Advanced process control: Difference between revisions

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{{Short description|Concept in control theory}}

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== Related Technologies ==

The following technologies are related to APC and, in some contexts, can be considered part of APC, but are generally separate technologies having their own (or in need of their own) Wiki articles.

* [[Statistical process control]] (SPC), despite its name, is much more common in discrete parts manufacturing and batch process control than in continuous process control. In SPC, “process” refers to the work and quality control process, rather than continuous process control.

*Batch process control (see ANSI/ISA-88) is employed in non-continuous batch processes, such as many pharmaceuticals, chemicals, and foods.

*Simulation-based optimization incorporates dynamic or steady-state computer-based process simulation models to determine more optimal operating targets in real-time, i.e., on a periodic basisperiodically, ranging from hourly to daily. This is sometimes considered a part of APC, but in practice, it is still an emerging technology and is more often part of MPO.

*Manufacturing planning and optimization (MPO) refers to ongoing business activity to arrive at optimal operating targets that are then implemented in the operating organization, either manually or, in some cases, automatically communicated to the process control system.

*[[Safety instrumented system]] refers to a system that is independent of the process control system, both physically and administratively, whose purpose is to assure the basic safety of the process.

== APC Business and Professionals ==

Those responsible for the design, implementation, and maintenance of APC applications are often referred to as APC Engineers or Control Application Engineers. Usually, their education is dependent upon the field of specialization. For example, in the process industries, many APC Engineers have a chemical engineering background, combining process control and chemical processing expertise.

Most large operating facilities, such as oil refineries, employ a number of control system specialists and professionals, ranging from field instrumentation, regulatory control system (DCS and PLC), advanced process control, and control system network and security. Depending on facility size and circumstances, these personnel may have responsibilities across multiple areas, or be dedicated to each area. There are also manyMany process control service companies that can be hired for support and services in each area.

== Artificial Intelligence and Process Control ==

The use of Artificialartificial Intelligenceintelligence, Machinemachine Learninglearning, and Deepdeep Learninglearning techniques in Processprocess Controlcontrol is also considered as an advanced process control approach in which intelligence is used to further optimize operational parameters further.

OperationsFor decades, operations and Logicslogic in process control systems in oil and gas and for decadeshave arebeen based only on physics equations that dictatesdictate parameters along with operators’ interactions based on experience and operating manuals. Artificial Intelligenceintelligence and Machinemachine Learninglearning algorithms can look into the dynamic operational conditions, analyseanalyze them, and suggest optimized parameters that can either directly tune logic parameters or give suggestionsuggestions to operators. Interventions by such intelligent models leadslead to optimization in cost, production, and safety.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2016-04-06 |title=Oil and Gas, AI, and the Promise of a Better Tomorrow |language=en-US |work=[[SparkCognition]] Inc. |url=https://www.sparkcognition.com/oil-gas-ai-promise-better-tomorrow/ }}</ref>

== Terminology ==

*APC: Advanced process control, including feedforward, decoupling, inferentialsinferential, and custom algorithms; usually implies DCS-based.

*ARC: Advanced regulatory control, including adaptive gain, override, logic, fuzzy logic, sequence control, device control, and custom algorithms; usually implies DCS-based.

*Base-Layer: Includes DCS, SIS, field devices, and other DCS subsystems, such as analyzers, equipment health systems, and PLCs.

*BPCS: Basic process control system (see "base-layer")

*DCS: Distributed control system, often synonymous with BPCS

*MPO: Manufacturing planning and optimization

*MPC: Multivariable [[Modelmodel predictive control]]

*SIS: [[Safety instrumented system]]

*SME: Subject matter expert