A hybrid modeling strategy for synthesizing diagnostic tests in sequential material- and energy-transfer operations

Abstract

Although diagnostic tests have already been developed in the past for differentiating the originally inseparable fault origins in several simple batch processes, their applicability in realistic systems is still questionable. To address this practical issue, the dynamic behavior of every processing unit involved in a given sequential operation is modeled here by integrating both the generic engineering knowledge and also the ASPEN-generated simulation data into a single automaton. The improved test plans can then be synthesized according to the system model obtained by assembling all such automata. The feasibility of this model building strategy is demonstrated with an example concerning the start-up operation of a flash process.