A novel formulation for combined scheduling and control of multi-product, continuous chemical processes is introduced in which nonlinear model predictive control (NMPC) and noncyclic continuous-time scheduling are efficiently combined. A decomposition into nonlinear programming (NLP) dynamic optimization problems and mixed-integer linear programming (MILP) problems, without iterative alternatio...

Discrete-time nonlinear feedback control laws are derived for multivariable nonlinear processes, whose “delay-free” parts are minimum phase. These include mixed errorand state-feedback, error-feedback, and mixed errorand output-feedback laws, which can induce linear input output closed-loop response. This study is carried out within the framework of the discrete-time globally linearizing contro...

This work proposes a systematic methodology for the optimal selection of controller parameters, in the sense of minimizing a performance index which is a quadratic function of the tracking error and the control effort. The performance index is calculated explicitly as an algebraic function of the controller parameters by solving a Zubov-type partial differential equation. Standard nonlinear pro...

This paper focuses on the synthesis of well-conditioned rnultivariable robust controllers for a broad class of multi-input multi-output two-time-scale nonlinear systems with time-varying uncertain variables, modeled within the framework of singular perturbations. The proposed controller stabilizes the fast dynamics, guarantees boundedness of trajectories, and ensures that the ultimate discrepan...

This paper studies the problem of designing output feedback controllers for enlarging the stability region of continuous stirred microbial bioreactors, in the presence of biomass decay. A specific application is in anaerobic digestion, where the stability region can be very small if the operating steady state is selected to maximize the methane production rate. A proportional output feedback co...

This work addresses the design and performance evaluation of a control system for a class of continuous stirred tank reactors to produce homopolymers via free radicals. The control system claims to be of practical implementation in the sense that: (i) it manages both measurement types existing in this class of processes: continuous-instantaneous, and discrete-delayed with a periodic sampling-ti...