Identification of Network Patterns in Optimal Water Distribution Systems Based on Complex Network Analysis

摘要

Many different aspects of water distribution systems have been in the focus of optimization. One aspect is the multi-objective design of the pipe network, resulting in a set of trade off (Pareto) network solutions. While the complex nature of water distribution systems has already been explored, literature is lacking of an investigation of the complex graph characteristics of optimal networks. To explore network characteristics and patterns of optimal networks, a water distribution system is optimized with a multi-objective approach considering costs and resilience. Besides characterization of the topology of the investigated network, also, the multitude of Pareto solutions is investigated with different graph measures taking into account structural, hydraulic, and water quality features. E.g. it was determined that the edge betweenness centrality from the water source drives the layout of the optimal solution for low resilience values and with an appropriate weighting function for the graph there is a linear correlation between the shortest path lengths and the nodal water ages (R~2=0.965).