Application of fuzzy control in chemical distillation processes

The author describes the application of fuzzy control in a noncontinuous chemical distillation process. The fuzzy logic model is outlined. Fuzzy inference has been combined with modules for signal conditioning, task monitoring, a graphical user interface, data acquisition and communication with external controllers for bath temperature and pressure, written as ordinary programs in C++. An overview of the structure of the control system is given. The results show that there is no significant difference in purity of the fractions between distillation with fuzzy control and under manual control, and the time required for separating an unknown mixture is, on the average, with fuzzy control, half that of the expert using manual control. The system runs on inexpensive standard 386 PCs