Bayesian analysis of underground flooding

Abstract

An event‐based stochastic model is used to describe the spatial phenomenon of water inrush into underground works located under a karstic aquifer, and a Bayesian analysis is performed because of high parameter uncertainty. The random variables of the model are inrush yield per event, distance between events, number of events per unit underground space, maximum yield, and total yield over mine lifetime. Physically based hypotheses on the types of distributions are made and reinforced by observations. High parameter uncertainty stems from the random characteristics of karstic limestone and the limited amount of observation data. Thus, during the design stage, only indirect data such as regional information and geological analogies are available; updating of this information should then be done as the construction progresses and inrush events are observed and recorded. A Bayes simulation algorithm is developed and applied to estimate the probability distributions of inrush event characteristics used in the design of water control facilities in underground mining. A real‐life example in the Transdanubian region of Hungary is used to illustrate the methodology.