Temperature and level control of a multivariablewater tank process

Abstract

The project is concerned with the design of a water tank process and experimental evaluation of feedback control structures to achieve water level and temperature control at desired set point values. The manipulated variables are the pump power, on the water outflow line, and heat supply to the tank. Detailed, first principles-based, dynamic models as well as empirical models for this interactive and multivariable process have been developed and used for controller design. Furthermore, this experimental study entails and discusses the design of the water tank process and associated instrumentation, real time data acquisition and control using the DeltaV distributed control system (DCS), process modeling, controller design, and evaluation of the performance of tuning methodologies in a closed loop manner. This student work was submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Senior Project in Controls and Instrumentation course at the Engineering Technology department of the University of Houston - Downtown. © American Society for Engineering Education, 2013.