In developing and constructing process models, a large amount of data is generated. This needs to be stored as information by providing context (e.g. description and units), such that it may be accessed and Understood by both human users and computer tools. To be useful, information sets must be chronicled by recording information such as by whom it was generated, when, and using what tool. Links should also be maintained between related sets of information to document the relationship. The World Wide Web (WWW) facilitates the provision of links between documents. It may, amongst other things, be thought of as a globally addressable file system. Accessed by a graphical tool, the browser, it can provide a common user interface to access and interact with documents across disparate operating systems. Documents on the WWW include hypertext links, which enable one document to link to another. This thesis describes an object-oriented system which makes use of the www to chronicle process model construction. The object-oriented paradigm has been used to provide a convenient mechanism for encapsulating data in a structured framework. As well as containing the object data, objects also contain information on who created the object, at what time, etc. This information may be used to generate a browsable history of object creation. Objects are stored as www documents, and may be created, viewed and manipulated using standard browsers. An application programmer's interface has been written which enables the information to be manipulated via Fortran programs. Objects have been developed for standard process engineering entities such as streams, mixtures, components, process topologys, etc. Once created, these may be used to generate simulation models in a variety of formats, e.g. ASPEN, spreadsheet model, etc. Conversely, process objects may be generated from ASPEN models. Four case studies have been included, showing various applications of the system. In conclusion, the www provides a suitable environment for implementing such a system, due to its ease of use, and the fact that it provides both a user interface and enables remote access to the system.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:640534 |
| Date | January 2001 |
| Creators | Andrews, Samuel Ross |
| Publisher | University of Edinburgh |
| Source Sets | Ethos UK |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Source | http://hdl.handle.net/1842/13507 |
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