Online data reconciliation with poor redundancy systems

The paper deals with the integrated solution of different model-based optimization levels to face the problem of inferring and reconciling online plant measurements practically, under the condition of poor measure redundancy, because of a lack of instrumentation installed in the field. The novelty of the proposed computer-aided process engineering (CAPE) solution is in the simultaneous integration of different optimization levels: (i) the data reconciliation based on a detailed process simulation; (ii) the introduction and estimation of certain adaptive parameters, to match the current process conditions as well as to confer a certain generality on it; and (iii) the use of a set of efficient optimizers to improve plant operations. The online feasibility of the proposed CAPE solution is validated on a large-scale sulfur recovery unit (SRU) of an oil refinery. © 2011 American Chemical Society.