Robust Data Worth Analysis with Surrogate Models

Highly detailed physically based groundwater models are often applied to make predictions of system states under unknown forcing. The required analysis of uncertainty is often unfeasible due to the high computational demand. We combine two possible solution strategies: (1) the use of faster surrogate models; and (2) a robust data worth analysis combining quick first-order second-moment uncertainty quantification with null-space Monte Carlo techniques to account for parametric uncertainty. A structurally and parametrically simplified model and a proper orthogonal decomposition (POD) surrogate are investigated. Data worth estimations by both surrogates are compared against estimates by a complex MODFLOW benchmark model of an aquifer in New Zealand. Data worth is defined as the change in post-calibration predictive uncertainty of groundwater head, river-groundwater exchange flux, and drain flux data, compared to the calibrated model. It incorporates existing observations, potential new measurements of system states (“additional” data) as well as knowledge of model parameters (“parametric” data). The data worth analysis is extended to account for non-uniqueness of model parameters by null-space Monte Carlo sampling. Data worth estimates of the surrogates and the benchmark suggest good agreement for both surrogates in estimating worth of existing data. The structural simplification surrogate only partially reproduces the worth of “additional” data and is unable to estimate “parametric” data, while the POD model is in agreement with the complex benchmark for both “additional” and “parametric” data. The variance of the POD data worth estimates suggests the need to account for parameter non-uniqueness, like presented here, for robust results.