Monitoring and Control System of a Separation Column for 13 C Enrichment by Cryogenic Distillation of Carbon Monoxide

Abstract— In incipient stage for laboratory experiments, a monitoring and control based on human operators is usual. Using the acquired experience, a computer monitoring and even control is necessary and possible. In the actual developing plan to apply the cryogenic technology for the production of the C isotope by industrial scale, an efficient and safe operation is a strong reason to conceive and to apply a modern computer based monitoring and control strategy. The actual hardware possibilities of the computer systems and valuable interfaces enable cheap, easy-to-apply and efficient monitoring and control systems. For a complex equipment like a cryogenic isotope separation column, it was selected a common PC interfaced with a series of robust input-output modules, ICP-CON, I-7000 Series, from ICP-DAS as data acquisition and control functions. Based on general separation process and column operation descriptions, this particular application is developed using the intuitive Labview visual programming language. The front panel of the monitoring system has numerical and graphical indicators, buttons for available options, alarms to warn the user that a problem appeared in the process. The control system is conceived for the liquid nitrogen level control and the liquid carbon monoxide level control. In the actual stage, the control functions are analyzed only by simulation.