  The coalescence of compact binaries containing neutron stars or black holes
is one of the most promising signals for advanced ground-based laser
interferometer gravitational-wave detectors, with the first direct detections
expected over the next few years. The rate of binary coalescences and the
distribution of component masses is highly uncertain, and population synthesis
models predict a wide range of plausible values. Poorly constrained parameters
in population synthesis models correspond to poorly understood astrophysics at
various stages in the evolution of massive binary stars, the progenitors of
binary neutron star and binary black hole systems. These include effects such
as supernova kick velocities, parameters governing the energetics of common
envelope evolution and the strength of stellar winds. Observing multiple binary
black hole systems through gravitational waves will allow us to infer details
of the astrophysical mechanisms that lead to their formation. Here we simulate
gravitational-wave observations from a series of population synthesis models
including the effects of known selection biases, measurement errors and
cosmology. We compare the predictions arising from different models and show
that we will be able to distinguish between them with observations (or the lack
of them) from the early runs of the advanced LIGO and Virgo detectors. This
will allow us to narrow down the large parameter space for binary evolution
models.
