Model predictive control for incorporating transport ofwater and transport overwater in the dry season

Abstract

The Netherlands lies in the delta area, which is formed by the Rivers Rhine, Meuse and Scheldt. Being a low-lying country, dikes and other waterretaining structures have been constructed for the purposes of flood protection (transport of water), water supply (transport of water), and navigation (transport over water). All of these objectives are important within the total operational water management. In order to achieve these objectives and make them explicit, we propose a water management approach in which each goal is addressed specifically by a term in a cost function.We assume one centralized Model Predictive Controller, which can determine the balance among the different objectives, as the control strategy for determining which actions to take when controlling the Dutch water system, especially in droughts. Simulation experiments are used to illustrate the potential of this approach under different scenarios in the dry season.