Quantitative Studies of the Optimization Allocation of Water Resources in China – A Review
中国水资源优化配置定量研究进展

In order to obtain a basic outline of the development of quantitative studies of water resource allocation, journal articles from Chinese HowNet(CNKI) were reviewed. First, core journals, Master's and doctoral dissertations about quantitative study on optimization allocation for water resources were downloaded from CNKI. Second, statistical analysis of these papers was done according to their publication time and type, literature source and content, and research topics. After that, methods from political economy, ecology, planning and fuzzy mathematics, systematics and artificial intelligence were used to obtain the evolution and development trend of the quantitative study on optimization allocation for water resources. The main solutions for the above five methods were game theory, ecological-economic-social development, planning-fuzzy mathematics, decomposition and coordination theory of large-scale system and genetic algorithms. Crossover, fusion and penetration between the five methods increased the depth and breadth of the optimization allocation study of water resources. There were more paper counts, better quality and standardization, more research teams, more in-depth content and more extensive cross-disciplines in recent years. Content and model of water resources allocation were used monotonously to comprehensively. Technology of water resources allocation was employed traditionally to intelligently. Diverse and integrated evaluation methods for allocation results were employed. Multi-source, multi-dimensional, multi-type, multi-angle and multi-content study methods reflect the complex and interdisciplinary characteristics of water resources allocation. The most cutting-edge theories and methods from various disciplines were used for optimization allocation study for water resources. These theories and methods not only provided reasonable solutions to a variety of complex issues that exist in water resources allocation, but also enriched the theory of optimization allocation for water resources. The quantitative study of optimization allocation for water resources will be developed and improved if interdisciplinary and integrated methods, 3S technology, and a variety of optimization algorithms and software are applied.