Process Dynamics, Modeling, and Control (Topics in Chemical Engineering)

Rating:
Summary: A practical introduction to process control
Review: This book provides an excellent, practical introduction to process control from the view of Chemical Engineers.

The book begins by considering the development of dynamic process models. It covers practical questions such as which state variable (eg. height) should be controlled by which manipulated variable (eg. flowrate) by discussing the physical behaviour of the system, rather than the approach commonly used by control engineers of an electronics background.

The advantage of the book is that it then goes on to discuss tools such as Nyquist diagrams and Bode plots, and how they can be used to characterise a system's behaviour, in a simple and clear manner. It then addresses essential issues such as controller tuning.

Finally, the book briefly introduces advanced control topics, such as Kalman filters and Model based control, in simple terms which would give an interested reader a running start into these fields.

My only regret is that I have lost my personal copy!

Rating:
Summary: The best primer in process control for chemical engineers
Review: This book was the text for my undergraduate control course. It gave me a better background in process control than the other books I purchased to supplement my learning. I highly recommend this book over others such as Marlin.

Ogunnaike and Ray covers subjects such as root locus methods, tunings using frequency methods, and digital control.

Dr. Ogunnaike is also an excellent lecturer, so if you would like to take the course directly from him enroll at the University of Delaware - its well worth it.

I also recommend Essentials of Process Control by William Luyben to provide a good qualitative background in process control.