Abstract
The quality of raw and treated wastewater was evaluated using the principal component weighted index (PCWI) which was defined as a sum of principal component scores weighted according to their eigenvalues. For this purpose, five principal components (PCs) explaining 88% and 83% of the total variability of raw and treated wastewater samples, respectively, were extracted from 11 original physico-chemical parameters by robust principal component analysis (PCA). The PCWIs of raw and treated wastewater were analyzed in terms of their statistical distributions, temporal changes, mutual correlations, correlations with original parameters, and common water quality indexes (WQI). The PCWI allowed us to monitor temporal wastewater quality by one parameter instead of several. Unlike other weighted indexes, the PCWI is composed of independent variables with minimal information noise and objectively determined weights.
Highlights
IntroductionThe composite indexes are based on a principle of the simple additive weighting (SAW) method combining independent criteria of which importance are expressed by their statistical weights [31]
The aim of this paper is to demonstrate the utilization of principal component weighted index (PCWI) for the monitoring of raw and treated wastewater quality, which has never been described in the literature
Based on the principal component analysis (PCA) results, the wastewater samples were characterized by a few first principal components (PCs) and relationships between original parameters were discussed
Summary
The composite indexes are based on a principle of the simple additive weighting (SAW) method combining independent criteria of which importance are expressed by their statistical weights [31]. These appropriate weights can be determined by subjective and objective methods. Subjective methods estimate the weights based on expert opinions and judgments of decision makers [32,33] or recommended standards [34]. The determination of objective weights is based on the application of various statistical measures, such as variably [38,39], correlation [40,41], and information content [42]
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