Model Reference Adaptive Control of a Quadruple Tank Process with Actuator Faults

PID controllers are still the most popular controllers used in process industry. Most of plants in industry contain multiple PID loops where interaction between control channels is highly possible. System instability and catastrophic consequences are inevitable for safety critical plants in the case of actuator and sensor faults/failures. In such case, a fault tolerant control (FTC) system may be a solution. Adaptive control method includes a class of methods which is appropriate for active FTC since they have the ability of adaptation to variations in the system parameters. In this study we utilize a prototype that mimics complex, industrial processes. Our aim is to develop a model reference adaptive control system for chosen plant. A model that covers all possible actuator faults is proposed and integrated to the plant simulation. Results are compared with PI-controlled system.