Modeling and Control of an Indirect Solar Dryer in Forced Convection Mode Using System Identification and Model Predictive Control

Abstract

In nonlinear process, system modeling is vital part to predict and examine the performance of a plant. Here, indirect solar dryer performed in forced convection mode taken as a plant. Several experimental tests were performed by drying tomato slices, both in forced as well as in natural convection mode to study the dynamic characteristics of it. The efficiency of indirect solar dryer was better with forced convection than the natural convection mode. In this investigation System Identification technique is used to predict the model equation for forced convection. Designing a conventional control strategy to ensure efficiency is cumbersome due to the plant’s multivariable nature and nonlinear dynamics. The regular proportional-integral-derivative (PID) controller provides unproductive control action for nonlinear system. A model predictive controller (MPC) is intended for the proposed system ensuring efficiency of the indirect solar dryer. The MPC parameters must be selected appropriately to ensure optimal performance. The Matlab platform was used to get the both MPC algorithms and conventional PID performance.

Keywords:

• solar dryer
• solar energy
• system identification
• dynamic matrix control (DMC)
• generalized predictive control (GPC)

Acknowledgment

There is no acknowledgement involved in this work.

Authors’ Contribution

All authors are contributed equally to this work.

Data Availability Statement

Data sharing not applicable to this article as no datasets were generated or analyzed during the current study.

Disclosure Statement

Conflict of Interest is not applicable in this work.

Ethics Approval and Consent to Participate

No participation of humans takes place in this implementation process

Human and Animal Rights

No violation of Human and Animal Rights is involved.

Additional information

Funding

No funding is involved in this work.

Notes on contributors

M. Mohamed Rafiq

M. Mohamed Rafiq has completed his postgraduate degree in Applied Electronics in the year 2004 in P.S.N.A. College of Engineering and Technology affiliated with Anna University Chennai. Also completed his Undergraduate degree in Instrumentation and Control in the year 2001 in Arulmegu Kalasalingam College of Engineering and Technology affiliated with Madurai Kamaraj University Madurai. He is a full-time research scholar in the Department of Electrical & Electronics Engineering at University college of Engineering, Dindigul, Tamilnadu. His main research areas of interest include Renewable energy systems, Soft computing techniques and intelligent controllers. He is a life member of ISTE and a member of IE (India).

S. Vasanthi

S. Vasanthi has completed her PhD at the Department of Electrical Engineering, Anna University, Chennai, India in the year 2017. She has completed her M.E. degree in Power Systems Engineering from Anna University, Chennai, India in the year 2008. She has received her B.E. degree in Electrical and Electronics Engineering from Madurai Kamaraj University, Madurai, India in the year 1999. She is working as an Assistant Professor (Sr.Gd) in the Department of Electrical & Electronics Engineering at the University college of Engineering. Dindigul, Tamilnadu. Her areas of interest are Power Systems, Power Electronics, Embedded Systems and Renewable Energy Systems. She is a life member of ISTE and a member of IE (India).

S. Nagalakshmi

S. Nagalakshmi has completed Ph.D. in the Faculty of Electrical Engineering at Anna University, Chennai, Tamil Nadu in the year 2013. She completed her postgraduate degree in Power Systems Engineering in the year 2000 and undergraduate in Electrical & Electronics Engineering in the year 1999 at Madurai Kamaraj University, Tamil Nadu. She is working as Lecturer in the Department of Electrical & Electronics Engineering at Government polytechnic college, Chekkanurani, Madurai, Tamilnadu. Her main research areas of interest include Distributed Generation, Smart Grid, Power System Restructuring, Application of FACTS technology and Computational Intelligence techniques to Power System problems. She is a life member of ISTE and a member of IE (India).