Implementing Problem-Based Learning in Process Control Laboratory for Final Year Electrical Engineering undergraduates: Flow control plant

This paper presents the implementation of Problem-Based Learning (PBL) method in the Process Control Laboratory for the flow control plant. This laboratory is designed for final year system engineering undergraduates. The flow control plant can be operated either using Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA) or Distributed Control System (DCS). DCS was used as a group work task for this laboratory for Proportional and Integral (PI) tuning method experiments. Facts, Ideas, Learning Issues and Actions (FILA) table has been used to extract the problems given in the problem statement lab sheets. A performance comparison of PID controller tuning methods for controlling the flow control trainer was recorded. The selection of controller parameter´s value determines the stability of the process. The open-loop tests were performed on a plant and the information extracted from the methods was used for the tuning rules. The optimum values of P and I parameters were set based various tuning rules. The performance of these tuning rules was compared after closed-loop set point change operation. The fine tuning technique was used as an open ended solution in order to improve the result where the values of PI were tuned.