PLC/SCADA Controlled Brewing System

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zimmer988

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Here's a few pictures of my brewing system.

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/v4x3xpdvm708b1z/AABc1BDqpStIYbXLAEBMtxpoa?dl=0

I built the tanks from stainless pipe and welded bottoms on them. I spent countless hours polishing the tanks only to get a somewhat acceptable finish. Next time I would just buy the tanks. I built the frame using 3/16 in wall 1 ½ stainless tubing. I built the control panel out of some used parts but I am pretty happy with how it turned out. The PLC is an Allen Bradley L18-ERM CompactLogix and the touch screen is a Red Lion G307K200. I also use VT SCADA free version to monitor with my PC or smartphone. VT SCADA also has a great historian/trending tool so that I can monitor and record all of my temperatures for each batch. There are a few things that I am going to add. One is another element to my boil kettle. I would like to get it up to temp a little faster. It does ok with 10 gallons but I would like to start brewing 15 and 20 gallon batches. I also want to add another flow meter from the mash tun to the boil kettle for measuring boil volume. I have an IMF magnetic flow meter to measure my strike/sparge water and it works very well. I also used a single phase output VFD to control the speed of my Chugger pump on the wort side. I vary the speed with a PID loop in the PLC to maintain a constant output temperature on my chiller. I still have plenty of work to do to the system like making lids for the tanks and welding on some mounting brackets for the chiller and the pumps. It helps that we have a waterjet at work with a ton of scrap stainless. I have brewed four batches with the system so far and I love it. Please let me know if you have some suggestions for improvements.
 
Wow I am impressed that you MADE your own kettles. Madness!! Did you make the bottoms somewhat conical for the bottom drains?

I see a hydrostatic sensor for volume measurement... what model (if you don't mind)?
 
Any plans to add a densitometer for gravity measurement?

Just went through the photos, awesome setup man! Mind sharing what you're using for valves?
 
thekraken said:
That's a new one on me, had to google it up. Is a densitometer not essentially just a refractometer on steroids?
Click to expand...

Same principle yeah. Two vibrating forks. Emerson has some that cater to brewing and have built in ABV, Plato, and Brix calculations. One could probably come up with some cool uses for one in an automated system like this.
 
I didn't make the bottoms conical but the only one I would like to do it on would be the boil kettle. I think I will take the boil kettle to work and put it in the hydraulic press to make it drain a bit better. I am using an Automation Direct Prosense pressure transmitter and I found the valves on eBay.
 
I am using the 0-100 inH2O model and I do realize that I am loosing some resolution but that is the closest one they offer for my application and I am really only using it for reference and enabling the heating element. I am using the flow meter to measure the water for strike and sparge. I would really like a Coriolis flow meter so that I could measure density as well but I think that might not be in the budget.
 
zimmer988 said:
I am using the 0-100 inH2O model and I do realize that I am loosing some resolution but that is the closest one they offer for my application and I am really only using it for reference and enabling the heating element. I am using the flow meter to measure the water for strike and sparge. I would really like a Coriolis flow meter so that I could measure density as well but I think that might not be in the budget.
Click to expand...


Curious how you are doing that... that sensor is a 4-20mA output I think. So it gives a current rate. Are you totalizing it (via an integration function of some sort) and your control logic? I am curious how accurate this is/will be?

I use an inexpensive hall effect flow meter to perform on-the-fly sparge water heating. I don't use it currently to measure MLT strike water volume, but I did at one point and it's accuracy was ok, but certainly not as good as a hydrostatic sensor. The pulse output makes control system measurement easy - never contemplated using an analog sensor.
 
You are correct. The flow meter that I am using puts out a 4-20 mA signal. I am using the built in totalizer "TOT" function block in the PLC to measure the water. All I have to do is input the flow rate, desired volume, and a start command. When the volume setpoint is reached, the pump is automatically stopped. I am very happy with the accuracy of this method. I have tested various volumes and I am not off by more than about 0.1 gallons when measuring 5 gallons which is plenty good for me. The previous meter that I used did not work quite as well. It was a variable area meter and was rated for 212 deg but did not work well with higher temps. When I would test it with 70 degree water it was spot on but it would be off by as much as a gallon when testing with 160 degree water when measuring out 5 gallons. I have since sent the meter back to the manufacturer for testing and I am waiting to hear back from them. I do also have a hall effect sensor but the signal is almost 100 HZ at my normal flows so I need to get a high speed input card for my PLC to be able to read it quickly enough. If you have Rockwell Studio 5000 Ver. 29, I would be more than happy to share the code with you.
 
Thanks! I checked out your setup and it is very cool as well. You did a great job on the interface. Very clean and professional looking!
 
This thread is a couple months old, but I haven't seen many people using a VFD with chugger/march pumps before, and I must know more! How has your experience using VFD for these pumps been? Would you recommend it? I would like to use PID for my pumps as well, otherwise I would continue to rely on my diaphragm valves as I have been.

Great looking system, thanks for sharing.
 
The VFD that I am using is a single phase output Invertek Optidrive E2. I had it laying around so that is really the only reason that I used it. I have been in the wastewater industry as well as ethanol for over 10 years and have seen flow control done using both variable speed pumps and control valves. Control valves would provide better low end flow control if there is head pressure feeding the pump whereas a VFD would provide power savings on the motor. On the scale that I am using it, I don't really see an advantage to using one or the other. I have been very happy with the performance of the VFD and I use it to regulate my mash recirculation flow rate which helps with preventing a stuck mash by not compacting the grain bed. I also use it to control the wort flow through the wort chiller to maintain the output temperature into my fermenter. I would recommend using either a control valve or a VFD on your system depending on what is easier to control and what is the least expensive solution.
 
New off the shelf 1/2" SS ball valve $28.95, 24V proportional actuator $108.95. They are available from auction sites for considerably less than retail if you know what to look for, and have the time.
 

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