Empirical Models of the Purdue Furnace
Exercise 12.17
Consider the PCM furnace module of Appendix H. Assume that hydrocarbon temperature THC is the CV, fuel gas flow rate F is the MV, and that they are related by the following transfer function model:

- Design a PID controller based on the IMC tuning relations and a reasonable choice for τc.
- Design a PID controller based on the relay auto-tuning feature of the PCM, and the Ziegler-Nichols settings.
- Simulate the response of each controller to a sudden change in the hydrocarbon flow rate FHC from 0.035 to 0.040 m3/min at t = 10 min as an unmeasured disturbance. Which controller is superior? Justify your answer.
- Attempt to obtain improved control system performance by fine tuning your better controller for part (c). For the performance criteria, consider maximum deviation from set point and settling time.