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Procedia Engineering 42 (2012) 1796 1804

20th International Congress of Chemical and Process Engineering CHISA 2012

25 29 August 2012, Prague, Czech Republic

Synthesis and control analysis of gas absorption column

using MATLAB and SIMULINK
M. Attarakiha,c a*, M. Abu-Khaderb, H. J. Bartc,d

a
The University of Jordan, Faculty of Engineering & Technology, Department of Chemical Engineering, 11942 Amman, Jordan
b
Al-Balqa Applied University, Faculty of Eng. Tech. Chem. Eng. Dept., POB 15008, 11134 Amman, Jordan
c
Chair of Separation Science and Technology, TU Kaiserslautern, Germany
d
Centre of Mathematical and Computational Modelling, TU Kaiserslautern, P.O. Box 3049 - 67653 Kaiserslautern, Germany

Abstract

The present work highlights the powerful combination of SIMULINK/MATLAB software as an effective
flowsheeting tool which was used to simulate steady state and closed loop dyanmics of a sieve tray gas absorption
column. A complete mathematical model, which consists of a system of differential and algebraic equations was
developed. As a case study, the dynamic behaviour and control of a sieve tray column to absorb ethanol from CO2
stream in a fermentation process were analyzed. The nonlinearity increased along the column height and was
maximum at the top tray. The controlled variable was found to exhibit fairly large overshoots due to step change in
the inlet gas flow rate, while the PID controller performance was satisfactory for step change in the inlet gas
composition. The closed-loop dynamic analysis showed that the controlled variable (outlet gas phase composition)
had a fairly linear dynamics due to step changes in the set point.

2012 Published by Elsevier Ltd. Selection under responsibility of the Congress Scientific Committee
(Petr Kluson) Open access under CC BY-NC-ND license.

Keywords: Dynamic modelling; gas absorption; control; MATLAB; SIMULINK

1. Introduction

Dynamic simulation and control of gas absorption process attracted many researchers attention on
both individual and flow sheet levels. Kvamsdal et al. [1] presented a dynamic model of a CO2 absorption

* Corresponding author. Tel.: +962-6-5355000; fax: +962-6-5355522.

E-mail address: attarakih@yahoo.com, m.attarakih@ju.edu.jo.

1877-7058 2012 Published by Elsevier Ltd. Open access under CC BY-NC-ND license.
doi:10.1016/j.proeng.2012.07.574
 M. Attarakih et al. / Procedia Engineering 42 (2012) 1796 1804 1797

column that is intended to be coupled with models of other individual processes to form a complete model
of a power generation plant with CO2 removal. The dynamic simulation and control of gas absorption
process is essential. Moreover, it is clear that gas absorption/stripping is one of the main and important
processing blocks in many chemical and power generation plants. This process is usually carried out
through tray columns that contain multiple numbers of trays, which bring gas and liquid into intimate
contact. If the gas leaving the tray is in thermodynamic equilibrium (which is a rather rare situation) with
the liquid leaving the tray, then theoretical stage is provided. To account for the failure to achieve
equilibrium, Murphree tray efficiency is used. The gas absorption process is modelled through a system
of mathematical equations to enable prediction of the process behaviour. The implementation of a control
scheme for such a process is vital to achieve optimal operation despite the presence of significant
uncertainty about the plant behavior and disturbances. As the capability of a certain controller is not the
main issue of the present work, the traditional PID controller was selected for its simplicity and being
able to achieve the required targets. Tuning the PID feedback controllers is the adjustment of the
controller parameters to match the characteristics of the rest of the components of the loop. One of the
popular methods is the on-line or closed-loop tuning method. MATLAB is a software for mathematical
computation, whereas SIMULINK is a powerful software for modeling, simulation, and analysis of
dynamical systems in a flowsheeting environment. It supports linear and nonlinear systems, modeled in
continuous time, sampled time, or a hybrid of the two. For modeling, Simulink provides a graphical user
interface (GUI) for building models as block diagrams, using click-and-drag mouse operations. With this
interface, you can draw the models just as you would with pencil and paper. The simulation results can be
put in the MATLAB m-files for post Processing and visualization. And because MATLAB and Simulink
are integrated, you can simulate, analyze, and revise your models in either environment at any point [2].
The objective of this work is to develop a steady state and dynamic models for the coupled
hydrodynamics and mass transfer of a sieve tray gas absorption column, where an existing bioethanol
process [3] is simulated as a real-life example.

2. Dynamic model derivation

A simplified dynamic mathematical model for the tray gas absorption column is derived using
unsteady state total material and component balances on the jth tray inside the column. To take into
account the deviation of tray performance from ideal behaviour (equilibrium), the Murphree tray
efficiency is used:

y j  y j 1
I  (1)
y *j  y j 1

*
Where y j is the equilibrium solute concentration in the gas phase leaving stage j while y j is the actual
(non-equilibrium) solute concentration in the gas phase leaving stage j. The equilibrium solute
concentration in the gas phase is assumed linear with constant distribution coefficient. This is a
reasonable assumption for dilute solutions. Usually, the equilibrium data are represented in the form of
Eq.(2):

y *j  Kx j (2)
1798 M. Attarakih et al. / Procedia Engineering 42 (2012) 1796 1804

Where x j is the mole fraction of solute in the liquid phase. Although, ideally, the K values can be
derived from pure-component vapor pressure using Raoult's Law. The unsteady state material balance
reads:

dM j
 L j 1  G  L j  G (3)
dt

In the above equation, Mj is the total liquid holdup on the jth tray, while Lj -1, Lj (mole/s)are the inlet and
outlet liquid flow rates respectively, while the total gas flow rate, which is assumed constant, is G
(mole/s). Similarly, a solute balance on the jth tray can be written as:

d M j x j

 x j  1L j  1  x j L j  G y j  1  y j
(4)
dt

Where: xj and yi are the solute mole fractions in the liquid and gas phases respectively. The tray index j
runs from 1 (top tray) to n (the bottom) tray. From dynamic point of view, the liquid flow rates
throughout the column will not be the same. They will depend on the fluid mechanics of the tray. Often a
simple Francis weir formula relationship is used to relate the liquid holdup on the jth tray (Mj) to the
liquid flow rate leaving the tray (L) [4]:

1 M j 3/2

L j  S L Lw  h w
(5)
c
S A
L p

Where: hw is weir height (m), Lw is weir length (m), Ap is active plate area (m2), L is the molar density of
the liquid mixture (mole/m3), c is a weir empirical constant (m-1/3s2/3). The Murphree tray efficiency can
be written explicitly in terms of the equilibrium solute mass fraction as follows:

N  j 1
N  1 j N  j m *
y j  1  I
y in  I y *j  I 1  I
yN m (6)
m 0

*
Where j = 1, 2, N. Note that when: I l 1, y j l y j and hence the ideal tray model is recovered. In
the above equation the first term is the solution of the homogeneous finite difference equation (Eq.(1)),
while the second two terms are the particular solution. It is clear that the first term accounts for the inlet
boundary condition, which is required to solve the Murphree finite difference equation. Note that all the
terms in Eq.(6) are nonlinear with respect to tray efficiency (), except the second term. The second two
terms are nonlinear with respect departure of the tray from equilibrium conditions. It is obvious that the
above system of equations is a Differential Algebraic Equation (DAE) system, which can be solved
sequentially in time thanks to the explicit form of Eq.(6). Note that the solute mole fraction yj in Eq.(4)
can be eliminated using Eqs.(6) and (2), which results in a system of ODE in terms of solute mole fraction
(x) in the liquid phase. The initial conditions for the system of equations (3 and 4) are given by the
solution of the steady state versions of these equations. The initial conditions can be stated
mathematically as:
 M. Attarakih et al. / Procedia Engineering 42 (2012) 1796 1804 1799

M j (0)  M j0
L j (0)  L0j
(7)
x j (0)  x 0, j
y j (0)  y 0, j ,  j  1, 2, ..N

To examine the system degrees of freedom, the feed gas flow rate (G) and its inlet composition (yin) are
assumed to be given from the upstream unit. The Murphree tray efficiency is assumed to be known
empirically. The total number of variables is equal to 5N+2 and the total number of equations is 5N. From
control engineering point of view, there are only two variables that can be controlled. These two variables
are the inlet absorbent flow rate and composition. The inlet absorbent composition (xin) is specified from
the upstream unit (stripper or distillation column) and hence it is a disturbance imposed on the process.
Accordingly, we are left only with the absorbent flow rate (L0) as a manipulated variable. The equation
should relate the absorbent flow rate to the gas stream composition leaving the column using the feedback
(PID) controller equation:

L 0 (t )  f (y N ) (8)

The steady state model of the tray gas absorption column is derived using the steady state versions of
Eqs.(3) and (4) coupled with the algebraic system given by Eq.(6), where Lj-1 = Lj = L at steady state. For
ease of presentation, the steady state model is put in compact matrix form as follows:

Ax x = Bu - %y (9)

The above equation is a result of combining Eqs.(3) and (4), while the Murphree tray efficiency
(Eq.(6)) is expressed in compact matrix form as follows:

Ay y  IKx  (1  I)yin v (10)

In the above equations the elements of Ax and Ay are given by:

L0

 , if i  j
aa
i , j  G
,  i, j  1, 2, ...N

L0
, if j  i  1

G

 1, if i  j
a y
i, j  ,  i, j  1, 2, ...N
1  I, if j  i  1

While the elements of the vectors B, u, y, v and y are given by:

1800 M. Attarakih et al. / Procedia Engineering 42 (2012) 1796 1804

 1 0
% y1

0 0
L0
% y 2
x
B  .. .. , u  G in , % y  .. , % y j  y j  1  y j , j  1.2...N

.. .. y in % y N 1

0  1 y N

0 x 1 y1

0 x y
2 2
v  .. , x  .. , y  ..

0 x N 1 y N 1



1 x N y N

3. Dynamic model solution algorithm

After expanding the derivative vector on the left hand side of Eq.(4),the dynamic model given by
Eqs.(3) to (5) is cast into the following state-space form, which is suitable for MATLAB/SIMULINK
implementation:

dx
 Ax' x  Ay' y  B ' u ' (11)
dt

Where the elements of Ax and Ay are given by:

L j  1 dM j , if i  j


M M j dt x
a x'
i, j  j ,  i, j  1, 2, ...N , u '  in
L j y in

, if i  j  1
Mi

L0

M 0


G 1

 , if j  i
0 0
M dM j
a y'
i, j  j ,  i, j  1, 2, ...N , B '  .. .. ,  L j 1  L j
G dt

, if j  i  1 .. ..

Mi


G 0
0

M N
 M. Attarakih et al. / Procedia Engineering 42 (2012) 1796 1804 1801

And y is given by the solution of Eq.(6) or (10). Note that the DAE system above, which results from the
slow dynamics of the tray liquid composition (dx/dt) and the negligible dynamics of the gas phase
composition (dy/dt 0) is represented by the two state variables x and y which are transformed by the
matrices Ax and Ay, while the system disturbances and manipulated variables are augmented in the vector
Bu. The dynamic solution algorithm starts by filling the trays with Mj kmole liquid (absorbent) followed
by solving the steady state system given by Eqs.(9) and (10) to provide an initial condition to the
dynamic model. Then, the system of ODEs given by Eqs.(11) is integrated using the standard MATLAB
ordinary differential Equation solvers.

4. Industrial case study

To highlight the applicability of the developed steady state and dynamic solution algorithms, a real
industrial bioethanol gas absorption process is chosen as a case study [2]. By referring to Fig. 1, this
process is described as follows: The collected gas mixture (CO2+ethanol) from the sugarcane
fermentation tanks is fed at the bottom and the absorbent liquid at the top of the ethanol recovery column,
where the two phases flow counter currently. A distillation column supplies the absorbent liquid,
consisting of water containing some alcohol (around 100 ppm). This absorption column is composed of
nine stages and operates at 40 oC and 1 atm. This equipment must process 3 mol/s of gas mixture in order
to reduce the alcohol concentration from approximately 20,000 to 300 ppm.

(a)

L0(b) G
xin y out

L0 , xin G, y out

G
y in

L
xout G, yin L, x out
(a) (b)
Fig. 1. (a) The complete bioethanol process [2]; (b) The input-output structure of the absorption column.

The initial concentration depends on the fermentation broth conditions and also on specific features of
the fermentation tanks. Therefore, this is considered as a disturbance to the absorption process and the
absorbent flow rate must be manipulated to maintain a high ethanol recovery. The effluent gas from the
first column, mainly composed of carbon dioxide, a small amount of ethanol, and around 2000 ppm of
water, is fed into a depurator to oxidize the organic impurities. A ten-tray absorption column is then used
to reduce the water concentration in the gas mixture to 300 ppm. The control purpose is: to keep low
ethanol concentration in the effluent gas phase from the first absorption column (ethanol recovery
1802 M. Attarakih et al. / Procedia Engineering 42 (2012) 1796 1804

column) despite the changes in the two main disturbances: the main gas flow rate and the composition of
the inlet gas stream (ethanol concentration). Therefore, the measured variable is the ethanol concentration
( ) in the effluent gas stream and the manipulated variable is the inlet absorbent flow rate ( ). The
main MATLAB program acts as an interface between the steady state module and the dynamic
SIMULINK flowsheet. The general structure of the SIMULINK/MATLAB software is developed to
simulate the closed loop response of the gas absorption column. This is shown in Fig. 2.

5. Numerical results and discussion

The closed loop dynamic behaviour is investigated in the presence of a PID controller. The major
difficulty lies in selecting (adjusting) the best controller parameters to produce a specified closed loop
response. This process is known in the control literature as tuning feedback controllers. The quarter-
decay ratio or the continuous cycling method is used to estimate the best controller parameters; namely,
the proportional gain, the integral and the derivative time constants.

Fig. 2. General structure and components of the MATLAB/SIMULINK software, which developed to simulate sieve tray gas
absorption column.

The continuous cycling method is used here by switching off the integral and derivative control actions
and adjusting the value of the proportional gain until the controlled variable cycles continuously [5]. The
continuous oscillation of the controlled variable (top tray gas phase composition) is recorded, where the
ultimate gain and period are found to be Ku = -9000 and Pu = 17 s. So, the best controller parameters
using the continuous cycling method are calculated using the values of Ku and Pu. First, the dynamic
behavior of the liquid holdup on each tray under the optimum PID control action is shown in Fig. 3. The
overshoot in the liquid holdup is relatively small and the damping is very fast. Since positive step change
is introduced in the inlet gas composition, the controller increases the flow of the absorbent to absorb the
extra quantity of solute entering with the gas feed. As a result, the liquid holdup increases in an
oscillatory behaviour characterizing the overdamped pre-specified response. Therefore, the PID
 M. Attarakih et al. / Procedia Engineering 42 (2012) 1796 1804 1803

controller performance is satisfactory in cancelling the inlet gas composition disturbance by increasing
the solvent flow rate.

13
top tray
12.9

12.8

12.7
liquid holdup ( mole )

bottom tray
12.6

12.5

12.4

12.3

12.2

12.1

12
490 500 510 520 530 540 550 560
time ( s )
Fig. 3. Closed-loop response of the liquid holdup using the optimum PID controller settings.

Fig. 4. shows the PID controller performance due to positive and negative step changes in the set point
(servo-mechanism). In both cases the controlled variable follows the set point with 60 seconds as a
settling time. The controlled process seems to be approximately linear due to step changes in the set point.
This is clear from the image of the positive step response as shown in Fig. 4. The settling time is the same
as in the case of step change in the inlet gas composition, thanks to the fast response of the trays liquid
holdup.

600 450
controlled variable controlled variable
set point set point
400
550
y top ( ppm )

350
y top ( ppm )

500
300

450 250

400 200
490 500 510 520 530 540 550 560 570 500 520 540 560
time ( s ) time ( s )

Fig. 4. Controlled system performance due to positive and negative step changes in the set point using PID controller with optimum
settings estimated using the continuous cycling method.
1804 M. Attarakih et al. / Procedia Engineering 42 (2012) 1796 1804

6. Conclusions
In this work, mathematical modelling and design of a MATLAB/SIMULINK flowsheeting software
were developed and implemented to simulate and control a sieve tray gas absorption column. The
dynamic model was characterized by two sets of time constants: the smallest time was associated with
tray hydrodynamics, while the larger one was related to the change in the gas phase composition.
Accordingly, special MATLAB ODE solver was used (ode15s) to integrate the closed loop model. The
closed-loop dynamic analysis showed that the controlled variable (outlet gas phase composition) had a
fairly linear dynamics due to step changes in the set point. On the other hand, the Murphree tray
efficiency had little effect on the dynamic behavior of the column.

Acknowledgment

The authors are very grateful to the German Research Association (DFG) for the financial support.

References

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[2] Eyng E, Fileti A. Control of absorption columns in the bioethanol process: Influence of measurement uncertainties. Eng
Appl Artif Intel 2010;23:271-282.
[3] Kvamsdal HM, Jakobsen JP, Hoff KA. Dynamic modeling and simulation of a CO2 absorber column for post
combustion CO2 capture. Chemical Engineering and Processing: Proc Intens 2009;48:135144.
[4] Thomas P. Simulation of Industrial Processes for Control Engineers. Elsevier Science & Technology Books; 1999.
[5] Smith C, Corripio AB. Principles and Practice of Automatic Process Control. 3rd ed. New York: John Wiley; 2006.