Support vector machine for prediction of the compressive strength of no-slump concrete

The sensitivity of compressive strength of no-slump concrete to its ingredient materials and proportions, necessitate the use of robust models to guarantee both estimation and generalization features. It was known that the problem of compressive strength prediction owes high degree of complexity and uncertainty due to the variable nature of materials, workmanship quality, etc. Moreover, using the chemical and mineral additives, superimposes the problem's complexity. Traditionally this property of concrete is predicted by conventional linear or nonlinear regression models. In general, these models comprise lower accuracy and in most cases they fail to meet the extrapolation accuracy and generalization requirements. Recently, artificial intelligence-based robust systems have been successfully implemented in this area. In this regard, this paper aims to investigate the use of optimized support vector machine (SVM) to predict the compressive strength of no-slump concrete and compare with optimized neural network (ANN). The results showed that after optimization process, both models are applicable for prediction purposes with similar high-qualities of estimation and generalization norms; however, it was indicated that optimization and modeling with SVM is very rapid than ANN models.