Application of Integrated Framework of Simulation and Heuristics for Plant-wide Control of the Styrene Monomer Plant

An integrated framework (IF) of heuristics and simulation for developing plant-wide control (PWC) structures for chemical plants has been recently proposed, and has been successfully applied to the toluene hydrodealkylation process. This procedure makes effective use of rigorous steady-state and dynamic process simulation models to aid in the decision-making during the development of the heuristic-based PWC structure. Though it is promising, it has to be tested on other complex industrial processes. The present contribution considers the application of IF to the styrene monomer plant. The steady-state and dynamic simulation models of the plant are first developed. The eight-stage IF procedure is then applied to the developed flowsheet. The control system performance for important disturbances is finally analyzed. Analysis of the results indicates that the procedure yields a stable and robust control structure. This is the first study to develop steady-state and dynamic simulation models, and a complete PWC structure for the styrene plant, together with an evaluation of the IF methodology.