PCA based Control of Yeast Fermentation Bioreactor

Seshu Kumar Damarla1 and Madhusree Kundu2*

1

Department of Chemical Engineering, National Institute of Technology Rourkela, India e-mail: seshu.chemical@gmail.com

2*

Department of Chemical Engineering, National Institute of Technology Rourkela, India e-mail: mkundu@nitrkl.ac.in, Ph No: 91-0661-24622634, Fax No: 91-0661-2462999

Abstract
This paper proposes a PCA (Principal component analysis) based control strategy that maintains the entire operation in subspace. The desired process region has utilized in controller design and acted as reference to current measurements of the process. The proposed controller was implemented on yeast fermentation bioreactor to achieve steady state ethanol concentration in the presence of ever changing external influences. The results have proven the effectiveness of proposed controller in rejecting the disturbances.

Keywords: PCA, bioreactor, subspace error, PID-control

Introduction
Nonlinear and dynamic processes impose challenging problems on control system design. Ethanol production in yeast fermentation bioreactor is such a process that suffers very much from multivariable interactions, changeable parameters, effect of disturbances, etc. Achieving optimum conditions such as pH, temperature, agitation speed and dissolved oxygen concentration etc in bioreactor is complex task. Reddy & Chidambaram and Jyothi & Chidambaram have designed nonlinear PI and nonlinear feed forward controller from Hammerstein model for handling input multiplicities in bioreactor [1, 2]. Radhakrishnan et al. proposed nonlinear self tuning controller, which updates its parameters based on nonlinear auto regressive moving average with exogenous inputs (NARMX) model derived from input output data collected at each sampling instant, for optimum productivity [3]. The linear controller which is designed at one operating condition may not perform well when process parameters change frequently. The generalized predictive controller and fuzzy logic based controllers have performed well in case of unstable operating conditions [4, 5] . Many advanced control laws were tested and executed on nonlinear fermentation process and demonstrated a good performance in comparison to conventional controllers [6]. Artificial Neural Network (ANN) has also gotten significant importance in modeling and control of linear and nonlinear processes. Employing advance model based controller such as Model Predictive, ANN based Model Predictive Controller, etc on bioprocess is promising approach [7-9]. In the literature cited above, it is noticeable that the process knowledge is prerequisite in the design of conventional and advanced controller. Not only the process model but also the process data is equally important for monitoring and control. The modernized plants and data acquisition system are assisting the collection of measurements of large number of process variables for every few minutes (or less). The data, usually presents in large dimensions, contains valuable information about the normal and anomalous behavior of the process. Principal Component Analysis (PCA), a well-known multivariate statistical process control (MVSPC) data driven method, has substantial applications in data compression, feature extraction and outlier detection [10, 11]. PCA based MVSPC techniques; Hotelling's T2 and Squared Prediction Error (SPE) provide the information regarding the status of the current process which is useful for taking necessary action [12]. Since PCA has the advantage of comparing the current process measurements with the existed model (nominal condition), it was first applied to continuous process for monitoring 1

purpose and later its application was extended to the batch processes [13, 14]. MVSPC methods have undergone many amendments and advances for real time and online monitoring. Few attempts were made towards the application of MVSPC methods in control aspects. Piovoso et al. (1992a, 1994b) formulated a controller that operates the process in subspace by computing manipulated actions using the generated subspace error, the difference between the score set-points and current score data [15, 16]. The same concept in conjunction with Model Predictive Controller was applied to industrial processes; Distillation column, Tennessee Eastman and Maize drying [17, 18]. This approach is very useful when some of quality variables are not available for measuring. Later Palma et al. (2010, 2011) incorporated a gain in the same controller for effective setpoint tracking [19, 20]. Shah et al. proposed similar kind of control structure which uses least squares technique to calculate control moves that minimize the sum of squares of errors between score set-points, obtained from data collected under nominal operating condition, and current scores of industrial tubular reactor process [21]. A canonical variate analysis algorithm was employed by Akamatsu et al. to identify a state space model in subspace from the data collected in alpha-olefins production plant for the design of feedback and feed forward controllers to fulfill the control objectives [22]. To implementing PCA based controller on any process, SPE of current process must be below its threshold. This indicates that current process region is similar to the nominal operating region at which controller gets designed. PCA has facilitated the analysis of finding significant input among set of inputs and output of real time data of gas mixing chamber in Copper Smelter Plant that led to determination of SISO model, describes the actual MISO system [23]. It is evident that the process model or data is essential for design of advanced and statistical model based controllers. If neither the process model nor the data is available, it looks impossible to design a controller. This paper presents a simple PCA based control approach. Process dynamics is reflected in PCA's loading vectors. It requires only the steady state values of the process variables. The main objective of bioreactor considered in this work is to hold ethanol concentration regardless of undesirable effects. This task is accomplished with considerable degree of success by employing the proposed PCA based control scheme. The remaining part of the paper is arranged in the following way. Section 2 provides the theoretical postulations of PCA. The controller formulation is presented in section 3. Section 4 presents the process description and study of its dynamic behavior. The implementation of the proposed controller and its performance evaluation is provided in section 5. Section 6 concludes the article.

Principal Component Analysis

The data matrix, X nm , contains n measurements of m process variables of continuous process. Before PCA decomposition, data must be auto scaled so as to have all variables in one range. The correlation exists among the variables is captured by covariance matrix, R, whose element in (i,j) th position gives correlation between the i th and jth variable of data matrix. For the projected dimension of the process, correlation matrix should be factored, according to equation (2), using singular value decomposition. The eigen vectors, V = { v1 , v 2 ,...v n } , determine the important directions along which maximum variability of the data is present. The eigen value matrix, is having singular values along its diagonal. The eigenvectors corresponding to a largest eigenvalues (significant variables), form the loading matrix, shown in equation (3), which holds information about variables. In PCA decomposition, the original process variables evolve as projected variables yielding scores matrix, T na as shown in equation (4).

R=

X' X n 1

(1) (2) 2

R = VV '

P =V ( 1 : a )

(3)

T = XP
(4)

Controller Formulation
Considering the benefit of PCA i.e. examine the current process status by comparing the new measurements with existed model, and based on PCA based control concept presented in Pivoso et al., a simple control approach is proposed here. Let the data matrix, X s , be made up of steady state values of process variables of interest. Using PCA theory presented in section 2, necessary information about process variables (desired state) is extracted by means of loading matrix, P . This is being the reference model (process operation region) upon which new measurement vector (on-line data) available at each time instant is projected to verify whether the process current state is analogous to the desired state. The online measurement is projected onto lower dimensions defined by PCA's loadings. The variation between the desired process region and current process region is subspace error given by equation (7). Using subspace error, a feedback controller is developed that results in proportional controller, shown in equation (8), to find control moves to minimize the magnitude of difference between the current process operation and required operation. The block diagram of control system is depicted in figure (1).

PCA Controller

Process

y(k)

Fig. 1

[ P ,Tdes ] = PCA( X s )
(5)

t new = x new P
(6)
e subsp = Tdes t new

(7)

u( t ) = u s + e subsp K C

(8)

Yeast Fermentation Bioreactor

Figure 2 illustrates the ethanol production by fermenting yeasts in continuous stirred bioreactor. Initially biomass solution, suspension of yeast, is fed to the reactor. Since the process is carried out in the presence of oxygen, a baker's yeast (saccharomyces cerevisiae) is used. A substrate feed, solution of glucose, which feeds the microorganism, is continuously fed to the bioreactor. Inorganic salts are added together with biomass for the formation of necessary coenzymes. pH in liquid phase is maintained at 6. Yeast hydrolyses glucose into ethanol and 3

carbon dioxide. The contents of reactor are biomass, substrate and product. A cooling jacket surrounds the reactor to minimize the heat liberated from exothermic reaction taken place in the reactor. Table 1 presents the initial values of the variables of the system. The values of parameters, used in this model, and required information regarding the effect of temperature and inorganic salts on equilibrium concentration of oxygen in liquid phase and temperature dependent kinetic parameters can be found in Zoltan (2007).

Fi, cso, Tin

Fago
Cs, CX, CP, Tr

Fagi

Fe, Cs, CX, CP, Tr Fig. 2 The nonlinear dynamic model comprises of differential equations from (8) to (14) represent the actual process. There are five input variables; substrate feed concentration, feed flow rate, feed temperature, coolant flow rate and coolant input temperature, and six states; concentration of biomass, substrate, product (ethanol) and dissolved oxygen, reactor temperature and cooling jacket temperature. Table 2 provides the list of states together with their steady state values. It is desired to maintain ethanol concentration at steady state by controlling the reactor temperature as the concentration is not directly measurable. Among five inputs the flow rate of cooling medium can serve as manipulated and substrate feed temperature & substrate feed concentration can be considered as disturbances and the rest are maintained at their respective steady states. The nonlinear model was simulated under two different conditions for studying the dynamic behavior of bioreactor. A unit step change is made in substrate feed temperature that causes the significant increase in ethanol concentration, C P , and reactor temperature, Tr , as shown by figs 3(a) & 3(b). The change in substrate feed concentration does not have a considerable impact on product concentration, C P , and reactor temperature, Tr , depicted in figs 4(a) & 4(b), compared to substrate feed temperature. Therefore substrate feed temperature is considered as major disturbance input.

dV = Fi Fe dt

(8)

CS dC X = X CX K +C dt S S
(9)

K PCP Fe CX e V

 CS dC P = PC X dt K S1 + C S
(10)

K P1CP Fe e CP V K PCP CS 1 e C P X K +C RSP S S1 K P1CP Fi F e + C S ,in e C S V V

CS dC S 1 = X CX K +C dt RSX S S
(11)

dC O2 dt

* = ( K 1a ) C O CO2 rO2 2

Fe CO2 V

(12)

rO2 H r K T AT ( Tr Tag ) F F dTr = i ( Tin + 273 ) e ( Tr + 273 ) + + dt V V 32 r C heat ,r V r C heat ,r

(13)

dTag dt

Fag Vj

( Tin ,ag Tag ) +

K T AT ( Tr Tag ) V j ag C heat ,ag

(14)

Table 1 Initial data of the system (Zoltan (2007))

Substrate feed inlet flow rate, FI Substrate feed outlet flow rate, Fe Substrate feed input temperature, Tin Substrate feed concentration, C S ,in Coolant input temperature, Tin ,ag Coolant inlet flow rate, Fag 51 Lh 1 51 Lh 1 25 o C
1 60 gL

15 o C 18 Lh 1

Table 2

Steady state values of process variables

1 0.8529 gL 1 12.1722 gL 1 33.42 gL

Biomass concentration, C X Product concentration, C P Substrate concentration, C S

Dissolved oxygen concentration, C O2 Reactor temperature, Tr Coolant jacket temperature, Tag

1 4.5939 gL

28.7188 o C 26.3472 o C

1 3 1 2 .8

C p

(a ) 1 2 .6 1 2 .4 1 2 .2 1 2 0 1 0 2 0 3 0 4 0 5 0 6 0 7 0 8 0 9 0 1 0 0

3 0 .5 3 0

T r

(b ) 2 9 .5 2 9 2 8 .5 0

1 0

2 0

3 0

4 0

5 0

6 0

7 0

8 0

9 0

1 0 0

tim e

Fig. 3

1 2 .1 8 1 2 .1 7 8

C p

1 2 .1 7 6 1 2 .1 7 4 1 2 .1 7 2 1 2 .1 7 0 1 0 2 0 3 0 4 0 5 0 6 0 7 0 8 0 9 0

(a )

1 0 0

2 8 .7 1 8 8 (b ) 2 8 .7 1 8 8

T r

2 8 .7 1 8 8 2 8 .7 1 8 8 2 8 .7 1 8 8 0

1 0

2 0

3 0

4 0

5 0

6 0

7 0

8 0

9 0

1 0 0

tim e

Fig. 4

Application of the proposed controller on bioreactor

The proposed PCA based control strategy is applied on fermentation bioreactor for controlling process variables in subspace. The optimum value of tuning parameter, K C, was determined using genetic algorithm. The reliability and applicability of controller primarily depend on the capability of rejecting the disturbances. A positive step change was introduced in substrate feed temperature (25 to 26 o C ), which in practice may happen due to ambient temperature fluctuation. Fig 5 shows the relative comparison between the responses of PCA based control (dashed line) and PID (solid line) controllers towards disturbance rejection. Both the controllers maintain reactor temperature, Tr , (fig 5(c)) & ethanol concentration, C P , (fig 5(d)) at their respective steady state values but the remaining process variables have experienced small changes with respect to their steady state values. The proposed PCA based control scheme exhibited satisfactory performance as PID controller.

0.855 (a) 0.8545

12.18 (d) 12.175 (a) 12.17 4.6 (b) 4.595 Co2 4.59 (e) 4.585 Cp

Cx
0.854 0.8535

50

100

150

200

250

300

50

100

150

200

250

300

33.43 33.425

Cs

33.42 33.415 0 28.76 (c) 28.74 28.72 28.7 50 100 150 200 250 300

50

100

150

200

250

300

27.5 (f) 27

Tag
0 50 100 150 time 200 250 300

Tr

26.5 26

50

100

150 time

200

250

300

Fig. 5

Conclusion
A PCA model was determined using the process variables in the desired region of yeast fermentation operation. Subspace error involving the new measurement vector at each instant were determined to check whether the current process region was similar to the desired region. If there was a variation, accordingly control moves were computed to force the current process region nearer to desired region. Bioreactor was simulated to acquire consistent production even in the presence of disturbances using the proposed controller. Though the reference model was linear and static, the proposed controller reasonably dealt with nonlinearities of bioreactor. Due to simplicity in 7

structure and ease of implementation, the proposed controller might be applicable to higher order and non-minimum phase systems.

References
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Figure Captions Fig. 1: PCA based control system Fig. 2: Bioreactor Fig. 3 Open loop response of bioreactor to unit step change in substrate feed temperature. Fig. 4 Open loop response of bioreactor to unit step change in substrate concentration Fig. 5 Disturbance rejection performance of PCA based and PID controllers.

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