Application of dynamic optimization techniques to reactor control in the manufacture of ethylene

The formulation and solution of optimal control problems that arise in the study of an ethylene producing plant are discussed. Control problems are stated that involve a single pyrolysis reactor and a set of identical reactors operating in parallel. Typical dynamic optimization results are given, along with some thoughts on suboptimal control policies and performance sensitivity to process parameter variations. A new type of control problem is considered that involves constraints on control values that are separated in time by multiples of a constant time shift value.