Dynamic neural network control (DNNC) is a model predictive control strategy potentially applicable to nonlinear systems. It uses a neural network to model the process and its mathematical inverse to control the process. The advantages of single hidden layer DNNC are threefold: First, the neural network structure is very simple, having limited nodes in the hidden layer and output layer for the SISO case. Second, DNNC offers potential for better initialization of weights along with fewer weights and bias terms. Third, the controller design and implementation are easier than control strategies such as conventional and hybrid neural networks without loss in performance. The objective of this paper is to present the basic concept of single hidden layer DNNC and illustrate its potential. In addition, this paper provides a detailed case study in which DNNC is applied to the nonisothermal CSTR with time varying parameters including activation energy (i.e., deactivation of catalyst) and heat transfer coefficient (i.e., fouling). DNNC is compared with PID control. Although it is clear that DNNC will perform better than PID, it is useful to compare PID with DNNC to illustrate the extreme range of the nonlinearity of the process. This paper represents a preliminary effort to design a simplified neural network-based control approach for a class of nonlinear processes. Therefore, additional work is required for investigation of the effectiveness of this approach for other chemical processes such as batch reactors. The results show excellent DNNC performance in the region where conventional PID control fails. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science S.A. All rights reserved.