Disaster Chain Evolution and Risk Mitigation in Non-Coal Underground Mines with Fault Zones: A Complex Network Approach

Songtao Yu, Yuxian Ke (), Qian Kang, Wenzhe Jin, Haifeng Zhong, Danyan Cheng, Fading Wu and Hongwei Deng
Additional contact information
Songtao Yu: School of Emergency Management and Safety Engineering, Jiangxi University of Science and Technology, Ganzhou 341000, China
Yuxian Ke: School of Emergency Management and Safety Engineering, Jiangxi University of Science and Technology, Ganzhou 341000, China
Qian Kang: School of Emergency Management and Safety Engineering, Jiangxi University of Science and Technology, Ganzhou 341000, China
Wenzhe Jin: School of Emergency Management and Safety Engineering, Jiangxi University of Science and Technology, Ganzhou 341000, China
Haifeng Zhong: School of Emergency Management and Safety Engineering, Jiangxi University of Science and Technology, Ganzhou 341000, China
Danyan Cheng: School of Emergency Management and Safety Engineering, Jiangxi University of Science and Technology, Ganzhou 341000, China
Fading Wu: School of Emergency Management and Safety Engineering, Jiangxi University of Science and Technology, Ganzhou 341000, China
Hongwei Deng: School of Resource and Safety Engineering, Central South University, Changsha 410083, China

Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 12, 1-21

Abstract: The prevention and control of disasters in underground mines is a key task to ensure sustainable mining production and the development of society. The disaster chain brings cascading and clustering characteristics to disasters and leads to the expansion of their impacts and losses. It brings great difficulties to disaster prevention and control. This paper focuses on the disaster chain of a non-coal underground mine. It analyzes disaster events triggered by artificial mining activities based on a literature review, expert investigation, and field research. Subsequently, it constructs a complex network model of disaster chains containing 44 disaster nodes and 136 connecting edges. Then it performed a quantitative analysis of the complex network model, and studied complex network model parameters including degree, number of subnets, intermediate centrality, node importance, average path length, edge betweenness, connectivity, and edge vulnerability. On that basis, this paper reveals that the top five key nodes of the disaster chain are surface subsidence (H4), industrial site destruction (H7), well flooding (H21), equipment damage (H8), and living area damage (H11). It also reveals that the top five key edges of the disaster chain are mine water inrush (H6)→well flooding (H21), surface subsidence (H4)→industrial site destruction (H7), underground space failure (H3)→industrial site destruction (H7), gob collapse (H2)→surface subsidence (H4), and gob collapse (H2)→landslide (H5). Finally, this paper proposes specific chain-breaking disaster mitigation measures. Implementing these actions can play a pivotal role in mitigating the impact of mine disasters, preserving lives, and sustaining regional prosperity.

Keywords: underground mine; disaster chain; complex network model; node centrality; edge vulnerability (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/12/5520/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/12/5520/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:17:y:2025:i:12:p:5520-:d:1679700

Access Statistics for this article

Sustainability is currently edited by Ms. Alexandra Wu

More articles in Sustainability from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().