A constrained receding horizon control for industrial boiler systems

In this paper, the control problem of nonlinear boiler systems with actuator constraints is considered. Main difficulties in controlling boiler systems are largely due to the constraints imposed on the actuating valves and nonlinear dynamics. In order to overcome these difficulties, combined approaches are taken. First, the receding horizon control based on semi-definite programming is used to handle the actuator constraints and to enhance the closed-loop stability. Second, gain-scheduling strategy is combined with the RHC to consider the nonlinear dynamics efficiently, hence making the satisfactory global control available. Finally, the performances of the proposed controller are illustrated via the simulations. Copyright (C) 2000 IFAC.