TN-93 : Real-time reservoir operation - a review

Abstract

Multipurpose reservoir projects with the objectives of conservation of water and flood control are quite common. The conservation purposes, which include irrigation, hydroelectric power generation, municipal and industrial water supply, navigation and recreation etc. require that water should be stored in the reservoir during the periods when the inflows exceed the demand and should be released from the storage when situation reverses. The flood control purpose requires empty storage space in the reservoir so that the incoming floods can be absorbed and moderated to permissible limits. This conflict between the two pur-poses in terms of storage space requirements is resolved through proper operation of reservoirs. A reservoir operation policy specifies the amount of water to be released from the storage at any time depending upon the state of the reservoir, level of demands and any information about the likely inflow in the reservoir.

The term "Real-Time" operation is used to denote that mode of operation in which the control decisions for a finite future time horizon are taken based on the condition of the system at that instant of time when this decision is to be taken and the forecasts about the likely inputs over this time horizon. Optimization is one of the most powerful and popular technique for solving various problems associated with the operation of a reservoir. During the past few years, its use has grown tremendously, due to wider availability of computer and efficient general purpose packages.

In the present report a comprehensive review of literature pertaining to reservoir operation in real-time mode has been made. Telemetry system and real-time flow forecasting which are essential prerequisites for real-time reservoir operation have been discussed. A comprehensive bibliography is given at the end for reference purposes.