Formulating regression equations for the virtual analyzers of the main quality factors of the alkylation process

The growth prospects of the chemical and petrochemical industries are shaped by the necessity of developing and implementing advanced technological solutions for improving operational performance of production by the effect of selecting the most suitable process parameters and predicting quality factors of the end products once very minute. The task of continuous product quality control may be successfully resolved by means of implementing an Advanced Process Control System (APCS). The functioning of APCS is based on virtual analyzers (VA) of product quality. A virtual analyzer is a mathematical model which is being developed with reference to long-time statistics of lab collected and performance data. Virtual analyzers facilitate assessing the desired, rather than directly measured, product quality factors by product parameters which are under continuous control by means of advanced control systems. The article describes an approach to developing a system of virtual analyzers for target quality factors of alkylphenols based on regression equations that have been formulated by the least-squares method.