Design for dynamic operation – A review and new perspectives for a dynamic manufacturing environment

In this paper, we review frameworks for design, control, and operation of dynamic processes and their applications. Recognition that design characteristics of a process limit its achievable control performance dates back to at least the 1940s. Isolated studies appeared in the literature since then, with a watershed in the 1980s, when quantitative analysis of this phenomenon was advanced in a series of studies using the internal model control (IMC) framework. Dynamic optimization was subsequently utilized as a platform to analyze the impact of a plant design on its dynamic performance, and to perform simultaneous plant and control system design. This paper presents a review of approaches toward the analysis of the interaction between design and dynamic performance, and offers some new perspectives on this topic. In particular, the trends of increased globalization, market volatility, and variation in electricity prices have created dynamic conditions that require responsive operation in order to remain competitive. In addition to such processes where transient dynamics between steady states can be considered and exploited, there are intrinsically dynamic processes which cannot be designed based on steady state mass and energy balances. In intrinsically dynamic processes, the intra-cycle and inter-cycle dynamics should be taken into account when optimizing the design, control, and operation. We discuss adsorption processes as an example. Our study includes a description and discussion of advances in these areas.