Distillation Column Contol

Distillation Column
Control
1
General Process Control
Process Control Techniques / Control Tutorials
 PID Controllers
 A PID Controller is a device that employs each
of the three basic feedback control modes:
 proportional (P),
 integral (I), and
 derivative (D) control.
2
 Proportional Control
 For proportional control, the controller output, p(t), is
proportional to the error signal, e(t), by a factor of Kc, the
dimensionless controller gain.
p(t) = Kce(t)
 The controller gain is adjusted to increase or decrease the

sensitivity of the controller output to the deviations
between setpoint and the controlled variable.
3
 Proportional Control
 Taking the Laplace transforms gives the following transfer function:
Gc = Kc
 The advantage of a proportional-only control is its simplicity.
 If offsets can be tolerated, the use of a proportional controller may

be optimal.
 However, it will not eliminate the steady-state errors that occur after
a set-point change or a sustained load disturbance.
4
 Integral Control
 Integral control depends on the integral of the
error signal over time.
 The integral time constant, tI, is the adjustable

controller parameter with units of time.
p(t) = (1/tI)∫0te(t*)dt*
5
 The primary advantage of integral control is that it
eliminates offset.
 This happens because p(t) will change until the error signal
is zero, thus eliminating a deviation between the
controlled variable and setpoint in the steady-state.
 The disadvantage of integral-only control is that the

controller will not respond until the error signal has
persisted.
6
 To counteract this problem, controllers have been developed that
combine the use of proportional and integral control.
 The result is a proportional-integral (PI) controller, which is

commonly used because of the immediate acting proportional
control coupled with the corrective acting integral control.
 The PI controller transfer function is
Gc = Kc(tIs + 1)/tIs
7
 Derivative Control
 Derivative control is used to anticipate the future
behavior of the error signal by using corrective
action based on the rate of change in error signal.
p(t) = tD(de/dt)
8
 Derivative action is used to stabilize the controlled
process.
 When the error signal is increasing greatly, the controller

output is large.
 The error signal decreases, and the process is eventually

stabilized.
 A disadvantage of derivative control is that controller

output is zero when the error signal is constant. 9
 To counteract this problem, proportional-
derivative (PD) controllers have been developed to
improve the dynamic response of the controlled
variable.
 The transfer function of a PD controller is
Gc = Kc(1 + tDs)
10
 Proportional-Integral-Derivative Control
 A three mode proportional-integral-derivative (PID) controller
combines the advantages of each individual mode of control.
 The ideal PID controller output equation is
p(t) = Kc[e(t) + (1/tI)∫0te(t*)dt* + tD(de/dt)]
 and the transfer fuction is
 Gc = Kc(1 + 1/tIs + tDs)

11
 The PID controller provides quick acting corrective
control of most process variables.
 Adding integral control to a proportional controller will

eliminate the steady state error, but will increase overshoot
and settling time.
 But by adding derivative control, the overshoot and

settling time can be reduced. 12
 Note: A PID controller is not used for highly noisy
control variables like flow control, because the
derivative response will amplify the random
fluctuations in the system.
13
 Controller Tuning Tutorial
 In order to be able to use a controller, it must first be
tuned to the system.
 This tuning synchronizes the controller with the

controlled variable, thus allowing the process to be kept at
its desired operating condition.
 Two common ways of choosing controller settings are the

Cohen-Coon and the Ziegler-Nichols methods. 14
 Cohen-Coon Method
 The Cohen-Coon (C-C) method is used for first-order plus time delay models
only. Take the transfer function
G(s) = Ke-qs/(ts + 1)
 For a PID controller, the following settings are chosen

Kc = t(16t + 3q)/12Kq
tI = q[32 + 6(q/t)]/[13 + 8(q/t)]
tD = 4q/[11 + 2(q/t)]
These settings are designed to give a decay ratio of 1/4.
That is, a C-C tuned controller will have a response with the second oscillation
having one-fourth the amplitude of the first.
15
Ziegler-Nichols Method
 The Ziegler-Nichols (Z-N) method is more robust because it does
not require a specific process model.
 To tune a controller using the Z-N method the integral and

derivative elements of the PID controller are ignored.
 The proportional element is used to find a Kc that will sustain

oscillation.
 This value is considered the Kcu, or the ultimate gain. The period of
oscillation is the Pu, or ultimate period.
 The following settings are chosen for a PID controller 16

P PI PID
Kc .5Kcu .45Kcu .6Kcu
tI - Pu/1.2 Pu/2
tD - - Pu/8
17
Distillation Column Control
 Introduction
 The aim of this module is to introduce the control of distillation
columns.
 We will start by analysing the degrees of freedom to establish

how many and which control parameters it is possible to
control and/or manipulate.
 Then we move on to discuss different ways to control the two

most important parameters:
1. composition at the top of the column and
2. the pressure of the column.
 Finally there are a number of examples showing different

control structures.
18
Degrees of Freedom Analysis
 We will use the method developed by

Professor Ponton to determine the number
of control degrees of freedom in a distillation
column.
 There are two equivalent procedures based

on the equation –
C.D.F. = Total No. of Streams - No. of Phases Present + 1
19
 All we have to do is count all the streams in the

process.
 Separately count the total number of extra

phases i.e. add up all occurrences of phases
greater than one in all units.
 The number of control degrees of freedom is

the difference between these two numbers.
20
Figure 5.1 - Degrees of Freedom Analysis of Distillation Column
Total Streams = 8
Extra Phases = -3
Degrees of Freedom = 6 21
 However, a typical control strategy for such a process

would use only 4 of these - feedrate, column pressure, top
and bottom composition.
 This is because the column and condenser are normally

maintained at the same pressure.
 However, a valve could be placed in the line between.
 This would actually be undesirable as reducing the

condenser pressure will decrease the temperature
driving force available from the cooling medium.
22
Controlling Pressure in Distillation
 In a distillation column it is usually necessary to regulate

the pressure in some way.
 Below there are five different methods described for

doing this.
 Vent to Atmosphere
 Cooling Water
 Flooded Condenser - 1
 Partial Condenser
23
 In none of them is a valve simply placed on the

vapour line.
 This would lead to the use of a large expensive

control valve.
 Instead the pressure is controlled indirectly

involving the use of the condenser and/or reflux
drum.
24
 Vent to Atmophere
 Figure 5.2 below shows the easiest way to
control the pressure in a column operating at
atmospheric pressure.
25
Figure 5.2 - Vent to Atmosphere
26
 In this case the cooling water flow stays
constant and the reflux drum is vented to
atmosphere.
 Thus the reflux drum and hence the top of the

column are at atmospheric pressure.
27
 The advantage of this scheme is that it requires one less
control valve.
 The disadvantage is that the tops have to be subcooled

so that a minimal amount of vapour is lost through the
vent.
 Hence more energy is required from the reboiler when

the reflux is added to the top of the column.
28
 Cooling Water:
 Figure 5.3 shows the most common method
for controlling the pressure - adjustment of
the cooling water flow.
29
Figure 5.3 - Cooling Water
30
 Figure 5.4 shows the classic flooded condenser
approach.
 Again in this setup, as with the first example,

there is no valve on the cooling water.
 Instead the valve is in the liquid line between the

condenser and reflux drum.
31
Figure 5.4 - Flooded Condenser - 1
32
 If this valve is closed then the condensed vapour i.e.
liquid will build up and flood the condenser.
 This has the effect of reducing the heat exchange area,

thus reducing the amount of vapour being condensed
and hence increasing the pressure.
 The valve can then be opened, the liquid level will fall,
increasing the heat exchange area and hence decreasing
the pressure.
33
 Figure 5.5 shows an alternative arrangement for
a flooded condenser.
34
Figure 5.5 - Flooded Condenser 2
35
 The first thing to notice about this setup is that the reflux drum
and condenser are at the same level.
 The second important point is that the vapour line, on which

there is the control valve, is very small in comparison with the
overhead line.
 If the valve is opened there is a small escape of gas into the

reflux drum.
  This pushes the liquid level down in the drum and up in the
condenser, flooding it and reducing the heat exchange area as in
the last example.
 Therefore to increase the pressure the valve is opened and to

decrease the pressure the valve is closed. 36
Figure 5.5 - Flooded Condenser 2
37
 Partial Condenser
 The final example is the control of a partial
condenser.
 The below scheme is used if the overhead

product is required as a vapour.
38
Figure 5.6 - Partial Condenser
39
Controlling Tops Composition in Distillation
 Controlling Tops Composition in Distillation

 As well as pressure, the other parameter most likely to be
controlled is the composition of the tops product.
 The reason is that the final product will most probably come
from the top of the column and it is important to know its
composition.
 Again, as with pressure, there are many different ways of

controlling the tops composition.
 Three methods are described below.
 Reflux Rate
 Reflux Ratio
 Distillate Rate
40
 Reflux Rate
 In this first example the reflux rate is adjusted to

control the composition of the tops product.
 As the amount of reflux is changed so the

temperature profile in the column changes and
hence the composition.
41
Figure 5.7 - Reflux Rate
42
 Reflux Ratio
 The second example uses the reflux ratio as the
control parameter.
 When designing a distillation column it is usually

the reflux ratio that is determined.
 This can be kept constant throughout operation

by using two flow indicators and a ratio
controller.
43
Figure 5.8 - Reflux Ratio 44
 Distillate Rate
 The third example is for high purity tops.
 It uses the distillate flowrate to control the distillate composition.
 It can be shown that for a high purity column i.e. one with a
large reflux, that the composition of the distillate is sensitive to
the distillate flow but insensitive to the reflux rate.
 Therefore for a high purity column the control scheme outlined

below is used.
 It should be noted that tight control on the level in the reflux

drum is required using the reflux rate.
45
46
Distillation Column Control Examples
 The following examples describe alternative control strategies of

fairly standard form.
 Pressure, Overheads Rate and Composition

 Pressure, Bottoms Rate and Composition
 Pressure, Bottoms Rate and Overhead Composition, With Partial
Condenser
 Pressure, Overhead Rate and Bottoms Composition
 Pressure, Bottoms Rate, Overhead Rate and Composition
47
 In all cases actual composition controllers are

shown.
 These could of course be replaced by inferential

measurement from temperature, with or without
cascade of a slower analyser.
 Unless otherwise stated, it has been assumed

that the feed rate to the system is not available
as a manipulated variable.
48
 Pressure, Overheads Rate and Composition

 This is a fairly standard configuration for a single
product column, i.e. when the bottoms streams is a
byproduct, recycle or goes to further processing.
 Although the overheads composition is regulated by

adjusting the steam rate at the base of the column, the
response of the column to heat input changes is quite
rapid, and so this strategy is acceptable.
 Pressure control on condenser cooling water is shown;

of course any other pressure control scheme would be
acceptable.
49
Figure 5.10 -
Overheads Rate
and Composition
50
 Pressure, Bottoms Rate and Composition
 This is the analogous situation to the previous case, in

the rather less usual circumstances where a main
product is withdrawn from the bottom of the column.
 This does not work well, since either the bottom level,
as here, or composition, has to be regulated by
adjusting the reflux rate.
 In either case the loop involves a long delay due to the
hydraulic lags on each tray.
51
Figure 5.11 -
Bottoms Rate
and
Composition
52
 Pressure, Bottoms Rate and Overhead

Composition, With Partial Condenser
 This is not a particularly common strategy, but the

arrangements for a column with partial condenser are
typical.
 The pressure in such a system is almost always

manipulated by a valve on the vapour product line.
 There is no reflux drum, and reflux rate is often set

implicitly by adjusting the cooling load on the
condenser.
53
Figure 5.12 - Bottoms Rate and Overhead Composition, With Partial Condenser
54
 Pressure, Overhead Rate and Bottoms Composition
 This scheme should work satisfactorily as all adjustments are made at the
same end of the column as the related measurements.
 The pressure control scheme is the so-called hot gas bypass.
 Note that the layout of condenser and reflux drum shown is critical to the
operation of this method, which is actually a variation on the flooded
condenser approach.
 The bypass is a very small pipe which bleeds vapour into the reflux drum
where it does not immediately condense.
 The pressure in the system rises as the bypass valve is opened.

55
Figure 5.13 -
Overhead Rate
and Bottoms
Composition
56
 Pressure, Bottoms Rate, Overhead Rate and

Composition
 Since three regulated quantities are specified, the feed to

the unit must be available as an adjustment.
 Apart from this, the arrangements are similar to those of

the first example.
 Level control on the column base is not very satisfactory

due to the lags between the feed and the bottom of the
column, but any other arrangement would be worse.
57
Figure 5.14 - Bottoms
Rate, Overhead Rate
and Composition
58
Distillation Column
Example
59
60
 Temperature control of a distillation column is
an important industrial application of process
control.
 It is important to have tight temperature control

of a column in order to optimize separation,
avoid flooding, minimize steam costs, and
maximize profit.
61
Temperature Control
 The temperature control of the distillation
column involves taking a temperature
measurement and sending it to a distributed
control system (DCS).
 The DCS contains software which manipulates a

control valve that regulates steam flow to the
reboiler.
62
 The block diagram is
below:
63
Transfer Function
 For this example, we'll assume that the process
is second-order with the following transfer
function:
Gp = 1/(s2 + 10s + 20)
64
 For simplicity's sake we are assuming no gains in
the instrumentation.
 The goal for this example is to control the

distillation column temperature to 100 °F,
minimize response time, and minimize
overshoot.
65
Open Loop Response
 The open loop response tells us what we need to
work on with our controller.
 As most steam control valves fail to a closed

position, without any control, the temperature
will only rise 5 °F.
66
67
P Control
 Proportional control is used to improve the rise
time.
 It does bring the temperature close to the
setpoint, but there is still a steady-state error.
 The following graph has a proportional gain,

 Kc = 300.
68
69
PI Control
 The proportional-integral control response shows the
steady-state error is eliminated.
 However, the settling time is still very large.
 We reduce the proportional gain to 30 because integral

control accomplishes the same function (reduces rise
time and increases overshoot).
 The following graph displays the response of

Kc = 30 and tI = 0.429.
70
71
PD Control
 Proportional-derivative control improves the
overshoot, but fails to improve the steady-state
error.
 The following graph displays the response of

PD control with
 Kc = 300 and tD = 0.033.
72
73
PID Control
 Tuning proves the best response with
Kc = 350 and tI = 1.17 and tD = 0.143
 As shown below, the closed loop response for

the combined proportional-integral-derivative
control gives the quickest response with no
overshoot and converges to the desired 100 °F.
74
75
 Thus, we can see that PID control is the optimal
technique for temperature control of a
distillation column.
76
Exercise: Control of Distillation
Column
 Develop control schemes for distillation systems where
the following quantities are to be regulated, in addition
to column pressure.
 Feed, high purity distillate composition, bottoms
temperature
 Distillate rate, distillate composition, bottoms
composition
 Distillate rate, bottoms rate, bottoms composition
 Bottoms rate, distillate composition, bottoms
composition
77
Exercise – Answers:
 Feed, high purity distillate composition,
bottoms temperature
 This control scheme is straightforward.

 First put a flow controller on the feed. Since it is
high purity overheads the composition is
regulated by adjusting the distillate rate.
78
 This is achieved with temperature in the top half
of the column but some distance down as an
inner loop cascaded with an analyser.
 Bottoms temperature is controlled with the

steam rate.
 Finally the inventory loops - reflux drum level

controlled by the reflux rate and the reboiler
level on the bottoms rate.
79
80
Distillate rate, distillate composition,
bottoms composition
 Distillate rate is set by flow control so reflux
must be used for drum level.
 Overheads composition can be regulated by

boilup rate which is quite satisfactory because of
the low vapour inventory in the column.
 But how to do bottoms composition?
81
 This could be done on bottoms flow, but reboiler level
would then have to be by feed adjustment.
 Unfortunately this has a long series of hydraulic delays

from tray to tray.
 It might be better to do reboiler level with bottoms and

bottoms composition by feed, although this is an
unusual scheme!
82
83
Distillate rate, bottoms rate, bottoms
composition
 Both product rates by flow control.
 The level in the reflux drum can be controlled by the

reflux rate.
 The bottoms composition is controlled by the reboiler

steam rate.
 This leaves the level in the reboiler either floating or

unsatisfactorily controlled by the feed rate.
84
85
Bottoms rate, distillate composition,
bottoms composition
 Distillate composition controlled conventionally
either by distillate or reflux rate depending on
purity, the other adjustment used for reflux
drum level.
 Bottoms composition by reboiler steam rate

leaving the same difficulty with reboiler level as
before.
86
87
Case Study: Operation and Control of an
Industrial Heterogeneous Distillation Column
 The Process
 Lonza AG, Visp, operates a heterogeneous
distillation column in the purification line of the
product MBI.
 The task of the heterogeneous distillation

column is to dewater MBI using MTBE as light
entrainer.
88
 The feed contains about 2 mass-% water, as well
as traces of acetone.
 The feed also contains some very heavy-boiling

impurities.
 The specification of the column is that the MBI

product stream should contain less than 0.05
mass-% water.
89
Motivation
 The following issues were addressed in this
project:
 Determine the feasible operating range (e.g. feed

conditions) for the present column.
 Find out if operational problems may arise

either at the present or at anticipated operating
conditions.
90
 Analyze whether multiple steady states can
occur.
 Propose design modifications and alternate

operating strategies to avoid operational
problems.
91
 Validate the findings at the pilot plant facility at
Lonza AG, Visp
 Deduce general conclusions about the design

and operation of this rather common separation
operation (light entrainer to remove water from
heavy product).
92
 Learn about the general value of considering
issues of control and operation at the design
stage rather than afterwards as is traditionally
done.
93
94
95
Key Findings
 Thermodynamics.
 A first step in this project was to improve the
thermodynamic description of the process.
 Therefore, experimental vapor-liquid

equilibrium (VLE) data of the two binary
subsystems MTBE-MBI and Acetone-MBI
which are not in literature were measured by
Lonza AG.
96
 A set of Wilson parameters was regressed to
describe all six binary pairs of the four
component mixture.
 Furthermore, a set of four component liquid-

liquid equilibrium data were measured by Lonza.
97
 A set of UNIQUAC parameters was fitted to
these experimental data giving a good
description of the four component liquid-liquid
equilibrium.
98
 Based on the thermodynamic description, the
infinity/infinity analysis of Bekiaris et al. (1996)
for heterogeneous distillation was performed
and the existence of multiple steady states in
some operating ranges was predicted.
99
 Degrees of Freedom.
 A better understanding of the degrees of
freedom which the process exhibits enabled a
thorough understanding of the steady state
behavior for variations in the feed composition.
100
 With the current design, the distillation column
depicted in this report has only one degree of
freedom.
 For one degree of freedom, only one

specification is allowed.
 Specifying (= controlling) the bottom product

purity defines the whole column profile.
101
 Steady State Behavior.
 Analyzing the steady state behavior of the
current process for different feed compositions,
it was found that the throughput of the column
is limited by the water content in the feed as
expected.
102
 In addition, the throughput is also limited by the
acetone content in the feed.
 The process is much more sensitive to changes

in the acetone content of the feed than to
changes in the water content.
103
 In both cases, the throughput is limited by the
vapor load, the liquid load always stays well
below the allowed maximum value.
104
Control Schemes
 Two Point Composition Control.
 Dynamic simulations of the original control scheme (two point
composition control) show that the L/V control scheme works
well for this process.
 Even though a steady state operation of the process is generally

not feasible with the current design because of the discontinuous
entrainer make up,
 the process operates satisfactorily because of the large time

constants induced by the large holdups of the process.
105
 Robustness of the L/V Scheme.
 The robustness of the original operation scheme

to feed composition changes was investigated.
 The scheme is robust against changes of the

water content, but very sensitive to changes in
the acetone content.
106
 Small deviations from the nominal content cause
big changes in the overhead vapor composition.
 Because of the large holdup in the decanter and

buffer tank, these changes are slow.
 Acetone is trapped in the plant and accumulates

in the top of the column.
 As a result, the phase split in the decanter can

disappear.
107
 Because of the large hold ups and the slow
accumulation, the process is robust, but the
performance is bad.
108
 Redesigned Process.
 A redesigned process is introduced which

reduces the holdups in the process but maintains
the robustness of the current process scheme.
 The discontinuous make up is replaced with a

continuous stream which is used to control the
top purity.
109
 The buffer tank is removed.
 The decanter requires now automatic control

because reflux must always be ensured.
110
111
112
113
1.Control Problems
114
Flooding
115
Flooding
1. LIQUID FLOOD
2. JET FLOOD
116
Flooding
1) Measuring Tray Pressure Drop
2) Confusing Incidents
3) High Liquid Level Induces Flooding
4) Vertical Temperature Survey
5) Two-Phase Bottom Level Problem
117
FOAMING
118
EXPANDING TRAY
CAPACITY
119
DAMEGED TRAYS
120
REFLUX CHANGES
121
LEVEL CONTROL
122
Reboiler Problems
123
TRAPOUT PANS
124
PLUGED REBOILER
125
REPAIR OF TRAPOUT
PANS
126
STEAM-SIDE
PROBLEMS
127
BLOWN
CONDENSATE SEAL
128
Reflux Problems
129
LEAKING VAPOR BYPASS
CONTROL VALVE
130
BACK-FLUSHING CONDENSERS
131
WATER VELOCITY
132
AIR-COOLED CONDENSERS
133
AIR RECIRCULATION
134
CONDENSED LIQUID DRAINAGE
135
REASONS FOR CONDENSATE
SUBCOOLING
136
REDUCED LIQUID SUBCOOLING
137
VAPOR-BOUND CONDENSERS
138
TROUBLESHOOTING CHICKLIST
139

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Distillation Column

 The controller gain is adjusted to increase or decrease the

 The advantage of a proportional-only control is its simplicity.

 If offsets can be tolerated, the use of a proportional controller may

 The integral time constant, tI, is the adjustable

 The disadvantage of integral-only control is that the

 The result is a proportional-integral (PI) controller, which is

 The PI controller transfer function is

 When the error signal is increasing greatly, the controller

 The error signal decreases, and the process is eventually

 A disadvantage of derivative control is that controller

 The transfer function of a PD controller is

 The ideal PID controller output equation is

p(t) = Kc[e(t) + (1/tI)∫0te(t*)dt* + tD(de/dt)]

 and the transfer fuction is

 Gc = Kc(1 + 1/tIs + tDs)

 Adding integral control to a proportional controller will

 But by adding derivative control, the overshoot and

 This tuning synchronizes the controller with the

 Two common ways of choosing controller settings are the

 For a PID controller, the following settings are chosen

These settings are designed to give a decay ratio of 1/4.

 To tune a controller using the Z-N method the integral and

 The proportional element is used to find a Kc that will sustain

 The following settings are chosen for a PID controller 16

Kc .5Kcu .45Kcu .6Kcu

 We will start by analysing the degrees of freedom to establish

 Then we move on to discuss different ways to control the two

 Finally there are a number of examples showing different

 We will use the method developed by

 There are two equivalent procedures based

C.D.F. = Total No. of Streams - No. of Phases Present + 1

 All we have to do is count all the streams in the

 Separately count the total number of extra

 The number of control degrees of freedom is

 However, a typical control strategy for such a process

 This is because the column and condenser are normally

 This would actually be undesirable as reducing the

 In a distillation column it is usually necessary to regulate

 Below there are five different methods described for

 In none of them is a valve simply placed on the

 This would lead to the use of a large expensive

 Instead the pressure is controlled indirectly

 Thus the reflux drum and hence the top of the

 The disadvantage is that the tops have to be subcooled

 Hence more energy is required from the reboiler when

 Again in this setup, as with the first example,

 Instead the valve is in the liquid line between the

 This has the effect of reducing the heat exchange area,

 The second important point is that the vapour line, on which

 If the valve is opened there is a small escape of gas into the

 Therefore to increase the pressure the valve is opened and to

 The below scheme is used if the overhead

 Controlling Tops Composition in Distillation

 Again, as with pressure, there are many different ways of

 In this first example the reflux rate is adjusted to

 As the amount of reflux is changed so the

 When designing a distillation column it is usually

 This can be kept constant throughout operation

 It uses the distillate flowrate to control the distillate composition.

 Therefore for a high purity column the control scheme outlined

 It should be noted that tight control on the level in the reflux

 The following examples describe alternative control strategies of

 Pressure, Overheads Rate and Composition

p(t) = Kc[e(t) + (1/tI)∫0te(t)dt + tD(de/dt)]