Introduction to Process Dynamics and Control

Please refer to the LSF​​​​​​​ for the most recent information.

This course also covers "Pro­zess­dy­na­mik und Re­ge­lung" in the B.Sc. program of Bio- und Chemieingenieurwesen.

The course which is taught in English provides the students with the foundations to model and analyse dynamic systems and to understand and design feedback controllers. It covers the following topics:

Modelling an analyzing dynamic systems

• Setting up dynamic balance equations
• Concept oft he state of a system
• Properties of dynamic systems
• Modelling of chemical and biochemical reactors
• Representation of models by block diagrams
• Stationary behavior of dynamic systems
• Dynamic behavior around equilibrium points and their stability (linerarization around equilibrium points, analysis of eigenvalues and eigenvectors, phase portraits, global and local stability)
• State feedback and state estimation
• Numerical simulation of dynamic systems

Analysis and tuning of simple control loops

• Laplace-transform and transfer functions
• Poles and zeros of transfer functions and their importance
• Input-output stability
• Root locus method
• Tuning of standard (P, PI, PID) controllers

The course provides the ability to independently formulate and analyze dynamic models of medium complexity as well as a basic understanding of the behavior of control loops. Students understand the basic behavior and limitations of algorithms for numerical simulation and can select suitable methods for a given problem. They can represent and analyze control loops in the form of block diagrams and select suitable controllers for single-loop control loops after analyzing the process dynamics and set them up using the design procedures taught. They are able to identify the causes of unsatisfactory controller behavior and make suggestions for remedial action.