Infrared Paper Dryer Control Scheme INITIAL PROJECT SUMMARY 10/03/2005 DISTRIBUTED MEGAWATTS Carl Lee Blake Peck Rob Schaerer Jay Hudkins
1. Project Overview 1.1 Stake Holders Potlatch Corporation, Idaho Pulp and Paper Division Potlatch Corporation will be acting as the customer, client, and sponsor for this project. Potlatch will be providing all funds, and will use the improved control algorithm. Dr. Joe Law Dr. Law will be both the project s faculty advisor and the capstone instructor. Mr. Jerry Spenser Jerry Spenser is the Chief Electrical Engineer and will be our contact with the Potlatch Corporation. Mr. Tom McLaughlin Tom is the Engineering Department Manager. The University of Idaho The University benefits from all student projects. Team Distributed Megawatts We will be exposed to all phases of major design project and will undoubtedly gain a vast amount of technical knowledge, and teamwork experience. 1.2 Project Background When manufacturing paper it is critical to insure all areas of the paper have consistent moisture content. To accomplish this Potlatch Mill uses a set of high quality infrared paper dryers manufactured by Compact Engineering Ltd. The infrared dryers dry the paper well; however the switching algorithm creates less than ideal power quality. A previous capstone design team has created an improved control algorithm to correct the poor power quality. It will be the goal of this design team to scale the algorithm up to control all dryer zones, and to integrate the controller into Potlatch s number one paper machine. 1.3 Deliverables A controller capable of controlling 96 dryer zones. A scaled model operating on 480 volt 3 phase power to verify operation Schematics and drawings of the controller and model. Provide the Potlatch Corporation with test and verification data both before and after the new controller is installed. 2. Justify the Project 2.1 Why? The project should be done in order to save Potlatch time and money by creating a more efficient system in which protective circuits are not tripped. This system will also reduce the stress on the equipment and conform to power quality standards. 1
2.2. Benefits Final design will stop the protective circuitry from kicking on, enabling the works to continue with their regular job rather than having to reset the machine and get it running again. When the protective circuitry kicks on it costs Potlatch about $20k/hr and takes about four hours to get the system up and running again. This project could potentially open a market for the control system used with Compact s Dryers. The completion of this project will reflect highly on the Capstone program, if Potlatch is happy it could open doors for future projects. This project will make the University of Idaho s engineering program look good. Experience is a highly valued quality in the engineering job market. This experience will help members of the team in future design project and obtaining a job. 2.3. Investments & Costs Investments Financial payment from the client of $7000. Costs Hardware and Supplies. Materials, supplies, travel, instruments, photocopying, posters. Facilities: Shop time @ $25 per hour. Engineering Time: Student time @ $50 per hour, faculty time @ $150 per hour, mentor time @ $100 per hour. - Estimated cost for test materials = $2000. - Four Students @ 10 hours per week each for twenty-four weeks = $48,000.00. - Dr. Law @ 5 hours per week for twenty-four weeks = $18,000.00 Total Estimated Cost = $68,000.00 2.4. Return on Investment (ROI) This project is worthwhile due to the learning experience each team member will undergo. Each team member will learn about the design process and how to take a project from an idea to a completed product. The project will also give team members the opportunity to become more acquainted with people in the industry such as Dr. Law and engineers at Compact and Potlatch. The final design should improve the process of making paper. 2
3. Team Formation Goal Integrating the controller developed by team 1 in to Potlatch s No. 1 paper machine. To learn how to produce projects or jobs in engineering. To learn to put into practice engineering skills Expectations What does each team member want out of this project? Jay To learn how to be professionally involved with a company on an engineering level. To have practice at developing and producing an engineering project on a professional level. Rob To learn more efficient ways to work as a team for a common goal Gain experience working on a long, detailed project, managing time, tasks, and other details. Carl To gain experience communicating with a client on a major engineering project. Gain experience documenting and testing a final product. Blake Gain experience in gathering requirements, setting up a test apparatus for proof of concept, final product testing, and delivering a final product. Gain more experience in properly documenting research and project information. What does each team member expect from other team members? Jay To have cooperation and enthusiasm for the project, with an understanding of other commitments team members have. Honesty in understanding of all project aspects. Blake I expect teammates to follow instructions and comply to a commitment once the commitment has been made. I expect each member of the team to put forth an equal effort and not to have teammates relying on other teammates to do all the work 3
Accountability There is a need to hold individuals accountable to the team because the outcome of an individual s work affects the team and the client. Therefore it is necessary to have members of the team comply, to the best of their ability, with the materials and information needed at each step of the project development. Roles Assessment Webmaster: Rob Schaerer Main team contact: Blake Peck Team secretary: Carl Lee Undeclared at moment: Jay Hudkins The first step in assessment is team or peer vote on the need for quality checks on any portion of the project. If there is continued disagreement the next step will be to arbitrate with a faculty member. Rules No one is absolutely right Communication in key to understanding and learning from other team members Do your job. All rules are subject to change and expansion on the needs of the team 4. Exploring the Project 4.1. Client and Stakeholder Interview Questions People Who is going to do what on the project? What areas of expertise does each member bring? How available will the client be? How much will the previous group be available to fill us in? Who can we contact at Compact Engineering (or can we)? 4
Constraints Functions Scope Does a specific interface need to exist for the plant? How much power fluctuation can exist? What form does the input follow? What is Compact s standard? How fast does the scheme need to operate? Will there need to be a manual for assisting in operation or maintenance? How will the output be connected to the lamps, etc.? How much money do we have to work with? Are there deadlines at which the client wants to see parts of the project? Does the client want to do reviews of our progress? How often? When will the actual implementation of this take place? Existing knowledge Will additional refinements be required to get the desired resulting current waveforms? What part of the existing design will be applicable to our design? Are there suggestions on what path we should take based on the previous design or other ideas? 4.2 Research and Learning Needs Technical Knowledge We will need to learn how the paper dryers work, specifically Compact s communication protocol and system interface requirements. Does Compact s system use the RS485 communication standard? Most of the control algorithm is already developed, we need to understand how it operates and how it is implemented. We will also need to understand how to modify the model using FPGA s or Microcontrollers. Interdisciplinary Topics Since we have little experience with the paper industry, we should explore how the industry operates to have a better understanding of how the plant works in general. 5
Codes and Standards We will need to look into any IEEE codes and standards on power quality. Also, we should explore any other standards or codes that may affect safety or other aspects of the project. 5. Capstone Instructor Sign Off The forms required for sign off have been printed and are ready for signing. 6. Client Interview The client interview is scheduled for Thursday October 6 th 2005 at 8:30 am. 7. Assessment of Phase Zero Strengths We were able to effectively divide the work between team members, roles were easily established and no quarrels were created. Maintained communication between team members to insure work was completed on time and correctly. Improvements We need to be somewhat more efficient during team meetings. One example was one person compile a document while everyone else watched and waited. This could have been done much more efficiently outside of the meeting. This was probably due to an organization error. This could have been fixed by assigning three people to write the different portions of the document and then having the fourth person merge the separate portions in to a finalized, formatted document. Insights Meeting with the previous group provided much insight about the tasks at hand, and will guide us through the year. Maintaining open communication between team members is essential to a successful report. 6