平台上,验证车辆高速蛇形工况和双移线工况下的轨迹跟踪控制效果,仿真结果显示,所设计的控制器可有效改善高速弯道工况下的跟踪精度和车辆状态稳定性.     

Unscented Kalman filter based nonlinear model predictive control of a LDPE autoclave reactor

This paper presents a multivariable nonlinear model predictive control (NMPC) scheme for the regulation of a low-density polyethylene (LDPE) autoclave reactor. A detailed mechanistic process model developed previously was used to describe the dynamics of the LDPE reactor and the properties of the polymer product. Closed-loop simulations are used to demonstrate the disturbance rejection and tracking performance of the NMPC algorithm for control of reactor temperature and weight-averaged molecular weight (WAMW). In addition, the effect of parametric uncertainty in the kinetic rate constants of the LDPE reactor model on closed-loop performance is discussed. The unscented Kalman filtering (UKF) algorithm is employed to estimate plant states and disturbances. All control simulations were performed under conditions of noisy process measurements and structural plant–model mismatch. Where appropriate, the performance of the NMPC algorithm is contrasted with that of linear model predictive control (LMPC). It is shown that for this application the closed-loop performance of the UKF based NMPC scheme is very good and is superior to that of the linear predictive controller.     

Serial advanced-multi-step nonlinear model predictive control using an extended sensitivity method

Nonlinear model predictive control (NMPC) can directly handle multi-input multi-output nonlinear systems and explicitly consider input and state constraints. However, the computational load for nonlinear programming (NLP) of large-scale systems limits the range of possible applications and degrades NMPC performance. An NLP sensitivity based approach, advanced-step NMPC, has been developed to address the online computational load. In addition, for cases where the NLP solving time exceeds one sampling time, two types of advanced-multi-step NMPC (amsNMPC), parallel and serial, have been proposed. However, in previous studies, a serial amsNMPC could not be applied to large-scale problems because of the size of extended Karush–Kuhn–Tucker matrix and its Schur complement decomposition, and the robustness was analyzed under a conservative assumption for memory effects. In this paper, we propose a serial amsNMPC using an extended sensitivity method to increase the online computation speed further. We successfully apply it to a large-scale air separation unit using the sparse matrix handling packages of Python, Pyomo, and k_aug tools. Furthermore, an auxiliary NLP formulation is defined to analyze the robustness. Using this with the key properties of an extended sensitivity matrix, we can prove robustness while avoiding the memory effects term.     

First principle modeling and predictive control of a continuous biodiesel plant

Typically, the large-scale production of biodiesel involves continuous operation plants. Also, the final biodiesel product has to comply with specifications imposed by standards of quality in order to be marketable. These quality constraints must be satisfied during the production at the minimum possible operating cost, in order to make the process economically viable. In this context, a nonlinear model predictive controller (NMPC) is applied to control the oil transesterification section of a continuous biodiesel plant. The controller determines the optimal profiles of the process variables using a nonlinear mechanistic model of the whole transesterification section. The model describes the dynamics of the composition and temperature of the liquid mixture in the reactors and in the decanters, as well as of the decanters interface level. The capability of the proposed NMPC strategy to improve the process economic performance and to enforce the final biodiesel specifications is demonstrated by simulation.     

Evaluation study of an efficient output feedback nonlinear model predictive control for temperature tracking in an industrial batch reactor

The paper illustrates the benefits of nonlinear model predictive control (NMPC) for the setpoint tracking control of an industrial batch polymerization reactor. Real-time feasibility of the on-line optimization problem from the NMPC is achieved using an efficient multiple shooting algorithm. A real-time formulation of the NMPC that takes computational delay into account is described. The control relevant model for the NMPC is derived from the complex-first principles model and is fitted to the experimental data using maximum likelihood estimation. A parameter adaptive extended Kalman filter (PAEKF) is used for state estimation and on-line model adaptation. The performance of the NMPC implementation is assessed via simulation and experimental results.     

Adaptive peak seeking control of a proton exchange membrane fuel cell

The primary aim of operating any fuel cell (PEMFC) system is to produce the power/electricity at maximum efficiency. The cell voltage/current manipulation appear to be the most suitable choice for controlling the power density. However, the power density exhibits a highly nonlinear and complex dynamic relationship with respect to the cell voltage. Since the process output variable (i.e. power density) itself is the objective function for the optimization, there exists a singularity at the optimum operating condition. In addition, the location of the optimum operating point changes with time due to the occurrence of variety of disturbances and/or changes in the operating conditions. Thus, the need to operate the PEMFC at its peak power density and track the shifting optimum turns out to be a challenging control problem. The task of on-line optimizing control of PEMFC poses difficulties in real time control due to its fast dynamics and it is impractical to employ a mechanistic model for locating the changing optimum on-line. In this context the adaptive optimizing control scheme developed by Bamberger and Isermann (1978) [1] appears interesting. Their scheme is based on on-line adaptation of a nonlinear black box time series models and facilitates analytical computation of changing optimum. Recently, Bedi et al. (2007) [2] have developed a closed form multi-step predictive control law under nonlinear internal model control framework using a black-box nonlinear model and employed it for peak power control in PEMFC. From the viewpoint of PEMFC operation, this nonlinear IMC controller meets the demand on the fast computations as a closed form solution is obtained for the nonlinear control problem at each time step. In this work, we propose to develop an adaptive optimizing control scheme, which combines the attractive features of the on-line optimization approach proposed by Bamberger and Isermann (1978) [1] and closed form control law developed by Bedi et al. (2007) [2]. We demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed adaptive optimizing scheme by conducting simulation studies on the distributed an along-the-channel model of PEMFC. Analysis of the simulation results indicate that the proposed adaptive optimizing control scheme satisfactorily tracks the shifting optimum operating point in the face of changing unmeasured disturbances     

Dual-mode Nonlinear MPC via Terminal Control Laws With Free-parameters

The paper presents a new dual-mode nonlinear model predictive control (NMPC) scheme for continuous-time nonlinear systems subject to constraints on the state and control. The idea of control Lyapunov functions for nonlinear systems is used to compute the terminal regions and terminal control laws with some free-parameters in the dual-mode NMPC framework. The parameters of the terminal controller are selected offline to estimate the terminal region as large as possible; and the parameters are optimized online to gain optimality of the terminal controller with respect to given cost functions. Then a dual-mode NMPC algorithm with varying time-horizon is formulated for the constrained system. Recursive feasibility and closed-loop stability of this NMPC are established. The example of a spring-cart is used to demonstrate the advantages of the presented scheme by comparing to the dual-mode NMPC via the linear quadratic regulator (LQR) method.