Economic performance assessment (EPA) of control systems is receiving increasing attention in both academia and industry. It addresses the estimation of the potential benefits resulting from control upgrade projects and monitoring and improvement of economic performance of the control system. Economic performance of control systems can often be related to crucial controlled variables dynamically and when controlled variables move away from an optimal operating point either more profit will be made or more cost will be incurred. This relation can be modelled by performance functions (PFs). When the multivariate nature of a process’s economic model is not considered, PFs of different controlled variables are referred to as individual performance functions. Otherwise, PFs of dependent controlled variables are referred to as joint performance functions. PFs play an important role in the latest techniques of EPA. There appears, however, to be no systematic method for developing PFs. The lack of such a method restrains further research into EPA, as without well-established PFs an EPA cannot be conducted smoothly and therefore cannot effectively support decision-making for management. The development of PFs is a bottleneck in the further research into EPA. Furthermore, the multivariate nature of processes has not been taken into account sufficiently as far as the relevant literature is concerned, which hampers the accuracy of PFs and accordingly the accuracy of economic assessment results. The contributions of this thesis lie in the following aspects: • A methodology for developing PFs is proposed, based on the PF development for an electric arc furnace, a grinding mill circuit and a stage of a bleach plant. • A comprehensive case study of an EPA of three controllers of a grinding mill circuit is conducted using a newly published framework to show the significance of PFs and how to perform an EPA systematically. • The current practice and guidelines on the control and functional/economic performance assessment of grinding mill circuits are captured using a survey study. The multivariate nature of an electric arc furnace’s economic model is investigated and joint performance functions are built based on individual performance functions. A multivariate economic assessment is conducted that shows how joint performance functions can help to provide a more accurate estimate of the economic performance of a controlled process. A web-based survey study on grinding mill circuits in mineral processing industries is conducted. One of its objectives is to obtain general PFs of grinding circuits. The survey results provide instructive insight into the PFs of grinding circuits. Furthermore, an in-depth literature review is conducted and the relationship between the product’s particle size distribution of grinding mill circuits and mineral recovery in downstream flotation circuits is revealed. The PFs of a grinding mill circuit being considered are formed, based on the survey results and literature study. An investigation into the PF development of a stage of a bleach plant is performed and crucial ideas used for their development are abstracted. A methodology for developing PFs for the EPA of control systems is then proposed by synthesising the methods used in the PF development described above. This methodology mainly includes the following stages: Stage 1: Determine information required for PF development. • Process operation and control understanding. • Process economics understanding. Stage 2: Gain required information on PF development. • PF-related information elicitation using survey research. • PF-related information available in the literature, including textbooks, journal papers, conference papers. • PF-related information from plant tests. Stage 3: Obtain suitable performance measures. Stage 4: Make suitable assumptions. Stage 5: Determine PFs. Stage 6: Develop Joint PFs. An economic assessment of three controllers (a nonlinear model predictive controller, a decentralized controller and three single-loop proportional-integral-derivative controllers) of the considered grinding mill circuit is conducted, using an EPA framework published recently to show the central role of PFs in the EPA and how to perform an EPA systematically. The circuit’s PFs, developed as described above, are used for the assessment. The EPA also shows that the improvement in the economic performance with the nonlinear model predictive controller mainly results from the improvement of the operating point and the controlled variables’ variation reduction only contributes a small part to the overall improvement, due to the characteristic of the PF of the circuit’s product particle size distribution. In addition, a web-based survey study is conducted and the current practice and guidelines on the control and functional/economic performance assessment of grinding mill circuits are captured. The questionnaire used for the study includes five segments. The first part identifies the respondents and the second part is intended to obtain background information on the milling circuits. The third part concerns the choice of key process variables and their economic impact. Part four involves the control of milling circuits and control loop performance and part five covers economic issues. / Thesis (PhD)--University of Pretoria, 2010. / Electrical, Electronic and Computer Engineering / unrestricted

As Unidades Básicas de Saúde (UBS) respondem a um modelo assistencial do governo que busca unificar todos os elementos dos serviços de saúde, tendo por base as necessidades de saúde da população. Assim a Atenção Básica à saúde constitui o primeiro contato com os pacientes, e tem como finalidade promover a saúde, prevenir agravos, além de tratar e reabilitar a população. A administração de organizações de saúde adquiriu maior evidência nas questões sanitárias, políticas socioculturais e associadas ao crescente custo da atenção à saúde. A gestão dessas organizações é complexa, pois cada unidade possui características e necessidades específicas. Para o alcance de um bom nível de gestão e desempenho, a organização deve contemplar em seu plano diretor ferramentas de planejamento e controle de todos os seus recursos para um melhor processo de tomada de decisão. Medir o desempenho econômico dessas instituições é uma das ferramentas de gestão e torna-se importante para que os gestores possam entender a instituição e conseqüentemente melhorar a sua eficiência por meio de ações direcionadas à saúde. Os sistemas de avaliação de desempenho econômico tornaram-se ferramentas importantes para que as organizações atingissem níveis mais elevados de eficiência operacional e na qualidade do atendimento. Burocracia, nível tecnológico, sistemas de informação, recursos humanos, estilo de gestão são entraves comuns em organizações públicas e tendem a diminuir o desempenho econômico das organizações públicas em geral. Nesse sentido, o presente estudo investigou quais os fatores que influenciam para a implantação de um sistema de avaliação de desempenho econômico em unidades básicas de saúde. Para tanto foi realizado um estudo de casos múltiplos em três UBS´s da cidade de Ribeirão Preto: UBS José Sampaio, UBS Maria Casagrande e CSE Sumarezinho e teve como base o modelo de avaliação de desempenho econômico GECON. Com base na teoria e nas informações obtidas em campo, concluiu-se que os modelos de gestão adotados por estas unidades não contemplam um sistema de avaliação de desempenho econômico. A descrição das unidades e o do estilo de administração demonstraram que existem dificuldades para a implantação deste sistema, tais aspectos estão ligados às informações geradas e gerenciadas; ao grau de autonomia por parte dos gestores; à ineficiência no sistema de informação de saúde (disponível para os gestores) e, por fim a inexistência de políticas de qualidade e desempenho voltados para gestão econômica. Nesse sentido o trabalho contribui por levantar questões que poderiam ser melhoradas para que a saúde tenha um melhor aproveitamento dos recursos advindos das três esferas governamentais. / The Primary Units of Health (PUH) respond to the government health care model which that attempts to unify all the elements of the health services, based on population´s health needs. Thus, the Primary Health Care is the first contact with the patients, and it aims to promote health, prevent diseases as well as to treat and rehabilitate the population. The administration of health care organizations acquired greater evidence on sanitaries issues, social policies and associated by the enlargement of health care cost. The management of these organizations is complex, because each unit has specific characteristics and necessities. In order to reach a good level of management and performance and also enhance the decision-making process, the organization must take into consideration instruments of planning and control of all its resources while making its director plans. The measurement of economic performance of these institutions is one of management tool and it is important for managers to understand the institution and therefore improve their efficiency through actions directed to the health sector. The economic performance assessment system have become important tools for organizations to reach higher levels of operational efficiency and quality of care. Bureaucracy, technological level, information systems, human resources and management style are common obstacles in public organizations in general and tend to reduce their economic performance. In this sense, the present study investigated the factors that influence the introduction of economic performance assessment system in Primary Health Care. A multiple case study based on the model for economic performance assessment GECON has been undertaken in three PUH\'s in the city of Ribeirão Preto: PUH José Sampaio, PUH Maria Casagrande and CSE Sumarezinho. Based on theory and field research it was concluded that the management models adopted by these units do not include an evaluation system of economic performance. The description of the units and their administration style have shown that there are difficulties for the implementation of this system, .These aspects are linked to the generation and management of information; the autonomy degree of some managers, the inefficiency of the health information system (available for managers) and finally the lack of quality and performance policies toward economic management. In this way the work contributes by raising issues that could be improved so as to allow the Health Sector to achieve a better use of the resources coming from the three spheres of the government.

As Unidades Básicas de Saúde (UBS) respondem a um modelo assistencial do governo que busca unificar todos os elementos dos serviços de saúde, tendo por base as necessidades de saúde da população. Assim a Atenção Básica à saúde constitui o primeiro contato com os pacientes, e tem como finalidade promover a saúde, prevenir agravos, além de tratar e reabilitar a população. A administração de organizações de saúde adquiriu maior evidência nas questões sanitárias, políticas socioculturais e associadas ao crescente custo da atenção à saúde. A gestão dessas organizações é complexa, pois cada unidade possui características e necessidades específicas. Para o alcance de um bom nível de gestão e desempenho, a organização deve contemplar em seu plano diretor ferramentas de planejamento e controle de todos os seus recursos para um melhor processo de tomada de decisão. Medir o desempenho econômico dessas instituições é uma das ferramentas de gestão e torna-se importante para que os gestores possam entender a instituição e conseqüentemente melhorar a sua eficiência por meio de ações direcionadas à saúde. Os sistemas de avaliação de desempenho econômico tornaram-se ferramentas importantes para que as organizações atingissem níveis mais elevados de eficiência operacional e na qualidade do atendimento. Burocracia, nível tecnológico, sistemas de informação, recursos humanos, estilo de gestão são entraves comuns em organizações públicas e tendem a diminuir o desempenho econômico das organizações públicas em geral. Nesse sentido, o presente estudo investigou quais os fatores que influenciam para a implantação de um sistema de avaliação de desempenho econômico em unidades básicas de saúde. Para tanto foi realizado um estudo de casos múltiplos em três UBS´s da cidade de Ribeirão Preto: UBS José Sampaio, UBS Maria Casagrande e CSE Sumarezinho e teve como base o modelo de avaliação de desempenho econômico GECON. Com base na teoria e nas informações obtidas em campo, concluiu-se que os modelos de gestão adotados por estas unidades não contemplam um sistema de avaliação de desempenho econômico. A descrição das unidades e o do estilo de administração demonstraram que existem dificuldades para a implantação deste sistema, tais aspectos estão ligados às informações geradas e gerenciadas; ao grau de autonomia por parte dos gestores; à ineficiência no sistema de informação de saúde (disponível para os gestores) e, por fim a inexistência de políticas de qualidade e desempenho voltados para gestão econômica. Nesse sentido o trabalho contribui por levantar questões que poderiam ser melhoradas para que a saúde tenha um melhor aproveitamento dos recursos advindos das três esferas governamentais. / The Primary Units of Health (PUH) respond to the government health care model which that attempts to unify all the elements of the health services, based on population´s health needs. Thus, the Primary Health Care is the first contact with the patients, and it aims to promote health, prevent diseases as well as to treat and rehabilitate the population. The administration of health care organizations acquired greater evidence on sanitaries issues, social policies and associated by the enlargement of health care cost. The management of these organizations is complex, because each unit has specific characteristics and necessities. In order to reach a good level of management and performance and also enhance the decision-making process, the organization must take into consideration instruments of planning and control of all its resources while making its director plans. The measurement of economic performance of these institutions is one of management tool and it is important for managers to understand the institution and therefore improve their efficiency through actions directed to the health sector. The economic performance assessment system have become important tools for organizations to reach higher levels of operational efficiency and quality of care. Bureaucracy, technological level, information systems, human resources and management style are common obstacles in public organizations in general and tend to reduce their economic performance. In this sense, the present study investigated the factors that influence the introduction of economic performance assessment system in Primary Health Care. A multiple case study based on the model for economic performance assessment GECON has been undertaken in three PUH\'s in the city of Ribeirão Preto: PUH José Sampaio, PUH Maria Casagrande and CSE Sumarezinho. Based on theory and field research it was concluded that the management models adopted by these units do not include an evaluation system of economic performance. The description of the units and their administration style have shown that there are difficulties for the implementation of this system, .These aspects are linked to the generation and management of information; the autonomy degree of some managers, the inefficiency of the health information system (available for managers) and finally the lack of quality and performance policies toward economic management. In this way the work contributes by raising issues that could be improved so as to allow the Health Sector to achieve a better use of the resources coming from the three spheres of the government.

Hydrogen (H2) represents an energy carrier endowed with the potential to contribute to the design of a robust and reliable global energy system by complementing electricity as well as liquid fuels use in an environmentally responsible manner provided that the pertinent H2 production technologies (conventional and new ones) can reach techno-economically attractive performance levels in the presence of irreducible (macroeconomic, fuel market, regulatory) uncertainty. Indeed, the role of H2 in the global energy economy is widely recognized as significant in light also of fast-growing demand in the petrochemical and chemical processing sector as well as future regulatory action on greenhouse gas emissions. Pd and Pd/Alloy-based catalytic membrane reactor (CMR) modules potentially integrated into H2 production (HP-CMR) process systems offer a promising technical pathway towards H2 production with enhanced environmental performance in a carbon-constrained world. However, the lack of accumulated operating experience for HP-CMR plants on the commercial scale poses significant challenges. Therefore, any preliminary attempt to assess their economic viability is certainly justified. A comprehensive techno-economic performance assessment framework has been developed for HP-CMRs with CO2 capture capabilities. A functional Net Present Value (NPV) model has been developed first to evaluate the economic viability of HP-CMRs. The plant/project value of HP-CMR is compared to other competing technology options such as traditional coal-gasification and methane steam reforming-based hydrogen production plants with and without CO2 capture. Sources of irreducible uncertainty (market and regulatory) as well as technology risks are explicitly recognized and the effect of these uncertainty drivers on the plant’s/project’s value is taken into account using Monte-Carlo techniques. Therefore, more realistic distribution profiles of the plant’s economic performance outcomes are generated rather than single-point value estimates. It is shown that future regulatory action on CO2 emissions could induce appealing NPV-distribution profiles for HP-CMRs in the presence of uncertainty and technology risks. Finally, the valuation assessment is complemented with a sensitivity analysis for different representative values of the discount rate that span a reasonable range associated with business and financing risks. It apparently indicates that creatively structured financing mechanisms leading to a reduction of the cost of capital/discount rate could induce more appealing economic performance outcomes and valuation profiles. Furthermore, the proposed research work aims at the development of a methodological framework to assess the economic value of flexible alternatives in the design and operation of HP-CMR plants with carbon capture capabilities under the aforementioned sources of uncertainty. The main objective is to demonstrate the potential value enhancement associated with the long-term economic performance of flexible HP-CMR project investments by managing the uncertainty associated with future environmental regulations. Within the proposed context, promising design flexibility concepts for HP-CMR plants are introduced and operational as well as constructional flexibility options are identified and assessed. In particular, operational flexibility will be realized through periodic and temporary shutdowns of the carbon capture unit in response to regulatory uncertainties. Constructional flexibility will be realized by considering the installation of a carbon capture unit at three strategic periods: 1) installation in the initial design phase, 2) retrofitting at a later stage and 3) retrofitting with preinvestment. Monte Carlo simulations and financial analysis will be conducted in order to demonstrate that, in the presence of irreducible uncertainty, design flexibility options could lead to economic performance enhancement of HP-CMR plants by actively responding to the above sources of uncertainty as they get resolved over the plant’s lifetime.