Model-based control of a thermal regenerator. Part 2: control and estimation

This paper describes the model-based control and estimation techniques impl emented on the hot blast stoves for the number 7 blast furnace at the Ispat Inland Steel facility in East Chicago, IN. The process model is a detailed heat transfer model of this thermal regenerator system used as part of a p redictive control scheme to determine the minimum amount of fuel necessary to achieve the energy requirements. Batch nonlinear least squares estimatio n is used to update the predicted temperature profile and heat transfer coe fficients. These estimated parameters are then used by the model-based cont roller to determine the minimum fuel required for the subsequent regenerati ve cycle. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.