THE COPPERBELT UNIVERSITY

School of mines and minerals sciences

CE 560 / MT 580
Process control

Lecture 20
Dynamic behaviour of second-order systems

C. Botha (Mr.)
Contacts: Chemical Engineering Department
Email: [email protected]
Alt. Email: [email protected]

May, 2021
 Second-order systems

o A system whose output 𝑦(𝑡) is described by the solution of a second-order differential

equation is known as a second-order system.
o Therefore, for a linear (or linearised second-order system), then

d 2 y (t ) dy (t )
a2 2
 a1  a0 y (t )  bf (t )...................................18.1
dt dt

o Where 𝑓(𝑡) and 𝑦(𝑡) are the input (forcing function) and output variables of the process.
o If 𝑎0 ≠ 0 then 18.1 can be rearranged as follows:
a2 d 2 y (t ) a1 dy (t ) b
2
  y (t )  f (t )...................................18.2
a0 dt a0 dt a0
 Second-order systems

o Then the following parameters characterising a second-order system can be defined;

a2 a1 b
  , 2 
2
and K p  ....................................18.3
a0 a0 a0
o Equation 18.2 can be expressed in a standard form for a second-order system.
d 2 y (t ) dy (t )
 2
2
 2  y (t )  K p f (t )...................................18.4
dt dt
o Where
  natural period of oscillation of the system
  damping factor
K p  steady state or static gain or simply gain of the system
o 𝐾𝑝 has the same physical meaning as in first-order systems while the meaning 𝜏 and 𝜁
will be explained later.
 Second-order systems

o Typically, equation 18.4 is in deviation variable form, then initial conditions are zero.
o Laplace transform yields the standard form of the transfer function for a second-order system.
y( s ) Kp
G ( s)   2 .......................................18.5
f ( s )  s  2 s  1
o Systems with second-order dynamics can arise from several physical situations.
1) Multicapacity processes: processes consisting of two or more first-order systems in series
through which material or energy must flow. Can be interacting or non-interacting.
2) Inherently second-order system: Fluid or mechanical components of a process that possesses
inertia and are subjected to acceleration. Such systems rarely occur in process industry.
3) Processes with controllers: In this case, the installed controller introduces additional dynamics
which when coupled with the systems dynamics yields second-order dynamics.
 Dynamic response of second-order systems

o Basic dynamic features of a second-order system can be analysed by appliying a unit step
input to a second-order system.
o For a unit step change in the input 𝑓(𝑡), equation 18.5 yields
Kp
y( s )  .......................................18.6
s ( s  2 s  1)
2

o The roots of the characteristic polynomial are the two poles of the second-order system.
That is,
 2 s  2 s  1  0...........................................18.7
o The roots are
   2  1    2  1
p1  and p1  ......................18.8
 
o Therefore, equation 18.6 becomes
Kp  2
y( s )  .......................................18.9
s ( s  p1 )( s  p2 )
 Dynamic response of second-order systems

o The response y(𝑡), depends upon the nature of the roots or poles which in turn depend on
the damping factor ζ.
o Three cases can therefore be distinguished.
o Case A: ζ > 1, two distinct roots and response is overdamped.
o Case B: ζ = 1, two equal (repeated or multiple) roots and response is critically damped.
o Case C: ζ < 1, two complex conjugate roots and response is underdamped.
Case A: Overdamped response, when ζ > 1
Inversion by partial fractions of eq. 18.9 yields
  
t
 2
 1   2
 1 
y(t )  K p 1  e  cosh

t sinh t   ............18.10
    1
2  
 
 Dynamic response of second-order systems

o The response y(𝑡), is plotted in the figure

below Critically
damped ( =1)
o The response is known as overdamped and
resembles that of a first-order response but is 1.0

sluggish and has an initial delay. 2

y(t ) 1

o The response also becomes more sluggish as Kp

the damping factor 𝜁 increases i.e. the system Overdamped ( 2 > 1 >1)

becomes heavily damped. t

o As with a first-order system, the response Fig.18.0 Dimensionless response of a second-
order system to a step change input.
approaches the expected value as 𝑡 → ∞.
o For a normalised response as shown in figure
18.0, the expected value reached is 1.
 Dynamic response of second-order systems

o The steady state gain can be found as in the case of first-order systems. That is,

(steady state output)

Kp  ...................................(18.11)
(steady state intput)

o Overdamped response results from first-order systems in series (Multicapacity processes).

Case B: Critically damped response, when ζ = 1
o In this case, inversion of eq. 18.9 yields
  1  t 
y(t )  K p 1  1   e  ..........................................18.12
   
o The response of a critically damped system is also shown in figure 18.0 from which it can
be seen that the response is less sluggish (faster) and reaches its ultimate value in a
shorter time.
 Dynamic response of second-order systems

Case C: Underdamped response, when ζ < 1

o In this case, inversion of eq. 18.9 yields

  
t
1   2
 1   2 
y(t )  K p 1  e   cos t sin t   ............18.13
   1 2  
 
o Or using trigonometric identity
 a1 
a3 sin(b   )  a1 cos b  a2 sin b and   tan   ..............18.14
1

 a2 
o Eq. 18.13 can be written in the form
t
 
    1 2 

   2

y(t )  K p 1  t    and   tan 
e 1 
sin  1
 ..............18.15
 1 2     
 
 
  
 Dynamic response of second-order systems

o And the radian and natural frequencies (without any damping, i.e. ζ = 0) are thus
given by
1 2 1
 and n  .......................................................18.16
 
o The response has been plotted in the figure below for various values of the damping
factor.
o From figure 18.1, it can be
seen that the underdamped
response is initially faster
than overdamped (described
as sluggish).

Fig.18.1 Dimensionless response of a second-order system to a step change input.

 Dynamic response of second-order systems

o Although an underdamped response is faster and reaches its ultimate value quickly, it
does not stay there but begins to oscillate with progressively decreasing amplitude.
o Oscillatory behaviour makes underdamped response distinctive from other
responses.
o Oscillations in underdamped response becomes more pronounced as the damping
factor becomes smaller.
o Thus, damping factor provides a measure of the amount of damping in a system, that
is, the degree of oscillation in a system’s response.
o Almost all underdamped responses in industrial processes are caused by the
interaction of installed controllers with the process units.
 Characteristics of an underdamped response

o Using figure 18.2 below as a reference, the following terms describing an underdamped
response can be defined.
o Equations given here can be derived from the equation describing underdamped
behaviour
y(t )
Kp
A C
1.0
5%
B T

tr t p ts t
Fig.18.2 Characteristic features of an underdamped response.
 Characteristics of an underdamped response

1) Rise time (𝑡𝑟): Time taken for the response to reach its ultimate (expected) value for
the first time.       1   2 
tr  where   tan 1   ...............................18.17
1 2   
 
2) Time to first peak (𝑡𝑝): Time required for the response to reach its first maximum value.

tp  .......................................................18.18
1 2

3) Settling or response time (𝑡𝑠): Time required for the response to come within 5% (2% in
other literature) of its ultimate value. Assuming response settles within 5%, then

3
ts  .......................................................18.19

 Characteristics of an underdamped response

4) Overshoot (OS): The ratio of the maximum amount by which the response exceeds the
expected value (A) to the expected value of the response (B).
A   
Overshoot (OS)   exp    ...............................18.20
B  1 2 
 

5) Decay ratio (𝐷𝑅): Is the ratio of the maximum amount by which the response exceed
the expected value to the value of the same amount for the next peak.

C  2 
Decay Ratio (DR)   exp    ...............................18.21
A  1 2
 

6) Period of oscillation (T): Is the time between two successive peaks.

2
T ...................................................18.22
1 2
 Second-order systems

Exercise 1
Starting with the response for an underdamped system given below, derive expressions for the
following response characteristics:
  
t
1   2
 1   2 
y(t )  K p 1  e   cos t sin t 
   1 2  
 

a) The time to first peak 𝑡𝑝.

b) The fraction overshoot
c) The decay ratio.
d) The settling time 𝑡𝑝.
 Multicapacity processes as second-order systems

o Flow of material or energy through a single tank (capacity) produces a system with first-order
dynamics.
o However, flow of material or energy through first-order system consisting of two tanks
(capacities), usually in series, results in second-order dynamics.
o Possible configurations for series arrangement of two tanks are shown in figure 18.3.
o In Fig. 18.3 (a), tank 1 feeds tank 2 and hence it affects its dynamic behaviour where as in (b)
tank 1 affects the dynamic behavior of tank 2 and in turn tank 2 also affects tank 1.
o Hence, for non-interacting systems, changes in downstream units have no effect on upstream
units.
o By contrast, for interacting systems, changes in downstream units affect upstream units and vice
versa.
 Multicapacity processes as second-order systems
F1
F1

h1
A1 R1
F2
Tank 1 h1 h2
A1 R1 A2 R2 F3
F2
h2 Tank 1 Tank 2
(a) A2 R2
F3
Tank 2
(b)

Fig.18.3 Series arrangement of first-order systems. (a) non-interacting and (b) interacting
 Multicapacity processes as second-order systems

o Systems with multiple capacities do not necessary have to be separate units.

o It is possible that a single unit can possess multiple capacities, e.g. a stirred tank heater
possesses both the capacity to store mass and energy.

Non-interacting first-order system in series

o For a system consisting of two non-interacting processes, it is described by a set of differential
equation, one equation for each process.
o The equations are of the form:
dy dy
(a)  p1 1  y1  K p1 f1 (t ) and (b)  p2 2  y2  K p2 f 2 (t ).............18.23
dt dt
o The transfer functions can be developed separately for the two systems and then eliminate 𝑦1 to
obtain the transfer function 𝑦2(𝑠)Τ𝑓1(𝑠).
 Non-interacting first-order system in series

o Therefore,
y1 ( s ) K p1 y2 ( s ) K p2
(a) G1 ( s)   and (b) G1 ( s)   .............18.24
f1 ( s )  p1 s  1 y1 ( s )  p1 s  1
o The overall transfer function between the input 𝑓1 (𝑠) and the output from the second tank
𝑦2 (𝑠) is then
y2 ( s ) y1 ( s ) y2 ( s ) K p1 K p2
G o ( s)   .  . ...................18.25
f1 ( s ) f1 ( s ) y1 ( s)  p1 s  1  p1 s  1
o Or in the standard form
K p
G ( s)  .....................................................18.26
 s  2 s  1
2

o Comparing the numerators of 18.26 and 18.25, that is

 2 s  2 s  1  ( p s  1)(( p s  1)..............................18.27
1 2
 Non-interacting first-order system in series

o Therefore,  2  p p and 2   p1   p2 ..............................18.28

1 2

o Or
 p  p
   p p and   1 2
..............................18.29
1 2
2  p1 p2
o Response of two noninteracting tanks to a unit step change in the input will be given by equation
18.10 for the overdamped case and 18.12 for critical damping.
o Alternately, for two noninteracting system in series, an equivalent response to a unit step
change in input can be found as follows:
K p1 K p2 K p
y( s)  = ...................18.30
s  p1 s  1 p1 s  1 s  p1 s  1 p1 s  1
 Non-interacting first-order system in series

o Breaking into partial fractions


 1 
 A
 B C  
K p    K p    ...................18.31
 s  p1 s  1 p1 s  1 
   s  p1 s  1  p1 s  1 
 
 p1 2  p2 2
A  1, B  and C   ...................................18.32
 p2   p1  p2   p1
o Therefore  
1  p1 2 1  p2 2 1 

y(s)  K p   .  . ...................18.33
 s  p2   p1   p1 s  1  p2   p1   p2 s  1 
 
o Inverting equation 18.33 gives the equivalent overdamped response for a multicapacity system

  
t
 p1  
t

 p2 
y (t )  K p 1  
p1 p2
.e .e ...................18.34
  2 1  2   1 
   

 Non-interacting first-order system in series

o Overdamped response are a result of multicapacity system i.e. response of two first-order
system in series. Figure 18.3 shows the response interacting systems.
o Such response is s-shaped, that is, initially changes slowly and then picks up speed and is
characterised as sluggish.
o As the number of interacting systems increase, the response becomes more sluggish.
First order response

o This is in contrast to a first-order (single tank)

system which has the faster initial rate 1.0

of response and attains the ultimate y(t )
value faster. Kp
Four interacting tanks

Two interacting tanks

Two noninteracting tanks

t unit step input

Fig.18.3 Effect of interaction on response to
 Interacting first-order system in series

o For the interacting system shown in figure 18.3 (b), material balances can be performed
around tank 1 and 2.
Tank 1
Total material balance
A1dh1
 Fi  F ...................................................18.35
dt
Also h1  h2
F ......................................................18.36
R1

Thus, A1dh1 h h
 Fi  1 2 ................................................18.37
dt R1
dh1
Rearranging, A1R1  (h1  h2 )  R1Fi ..............................................18.38
dt
 Interacting first-order system in series

o Expression equation 18.38 in deviation variables

dh1
A1R1  (h1  h2 )  R1Fi..............................................18.39
dt
o Which after converting to Laplace transform becomes

A1R1sh1( s )  h1( s )  h2 ( s)  R1Fi( s ).....................................18.40

o Finally
1 R1
h1( s )  h2 ( s)  Fi( s)............................18.41
 A1R1s  1  A1R1s  1

o Tank 2
A2 dh2
o Total mass balance  F1  F2 ...................................................18.42
dt
 Interacting first-order system in series

o Expression equation 18.38 in deviation variables

dh1
A1R1  (h1  h2 )  R1Fi..............................................18.39
dt
o Which after converting to Laplace transform becomes

A1R1sh1( s )  h1( s )  h2 ( s)  R1Fi( s ).....................................18.40

o Finally
1 R1
h1( s )  h2 ( s)  Fi( s)............................18.41
 A1R1s  1  A1R1s  1

o Tank 2
o Total mass balance A2 dh2
 F1  F2 ...................................................18.42
dt
 Interacting first-order system in series

o Assuming linear resistance to the outflow 𝐹2

h2
F2  ......................................................18.43
R2
o Thus equation 18.42 can be written in terms of liquid level head ℎ1 and ℎ2 as follows

A2 dh2 h1  h2 h2
  ...........................................18.44
dt R1 R2

dh2 h1  1 1 
A2      h2 ...................................18.45
dt R1  R1 R2 
o Or

dh2  R2  R
A2 R2    1 h2  2 h1...................................18.46
dt  R1  R1
 Interacting first-order system in series

o Expressing in deviation variables

dh2  R2  R2
A2 R2    1 h2  h1...................................18.47
dt  R1  R1
o And in terms of Laplace transform
 R2  R2
 
A2 R2 h2 ( s )    1 h2 ( s )  h1( s )............................18.48
 R1  R1
o Combining 18.41 and 18.48
 R2  R2 R2
 
A2 R2 h2 ( s )    1 h2 ( s )  
h2 ( s )  Fi( s )..........18.49
 R1  R1  A1R1s  1  A1R1s  1
 R2  R2 R2
A2 R2 h2 ( s )    1 h2 ( s )  h2 ( s )  Fi( s )..........18.50
 R1  R1  A1R1s  1  A1R1s  1
 Interacting first-order system in series

o Simplifying

  R2  R2 
 R2
h2 ( s )  A2 R2    1    Fi( s )..........18.50

  R1  R1  A1R1s  1 
  A1R1s  1

 A2 A1R2 R12 s 2  A2 R2 R1s  A1R12 s  R1  A1R2 R1s  R2  R2  

h2 ( s )  

 R1  A1R1s  1 

R2
 Fi( s )......................................................................................18.51
 A1R1s  1

h2 ( s )  A2 A1R2 R1s 2  A2 R2 s  A1R1s  1  A1R2 s  R2 Fi(s )........................18.52

o Defining
 p  A1R1 and  p  A2 R2 .............................................18.53
1 2
 Interacting first-order system in series

o Equation 18.52 yields

   
h2 ( s )  p1 p2 s 2   p2   p1  A1R2 s  1  R2 Fi( s )...................18.53

o Finally, the transfer function for a system of two interacting tanks is

R2
h2 ( s )  Fi( s )...................18.54
 p  p s 2   p
1 2 2

  p1  A1R2 s  1

o Performing similar algebraic manipulation

h1( s ) 
 p2 
R1 s  ( R1  R2 )
Fi( s )...................18.55
 p  p s   p   p  A1R2  s  1
1 2
2
2 1

o Equation 18.54 and 18.55 indicates the response of both tanks follow second-order dynamics.
 Interacting first-order system in series
o Comparing the overall transfer function for a system of non-interacting and interacting tanks, the
two differs only by the term 𝐴1𝑅2.
o This term maybe thought of as the interaction factor. The greater the value of this term the more
the interaction is between the two tanks.
o From equation 18.54 and 18.55, the two poles of the transfer function can easily be found from

 
2
 p2   p1  A1R2  p2   p1  A1R2  4 p2 p1
p1,2  ................18.56
2 p2 p1
o But
 
2
p2   p1  A1R2  4 p2 p1  0......................................18.57

o Therefore, the two poles are distinct and real. Thus the response of interacting system is always
overdamped.
 Second-order systems
Exercise 2
A stirred-tank reactor has an internal cooling to remove heat liberated in the reaction. A proportional
controller is use to regulate a coolant flow-rate so as to keep the reactor temperature reasonably
constant. The controller has been designed so that the controlled reactor exhibits typical
underdamped second-order temperature response characteristics, when it is disturbed either by
feed flow-rate or coolant temperature changes.
a) The feed flow-rate to the reactor changes suddenly from 0.4 to 0.5 kg/s and the temperature of
reactor contents initially at 100 oC, changes eventually to 102 oC. What is the gain of the
transfer function (under feedback control) that relates reactor temperature changes to changes
in feed flow-rate? (specify units)
b) The operator notes that the resulting response is slightly oscillatory with maxima estimated to
be 102.5 and 102.0 oC occurring at times 1,000 and 3,060 sec after the change is initially
initiated. What is the complete transfer function?
c) The operator failed to note the rise time, predict tr based on the results in (a) and (b).
 Response of first-order systems to other inputs

Question 1
a) An electrically heated process is known to exhibit second-order dynamics with the following
parameter values: K = 3 𝑜𝐶/𝐾𝑤, τ = 3 min, ζ = 0.7. if the process is initially at steady state at
70 𝑜𝐶 with heat input of 20 kW, and the heat input is suddenly changed to 26 kW and held there,
i. What will be the expression for the process temperature as a function of time?
ii. What will be the maximum temperature observed and when does it occur?
b) A tank used to dampen liquid flow rates surges is known to exhibit second-order dynamics. The
input flow-rate changes suddenly from 120 to 140 gal/min. An operator notes that the tank level
changes as follows:
Before input change: level = 6 ft and steady
Four minutes later: level = 11 ft
Forty minutes later: Level = 10 ft and steady
i. Determine the dynamic elements in the transfer function model and write an expression for it.
 Response of first-order systems to other inputs

Question 2
The caustic concentration of the mixing tank shown in figure 18.3 (a) below is measured
using a conductivity cell. The total volume of solution in the tank is constant at 7 ft3 and the
density (= ρ = 70 𝐼𝑏/𝑓𝑡3 can be considered to be independent of concentration. Let 𝑐𝑚
denote the caustic concentration measured by the conductivity cell. The dynamic response of
a conductivity cell to a step change (𝑡 = 0) of 3 𝐼𝑏/𝑓𝑡3 in actual concentration (passing
through the cell) is also shown in figure 18.3 (b).
cm 3

w1 , c1 w2 , c2 (Ib/ft 3 )
2

cm 1
AT

15 30
w, c Time (sec)
Fig.18.3 Caustic mixing tank (a), dynamic response of conductivity cell (b)
 Response of first-order systems to other inputs

Question 2
a) Determine the transfer function 𝐶 ′ 𝑚(𝑠)/𝐶 ′ 1(𝑠) assuming the flow-rates are equal and
constant (𝑤1 = 𝑤2 = 5 𝐼𝑏/min).
b) Find the response for a step change in 𝑐1 from 14 to 17 Ib/𝑓𝑡3.

c) If the transfer function 𝐶 ′ 𝑚(𝑠)/𝐶 ′ (𝑠) where approximated by 1 (unity), what would
be the step response of the system for the same input change.
d) By comparison of (b) and (c) what can you say about the dynamics of the
conductivity cell? Plot both responses if necessary.