Genetic algorithm optimisation of water distribution systems accounting for greenhouse gas emissions

Abstract

The optimisation of water distribution systems (WDSs) has been a focus for civil and environmental engineers for over 30 years. In previous research, attention has mainly been given to the minimisation of the cost of the networks, due to the high expenditure associated with the construction and maintenance of WDSs. However, the impacts of WDSs on the environment usually have not been considered adequately. The study described in this paper extends previous research by incorporating into the optimisation of WDSs the environmental criterion of minimising greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions as a second objective. A multi-objective genetic algorithm has been developed to solve this problem. The impac..