Title: Stochastic Petri net-based availability analysis of the feeding system in a sugar processing plant

Authors: Parveen Sihmar; Vikas Modgil

Addresses: Department of Mechanical Engineering, Deenbandhu Chhotu Ram University of Science and Technology (DCRUST), Murthal, Sonipat, Haryana, India ' Department of Mechanical Engineering, Deenbandhu Chhotu Ram University of Science and Technology (DCRUST), Murthal, Sonipat, Haryana, India

Abstract: The sugar industry is increasingly challenged to increase efficiency, reduce waste and ensure continuous production despite complex system dynamics and frequent component failures. This research objective is to identify optimal operating parameters and maintenance strategies to maximise system availability by integrating Stochastic Petri Nets (SPN) with Particle Swarm Optimisation (PSO). This research presents a comprehensive examination of a sugar industry feeding system, employing SPN to model its components and evaluate their performance. Maintenance tasks are prioritised according to the possibility and severity of potential problems by assessing the influence of varying failure and repair rates. The key contribution of this study is the identification of the heat generating system as the most critical subsystem, where optimisation efforts increased availability to 85.57%. The analysis offers practical implications for improving reliability, reducing downtime and lowering operational costs for sugar manufacturers worldwide. Limitations include assumptions of constant failure and repair rates and restricted modelling of human operational errors. The results from this analysis offer practical guidelines for enhancing production system performance and reducing operational costs, thereby benefiting sugar manufacturers globally.

Keywords: Petri nets; availability; decision support system; feeding system.

DOI: 10.1504/IJRS.2026.153143

International Journal of Reliability and Safety, 2026 Vol.20 No.2, pp.156 - 172

Received: 11 Oct 2024
Accepted: 12 May 2025
Published online: 23 Apr 2026 *

Full-text access for editors Full-text access for subscribers Purchase this article Comment on this article