Control and Modelling

of Bioprocesses
Slides adapted from Dr. Katie Third
 Lecture Outline
• Purpose of Process Control
• Building blocks of process control
– The bioreactor (modelling)
– Sensors
– Actuators
– Controllers
• Basic control schemes
• Basic Controller Actions
• Case examples
 Process Control
Guidance of the process along a certain
path to produce a product that meets
predefined quality specifications

The Aim
To produce the product of interest at a
minimum of operating costs (ie. Increase
the cost/benefit ratio)
 Process Control
Involves the use of monitored
information to make decisions that
affect the process in a desirable
way

Make
On the decision
right path? Process
Reasons for Process Control

• Easier optimisation of the process

• More constant product quality

• Detection of problems and their

location at an early stage

• Greater quality assurance

 4 Basic Building Blocks of a Controlled
Process

3. Actuators

4. Controllers

2. Sensors

1. The plant (bioreactor)

 (1) Bioreactor
Batch process
• significant changes of process variables over time
• requires more complex control
• requires experience with the process (feed
forward control)

Steady state processes (chemostat)

• constant process conditions
• more simple process control
• feedback control often sufficient
(2) Sensors (Measuring Devices)

• Enable monitoring of the state of

the process
– e.g. temperature, DO
concentration, biomass conc.

• Measurements can be on-line or

off-line.
 On-line Measurements
• Performed automatically
• Results directly available for control
• Monitored continuously

Off-line Measurements
• Require human interface
• Less frequent and usually irregular
• Best suited for checking and calibrating
 Types of On-line Measuring
Equipment

Physical Measurements
– Temperature
– Weight
– Liquid flow rates
– Gaseous flow rates
– Liquid level
– Pressure inside vessel

10.12 kg
 Sensors (continued)

Physico-Chemical Measurements
• pH
• Oxidation-reduction potential
(ORP, Eh)
• Dissolved oxygen
• Conductivity
• Off-gases (CO2, H2, CH4)
• NH4+ (ion-selective electrodes)
 Sensors (continued)

Biochemical Measurements
• Respiration rate (OUR, SOUR)
• Volatile fatty acids (VFA’s)
• Flourescence (e.g. NADH)
• Turbidity
Requirements of a good on-line
sensor
• Heat and pressure resistant 
autoclavable
• Mechanically robust
• Resistant to bacterial adhesion
• Stable over a long period
• Fast dynamics in relation to the
measured variable
• Linear characteristics  easy in-situ
calibration
 (3) Actuators

• Devices which make the changes to

the process, e.g.
• Aeration pumps
• Stirrers
• Feed pumps
• Chemical dosing pumps
• Inoculation ports
• Recycle pumps
 (4) Controllers

Devices that decide on the

appropriate action to be taken to
keep the process running along the
desired path

– Computers
– “Biocontrollers”
 Basic Control Schemes

• Open-Loop Control (Feedforward)

• Closed-Loop Control (Feedback)
– Inferential control

• Combined feedforward and feedback

(model-supported control)
 Feedforward Control
(Open-Loop Control)
• The pattern of the manipulable variable is
predetermined, and directly adjusts the
actuator
• There is no feedback from the process to the
controller
• Requires no measurement of the variable
• Often model-based  requires reliable model
• Large deviations of the process from the
required path are not corrected for
• Sounds very theoretical (examples?)
 Feedforward Control
(Open-Loop Control)
Examples:
• Washing machine
• Breadmaker
• Often in combination with feedback control
aspects (e.g. Waste water treatment, DiCOM
process
 Feedback Control
(Closed-Loop Control)
• Conventional and most common type of control
scheme … “safest”
• Measurements from the process are used to
calculate a suitable control action
• Appropriate when the accuracy requirement is
higher
• Deviations between the variable and its setpoint
are used to change the process
 smaller deviations
 Feedback Control
(Closed-Loop Control)
Examples of feedback loops:
• Temperature control
• pH control
• Oxygen control (e.g. SND)
 Feedback Control
(Closed-Loop Control)

Measured
error Actuator output
Controller Process
 Ideal Feedback Controller

2
DO
mg L-1
1

Time
 Overshooting
If the input signal does not immediately affect
the output  delayed action typical of on/off
controllers
Caused by things such as;
• feed pump too large for required dosage
• delay in sensor response

2
DO
mg L-1
1

Time
Combined Feedforward and Feedback
Control
• Individual feedback loops (pH, oxygen) within an
overall process based on feed forward (DiCOM
by ANAECO)

• To compensate for small model deviations and

unpredicted disturbances

• Feedforward control establishes control

according to process model

• Feedback allows for refinement by correcting

for deviations
Combined Feedforward and Feedback
Control

Feedforward
Process
controller

Feedback
controller

Set point
 Inferential Control
When direct feedback of the variable of
interest is not possible, on-line measurements
can be used to “infer” the state of the
variables (also called State Estimation)

E.g. DO fluctuations  SOUR

DO

dcL/dt  OUR

Time
 State Estimation

• Measurements give indirect information

about critical variables in the process (e.g.
biomass activity, biomass concentration,
substrate concentration etc.)

• Using the on-line measurements to estimate

the current state of the biomass
 state estimators (e.g. SOUR)

• Advantage: enables on-line control of a

variable that cannot be measured on-line

• Modelling plays important role

 State Estimation
• Also the Control action itself can be
recorded and used as an online or offline
process analysis tool.

• For example the total duration over

which the alkali dosing pump has been
switched on, allows to calculate the
amount of alkali used to counteract the
acid produced in the bioprocess 
Biological acid production is recorded
online.
Car steering analogy of PID
controller

Current
signal Setpoint
Basic Controller Decision making
Get
New
Temp.
Temp <
N Setp.? Y

Turn Turn
Heater Heater
Off On

Wait
X
sec
 Basic Controller Actions

• Simplest type – digital

on-off switching, e.g. thermostat
• PID control (very common and
important)
• Fuzzy logic control, Adaptive
Controllers, Self learning systems
(not covered in this unit)
 On-Off controller

• E.g. stop airflow if DO is higher

than setpoint  large oscillations
of process variable
• can use an acceptable band of
values with no control action, e.g.
If pH > 8 then run acid pump. If
pH<6 then run base pump.  no
precise control
 Proportional Controller

• Multiplies the deviation of the variable from the

setpoint with a constant, Kp
• The further away the variable from the setpoint,
the stronger the action

Control input = (Process output – Setpoint).Kp  Controller

signal signal output
 Proportional controller

Setpoint

Car – steering analogy: Check distance from middle of

the lane and correct steering in proportion to
distance from desired position
 Integral controller

Setpoint

Car steering analogy:

Look out through the back window and keep track of
•how long the car has been out of desired position and
•by how much.
How long (sec) * how much (m) is the integral (sec*m).
The longer the car was positioned away from the
setpoint the stronger the signal
Good to correct for long term and only slight deviation
from setpoint.
 Integrating Controllers
• Integration of a curve  area under the curve

• Integrated input signal is multiplied by a factor, Ki

 Integrating Controllers

• A purely integrating controller is slow

and
• Error takes long time to build up
• Action can become too strong 
overshooting
• Int controller is unaware of current
position  Generally used combined with
P control (looking at current position) –
PI control
 Differentiating Controller
• Examines the rate of change of the output of
the process
• The faster the change, the stronger the
action
• The derivative of the output (slope) is
multiplied by a constant, Kd
Car steering analogy of
Differential controller -

Setpoint
 Differentiating Element and PID
Controllers
• Differential control is insensitive to slow
changes
• If the variable is parallel to the setpoint, no
change is made (slope = 0)

• Differential control is very useful when

combined with P and I control  PID control
 Problems with individual PID
control elements

Setpoint

P: Alarm: strong left turn needed

I: No problem: Past Right and Left errors are about
equal
D: No problem: Direction is parallel to setpoint
 Problems with individual PID
control elements

Setpoint

P: No problem: Signal position is on setpoint

D: Alarm: Direction is wrong. Left turn needed
 Conflicting or neutralising advice
by PID control elements

Setpoint

P: Alarm: Position too far left. Turn right

D: Alarm: Direction too far towards right. Turn Left.
position is on setpoint
Time Analogy of PID Controllers

• P: Present time. Only considers current

position. Not aware of current direction
and of error history
• I: Past time. Only compiles an error sum
of the past. Not aware of current
distance of signal from setpoint and of
current direction.
• D: Future time. Only considers current
direction (trend). Now aware of current
distance of signal from setpoint and of
error history.
 Questions – True of False?

• Differentiating elements are capable of

detecting small changes providing they occur
rapidly - TRUE

• Integrating elements always respond rapidly

to changes in output signals - FALSE

• A long delay time in a feedback control

system may lead to considerable overshoot
- TRUE
 Questions – True of False?
• Time between changes in measured values and
control action should always be as short as
possible
- FALSE
• A proportional controller once set up to maintain
an output of a process at a setpoint will not
require any re-adjustment to ensure the output
remains constant - Usually FALSE

• A state estimator allows us to operate on-line

control of a variable for which no on-line
measurements are available
- TRUE
Content beyond this point is not
examinable
 Proportional Integral Derivative
(PID) Controllers
• Conventional and classical approach of control
engineering

 1
t
d 
m(t )  K c      .dt   D 

  1 0 dt 
• Parameters Kc, I and D can be determined
from simple experiments
 Determining the PID values

DO
mg L-1
A
B
K=A/B
=gain
Time
a T
Actuating signal
Process response
 Determining the PID values
• Ziegler/Nicols Procedure

PID Control
KC = (1.2/K) T/a (proportional)
I = 2.0 a (differential)
D = 0.5 a (integral)

 1
t
d
m(t )  K c      .dt   D 

  1 0 dt 
 Adaptive Controllers (not
examinable)
• The state of the biomass changes continuously
during the course of a non-steady state
bioprocess (the car may turn into a boat)
• Required PID values of controller change
• Adaptive controllers continuously adjust control
parameters during the running process
• Requires finding how to “tune” the control values
 Experimentation and finding linear relationships
between state of biomass and PID values
 Adaptive Controllers

• Result in significant improvements to the

control
• Tuning of control parameters can be easy when
simple “black-box” assumptions can be made
• When simple assumptions are not adequate,
process dynamics must be considered in a
process model
Model-supported control (or combined
feedback and feedforward control
 Fuzzy Logic Control

• Useful when concrete knowledge cannot be

transformed into mathematical equations
• Based on “fuzzy logic”
 e.g. “If … happens, take … action”
• Although very simplified, whole
bioprocesses can run effectively on fuzzy
logic rules
 Learning Outcomes
You should be able to;
– Explain the range of control schemes that exist for
controlling a bioprocess
– Understand how the different types of controllers
work
– Identify which variables will need controlling in a
bioprocess
– Identify useful features of an on-line measuring
device
– Recognize applications of process control in the
food industry