Modeling Dynamic Systems 41

yi temperature of water entering the tank

yt temperature of water in and leaving the tank
ya temperature of air surrounding the tank
qi heat ow into the system from water entering
qo heat ow leaving the system from water exiting
qh heat ow into the system from the heater
qa heat ow leaving the system into the atmosphere (through insulation)
C thermal capacitance of water in the tank
R thermal resistance of insulation
S specic heat of water
dm=dt mass ow rate in and out of tank
The governing equilibrium equation is
heat flow in  heat flow out heat flow stored
qi qh  qa  qo Cdyt =dt
Now dene the heat ows:
qi (dm=dtSyi
qh heat ow from heater (system input)
qa yt  ya =R, heat lost through insulation with resistance R
qo (dm=dt) S yt
Substitute in the equilibrium equation:
Cdyt =dt yt  ya =R dm=dtS yt  dm=dtS yi qh
And simplify:
Cdyt =dt yt  ya =R dm=dtSyt  yi qh
Or in terms of yt :
 
dy 1 1
C t m_  S yt qh ya m_  S  yi
dt R R
Remember that this model assumes uniform water temperature in the tank, no
heat storage in the tank itself or the insulation surrounding, linear models for con-
duction and convection, and no radiation heat losses. As in all models, attention
must be given to ensure that consistent sets of units are used.

2.4.6 Liquid Level System Example

Liquid level systems can be considered as special cases of the hydraulic/pneumatic
row in Table 2. Several assumptions are made that simplify the models. The rst
common assumption made is the type of ow. Remembering that ow can be
described as laminar or turbulent (not forgetting the transitional region), ow in
liquid level systems is generally assumed to be laminar. Whereas turbulent ow
pressure drops vary with the square of ow rates (eort R  flow2 ), laminar
ow pressure drops are proportional to ow and inherently more linear (eort =
R  flow). In most liquid level systems the uid velocity is relatively slow and the
assumption is valid. The second assumption commonly made is to ignore the eects
of the uid inertia and capacitance, since uid velocities and pressures are generally