Combining reinforcement learning with mathematical programming:An approach for optimal design of heat exchanger networks

Heat integration is important for energy-saving in the process industry.It is linked to the persistently challenging task of optimal design of heat exchanger networks(HEN).Due to the inherent highly nonconvex nonlinear and combinatorial nature of the HEN problem,it is not easy to find solutions of high quality for large-scale problems.The reinforcement learning(RL)method,which learns strategies through ongoing exploration and exploitation,reveals advantages in such area.However,due to the complexity of the HEN design problem,the RL method for HEN should be dedicated and designed.A hybrid strategy combining RL with mathematical programming is proposed to take better advantage of both methods.An insightful state representation of the HEN structure as well as a customized reward function is introduced.A Q-learning algorithm is applied to update the HEN structure using theε-greedy strategy.Better results are obtained from three literature cases of different scales.

Neutrosophic Mathematical Programming for Optimization of Multi-Objective Sustainable Biomass Supply Chain Network Design

In this paper,a multi-objective sustainable biomass supply chain network under uncertainty is designed by neutrosophic programming method.In this method,for each objective function of the problem,three functions of truth membership,non-determination and falsehood are considered.Neutrosophic programming method in this paper simultaneously seeks to optimize the total costs of the supply chain network,the amount of greenhouse gas emissions,the number of potential people hired and the time of product transfer along the supply chain network.To achieve the stated objective functions,strategic decisions such as locating potential facilities and tactical decisions such as optimal product flow allocation and vehicle routing must be made.The results of the implementation of neutrosophic programming method show the high efficiency of this method in achieving the optimal values of each objective function.Also,by examining the rate of uncertainty,it was observed that with increasing this rate,the total costs of supply chain network design,greenhouse gas emissions and product transfer times have increased,and in contrast,the potential employment rate of individuals has decreased.

Solving Multi-Objective Linear Programming Problem by Statistical Averaging Method with the Help of Fuzzy Programming Method

A multi-objective linear programming problem is made from fuzzy linear programming problem. It is due the fact that it is used fuzzy programming method during the solution. The Multi objective linear programming problem can be converted into the single objective function by various methods as Chandra Sen’s method, weighted sum method, ranking function method, statistical averaging method. In this paper, Chandra Sen’s method and statistical averaging method both are used here for making single objective function from multi-objective function. Two multi-objective programming problems are solved to verify the result. One is numerical example and the other is real life example. Then the problems are solved by ordinary simplex method and fuzzy programming method. It can be seen that fuzzy programming method gives better optimal values than the ordinary simplex method.

Rapid Prototype Development Approach for Genetic Programming

Genetic Programming (GP) is an important approach to deal with complex problem analysis and modeling, and has been applied in a wide range of areas. The development of GP involves various aspects, including design of genetic operators, evolutionary controls and implementations of heuristic strategy, evaluations and other mechanisms. When designing genetic operators, it is necessary to consider the possible limitations of encoding methods of individuals. And when selecting evolutionary control strategies, it is also necessary to balance search efficiency and diversity based on representation characteristics as well as the problem itself. More importantly, all of these matters, among others, have to be implemented through tedious coding work. Therefore, GP development is both complex and time-consuming. To overcome some of these difficulties that hinder the enhancement of GP development efficiency, we explore the feasibility of mutual assistance among GP variants, and then propose a rapid GP prototyping development method based on πGrammatical Evolution (πGE). It is demonstrated through regression analysis experiments that not only is this method beneficial for the GP developers to get rid of some tedious implementations, but also enables them to concentrate on the essence of the referred problem, such as individual representation, decoding means and evaluation. Additionally, it provides new insights into the roles of individual delineations in phenotypes and semantic research of individuals.

A Partial Parallel Airport Gate Assignment Supported by a Knowledge－based System Combined with Mathematical Programming

The gate assignment at an airport is one of the major activities in airport operations.With the increase of passenger traffic volumes and the number of flights, the complexity of this task and the factors to be considered have increased significantly, and an efficient gate utilizationhas received considerable attention. For overcoming the shortcomings of previous gate assignmentapproaches, this paper presents a partial parallel gate assignment approach, by which more factorsconcerning aircraft and gates can be collsidered at the same time. This paper also presents themethod of using a knowledge-based system combined with a mathematical programming method forgetting an optimized feasible assignment solution. By this way, it is more easily to get the solutionthat satisfies both the static and dynamic situations,and thus it may adapt well to meet the needsof actual use to rea-time operations. An experimental prototype has been implemented, and a casestudy is presented at the end of the paper.

MATHEMATICAL PROGRAMMING ANALYSIS OF BILINEAR RHEOLOGICAL LUBRICATION MECHANICS

Bilinear theological lubrication mechanics provides an important basis for the designs of re- cently developed electrorheological(ER)'smart'journal bearings and those lubricated by mixed fluid-solid lubri- cants.But there is not yet a reliable and efficient numerical method for such a problem of non-Newtonian flu- id mechanics.In the present paper,a finite element method(FEM)together with mat hematical programming solution is successfully used to solve such a problem.A reliable and generalized numerical method for the designs of electrorheological 'smart' journal bearings and the bearings lubricated by mixed fluid- solid lubri- cant is presented.

OPTIMIZATION OF THE TAKE-OFF MOVEMENT OF SKI JUMPING WITH THE METHOD OF MATHEMATICAL PROGRAMMING

This paper is based on the finite and dispersed data which were obtained from the experiments of the wind tunnel and of the force measurement and from the high-speed photography. It analyses and optimizes the take-off movement of ski jumping with the theory of dynamics of systems of rigid bodies and with the method of mathematical programming. The paper describes the optimal take-off movement of ski jumping. Furthermore, it presents an example and compares the result with those of other papers published at home and abroad. The comparison shows that our computation and optimization are reasonable and well-grounded.

Approach for uncertain multi-objective programming problems with correlated objective functions under C_(EV) criterion

An uncertain multi-objective programming problem is a special type of mathematical multi-objective programming involving uncertain variables. This type of problem is important because there are several uncertain variables in real-world problems.Therefore, research on the uncertain multi-objective programming problem is highly relevant, particularly those problems whose objective functions are correlated. In this paper, an approach that solves an uncertain multi-objective programming problem under the expected-variance value criterion is proposed. First, we define the basic framework of the approach and review concepts such as a Pareto efficient solution and expected-variance value criterion using an order relation between various uncertain variables.Second, the uncertain multi-objective problem is converted into an uncertain single-objective programming problem via a linear weighted method or ideal point method. Then the problem is transformed into a deterministic single objective programming problem under the expected-variance value criterion. Third, four lemmas and two theorems are proved to illustrate that the optimal solution of the deterministic single-objective programming problem is an efficient solution to the original uncertainty problem. Finally, two numerical examples are presented to validate the effectiveness of the proposed approach.

New approach for uncertain random multi-objective programming problems based on C_(ESD) criterion

To overcome the defects that the traditional ap-proach for multi-objective programming under uncertain ran-dom environment(URMOP)neglects the randomness and uncer-tainty of the problem and the volatility of the results,a new ap-proach is proposed based on expected value-standard devi-ation value criterion(C_(ESD) criterion).Firstly,the effective solution to the URMOP problem is defined;then,by applying sequence relationship between the uncertain random variables,the UR-MOP problem is transformed into a single-objective program-ming(SOP)under uncertain random environment(URSOP),which are transformed into a deterministic counterpart based on the C_(ESD) criterion.Then the validity of the new approach is proved that the optimal solution to the SOP problem is also effi-cient for the URMOP problem;finally,a numerical example and a case application are presented to show the effectiveness of the new approach.

Hierarchical On-line Scheduling of Multiproduct Batch Plants with a Combined Approach of Mathematical Programming and Genetic Algorithm

In this contribution we present an online scheduling algorithm for a real world multiproduct batch plant. The overall mixed integer nonlinear programming (MINLP) problem is hierarchically structured into a mixed integer linear programming (MILP) problem first and then a reduced dimensional MINLP problem, which are optimized by mathematical programming (MP) and genetic algorithm (GA) respectively. The basis idea relies on combining MP with GA to exploit their complementary capacity. The key features of the hierarchical model are explained and illustrated with some real world cases from the multiproduct batch plants.

A FINITE ELEMENT—MATHEMATICAL PROGRAMMING METHOD FOR ELASTOPLASTIC PROBLEMS BASED ON THE PRINCIPLE OF VIRTUAL WORK

By expanding the yielding function according toTaylor series and neglecting the high order terms, the elastoplastic constitutive equation is written in a linear complementary form. Based on this linear complementary form and the principle of virtual work, a finite element-complementary method is derived for elastoplastic problem. This method is available for materials which satisfy either associated or nonassociated flow rule. In addition, the existence and uniqueness oj solution for the method are also discussed and some useful conclusions are given.

A MATHEMATICAL PROGRAMMING ALGORITHM FOR LIMIT ANALYSIS

This paper deals with the limit analyses of perfect rigid-plastic continua.Based on the kinematic theorem of the limit analysis theory,a mathematical programming finite element formula for determining the upper bound load multiplier has been established,and an iteration algorithm proposed accordingly.In this algorithm the plastic and rigid zones are distinguished for every iteration step,and the goal function is modified gradually.The difficulties caused by the nonsmoothness of the goal function are over- come.Some examples solved by this algorithm are presented.

Bi-matrix Games with Fuzzy Strategies and Fuzzy Payoffs and Their Mathematical Programming Equivalents

A fuzzy bi-matrix game（FBG）,namely a two-person non-zero-sum game with fuzzy strategies and fuzzy payoffs is proposed.We have defined and analyzed the optimal strategies of this FBG,and shown that it can be transformed into a corresponding fuzzy mathematical programming issue,for which a ranking function approach can be applied.In addition,optimal strategies of FBG for both Player I and Player II can be gotten.

A Numerical Method for Rigid-plastic FEM Analysis Basing on Mathematical Programming

The rigid-plastic analysis of mental forming simulation is formulated as a discrete nonlinear mathematical programming problem with equality and inequality constraints by means of the finite element technique. An iteration algorithm is used to solve this formulation, which distinguishes the integration points of the rigid zones and the plastic zones and solves a series of the quadratic programming to overcome the difficulties caused by the nonsmoothness and the nonlinearity of the objective function. This method has been used to carry out the rigid-plastic FEM analysis. An example is given to demonstrate the effectiveness of this method.

MULTI-OBJECTIVE PROGRAMMING MODEL OF TROPICAL CROPS IN HAINAN ISLAND

According to Hainan Island's biological characteristics, and existing structure of productivity of tropical crops and local climatic conditions, this paper carries on regional division of tropical crops by fuzzy mathematics. Based on calculation of basic parameters for tl1e formation of production, near-tem optimum models of tropical crops structure of each region was established by means of multi-objective programming, and a far-term grey programming model was set up through the above-mentioned near-term model and prediction of future parameters. Conclusion shows that the near-term programming may raise the profit by 5. 1-55.7 percent and far-tem programming by 54-90 percent, both gainingobvious economic benefits.

Multi-Objective Mathematical Model for the Optimal Time to Harvest Sugarcane

In this paper, the sugarcane and sugar industry in Thailand is studied. The government determines the sugarcane prices which is based on the two main factors: 1) weight and 2) commercial cane sugar (standard value equal 10 C.C.S.). Usually, the C.C.S. will increase with time and the weight will decrease. The main purpose of this research is to find the optimal harvest time to maximize revenue and minimize gathering cost. The mathematical model is first formulated under the regulations of the Office of the Cane and Sugar Board (OCSB). The -constraints method is then applied to solve the multi-objective mathematical model. The optimal harvest times in the four regions of Thailand (Northern, Central, Eastern, North-Eastern) for crop years 2012/ 13, 2013/14 and 2014/15 are obtained for comparison.

MULTI-OBJECTIVE PROGRAMMING FOR AIRPORT GATE REASSIGNMENT

To improve the efficiency of gate reassignment and optimize the plan of gate reassignment,the concept of disruption management is introduced,and a multi-objective programming model for airport gate reassignment is proposed.Considering the interests of passengers and the airport,the model minimizes the total flight delay,the total passengers′walking distance and the number of flights reassigned to other gates different from the planned ones.According to the characteristics of the gate reassignment,the model is simplified.As the multi-objective programming model is hard to reach the optimal solutions simultaneously,a threshold of satisfactory solutions of the model is set.Then a simulated annealing algorithm is designed for the model.Case studies show that the model decreases the total flight delay to the satisfactory solutions,and minimizes the total passengers′walking distance.The least change of planned assignment is also reached.The results achieve the goals of disruption management.Therefore,the model is verified to be effective.

Estimation of CARA Preferences and Positive Mathematical Programming

The purpose of this paper is to combine the estimation of output price risk and positive mathematical programming (PMP). It reconciles the risk programming presented by Freund with a consistent estimate of the constant absolute risk aversion (CARA) coefficient. It extends the PMP approach to calibration of realized production outputs and observed input prices. The results of this specification include 1) uniqueness of the calibrating solution, 2) elimination of the tautological calibration constraints typical of the original PMP procedure, 3) equivalence between a phase I calibrating solution and a solution obtained by combining phase I and phase II of the traditional PMP procedure. In this extended PMP framework, the cost function specification involves output quantities and input prices—contrary to the myopic cost function of the traditional PMP approach. This extension allows for a phase III calibrating model that replaces the usual linear technology with relations corresponding to Shephard lemma (in the primal constraints) and the marginal cost function (in the dual constraints). An empirical example with a sample of farms producing four crops illustrates the novel procedure.

Compactness, Contractibility and Fixed Point Properties of the Pareto Sets in Multi-Objective Programming

This paper presents the Pareto solutions in continuous multi-objective mathematical programming. We discuss the role of some assumptions on the objective functions and feasible domain, the relationship between them, and compactness, contractibility and fixed point properties of the Pareto sets. The authors have tried to remove the concavity assumptions on the objective functions which are usually used in multi-objective maximization problems. The results are based on constructing a retraction from the feasible domain onto the Pareto-optimal set.