Multiobjective reservoir operating rules based on cascade reservoir input variable selection method

The input variable selection in multiobjective cascade reservoir operation is an important and difficult task. To address this problem, this study proposes the cascade reservoir input variable selection (CIS) method that searches for the most valuable input variables for decision making in multiple-objectivity cascade reservoir operations. From a case study of Hanjiang cascade reservoirs in China, we derive reservoir operating rules based on the combination of CIS and Gaussian radial basis functions (RBFs) methods and optimize the rules through Pareto-archived dynamically dimensioned search (PA-DDS) with two objectives: to maximize both power generation and water supply. We select the most effective input variables and evaluate their impacts on cascade reservoir operations. From the simulated trajectories of reservoir water level, power generation, and water supply, we analyze the multiobjective operating rules with several input variables. The results demonstrate that the CIS method performs well in the selection of input variables for the cascade reservoir operation, and the RBFs method can fully express the nonlinear operating rules for cascade reservoirs. We conclude that the CIS method is an effective and stable approach to identifying the most valuable information from a large number of candidate input variables. While the reservoir storage state is the most valuable information for the Hanjiang cascade reservoir multiobjective operation, the reservoir inflow is the most effective input variable for the single-objective operation of Danjiangkou.