Suspended sediment load prediction in rivers by using heuristic regression and hybrid artificial intelligence models

Abstract

Accurate prediction of amount of sediment load in rivers is extremely important for river hydraulics. The solution of the problem has been become complicated since the explanation of hydraulic phenomenon between the flow and the sediment on the river is dependent many parameters. The usage of different regression methods and artificial intelligence techniques allows the development of predictions as the traditional methods do not give enough accurate results. In this study, data of the flow and suspended sediment load (SSL) obtained from Karsikoy Gauging Station, located on Coruh River in the north-eastern of Turkey, modelled with different regression methods (multiple regression, multivariate adaptive regression splines) and artificial neural network (ANN) (ANN-back propagation, ANN teaching-learning-based optimization algorithm and ANN-artificial bee colony). When the results were evaluated, it was seen that the models of ANN method were close to each other and gave better results than the regression models. It is concluded that these models of ANN method can be used successfully in estimating the SSL.