Application of Clarke-Gawthrop type controllers for the bottom temperature of a glass furnace (Q1820111)

The control of the bottom temperature of glass furnaces is an important problem and advanced control methods are certainly justified from an economical point of view. Both disturbance rejection and compensation of load changes must be possible. In this paper, a classical Clarke-Gawthrop type controller is compared to a new structure where a feedforward compensation of the load is added. The adaptive implementation of this controller is also studied. Practical problems such as nonzero steady- state error and control windup in presence of constraints on the manipulated variable are also solved. Real-time operation records show that this control structure is very satisfying.