1 EVALUATING INTELLIGENT FLUID AUTOMATION SYSTEMS USING A FLUID NETWORK SIMULATION ENVIRONMENT Ron Esmao - Sr. Applications Engineer, Flowmaster USA
Dec 26, 2015
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EVALUATING INTELLIGENT FLUID AUTOMATION SYSTEMS USING A
FLUID NETWORK SIMULATION ENVIRONMENT
Ron Esmao - Sr. Applications Engineer, Flowmaster USA
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Importance of Fluid System AutomationImportance of Fluid System Automation
USS Stark – May 1987– Struck by 2 Iraqi missiles– 35 men killed / mainly due to fire– Fire protection system failed– Defense systems shut down /
Chilled water system failed
Current Damage Control Scenarios– Send crew to locate and isolate pipe
damage– Determine alternate flow path
through redundant piping– Reroute fluid by opening or closing
appropriate valves
Disadvantages– Time consuming– Puts crew in harms way– Difficult to determine alternate flow
paths
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Intelligent Fluid Automation SystemsIntelligent Fluid Automation Systems
Intelligent Fluid Automation Systems can perform automated damage control even in the event the control system is damaged along with the fluid system.
The challenge in the development of these systems is testing
– Past efforts centered on full and reduced scale physical testing
– Involved simulating a combat damage event and observing the system response
Disadvantages– The cost to fully equip, maintain
and operate the physical system
– The cost of acquiring and recording the trajectories of the fluid system states during the test event
– Only a limited number of test scenarios can be practically orchestrated.
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HardwareInterfaceModule
Testing Fluid Automation SystemsTesting Fluid Automation Systems
Testing smart valve based fluid automation systems in the laboratory – without the need for the physical piping system
This involves connecting the physical automation system to a computer simulation of the fluid system.
Automation System
Components
FluidNetwork
Simulation
I/O Signals
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Selecting a Simulation ToolSelecting a Simulation Tool
Requirements– Must be able to compute the states of the fluid network (pressures,
flows, etc.) in real-time. » The real-time requirement is satisfied if the time to compute the
next system state is less than the simulated time increment.» If system state at time t is x(t) → x(t+Δt) must be computed in
less than Δt – The simulation tool must compute the states at each simulation time
step using mathematical models that describe the transient behavior of the system. (Ex. Waterhamer effects due to rapid system change such as a pump tripping or a rapid opening or closing of a fluid service)
– Must be able to interact or interoperate with other software applications while the simulation is running.
Simulation Tool Selected – FLOWMASTER2®
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Proof of ConceptProof of Concept
M M
A B AB
Smart valve Zone Rupture Location
Smart valves
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Proof of ConceptProof of Concept
Smart Valve Node 1
Fluid NetworkSimulation
AutomationSystem HMIApplication
NetworkInterface
Card
HardwareInterface
(DAQ Board)
HardwareInterface
Application
Simulation Manager
Smart ValveNode 2
Test & Simulation Workstation
Distributed Control Network
Architecture of the smart valve
demonstration system
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Proof of ConceptProof of Concept
Monitor sensor values sent to smart
valve node
Specify actuator faults and
sensor noise
Initiate leak or rupture
Monitor fluid network states
Demonstration systems graphical interface
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Proof of ConceptProof of Concept
Fluid component
libraries
COM enabled gauges and controllers
Specify component properties
Add components to construct fluid
network
FLOWMASTER2® model of the
demonstration fluid network
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Proof of ConceptProof of Concept
Monitor status information via
the control network
Command smart valve via the control network
Monitor pressure and estimated flow
information via the control network
Demonstration systems graphical interface
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Proof of ConceptProof of Concept
Initial tests
– Set a simulation time step equal to 100 milliseconds
– Adjusted the flow through the simulation GUI
– Verified the hardware interface generated signals proportional to the state variables (i.e., pressure values) computed by FLOWMASTER2®
– Initiated a rupture
– Observed that the smart valve nodes detected the rupture and commanded the simulated valves to isolate the damaged piping zone
– Added white noise to the pressure signal and observed how the signal to noise ratio affected the accuracy of the flow estimates and flow balance at the nodes
The initial tests were successful – demonstrated the simulation could run in real-time
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Validating the Fluid Network Simulation ToolValidating the Fluid Network Simulation Tool
This is an ongoing effort
Involves modeling existing fluid system test facilities using FLOWMASTER2
and comparing simulation results to data obtained from operation of these fluid
systems– Chilled Water, Reduced Scale Advanced Demonstrator (CW-RSAD)
» Small scale replica of DDG 51 class chilled water system operated by NSWC
» This system is used to investigate the use of component-level intelligent
distributed control system technology
– The modified firemain onboard the ex-USS Shadwell
Validation is proving difficult due to the limited amount of data available on both
of these systems
However, preliminary results indicate that the simulated data sufficiently
matches operational data
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The Next StepThe Next Step
Database
Scheduler
SimulationInterface
DamageModels
PlantModels
HardwareInterface
Actual Control System
Actual Control System
I/O Signals
e.g., Flowmaster2 fluid system modelsSoftware Component
Hardware Component
Laboratory Test and Development Platform Architecture
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ConclusionsConclusions
Upon completion, this laboratory platform will allow automation system designers to test the performance of any intelligent fluid automation system under normal conditions and simulated damage scenarios.
We envision this laboratory environment will provide a necessary capability to Navy and industry design teams currently developing automated damage control systems for fluid systems onboard in-service and future surface combatants.
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Questions?