Dong et al. (2026) Rotational canal scheduling in two oasis irrigation districts using a weighted composite objective and a sigmoid-adaptive genetic algorithm

Identification

• Journal: Agricultural Water Management
• Year: 2026
• Date: 2026-08-14
• Authors: Yu Dong, Hui Zhang, Jiayang Li, Miao Li, Pengcheng Luo, Jinzhu Zhang, Ningning Liu, Zhenhua Wang
• DOI: 10.1016/j.agwat.2026.110682

Research Groups

• College of Water Conservancy & Architectural Engineering, Shihezi University
• Key Laboratory of Modern Water-Saving Irrigation of Xinjiang Production & Construction Group, Shihezi University
• Technology Innovation Center for Agricultural Water and Fertilizer Efficiency Equipment of Xinjiang Production & Construction Corps, Shihezi University
• Key Laboratory of Northwest Oasis Water-saving Agriculture, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs

Short Summary

This study developed a constrained rotational scheduling framework that combines modeled canal seepage loss and trunk-canal discharge variance within a weighted composite objective. The framework was tested in the Zhangye and Shihezi oasis irrigation districts.

Objective

• Develop a constrained rotational scheduling framework for arid irrigation districts.
• Evaluate the relative importance of seepage loss and discharge variance in the scheduling process.

Study Configuration

• Spatial Scale: Oasis irrigation districts (Zhangye and Shihezi)
• Temporal Scale: 6-hour time steps

Methodology and Data

• Models used: SIGGA (Sigmoid-adaptive Genetic Algorithm) with a weighted composite objective function.
• Data sources: Field measurements of canal seepage, irrigation requirements, hydraulic constraints, and decision bounds.

Main Results

• The framework was able to generate feasible schedules for both study areas.
• The optimal weight for the seepage loss term was found to be 0.5 in the Zhangye case.
• SIGGA produced a median final composite-objective value 3.9% lower than that of the benchmark algorithm under an equal function-evaluation budget.

Contributions

• This study provides a novel framework for constrained rotational scheduling in arid irrigation districts.
• The results highlight the importance of considering both seepage loss and discharge variance in the scheduling process.

Funding

• This research was funded by the Key Laboratory of Modern Water-Saving Irrigation of Xinjiang Production & Construction Group, Shihezi University.

Citation

@article{Dong2026Rotational,
  author = {Dong, Yu and Zhang, Hui and Li, Jiayang and Li, Miao and Luo, Pengcheng and Zhang, Jinzhu and Liu, Ningning and Wang, Zhenhua},
  title = {Rotational canal scheduling in two oasis irrigation districts using a weighted composite objective and a sigmoid-adaptive genetic algorithm},
  journal = {Agricultural Water Management},
  year = {2026},
  doi = {10.1016/j.agwat.2026.110682},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agwat.2026.110682}
}