Realization of Online Optimizing Control in an Industrial Polymerization Reactor

In this work, the operation of an industrial semi-batch polymerization reactor is economically optimized using an NMPC scheme. The goal is the minimization of the batch duration without violating the tight constraints for the product specification. Important issues for the practical implementation such as the development and experimental validation of a suitable process model, the estimation of unmeasured states and the real time solution of the nonlinear optimization problem are discussed. The effectiveness of the control scheme is illustrated by results taken from the implementation at the real plant.