Application of GIS-based decision-making model to evaluate safety of underground mining under Neogene aquifers

This paper presents a decision-making model to evaluate the safety of underground coal mining under the Neogene aquifers which are composed of sand based on geographic information system and entropy values. An evaluation index system, which contains the main factors that determine the safety of underground mining under the Neogene aquifers is proposed by considering the geological and hydrogeological conditions. Then, the thematic maps of the factors are used to analyse the complex spatial characteristics of mining safety under the Neogene aquifers. A model is proposed based on a mathematical model of entropy, which is used to describe the complex nonlinear relationships between the index system and mining safety under the Neogene aquifers. As a result, a comprehensive decision for mining under the Neogene aquifers is also shown by thematic mapping. The decision model is demonstrated by using data from the Taiping coalmine in Shandong Province, China. [Received: December 6, 2016; Accepted: August 13, 2017]