Multi-loop Control System Design for Biodiesel Process using Waste Cooking Oil

Biodiesel is one of the promising liquid fuels for future due to its advantages such as renewability and eco-friendliness. This manuscript describes the development of a multi-loop control system design for a comprehensive biodiesel process using waste cooking oil. Method for controlled variable-manipulated variable (CV-MV) pairings are vital for the stable, effective and economical operation of the process. Liquid recycles, product quality requirements and effective inventory control pose tough challenges to the safe operation of the biodiesel process. A simple and easy to apply effective RGA method [Xiong Q, Cai W J and He M J 2005 A practical loop pairing criterion for multivariable processes Journal of Process Control vol. 15 pp 741-747.] is applied to determine CV-MV pairings i.e. control configuration design for the bioprocess. This method uses steady state gain as well as bandwidth information of the process open loop transfer function to determine input-output pairings.