Waterwheel Plant Algorithm: A Novel Metaheuristic Optimization Method

Attempting to address optimization problems in various scientific disciplines is a fundamental and significant difficulty requiring optimization. This study presents the waterwheel plant technique (WWPA), a novel stochastic optimization technique motivated by natural systems. The proposed WWPA's basic concept is based on modeling the waterwheel plant's natural behavior while on a hunting expedition. To find prey, WWPA uses plants as search agents. We present WWPA's mathematical model for use in addressing optimization problems. Twenty-three objective functions of varying unimodal and multimodal types were used to assess WWPA's performance. The results of optimizing unimodal functions demonstrate WWPA's strong exploitation ability to get close to the optimal solution, while the results of optimizing multimodal functions show WWPA's strong exploration ability to zero in on the major optimal region of the search space. Three engineering design problems were also used to gauge WWPA's potential for improving practical programs. The effectiveness of WWPA in optimization was evaluated by comparing its results with those of seven widely used metaheuristic algorithms. When compared with eight competing algorithms, the simulation results and analyses demonstrate that WWPA outperformed them by finding a more proportionate balance between exploration and exploitation.