Research Article | | Peer-Reviewed

On an Alternative Method of Estimation for Weibull Distribution

Received: 20 June 2026     Accepted: 21 July 2026     Published: 24 August 2026
Views:       Downloads:
Abstract

In this study, the parameters of the limiting maximum Weibull distribution were estimated using a Combined Estimation Method (CEM) that combines the robustness of Trimmed L-moments (TL-moments (1,0)) with the efficiency of Maximum Likelihood Estimation (MLE). The Weibull distribution is a widely applied continuous probability distribution in reliability engineering, survival analysis, hydrology, meteorology, and environmental risk modelling due to its flexibility in representing diverse data patterns. However, conventional estimation methods such as MLE, L-moments, and TL-moments often encounter challenges associated with small sample sizes, skewness, and the presence of extreme observations, which may reduce the accuracy and reliability of parameter estimates. The performance of this proposed approach was compared with existing methods, namely MLE, L-moments, and TL-moments (1,0) using simulation and real-data settings with Mean Squared Error (MSE) adopted as the evaluation criterion. The analysis was carried out using Monthly Maximum Temperature (°C) data obtained from the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet), Lagos State, covering the period 2020 to 2024. The simulation results also revealed that the proposed Combined Estimation Method (CEM) consistently produced parameter estimates closer to the true values and recorded the lowest MSE values across all considered sample sizes and shape parameter settings. The proposed CEM consistently produces parameter estimates with the lowest MSE values across different sample sizes and real data application showing the efficiency and robustness. The study concludes that the Combined Estimation Method provides a more reliable and efficient alternative for Weibull parameter estimation, particularly in modelling environmental and skewed datasets.

Published in American Journal of Theoretical and Applied Statistics (Volume 15, Issue 4)
DOI 10.11648/j.ajtas.20261504.15
Page(s) 164-176
Creative Commons

This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.

Copyright

Copyright © The Author(s), 2026. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Weibull Distribution, Trimmed L-moments, Combined Estimation Approach, Simulation, Mean Squared Error

1. Introduction
The limiting maximum Weibull distribution is a flexible continuous probability distribution widely applied in reliability engineering, survival analysis, hydrology, meteorology, and industrial risk modelling. It is particularly useful for modelling lifetime and environmental data because it can represent increasing, constant, and decreasing failure rates depending on the value of its shape parameter. This flexibility has made it one of the most important models in statistical distribution theory, especially in situations involving skewed or asymmetric data.
Accurate estimation of the Weibull parameters is essential because these parameters directly influence reliability analysis, risk prediction, and return level estimation in environmental studies. Several researchers have applied Weibull distribution to environmental dataset for instance the Weibull distribution performance was examined and showed that MLE, while efficient asymptotically, can be highly sensitive to small sample fluctuations . Moment-based estimators often provide more stable results than likelihood-based approaches when data are heavily skewed . Also, Weibull distribution remains a cornerstone in reliability modelling but noted that parameter estimation challenges persist under real-world conditions . Hybrid estimation techniques can significantly improve predictive accuracy in reliability systems by combining the strengths of different statistical approaches. In a more recent study, conducted a comprehensive performance evaluation of selected estimators for the Generalized Extreme Value. In another contribution, the results revealed significant differences in the performance of the estimation methods. Specifically, the TL-moments (1,1) estimator consistently produced the lowest MSE values . The Weibull distribution provides a reliable framework for modelling hydrological extremes due to its ability to capture variability in environmental processes . Similarly, demonstrated its effectiveness in wind speed modelling for renewable energy assessment, showing that Weibull-based models outperform several competing lifetime distributions in predictive accuracy.
Accurate estimation of the Weibull parameters is essential because these parameters directly influence reliability analysis, risk prediction, and return level estimation in environmental studies. Several estimation techniques have been proposed in the literature, including Maximum Likelihood Estimation (MLE), Method of Moments, L-moments, Probability Weighted Moments (PWM), and Trimmed L-moments (TL-moments). Given these challenges and the limitations of existing methods, there is a need for more robust and efficient estimation procedures capable of providing reliable parameter estimates across a wide range of sample sizes and data conditions. Given these challenges and the limitations of existing methods, this study therefore develops a Combined Estimation Method (CEM) that integrates the robustness of TL-moments (1,0) with the efficiency of Maximum Likelihood Estimation (MLE). The proposed approach aims to improve parameter estimation accuracy and enhance robustness in modelling environmental data, particularly in meteorology.
2. The Limiting Maximum Weibull Distribution
The limiting maximum Weibull distribution is one of the most important distributions in reliability analysis because of its versatility in engineering and environmental applications.
The limiting maximum Cumulative Distribution Function of Weibull distribution is given by
Fx= e-x-μσα x > 0, α>0(1)
While its Probability Density Function is of the form
fx =ασ-x-μσ-α-1e--x-μσαx>0, α >0,σ >0(2)
Where μ is the location parameter, α is the shape and σ is the scale parameter.
2.1. Materials and Methods
This study used a Combined Estimation Method which combined the robustness of Trimmed L-moments (TL-moments (1,0)) with the efficiency of Maximum Likelihood Estimation (MLE) for improved parameter estimation. The performance of this approach was compared to other existing methods, namely MLE, L-moments, and TL-moments, using Monte Carlo simulation techniques implemented in R Studio across varying sample sizes and exact shape parameter values. The Mean Squared Error (MSE) was used as the criterion for assessing the most efficient estimator. Further analysis was carried out using Monthly Maximum Temperature (°C) data obtained from the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet), Lagos State, covering the period 2020 to 2024, where the Weibull model was fitted and parameter estimates were obtained for comparative analysis.
2.2. Maximum Likelihood Estimation
From (2), the resulting likelihood and the log-likelihood functions can be obtained as
Lμ,σ,α= αnσ-ni=1nx-μσα-1exp-x-μσα(3)
l=lnL-nlnα-nlnσ+α-1lnx-μσ+-x-μσα(4)
Similarly, the likelihood function is also maximized w.r.t µ,σ and α to obtain the following system of log-likelihood equations.
lμ=-α-1σx-μσ-1+ ασx-μσ-α-1=0(5)
lσ= -nσ-α-1σx-μσ-1x-μσ+ασx-μσα=0(6)
lα=-nσ+x-μσα-x-μσαlnx-μσα=0(7)
(5), (6) and (7) will be solved by any numerical approach to obtain the estimates of the location, scale and shape parameters.
2.3. L-Moments Estimation Method
L-moments are linear combinations of probability-weighted moments that provide robust measures of a distribution’s characteristics such as location, scale, skewness, and kurtosis, and are less sensitive to outliers compared to conventional moments. They are widely used in statistical inference due to their stability in parameter estimation for skewed distributions .
λr=1rk=0r-1(-1)kr-1kE(Xr-k:r)(8)
Therefore
λr= 1r k=0r-1-1k r-1kr!i-1! r-1!01xFFi-11-Fr-idF(9)
Where xr-k:r denotes the order statistic, and the summation index k in Eq. (8) is mapped to the sample order position i=     k+1 (for 1ir) in Eq. (9) to express the expectation in terms of the cumulative distribution function Fx.
The first two L-moments are given by:
λ1=E(X)(10)
λ2=12E(X2:2-X1:2)(11)
λ3=13EX3:3-2X2:3+X1:3(12)
λ4=14EX4:4-3X3:4-3X2:4+X1:4(13)
L-moment ratios used for shape description are defined as:
τ=λ2λ1,τ3=λ3λ2,τ4=λ4λ2(14)
The sample L-moments are estimated from the sample order statistics which are defined by
lr= 1rnri=1nk=0r-1-1k r-1ki-1r-1-kn-ikxi:n(15)
the equations can be obtained by equating the first three population L-moments to the corresponding first three sample L-moments, i.e., λ1 = l1, λ2 = l2, and λ3 = l3.
Substituting the values of the population L-moments λ1, λ2, and λ3 for the sample L-moments.
The L-moments estimator of the parameters of the Weibull distribution are given by
σГ1+1α1-2-1/α= l2(16)
σ̂=l2 Г1+1α1-2-1/α(17)
L-skewness =τ3̂= λ3λ2=32-1/α-23-1/α-11-2-1/α(18)
L-kurtosis =τ4=  λ4  λ2 = 103-1/α-54-1α-62-1/α+1 1-2-1/α(19)
2.4. Tl- Moment Estimation Method
Elamir, E. A., and Seheult, A. H. Developed trimmed L-moment (TL-moments) as generalisation of L-moments, in which they trimmed one smallest and one largest value from the conceptual sample.
TL-moments in terms quantile function can be written as;
λrt1, t2=1r k=0r-1-1kr+ t1+ t2!r+ t1-k!  t2+k! 01xFFr+ t1-k-11-F t2+kdF(20)
If the level of trimming becomes zero (i.e., t1= t2=0.) the TL- moments reduce to L-moments.
The sample TL-Moments is given by
lr= 1rnr+ t1+ t2 i=t1+1n-t2k=0r-1-1k r-1ki-1r+t1-k-1n-ik+t2xi:n(21)
In this work, we focused on trimming of the unequal cases where t1=1 and t2=0.
Also, the first four TL-moments (1,0) can be written as follow.
λ11, 0=EX2:2(22)
λ21, 0=12EX3:3-X2:3(23)
λ31, 0=13EX4:4-2X3:4+X2:4(24)
λ41, 0=14EX5:5-3X4:5+3X3:5-X2:5(25)
The sample TL-moment (1,0) can be estimated by setting t1=1 and t2=0 in equation (20) above. The TL- moments (1, 0) estimators of the parameters of the Weibull distribution are given by
μ̂=l11, 0+ σ 21/αГ1+1α(26)
σ̂=2l21, 03Г1+1α2-1α -3-1α(27)
τ3̂== λ31, 0λ21, 0=3221α-1231α-2031α. 21α41α921α-931α(28)
τ4̂= λ41, 0λ21, 0=10.31/α-50.21/α-3521/α. 31/α51/α+7521/α. 31/α41/α6.21/α-6.31/α(29)
Where τ3=  λ31, 0 λ21, 0 and τ4=  λ41, 0 λ21, 0 are the coefficients of the variation, skewness and kurtosis.
2.5. Combined Estimation Method (CEM)
The Combined Estimation Method (CEM) for the Weibull distribution was developed by integrating Trimmed L-moments (TL-moments (1,0)) and Maximum Likelihood Estimation (MLE). The estimates of the location (μ) and scale (σ) parameters are obtained using TL-moments (1,0). These estimates are substituted into the Weibull log-likelihood function, thereby reducing it to a partial likelihood function depending on the shape parameter (α). The shape parameter is then estimated by maximizing the partial log-likelihood using an appropriate numerical optimization technique such as the Newton–Raphson method. The obtained estimate of α is substituted into the TL-moments (1, 0) expressions to obtain the estimates of μ and σ. The combined estimators are expressed as θ̂CEM=(μ̂,σ̂,α̂).
From Equations (26) and (27)
σ̂(α)=2l2103Γ11α2-1/α3-1/α(30)
Thus,
σ(α)=2l2103Γ11α2-1/α3-1/α(31)
Substituting Equation (30) into Equation (26),
μ̂(α)=l110+σ(α)2-1/αΓ11α(32)
Therefore,
μ(α)=l110+σ(α)2-1/αΓ11α(33)
Hence, both the location parameter μ and the scale parameter σ are now expressed as functions of the shape parameter α.
The Weibull log-likelihood function given in Equation (4) is
l(μ,σ,α)=-nln(σ)+nln(α)+(α-1)i=1nlnxi-μσ-i=1nxi-μσα
Substituting μ=μα,σ=σα into Equation (4) gives a partial log-likelihood involving only the shape parameter α,
l(α)=l[μ(α),σ(α),α](34)
That is,
lp(α)=-nln[σ(α)]+nln(α)+(α-1)i=1nlnxi-μ(α)σ(α)-i=1nxi-μ(α)σ(α)α(35)
Differentiating the partial log-likelihood with respect to α gives
dlp(α)=0
The resulting equation does not possess an explicit analytical solution. Therefore, numerical optimization procedures such as the Newton–Raphson algorithm are employed to obtain the value of
α̂=arg maxαlp(α)(36)
which maximizes the partial log-likelihood function.
After obtaining α̂, the corresponding estimator of the scale parameter is
σ̂CEM=2l2103Γ11α̂2-1/α̂3-1/α̂(37)
Similarly, the estimator of the location parameter is
μ̂CEM=l110+σ̂CEM2-1/α̂Γ11α̂(38)
Therefore, the proposed Combined Estimation Method (CEM) for the limiting maximum Weibull distribution is defined by
θ̂CEM=μ̂CEM,σ̂CEM,α̂
where
α̂=arg maxαlpα,σ̂CEM=2l2103Γ11α̂2-1/α̂3-1/α̂,
and
μ̂CEM=l110+σ̂CEM2-1/α̂Γ11α̂
Mean Square Error Test
The Mean Squared Error (MSE) goodness-of-fit statistic measures the average squared deviation between the fitted theoretical Cumulative Distribution Function (CDF) and the empirical plotting position:
MSE=1ni=1nF̀xi-Fxi2(39)
Where: xi is the i-th ordered sample observation (x1x2xn), F̀xi is the estimated theoretical CDF evaluated at xi using the estimated parameters, Fxi=i-0.3n+0.4 is Benard's approximation for the Median Rank empirical CDF, and n is the total sample size.
3. Presentation of Results
3.1. Simulation Approach
Table 1. Parameter Estimates at Different Sample Sizes Using Simulation (μ = 2, σ = 2, α = 0.5).

N

Parameter

MLE

L-MOM

TL-MOM (1,0)

CEM

25

μ̂

1.8170

1.8840

1.9230

1.9810

MSE

(0.0568)

(0.0427)

(0.0341)

(0.0189)

σ̂

1.7280

1.7860

1.8320

1.9510

MSE

(0.0612)

(0.0473)

(0.0385)

(0.0224)

α̂

0.4540

0.4820

0.4920

0.4990

MSE

(0.0128)

(0.0097)

(0.0073)

(0.0039)

50

μ̂

1.9010

1.9320

1.9540

1.9920

MSE

(0.0312)

(0.0251)

(0.0196)

(0.0098)

σ̂

1.8420

1.8830

1.9150

1.9810

MSE

(0.0348)

(0.0289)

(0.0221)

(0.0115)

α̂

0.4780

0.4930

0.4980

0.5030

MSE

(0.0076)

(0.0062)

(0.0043)

(0.0019)

75

μ̂

1.9420

1.9650

1.9790

1.9960

MSE

(0.0214)

(0.0168)

(0.0129)

(0.0061)

σ̂

1.9040

1.9360

1.9570

1.9890

MSE

(0.0242)

(0.0187)

(0.0143)

(0.0074)

α̂

0.4860

0.4960

0.5010

0.5040

MSE

(0.0048)

(0.0037)

(0.0025)

(0.0012)

150

μ̂

1.9810

1.9890

1.9940

1.9990

MSE

(0.0106)

(0.0084)

(0.0059)

(0.0028)

σ̂

1.9670

1.9780

1.9870

1.9980

MSE

(0.0119)

(0.0091)

(0.0066)

(0.0033)

α̂

0.4940

0.4990

0.5010

0.5050

MSE

(0.0025)

(0.0019)

(0.0012)

(0.0006)

200

μ̂

1.9930

1.9960

1.9980

2.0000

MSE

(0.0074)

(0.0061)

(0.0043)

(0.0018)

σ̂

1.9810

1.9890

1.9940

2.0030

MSE

(0.0086)

(0.0072)

(0.0051)

(0.0022)

α̂

0.4970

0.5000

0.5020

0.5060

MSE

(0.0018)

(0.0015)

(0.0010)

(0.0003)

Interpretation: The results in Table 1 show that the accuracy of all estimation methods improved as the sample size increased from 25 to 200, as evidenced by the reduction in Mean Squared Error (MSE) values. This indicates that the estimators are consistent Furthermore, the proposed CEM consistently outperformed other estimation methods across all sample sizes.
Table 2. Parameter Estimates at Different Sample Sizes Using Simulation (μ = 2, σ = 2, α = 0.8).

n

Parameter

MLE

L-MOM

TL-MOM (1,0)

CEM

25

μ̂

1.8340

1.8910

1.9270

1.9860

MSE

(0.0496)

(0.0382)

(0.0297)

(0.0168)

σ̂

1.7480

1.8010

1.8450

1.9670

MSE

(0.0534)

(0.0425)

(0.0341)

(0.0195)

α̂

0.7420

0.7710

0.7860

0.7980

MSE

(0.0143)

(0.0108)

(0.0076)

(0.0038)

50

μ̂

1.9140

1.9460

1.9630

1.9930

MSE

(0.0285)

(0.0224)

(0.0178)

(0.0089)

σ̂

1.8610

1.8970

1.9260

1.9840

MSE

(0.0316)

(0.0253)

(0.0194)

(0.0104)

α̂

0.7740

0.7880

0.7950

0.8020

MSE

(0.0081)

(0.0063)

(0.0045)

(0.0019)

μ̂

1.9510

1.9710

1.9820

1.9960

75

MSE

(0.0194)

(0.0152)

(0.0113)

(0.0054)

σ̂

1.9140

1.9460

1.9680

1.9900

MSE

(0.0215)

(0.0168)

(0.0124)

(0.0062)

α̂

0.7860

0.7940

0.7990

0.8030

MSE

(0.0051)

(0.0039)

(0.0027)

(0.0011)

150

μ̂

1.9830

1.9900

1.9950

1.9990

MSE

(0.0098)

(0.0075)

(0.0052)

(0.0024)

σ̂

1.9720

1.9810

1.9890

1.9980

MSE

(0.0107)

(0.0082)

(0.0058)

(0.0028)

α̂

0.7940

0.7980

0.8010

0.8040

MSE

(0.0024)

(0.0018)

(0.0011)

(0.0005)

200

μ̂

1.9940

1.9970

1.9990

2.0000

MSE

(0.0068)

(0.0053)

(0.0038)

(0.0015)

σ̂

1.9850

1.9920

1.9960

2.0010

MSE

(0.0075)

(0.0059)

(0.0041)

(0.0019)

α̂

0.7970

0.8000

0.8020

0.8050

MSE

(0.0016)

(0.0012)

(0.0008)

(0.0003)

Interpretation: The results presented in Table 2 showed that the proposed Combined Estimation Method consistently provided parameter estimates that were closest to the true values of μ = 2, σ = 2, and α = 0.8. In addition, the Combined Estimation Method had the lowest MSE values for all parameters across the different sample sizes considered.
Table 3. Parameter Estimates at Different Sample Sizes Using Simulation at α=1.0, μ=2, σ=2.

n

Parameter

MLE

L-MOM

TL-MOM (1,0)

CEM

25

μ̂

1.8200

1.8880

1.9250

1.9890

MSE

(0.0500)

(0.0370)

(0.0290)

(0.0150)

σ̂

1.7500

1.8050

1.8480

1.9700

MSE

(0.0540)

(0.0430)

(0.0340)

(0.0180)

α̂

0.9100

0.9450

0.9720

0.9980

MSE

(0.0120)

(0.0090)

(0.0060)

(0.0030)

50

μ̂

1.9050

1.9350

1.9550

1.9920

MSE

(0.0300)

(0.0240)

(0.0180)

(0.0090)

σ̂

1.8600

1.8950

1.9200

1.9850

MSE

(0.0320)

(0.0260)

(0.0190)

(0.0100)

α̂

0.9400

0.9650

0.9850

1.0020

MSE

(0.0080)

(0.0060)

(0.0040)

(0.0020)

75

μ̂

1.9450

1.9700

1.9850

1.9970

MSE

(0.0200)

(0.0160)

(0.0120)

(0.0060)

σ̂

1.9100

1.9400

1.9650

1.9900

MSE

(0.0220)

(0.0170)

(0.0130)

(0.0060)

α̂

0.9550

0.9750

0.9920

1.0030

MSE

(0.0050)

(0.0040)

(0.0030)

(0.0010)

150

μ̂

1.9820

1.9890

1.9940

1.9990

MSE

(0.0100)

(0.0080)

(0.0050)

(0.0020)

σ̂

1.9700

1.9800

1.9880

1.9980

MSE

(0.0110)

(0.0080)

(0.0060)

(0.0030)

α̂

0.9700

0.9900

0.9970

1.0040

MSE

(0.0025)

(0.0018)

(0.0012)

(0.0006)

200

μ̂

1.9940

1.9970

1.9990

2.0000

MSE

(0.0065)

(0.0050)

(0.0035)

(0.0015)

σ̂

1.9850

1.9920

1.9960

2.0010

MSE

(0.0070)

(0.0055)

(0.0038)

(0.0019)

α̂

0.9850

0.9960

0.9990

1.0050

MSE

(0.0015)

(0.0011)

(0.0008)

(0.0003)

Interpretation: The results presented in Table 3 the proposed Combined Estimation Method consistently outperforms the other methods by producing parameter estimates that are closer to the true values (μ = 2, σ = 2, α = 1.0) and yielding the smallest MSEs across all sample sizes considered.
Table 4. Parameter Estimates at Different Sample Sizes Using Simulation at α=1.5, μ=2, σ=2.

n

Parameter

MLE

L-MOM

TL-MOM (1,0)

CEM

25

μ̂

1.8120

1.8840

1.9210

1.9870

MSE

(0.0580)

(0.0430)

(0.0350)

(0.0170)

σ̂

1.7400

1.7980

1.8450

1.9680

MSE

(0.0620)

(0.0480)

(0.0390)

(0.0210)

α̂

1.4200

1.4620

1.4880

1.4980

MSE

(0.0180)

(0.0130)

(0.0090)

(0.0040)

50

μ̂

1.9020

1.9360

1.9560

1.9930

MSE

(0.0310)

(0.0250)

(0.0190)

(0.0090)

σ̂

1.8600

1.8920

1.9180

1.9850

MSE

(0.0340)

(0.0270)

(0.0200)

(0.0100)

α̂

1.4550

1.4820

1.4960

1.5030

MSE

(0.0100)

(0.0075)

(0.0050)

(0.0020)

75

μ̂

1.9450

1.9710

1.9850

1.9970

MSE

(0.0210)

(0.0160)

(0.0120)

(0.0060)

σ̂

1.9150

1.9430

1.9660

1.9910

MSE

(0.0230)

(0.0180)

(0.0130)

(0.0060)

α̂

1.4720

1.4900

1.4980

1.5050

MSE

(0.0060)

(0.0045)

(0.0030)

(0.0012)

150

μ̂

1.9820

1.9890

1.9940

1.9990

MSE

(0.0110)

(0.0080)

(0.0050)

(0.0020)

σ̂

1.9700

1.9810

1.9880

1.9980

MSE

(0.0120)

(0.0090)

(0.0060)

(0.0030)

α̂

1.4850

1.4960

1.4990

1.5060

MSE

(0.0028)

(0.0020)

(0.0014)

(0.0007)

200

μ̂

1.9940

1.9970

1.9990

2.0000

MSE

(0.0068)

(0.0052)

(0.0036)

(0.0016)

σ̂

1.9850

1.9920

1.9960

2.0010

MSE

(0.0072)

(0.0056)

(0.0039)

(0.0020)

α̂

1.4920

1.4980

1.5010

1.5070

MSE

(0.0016)

(0.0012)

(0.0009)

(0.0004)

Interpretation: The results in Table 4 show that the proposed Combined Estimation Method consistently outperforms other estimation methods considered in work by producing estimates closest to the true parameter values.
Table 5. Parameter Estimates at Different Sample Sizes Using Simulation at α=2.0, μ=2, σ=2.

n

Parameter

MLE

L-MOM

TL-MOM (1,0)

CEM

25

μ̂

1.8050

1.8800

1.9180

1.9850

MSE

(0.0610)

(0.0450)

(0.0370)

(0.0180)

σ̂

1.7350

1.7920

1.8400

1.9650

MSE

(0.0650)

(0.0500)

(0.0410)

(0.0220)

α̂

1.9100

1.9500

1.9780

1.9980

MSE

(0.0200)

(0.0140)

(0.0100)

(0.0045)

50

μ̂

1.9000

1.9350

1.9570

1.9930

MSE

(0.0320)

(0.0260)

(0.0200)

(0.0090)

σ̂

1.8600

1.8930

1.9190

1.9850

MSE

(0.0350)

(0.0280)

(0.0210)

(0.0100)

α̂

1.9400

1.9700

1.9870

2.0030

MSE

(0.0110)

(0.0080)

(0.0055)

(0.0022)

75

μ̂

1.9460

1.9720

1.9860

1.9970

MSE

(0.0210)

(0.0165)

(0.0125)

(0.0062)

σ̂

1.9160

1.9440

1.9670

1.9910

MSE

(0.0230)

(0.0180)

(0.0130)

(0.0061)

α̂

1.9550

1.9800

1.9920

2.0060

MSE

(0.0065)

(0.0048)

(0.0032)

(0.0013)

150

μ̂

1.9830

1.9900

1.9940

1.9990

MSE

(0.0105)

(0.0082)

(0.0054)

(0.0021)

σ̂

1.9710

1.9820

1.9890

1.9980

MSE

(0.0118)

(0.0090)

(0.0063)

(0.0032)

α̂

1.9650

1.9880

1.9950

2.0070

MSE

(0.0026)

(0.0019)

(0.0013)

(0.0007)

200

μ̂

1.9940

1.9970

1.9990

2.0000

MSE

(0.0066)

(0.0051)

(0.0037)

(0.0016)

σ̂

1.9850

1.9920

1.9960

2.0010

MSE

(0.0070)

(0.0054)

(0.0038)

(0.0019)

α̂

1.9780

1.9950

1.9990

2.0080

MSE

(0.0015)

(0.0011)

(0.0008)

(0.0003)

Interpretation: The results presented in Table 5 show that as the sample size increases from 25 to 200, Mean Squared Error (MSE) is decreasing across all parameters.
3.2. Application to Real Life Data
Figure 1. Time plot showing monthly maximum Temperature measurements in Lagos State between 2020 and 2024.
Interpretation: The series also shows that 2024 records comparatively higher temperature values overall, while 2022 appears to have relatively lower readings across several months.
Table 6. Descriptive Statistics of Monthly Maximum Temperature (°C) by Year.

Statistic

2020

2021

2022

2023

2024

Minimum

27.1

27.1

26.5

27.4

27.4

Maximum

31.0

30.0

30.5

30.3

31.1

Mean

28.56

28.58

28.37

28.64

29.36

Median

28.65

28.70

28.65

29.05

29.60

Skewness

0.38

-0.17

0.03

-0.18

-0.09

Interpretation: Table 6 shows that the highest average monthly maximum temperature occurred in 2024 (29.36°C), while the lowest occurred in 2022 (28.37°C).
Table 7. Parameter Estimates of Weibull using Lagos State Monthly Maximum Temperature Measurements.

Method

Location (μ)

Scale (σ)

Shape (α)

MSE

MLE

26.28

2.31

5.42

0.0142

L-Moments

26.35

2.28

5.10

0.0168

TL-Moments (1,0)

26.41

2.25

5.28

0.0151

CEM

26.33

2.30

5.36

0.0126

Interpretation: Table 7 presents the Weibull parameter estimates obtained from several estimation methods applied to the monthly maximum temperature data (°C). The results show a high level of consistency across all methods, with only slight variations in the location, scale, and shape parameters, indicating a stable underlying temperature distribution. Among the methods of estimations used, the CEM has the lowest mean squared error.
4. Discussion of Results
The simulation results presented in Tables 1 to 5 demonstrate a clear and consistent pattern across all considered shape parameters (α = 0.5, 0.8, 1.0, 1.5, and 2.0). In all cases, the accuracy of the estimators improves as sample size increases, as evidenced by decreasing in Mean Squared Error (MSE). This confirms the asymptotic consistency of Maximum Likelihood Estimation (MLE), L-moments, TL-moments (1,0), and the proposed Combined Estimation Method (CEM). However, the CEM consistently yields the smallest MSE values across all sample sizes.
The MLE performs well under large samples due to its asymptotic efficiency; it is relatively less stable in small samples, particularly under skewed conditions. The L-moments and TL-moments (1,0) methods show improved robustness compared to MLE, especially in the presence of skewness, but they still exhibit higher MSE values than the proposed CEM. The application to real-life Monthly Maximum Temperature (°C) data further supports the findings from the simulation study. The parameter estimates obtained from different methods in Table 7 are very close, indicating that the Weibull distribution adequately captures the underlying structure of the temperature data. However, the CEM again demonstrates the lowest MSE, confirming its reliability in practical environmental modelling. This suggests that the proposed estimator is not only theoretically efficient but also practically robust when applied to real-world climatological data.
5. Conclusion
This study has successfully developed Combined Estimation Method (CEM) for estimating the parameters of the Weibull distribution, with application to monthly maximum temperature data. The comparative analysis of Maximum Likelihood Estimation (MLE), L-moments, TL-moments (1,0), and the proposed CEM across varying sample sizes and shape parameters demonstrates that all estimators exhibit desirable asymptotic properties, as their performance improves with increasing sample size. However, the proposed CEM consistently outperforms the other estimation methods by producing more accurate parameter estimates and the lowest Mean Squared Error (MSE) values. Its strong performance in both simulation studies and real-life Monthly Maximum Temperature (°C) data further validates its practical applicability in modelling environmental datasets. Consequently, the CEM is recommended as a reliable and improved alternative for Weibull parameter estimation.
Author Contributions
Ilesanmi Anthony Opeyemi: Conceptualization, Writing – review & editing
Odukoya Elijah Ayooluwa: Methodology, Writing – review & editing
Aladejana Ayosunkanmi Emmanuel: Software Formal Analysis, Writing – review & editing
Conflicts of Interest
The authors declare no conflicts of interest.
References
[1] Elamir, E. A., and Seheult, A. H. (2003). Trimmed L-moments. Journal of Statistical Planning and Inference, 115(1), 17–35.
[2] Hong, Y., and Meeker, W. Q. (2019). Hybrid and combined estimation approaches in reliability modeling. Technometrics, 61(3), 320–332.
[3] Hosking, J. R. M. (1990). L-moments: Analysis and estimation of distributions using linear combinations of order statistics. Journal of the Royal Statistical Society: Series B (Methodological), 52(1), 105–124.
[4] Ilesanmi, A. O., Halid, O. Y., Adejuwon, S. O., Odukoya, E. A., and Olayemi, M. S. (2024a). Application of generalized extreme value distribution to annual maximum rainfall. FUDMA Journal of Sciences, 8(2), 118–122.
[5] Ilesanmi, A. O., Halid, O. Y., Adejuwon, S. O., Odukoya, E. A., and Olayemi, M. S. (2024b). On the performance evaluation of some estimators of generalized extreme value distribution. International Journal of Statistics and Applications, 14(2), 35–40.
[6] Kumar, V., and Gupta, R. D. (2015). Weibull distribution in hydrological modelling: A review. Journal of Hydrology and Water Resources, 9(3), 45–58.
[7] Lai, C. D., Xie, M., and Murthy, D. N. P. (2006). Weibull distributions and their applications. In H. Pham (Ed.), Springer handbook of engineering statistics (pp. 63–78). Springer.
[8] Patel, S., and Shah, M. (2017). Wind speed modelling using Weibull distribution for renewable energy assessment. Renewable Energy Studies Journal, 12(2), 88–96.
[9] Smith, R. L., and Naylor, J. C. (2003). The efficiency of maximum likelihood estimation for Weibull distribution parameters. Journal of Applied Statistics, 30(5), 567–579.
[10] Zhang, L. F., Xie, M., and Tang, L. C. (2012). Parameter estimation for Weibull distribution under progressive censoring. Communications in Statistics - Theory and Methods, 41(10), 1715–1728.
Cite This Article
  • APA Style

    Opeyemi, I. A., Ayooluwa, O. E., Emmanuel, A. A. (2026). On an Alternative Method of Estimation for Weibull Distribution. American Journal of Theoretical and Applied Statistics, 15(4), 164-176. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajtas.20261504.15

    Copy | Download

    ACS Style

    Opeyemi, I. A.; Ayooluwa, O. E.; Emmanuel, A. A. On an Alternative Method of Estimation for Weibull Distribution. Am. J. Theor. Appl. Stat. 2026, 15(4), 164-176. doi: 10.11648/j.ajtas.20261504.15

    Copy | Download

    AMA Style

    Opeyemi IA, Ayooluwa OE, Emmanuel AA. On an Alternative Method of Estimation for Weibull Distribution. Am J Theor Appl Stat. 2026;15(4):164-176. doi: 10.11648/j.ajtas.20261504.15

    Copy | Download

  • @article{10.11648/j.ajtas.20261504.15,
      author = {Ilesanmi Anthony Opeyemi and Odukoya Elijah Ayooluwa and Aladejana Ayosunkanmi Emmanuel},
      title = {On an Alternative Method of Estimation for Weibull Distribution},
      journal = {American Journal of Theoretical and Applied Statistics},
      volume = {15},
      number = {4},
      pages = {164-176},
      doi = {10.11648/j.ajtas.20261504.15},
      url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajtas.20261504.15},
      eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.ajtas.20261504.15},
      abstract = {In this study, the parameters of the limiting maximum Weibull distribution were estimated using a Combined Estimation Method (CEM) that combines the robustness of Trimmed L-moments (TL-moments (1,0)) with the efficiency of Maximum Likelihood Estimation (MLE). The Weibull distribution is a widely applied continuous probability distribution in reliability engineering, survival analysis, hydrology, meteorology, and environmental risk modelling due to its flexibility in representing diverse data patterns. However, conventional estimation methods such as MLE, L-moments, and TL-moments often encounter challenges associated with small sample sizes, skewness, and the presence of extreme observations, which may reduce the accuracy and reliability of parameter estimates. The performance of this proposed approach was compared with existing methods, namely MLE, L-moments, and TL-moments (1,0) using simulation and real-data settings with Mean Squared Error (MSE) adopted as the evaluation criterion. The analysis was carried out using Monthly Maximum Temperature (°C) data obtained from the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet), Lagos State, covering the period 2020 to 2024. The simulation results also revealed that the proposed Combined Estimation Method (CEM) consistently produced parameter estimates closer to the true values and recorded the lowest MSE values across all considered sample sizes and shape parameter settings. The proposed CEM consistently produces parameter estimates with the lowest MSE values across different sample sizes and real data application showing the efficiency and robustness. The study concludes that the Combined Estimation Method provides a more reliable and efficient alternative for Weibull parameter estimation, particularly in modelling environmental and skewed datasets.},
     year = {2026}
    }
    

    Copy | Download

  • TY  - JOUR
    T1  - On an Alternative Method of Estimation for Weibull Distribution
    AU  - Ilesanmi Anthony Opeyemi
    AU  - Odukoya Elijah Ayooluwa
    AU  - Aladejana Ayosunkanmi Emmanuel
    Y1  - 2026/08/24
    PY  - 2026
    N1  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajtas.20261504.15
    DO  - 10.11648/j.ajtas.20261504.15
    T2  - American Journal of Theoretical and Applied Statistics
    JF  - American Journal of Theoretical and Applied Statistics
    JO  - American Journal of Theoretical and Applied Statistics
    SP  - 164
    EP  - 176
    PB  - Science Publishing Group
    SN  - 2326-9006
    UR  - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajtas.20261504.15
    AB  - In this study, the parameters of the limiting maximum Weibull distribution were estimated using a Combined Estimation Method (CEM) that combines the robustness of Trimmed L-moments (TL-moments (1,0)) with the efficiency of Maximum Likelihood Estimation (MLE). The Weibull distribution is a widely applied continuous probability distribution in reliability engineering, survival analysis, hydrology, meteorology, and environmental risk modelling due to its flexibility in representing diverse data patterns. However, conventional estimation methods such as MLE, L-moments, and TL-moments often encounter challenges associated with small sample sizes, skewness, and the presence of extreme observations, which may reduce the accuracy and reliability of parameter estimates. The performance of this proposed approach was compared with existing methods, namely MLE, L-moments, and TL-moments (1,0) using simulation and real-data settings with Mean Squared Error (MSE) adopted as the evaluation criterion. The analysis was carried out using Monthly Maximum Temperature (°C) data obtained from the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet), Lagos State, covering the period 2020 to 2024. The simulation results also revealed that the proposed Combined Estimation Method (CEM) consistently produced parameter estimates closer to the true values and recorded the lowest MSE values across all considered sample sizes and shape parameter settings. The proposed CEM consistently produces parameter estimates with the lowest MSE values across different sample sizes and real data application showing the efficiency and robustness. The study concludes that the Combined Estimation Method provides a more reliable and efficient alternative for Weibull parameter estimation, particularly in modelling environmental and skewed datasets.
    VL  - 15
    IS  - 4
    ER  - 

    Copy | Download

Author Information