The SMR (single mixed refrigerant) process is widely used in the small- and medium-scale liquefaction of NC (natural gas). Operating the MR (mixed-refrigerant) process outside of the design specifications is difficult but essential to save energy. Nevertheless, it is difficult to realize because the process needs to alter the working refrigerant composition. To address this challenge, this study investigated the performance diagnosis mechanism for SMR process. A control strategy was then proposed to control the changes in working refrigerant composition under different working conditions. This strategy separates the working refrigerant flow in the SMR process into three flows through two phase separators before it flows into the cold box. The first liquid flow is rich in the high-temperature component (isopentane). The second liquid flow is rich in the middle-temperature components (ethylene and propane), and the gas flow is rich in the low-temperature components (nitrogen and methane). By adjusting the flow rates, it is easy to decouple the control variables and automate the system. Finally, this approach was validated by process simulation and shown to be highly adaptive and exergy efficient in response to changing working conditions. (C) 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.