Efficiency of a Neuro-Fuzzy Model Based on the Hilbert-Huang Transform for Flood Prediction

Abstract

Flooding is a natural phenomenon, which constitutes a threat that could lead to loss of human life and material property. It constitutes the first major risk. During the last years, artificial intelligence has been widely applied in the field of hydrology and in many other fields of hydraulic engineering. The Hilbert-Huang Transform (HHT) is a new signal processing technique in the analysis of non-stationary time series, particularly effective for hydrological series. Currently, the application of intelligent hybrid systems in different areas has shown a good performance and an unequalled efficiency. As such, the hybrid technique of an adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system (ANFIS) coupled to the Hilbert-Huang transform (HHT-ANFIS), was used in this study to estimate daily flow rates in Algiers’ coastal basin. The results obtained are very encouraging and more efficient than those obtained by the neuro-fuzzy inference model and the classical multiple linear regression (MLR) model.