Application of the MUSMAR adaptive predictive controller to the control of super heated steam temperature in a commercial boiler

This paper describes the application of the MUSMAR predictive adaptive controller to the control of super heated steam temperature in a commercial boiler. The boiler considered produces 150t/h of steam which is used both for electric energy production in a turbine, and industrial use. The combination of predictive and adaptive techniques allows a continuous adjustment of the controller tuning for tracking plant dynamics variations. The paper describes experiments actually performed on the plant with adaptive predictive control. Although the prime concern is with the regulation problem, experimental results concerning the tracking of time varying references are also presented.