An Operational Scheduling Framework for Tanker-Based Water Distribution Systems under Uncertainty

Tankerwater systems play a critical role in providing adequateservice to meet potable water demands in the face of acute water crisisin many cities globally. Managing tanker movements among the supplyand demand sides requires an efficient scheduling framework that couldpromote economic feasibility, ensure timely delivery, and avoid waterwastage. However, to realize such a sustainable water supply operation,inherent uncertainties related to consumer demand and tanker traveltime need to be accounted in the operational scheduling. Herein, atwo-stage stochastic optimization model with a recourse approach isdeveloped for scheduling and optimization of tanker-based water supplyand treatment facility operations under uncertainty. The uncertainwater demands and tanker travel times are combinedly modeled in acomputationally efficient manner using a hybrid Monte Carlo simulationand scenario tree approach. The maximum demand fulfillment, limitedextraction of groundwater, and timely delivery of quality water areenforced through a set of constraints to achieve sustainable operation.A representative urban case study is demonstrated, and results arediscussed for two uncertainty cases: (i) only demand and (ii) integrateddemand-travel time. The value of stochastic solutions over the expectedvalue and perfect information model solutions are analyzed and featuresof the framework for informed decision-making are discussed.