A Mean Field Model of Coupled Cascades in Flow Networks

We introduce an analytical model of cascading behavior of interdependent networks under stressing conditions and find evidence of abrupt breakdown phenomena. Our results indicate that coupling several infrastructures can diminish the impact of small cascades at the cost of increasing system wide ones. As a consequence, the enhancement of the systemic risk failures with increasing network size, represents an effect to be accounted while planning projects aiming to integrate national networks into “super-networks”.