Abstract
CFD (Computational Fluid Dynamics) has been used in engineering, among other things, to permit reduction of costs and optimization compared to a traditional design. Its application in modern industry offers a relatively cheap and efficient problem solving tool, enabling the achievement of consolidated results. However, embedded process control techniques in CFD sources are still scarce. Hence, the implementation of advanced control techniques in CFD OpenFOAM tool, open source, is a technological innovation, since it allows the use of controllers directly in CFD simulation. A bidimensional, monophasic heat exchange problem was used to test the implementation of a simplified model predictive control (MPC) algorithm and its comparison with parallel and serial PID control algorithms. The IMC (Internal Model Control) approach was used for tuning the PID controllers in order to control the output temperature by manipulating the input velocity. The performance of the controllers was evaluated and compared by changing set point and imposing disturbances on the input temperature. The criteria to evaluate the performance of the controllers were ISE (integral of the squared error), rise time (Trise), settling time (Te) and overshoot (Os). The results show a successful embedded implementation of the simplified MPC control structures in the CFD OpenFOAM tool.
