A real-time control system includes a faulty variable identification technique to implement a data-driven fault detection function that provides an operator with information that enables a higher level of situational awareness of the current and likely future operating conditions of the process plant. The faulty variable identification technique enables an operator to recognize when a process plant component is behaving abnormally to potentially take action, in a current time step, to alleviate the underlying cause of the problem, thus reducing the likelihood of or preventing a stall of the process control system or a failure of the process plant component.