With over 50 years experience in process control, Dr. Smith’s expertise encompasses virtually every control technology being applied in industrial production facilities. In continuous processes, he has worked with oil refining, pulp/paper, power generation, and ore processing. In batch processes, he has experience with both single-product processes (such as PVC reactors and pulp digesters) and the multi-product (flexible batch) processes that are the norm in the specialty chemicals and similar industries. His primary focus is on designing a control strategy for a process and then commissioning the controls, that is, the process aspects as opposed to systems aspects. However, he is proficient with both DCS’s, PLC’s, PC-based controls, and single-loop microprocessor-based controls, and is capable of resolving both process and system problems.
Dr. Smith has equally extensive experience in teaching continuing education courses for practicing engineers on various aspects of process control and instrumentation. He currently offers courses on the following topics:
- Automatic Process Control (focus is on loop tuning and trouble-shooting)
- Advanced Process Control (or going beyond single-loop control)
- Distillation Control
- Model-Predictive Control
- Control of Batch Processes
- Basic Measurements (flow, temperature, pressure, level, and density)
- Discrete Measurements and Control (applications; not PLC programming)
Dr. Smith’s current priority is developing the Process Control Professional Education Series to present the above topics in a computer-based format. The challenge is to use new technology to do a better job than the conventional approach. The Process Control Professional Education Series is a ground-up development that couples computer-based training (CBT) technology with two powerful simulators (both developed by Dr. Smith specifically for the educational environment) to provide the premier educational product in process control. The Process Control Professional Education Series will eventually encompass all of the courses listed above.
Dr. Cecil L. Smith
Cecil L. Smith, Inc.
2034 Pollard Parkway
Baton Rouge, LA 70808-8857
Phone: 225-761-4392; Fax: 225-761-4393
cecilsmith@cox.net
Recent publications:
- Edgar, Thomas F, Cecil L. Smith, F. Greg Shinskey, George W. Gassman, Paul J. Schafbuch, Thomas J. McAvoy, and Dale E. Seborg, “Process Control” (Section 8), Perry’s Chemical Engineers’ Handbook, Seventh Edition, McGraw-Hill, c1997.
- Smith, Cecil L., “Process Engineers: Take Control!”, Chemical Engineering Progress, Vol. 96, No. 8 (August 2000), pp. 19-29.
- Smith, Cecil L., “Intelligently Tune PI Controllers”, Chemical Engineering, Vol. 109, No. 8 (August 2002), pp. 169-177.
- Smith, Cecil L., “Consider Process Control a Specialty within Chemical Engineering - Part 1″, Hydrocarbon Processing, Vol. 81, No. 9 (September 2002), pp. 43-48.
- Smith, Cecil L., “Consider Process Control a Specialty within Chemical Engineering - Part 2″, Hydrocarbon Processing, Vol. 81, No. 10 (October 2002), pp. 75-83.
- Smith, Cecil L., “Consider Process Control a Specialty within Chemical Engineering - Part 3″, Hydrocarbon Processing, Vol. 81, No. 12 (December 2002), pp. 71-75.
- Smith, Cecil L., “Intelligently Tune PID Controllers - Part 1″, Chemical Engineering, Vol. 110, No. 1 (January 2003), pp. 56-62.
- Smith, Cecil L., “Intelligently Tune PID Controllers - Part 2″, Chemical Engineering, Vol. 110, No. 2 (February 2003), pp. 54-59.
- Smith, Cecil L., “Enhance Process Control Performance”, Hydrocarbon Processing, Vol. 82, No. 10 (October 2003), pp. 57-65.
- Smith, Cecil L., “Demystifying PID Tuning Coefficients”, Chemical Processing, Vol. 67, No. 1 (January 2004), pp. 26-31.
- Smith, Cecil L., “It’s the Resolution, Stupid - Part 1″, Control, Vol. 18, No. 7 (July 2005), pp. 63-67.
- Smith, Cecil L., “It’s the Resolution, Stupid - Part 2″, Control, Vol. 18, No. 8 (August 2005), pp. 47-57.