Multi-Reservoir System Optimization Based on Hybrid Gravitational Algorithm to Minimize Water-Supply Deficiencies

• Published in: Water resources management Vol. 33; no. 8; pp. 2741 - 2760
• Main Authors: Karami, Hojat, Farzin, Saeed, Jahangiri, Aylin, Ehteram, Mohammad, Kisi, Ozgur, El-Shafie, Ahmed
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Dordrecht Springer Netherlands 01.06.2019; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Algorithms; Atmospheric Sciences; Civil Engineering; Computer applications; Computing time; Convergence; Dams; dams (hydrology); Drought; Earth and Environmental Science; Earth Sciences; Environment; Environmental impact; Genetic algorithms; Geotechnical Engineering & Applied Earth Sciences; Gravitation; Gravity; Hybrid systems; Hydrogeology; Hydrology/Water Resources; Iran; Irrigation; issues and policy; Measuring instruments; Particle swarm optimization; Policies; Reservoir operation; Reservoirs; Search algorithms; system optimization; Water demand; Water scarcity; water shortages; Water supply; Iran; PSOA; Water resources management; GSA; Hybrid algorithm
• ISSN: 0920-4741; 1573-1650
• DOI: 10.1007/s11269-019-02238-3

The growing prevalence of droughts and water scarcity have increased the importance of operating dam and reservoir systems efficiently. Several methods based on algorithms have been developed in recent years in a bid to optimize water release operation policy, in order to overcome or minimize the impact of droughts. However, all of these algorithms suffer from some weaknesses or drawbacks – notably early convergence, a low rate of convergence, or trapping in local optimizations – that limit their effectiveness and efficiency in seeking to determine the global optima for the operation of water systems. Against this background, the present study seeks to introduce and test a Hybrid Algorithm (HA) which integrates the Gravitational Search Algorithm (GSA) with the Particle Swarm Optimization Algorithm (PSOA) with the goal of minimizing irrigation deficiencies in a multi-reservoir system. The proposed algorithm was tested for a specific important multi-reservoir system in Iran: namely the Golestan Dam and Voshmgir Dam system. The results showed that applying the HA could reduce average irrigation deficiencies for the Golestan Dam substantially, to only 2 million cubic meters (MCM), compared to deficiency values for the Genetic Algorithm (GA), PSOA and GSA of 15.1, 6.7 and 5.8 MCM respectively. In addition, the HA performed very efficiently, reducing substantially the computational time needed to achieve the global optimal when compared with the other algorithms tested. Furthermore, the HA showed itself capable of assuring a high volumetric reliability index (VRI) to meet the pattern of water demand downstream from the dams, as well as clearly outperforming the other algorithms on other important indices. In conclusion, the proposed HA seems to offer considerable potential as an optimizer for dam and reservoir operations world-wide.