Dynamic simulation of an integrated thermal separation unit considering practically relevant conditions and limitations

• Trends in basic control layer design for chemical plants are discussed.
• High-quality basic control layers justify simulation-based pre-commissioning.
• Implication on design, implementation, commissioning and maintenance is discussed.
• A test case for new methods of basic control design and engineering is presented.

In industrial practice, the operation of chemical units makes to a considerable extent use of basic control elements like PID controllers and sequence control. However, the need for highly flexible and reliable operation of chemical units makes life-cycle engineering of the basic control layer increasingly challenging. This article presents a dynamic simulation of a vapour recompression distillation, which reflects practically relevant conditions, to be used as a test case for studying approaches to design, implement, commission, maintain and document basic control for chemical plants. A simulation of a startup and the accuracy with respect to material and energy conservation are shown. The simulation is available for free download via the homepage of the Control Systems Group at TU Berlin.