Existence of solutions to port-Hamiltonian systems: initial value problems and optimal control

Abstract

We investigate the existence of solutions of reversible and irreversible port-Hamiltonian systems. To this end, we utilize the associated exergy, a function that is composed of the system's Hamiltonian and entropy, to prove global existence in time for bounded control functions. The results are then leveraged to prove existence of solutions of energy- and entropy-optimal control problems. Last, we explore model predictive control tailored to irreversible port-Hamiltonian systems by means of a numerical case study with a heat exchanger network.