PLIO: a generic tool for real-time operational predictive optimal control of water networks

Area of Science:

• Environmental Engineering
• Control Systems Engineering
• Water Resource Management

Background:

• Effective management of water supply and distribution systems is crucial for meeting societal demands.
• Traditional control methods often struggle with the complexity and dynamic nature of large-scale water networks.
• Optimizing operational goals like network safety and flow stability requires advanced control strategies.

Purpose of the Study:

• To present PLIO, a generic tool for implementing real-time operational control of water networks.
• To demonstrate the application of predictive optimal control techniques for water network management.
• To enable graphical network modeling and automatic equation generation for predictive optimal controllers.

Main Methods:

• Development of a generic tool (PLIO) for water network operational control.
• Implementation of predictive optimal control techniques for generating flow control strategies.
• Graphical network modeling and automatic generation of model equations.
• Off-line simulation and on-line real-time operational modes.

Main Results:

• PLIO facilitates comprehensive flow management across diverse water network components.
• Predictive optimal control strategies effectively meet future demands while maintaining optimal pressure levels.
• The tool optimizes operational goals, including network safety volumes and flow control stability.
• Successful off-line simulation results were demonstrated using the Santiago-Chile case study.

Conclusions:

• PLIO provides a robust and versatile solution for real-time operational control of complex water networks.
• Predictive optimal control is a powerful technique for optimizing water network performance and resource allocation.
• The tool's ability to model networks graphically and generate equations automatically streamlines the implementation process.