MALFUNCTION ISOLATION IN LINEAR STOCHASTIC-SYSTEMS - APPLICATION TO NUCLEAR-POWER PLANTS

Automatic control of routine plant operation is receiving increasing attention as a valuable tool for improving plant performance. A crucial aspect of automatic control is the capability to manage malfunctions. Among the tasks involved is the isolation (identification) of the malfunctioning apparatus. An algorithm for malfunction isolation in linear stochastic systems is developed. It is shown that a single linear filter is adequate for isolating a wide range of malfunctions. Numerical application to a simple nuclear plant model is presented.