Cooperative distributed model predictive control

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We intend to develop and then embed within a control device, the code for a new process control strategy. Manufacturing plants typically consist of linked unit operations that are connected through a network of material, energy, and information streams. Because the unit operations are interlinked, it creates the potential for savings through material recycle, energy integration and overall feed or yield optimisation. However, because subsystems are often controlled independently, the potential efficiency gains are lost. Our innovation will enable us to capture these efficiency gains; with our solution, each sub-system will have a separate controller, which enables us to preserve simplicity, but each controller will be aware of network interactions between subsystems and will cooperate with other controllers in the network to ensure that a plant-wide objective is achieved. This new technology, which will require solving a number of technical challenges to create, will be applicable to a range of manufacturing plants that employ continuous processes including; the chemical, food processing, and pulp & paper industries. If successful, the benefits delivered to clients include improvements in productivity, reductions in energy consumption and improvements in product quality.