Model-Based Design and Optimization for Large Bore Engines: Some Industrial Case Studies

Large bore reciprocating internal combustion (IC) engines are used in a wide variety of applications such as power generation, transportation, gas compression, mechanical drives, and mining. Each application has its own unique requirements that influence the engine design and control strategy. The system architecture and control strategy play a key role in meeting the requirements. Traditionally, control design has come in at a later stage of the development process, when the system design is almost frozen. Furthermore, transient performance requirements have not always been considered adequately at early design stages for large engines, thus limiting achievable controller performance. With rapid advances in engine modeling capability, it has now become possible to accurately simulate engine behavior in steady-states and transients. In this paper, we propose an integrated model-based approach to system design and control of reciprocating engines and outline ideas, processes, and real-world case studies for the same. Key benefits of this approach include optimized engine performance in terms of efficiency, transient response, emissions, system and cost optimization, and tools to evaluate various concepts before engine build thus leading to significant reduction in development time and cost.