PIPENET VISION

TRAINING MANUAL
TRANSIENT MODULE

CHAPTER 10 – 2F

APPLICATIONS – LEVEL CONTROL OF TANKS

Revision 2.5, September 2017

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1. CONVENTIONAL PID CONTROL SYSTEM, TYPE 1 ............................................................................................................ 2

1.1 INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................................................................................... 2
1.2 NETWORK SETTINGS .............................................................................................................................................................. 2
1.3 CALCULATION RESULTS .......................................................................................................................................................... 5
2. CONVENTIONAL PID CONTROL SYSTEM, TYPE 2 ............................................................................................................ 6
2.1 INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................................................................................... 6
2.2 NETWORK SETTINGS .............................................................................................................................................................. 6
2.3 CALCULATION RESULTS .......................................................................................................................................................... 8
3. CASCADE PID CONTROL ................................................................................................................................................ 9
3.1 INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................................................................................... 9
3.2 NETWORK SETTINGS ............................................................................................................................................................ 10
3.3 CALCULATION RESULTS ........................................................................................................................................................ 11
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1. Conventional PID Control System, Type 1

1.1 Introduction

There are two control systems in the above network. The PID control system continually adjusts
the control valve in the main line to keep the tank at the desired level (4m). The switch control
system quickly opens the on/off valve in the drain once the tank reaches the maximum level
(5m) and closes the valve when the liquid level drops to below 4.5 m. The liquid level is
measured by a pressure difference sensor. The scenario here demonstrates the response of
the network to a change in supply flow, modelled by a change in the opening of valve 3.

1.2 Network Settings

Please note that the examples in this chapter are given for illustration purposes and are not
intended for inputting the networks. However, if you want to run the calculation, you can use the
existing schematics from Help | Learning | Training Materials | Data Files.

1.2.1 PID Controller

The control type here is set as Proportional-Integral-Differential, with an input set point of 4m
fluid (as that is the desired tank level). The gain (0.1 /m fluid) and the reset time (5 s) have been
tuned based on the dynamic characteristics of the network. The rate time (1 s), is less than 25%
of the reset time, in order to reduce the chances of instability, caused by the differential term in
the control system. Anti-windup has also been introduced, to offset any saturated integral term
signal, speeding up the network response. The tracking time is set to default.
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1.2.2 Switch Controller

This controller works as an on/off switch. It outputs on when the input signal is above 5 m and
off when it’s below 4.5 m.
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1.2.3 Transfer Functions

The transfer functions here are used to model the dynamic characteristics of the valves. For the
on-off valve, the transfer function is once more a limiting power ramp.

Control valve 2, however, which requires more careful control uses a first order transfer
function.
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1.2.4 Supply Valve 3

Supply valve 3 is set such that it is initially half opened and then opens fully in 5 s.

1.3 Calculation Results

The liquid level begins to rise, once the flowrate from the supply increases. Following this,
control valve 2 then opens further, in an attempt to maintain the liquid level of the tank at 4.0 m.
The on-off valve then opens when the liquid level is above 5.0 m and closes when it drops
below 4.5 m, as predicted.
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2. Conventional PID Control System, Type 2

2.1 Introduction

The control system in this example uses a differential pressure sensor, a PID controller and a
transfer function. The pressure difference sensor measures the liquid level in the tank while the
PID controller adjusts the valve position in the supply line based on the tank level. This scenario
will look at the response of the control system to a supply pressure change from 0.5 Bar G to
2.0 Bar G in 20s.

2.2 Network Settings

2.2.1 PID Controller

The controller is set to be a Proportional-Integral controller, with the input set point as 0.5 Bar,
which is equivalent to a 5.11m liquid level. The gain is set as 0.5 /Bar because the valve should
reduce flow entering the tank as the tank level increases. The reset time is set to 5s (as
determined by a tuning procedure, as seen in part 1 of this chapter).
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2.2.2 Transfer Function

This models the dynamic characteristics of the valve, with a first order function, with time
constant 2s.
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2.2.3 Supply Pressure Specification

This is set such that the supply pressure changes from 0.5 Bar G to 2.0 Bar G in 20s.

2.3 Calculation Results

The liquid level in the tank starts to rise once the supply pressure increases. The control valve
closes then to offset the pressure increase and keep the tank at the desired level. The control
system has been tuned and optimised, however, the maximum fluctuation of the tank level is
still around 1m, and the system requires a relatively long time (>1000s) to reach a new steady
state.
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3. Cascade PID Control

3.1 Introduction

In the previous example, control valve 1 cannot respond quickly to offset the effect of pressure
change, because the control system only adjusts the valve position based on the tank level.
This is because the tank takes time to fill and as such, the response of the control valve lags
behind the change in supply pressure. This is the reason that the fluctuation in tank level is so
large (~ 1.0m) and it takes such a long time to regain a steady state (> 1000s).

Comparatively, a cascade PID control system can overcome these disadvantages by

introducing multiple control loops, as seen in the network above. The primary control loop
implements finer regulation by tuning the set point of the secondary cascade controller. The
control signal derives from the differential pressure sensor to eliminate the control error of the
tank level. The secondary control loop is designed for crude but quick regulation. The control
signal receives input from the flow sensor in the supply line to stabilise the supply flow when the
supply pressure changes. The secondary cascade controller can then adjust the valve position
to a setting that approximates the ideal position before any significant change in the tank level is
seen. Therefore the cascade PID controllers can reduce oscillation in the above network, but
the system is relatively complex compared with the conventional PID control systems heretofore
mentioned. In general, it is considered that the secondary loop process should have some
influence over the primary loop, and its dynamics should be four times as fast as the primary
loop.
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3.2 Network Settings

3.2.1 Primary Cascade PID Controller

The set point of the primary controller is set at the information node on top of it and should be
calculated based on the desired tank level (5 Bar, 5.11 m). The initial output set point is not
particularly important with respects to calculation results, but will save a considerable amount of
run-in time to reach steady state if set correctly. The gain and reset time should be tuned based
on the dynamic characteristics of the network and here are set as -2000 (l/min)/Bar and 20 s
respectively. The rate time is set to 2 s which is less than 25% of the reset time. The tracking
time is kept to its default value.

3.2.2 Secondary Cascade PID Controller

The primary controller and secondary controller follow the same principles to set the various
values, but the input set point of the secondary controller is based on the output signal of the
primary controller.
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3.2.3 Other Components

The other components (transfer functions and supply pressure specification) are the same as
for example 2.

3.3 Calculation Results

In a direct comparison with the previous example, the system is much more stable using the
cascade PID control system. The maximum liquid level fluctuation is now only 0.04m and the
system only takes around 400s to reach a final steady state.
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