A synthesis of quality and process control

An improved quality control model is suggested in this thesis. The improved quality control model is derived by treating the quality control problem as a process control problem. The quality control model is developed by formulating a process control model in terms of product quality parameters and control variables which affect the product quality parameters. SQC is used in the model to provide estimates about the state of the product quality variable as the product is processed by the plant. A state variable approach is used to determine the optimal control strategy.

An example quality control model is formulated for a coke size-reduction process. Numerical values are assumed and sensitivity analysis results are discussed. The results show that the proposed quality control model is reasonable. Extensions to more complicated models are discussed.