Integrated production scheduling and model predictive control of continuous processes

The integration of production management and process control decisions is critical for improving economic performance of the chemical supply chain. A novel framework for integrating production scheduling and model predictive control (MPC) for continuous processes is proposed. Our framework is predicated on using a low-dimensional time scale-bridging model (SBM) that captures the closed-loop process dynamics over the longer time scales that are relevant to scheduling calculations. The SBM is used as a constraint in a mixed-integer dynamic formulation of the scheduling problem. To synchronize the scheduling and MPC calculations, a novel scheduling-oriented MPC concept is proposed, whereby the SBM is incorporated in the expression of the controller as a (soft) dynamic constraint and allows for obtaining an explicit description of the closed-loop process dynamics. Our framework scales favorably with system size and provides desirable closed-loop stability and performance properties for the resulting integrated scheduling and control problem. (c) 2015 American Institute of Chemical Engineers