Fuzzy fault diagnostic system based on fault tree analysis

A method is presented for process fault diagnosis using information from fault tree analysis and uncertainty/imprecision of data. Fault tree analysis, which has been used as a method of system reliability/safety analysis, provides a procedure for identifying failures within a process. A fuzzy fault diagnostic system is constructed which uses the fuzzy fault tree analysis to represent a knowledge of the causal relationships in process operation and control system. The proposed method is applied successfully to a nitric acid cooler process plant.<>