Comparative study of different training algorithms in backpropagation neural networks for generalized biomass higher heating value prediction

When selecting biomass feedstock for sustainable heat and electricity generation, higher heating value (HHV) is an important consideration. Meanwhile, the laboratory procedures of using an adiabatic oxygen bomb calorimeter to determine the HHV are strenuous, costly, and time-consuming. As a result, researchers have turned to artificial intelligence techniques such as artificial neural networks (ANN) to predict HHV using data from proximate analysis. Notwithstanding, this approach has been hampered by different case-specific techniques and methodologies given the heterogeneous nature of biomass materials and intricate ANN structures. This study, therefore, examined and compared the efficacy of six training algorithms comprising thirteen distinct training functions of feedforward backpropagation neural networks to predict the HHV of a variety of biomass materials as a function of the proximate analysis. In creating the networks, the neurons of the hidden layer were iterated from 1 to 20 leading to 260 investigated scenarios. Compared to other training algorithms, the Bayesian Regularization and Levenberg-Marquardt with 15 and 12 hidden neurons respectively, demonstrated superior prediction performances based on the Nash-Sutcliff's efficiencies of 0.9044 and 0.8877, and mean squared errors of 0.002271 and 0.00267. It is envisaged that this study will create an insightful paradigm for a rapid selection of best-performing ANN algorithms for biomass HHV prediction.