Scalable Stochastic Optimization of Complex Energy Systems

We present a scalable approach and implementation for solving stochastic programming problems, with application to the optimization of complex energy systems under uncertainty. Stochastic programming is used to make decisions in the present while incorporating a model of uncertainty about future events (scenarios). These problems present serious computational difficulties as the number of scenarios becomes … Read more

Optimal Distributed Online Prediction using Mini-Batches

Online prediction methods are typically presented as serial algorithms running on a single processor. However, in the age of web-scale prediction problems, it is increasingly common to encounter situations where a single processor cannot keep up with the high rate at which inputs arrive. In this work we present the distributed mini-batch algorithm, a method … Read more

On the parallel solution of dense saddle-point linear systems arising in stochastic programming

We present a novel approach for solving dense saddle-point linear systems in a distributed-memory environment. This work is motivated by an application in stochastic optimization problems with recourse, but the proposed approach can be used for a large family of dense saddle-point systems, in particular those arising in convex programming. Although stochastic optimization problems have … Read more

Parallel solver for semidefinite programming problem having sparse Schur complement matrix

SemiDefinite Programming (SDP) problem is one of the most central problems in mathematical programming. SDP provides a practical computation framework for many research fields. Some applications, however, require solving large-scale SDPs whose size exceeds the capacity of a single processor in terms of computational time and available memory. SDPARA (SemiDefinite Programming Algorithm paRAllel version) developed … Read more

Fast Multiple Splitting Algorithms for Convex Optimization

We present in this paper two different classes of general $K$-splitting algorithms for solving finite-dimensional convex optimization problems. Under the assumption that the function being minimized has a Lipschitz continuous gradient, we prove that the number of iterations needed by the first class of algorithms to obtain an $\epsilon$-optimal solution is $O(1/\epsilon)$. The algorithms in … Read more

An interior-point Lagrangian decomposition method for separable convex optimization

In this paper we propose a distributed algorithm for solving large-scale separable convex problems using Lagrangian dual decomposition and the interior-point framework. By adding self-concordant barrier terms to the ordinary Lagrangian we prove under mild assumptions that the corresponding family of augmented dual functions is self-concordant. This makes it possible to efficiently use the Newton … Read more

Parallel implementation of a semidefinite programming solver based on CSDP on a distributed memory cluster

In this paper we present the algorithmic framework and practical aspects of implementing a parallel version of a primal-dual semidefinite programming solver on a distributed memory computer cluster. Our implementation is based on the CSDP solver and uses a message passing interface (MPI), and the ScaLAPACK library. A new feature is implemented to deal with … Read more

Derivative Free Optimization Methods for Optimizing Stirrer Configurations

In this paper a numerical approach for the optimization of stirrer configurations is presented. The methodology is based on a flow solver, and a mathematical optimization tool, which are integrated into an automated procedure. The flow solver is based on the discretization of the incompressible Navier-Stokes equations by means of a fully conservative finite-volume method … Read more

Parallel Primal-Dual Interior-Point Methods for SemiDefinite Programs

The Semidefinite Program (SDP) is a fundamental problem in mathematical programming. It covers a wide range of applications, such as combinatorial optimization, control theory, polynomial optimization, and quantum chemistry. Solving extremely large-scale SDPs which could not be solved before is a significant work to open up a new vista of future applications of SDPs. Our … Read more

Solving Large-Scale Semidefinite Programs in Parallel

We describe an approach to the parallel and distributed solution of large-scale, block structured semidefinite programs using the spectral bundle method. Various elements of this approach (such as data distribution, an implicitly restarted Lanczos method tailored to handle block diagonal structure, a mixed polyhedral-semidefinite subdifferential model, and other aspects related to parallelism) are combined in … Read more