Optimization of grade transitions in polyethylene solution polymerization process under uncertainty

•Developed novel dynamic optimization formulation to deal with model and process uncertainty.•Applied back-off concepts to construct compact robust optimization problems.•Demonstrated approach on large-scale polymer process model for grade transitions.

Model-based dynamic optimization is an effective tool for control and optimization of chemical processes, especially during transitions in operation. This study considers the dynamic optimization of grade transitions for a solution polymerization process. Here, a detailed dynamic model comprises the entire flowsheet and includes a method-of-moments reactor model to determine product properties, a simple yet accurate vapor-liquid equilibrium (VLE) model derived from rigorous calculations, and a variable time delay model for recycle streams. To solve the grade transition problem, both single stage and multistage optimization formulations have been developed to deal with specification bands of product properties.This dynamic optimization framework demonstrates significant performance improvements for grade transition problems. However, performance can deteriorate in the presence of uncertainties, disturbances and model mismatch. To deal with these uncertainties, this study applies robust optimization formulations through the incorporation of back-off constraints within the optimization problem. With back-off terms calculated from Monte Carlo simulations, the resulting robust optimization formulation can be solved with the same effort as the nominal dynamic optimization problem, and the resulting solution is shown to be robust under various uncertainty levels with minimal performance loss. Additional case studies show that our optimization approach extends naturally to different regularizations and multiple sources of uncertainty.