Heat flow in a back-arc environment: Intermontane and Omineca Crystalline belts, southern Canadian Cordillera

1984 ◽  
Vol 21 (6) ◽  
pp. 715-726 ◽  
Author(s):  
Earl E. Davis ◽  
Trevor J. Lewis
Keyword(s):  
Steady State ◽  
Heat Flow ◽  
Thermal Structure ◽  
Canadian Cordillera ◽  
Flow Measurements ◽  
Thermal Event ◽  
South Central ◽  
Back Arc ◽  
Glacial Climate ◽  
Reduced Heat Flow

A suite of 20 heat flow measurements has been completed across the Intermontane and Omineca Crystalline belts in south-central British Columbia at about 50°N. Values along the 200 km line are high (83 mW m−2, corrected for Pleistocene glacial climate; reduced heat flow is 67 mW m−2) and uniform (standard deviation = ± 10%). There appears to be no difference in the thermal structure of the two geologic belts. Two sources of heat are considered to explain the level of heat flow observed: a discrete thermal event in the Eocene, and a steady-state supply of heat maintained in the back-arc location by asthenospheric flow caused by nearby subduction. Both can account equally well for the elevated heat flow observed. However, in light of seismic, magnetic, electrical, and flexural data that suggest that the lithosphere may be as thin as 30–40 km, it is concluded that a steady supply of heat must exist since this thickness is much less than the thickness of lithosphere that would be present 50 Ma after even a major thermal event.

Temperature structure of the Andean subduction zone as derived from the 3D geometry of crustal and upper mantle discontinuities

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andres Tassara ◽  
Joaquín Julve ◽  
Iñigo Echeverría ◽  
Ingo Stotz
Keyword(s):  
Heat Flow ◽  
Heat Production ◽  
Thermal Structure ◽  
Surface Heat ◽  
Thermal Parameters ◽  
Continental Lithosphere ◽  
Flow Measurements ◽  
Study Region ◽  
Surface Heat Flow ◽  
Input Model

<p>The distribution of temperature inside active continental margins plays a fundamental role on regulating first order geodynamic processes as the isostatic balance, rheologic behavior of crust and mantle, magmagenesis, volcanism and seismogenesis. In spite of these major implications, well-constrained 3D thermal models are known for few regions of the world (Europe, Western USA, China) where large geophysical databases have been integrated into compositional and structural models of crust and lithospheric mantle from which a thermal model is derived. Here we present a three-dimensional representation of the distribution of temperature underneath the Andean active margin of South America (10°-45°S) that is based on a geophysically-constrained model for the geometry of the subducted slab, continental lithosphere-asthenosphere boundary (LAB), Moho discontinuity and an intracrustal discontinuity (ICD). This input model was constructed by forward modelling the satellite gravity anomaly under the constraint of most of the seismic information published for this region. We use analytical expressions of 1D conductive continental geotherms with adequate boundary conditions that consider the compositional stratification of crust and mantle included in the input model, and the advective thermal effect of slab subduction. The 1D geotherms are assembled into a 3D volume defining the thermal structure of the study region. We test the influence of several thermal parameters and structural configurations of the Andean lithosphere by comparing the resulting surface heat flow distribution of these different models against a database containing heat flow measurements that we compile from the literature. Our results show that the thermal structure and derived surface heat flow is dominantly controlled by the geometry of the thermal boundary layer at the base of the lithosphere, i.e. the slab upper surface below the forearc and LAB inland. Variations on the modeled configuration of the continental lithosphere (i.e. the way on which the geometry of the continental Moho and ICD are considered into the definition of a space-variable thermal conductivity or the length scale for radiogenic heat production) have an effect on surface heat flow that is lower than the average uncertainty of the measurements and therefore can be considered as second-order. The simplicity of our analytical approach allows us to compute hundreds of different models in order to test the sensitivity of results to changes on thermal parameters (conductivity, heat production, mantle potential temperature, etc), which provides a tool for discussing their possible range of values in the context of a subduction margin. We will also show how variations of these models impact on the Moho temperature and therefore in the expected mechanical behavior of crust and mantle in this geotectonic context</p>

The Eocene–Oligocene magmatic hiatus in the south-central Canadian Cordillera: a capture of the Kula Plate by the Pacific Plate?

2008 ◽  
Vol 45 (1) ◽  
pp. 69-82 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jaroslav Dostal ◽  
J Duncan Keppie ◽  
B Neil Church ◽  
Peter H Reynolds ◽  
Cheryl R Reid
Keyword(s):  
Volcanic Rocks ◽  
Pacific Plate ◽  
North American Plate ◽  
Volcanic Complex ◽  
Canadian Cordillera ◽  
Continental Flood Basalts ◽  
The North ◽  
South Central ◽  
The Pacific ◽  
Back Arc

The Tertiary (Paleogene and Neogene) geological record in south-central Canadian Cordillera is dominated by the 350–400 km wide, lower Eocene volcanic arc and the overlying Miocene–Recent back-arc lavas that are separated by a hiatus in magmatic activity between 48 and 24 Ma. In the Black Dome area (~240 km north of Vancouver), the Eocene volcanic rocks are mainly continental margin calc-alkaline andesite and dacite, resulting from the melting of a juvenile mafic source at the base of the crust. In contrast, the Miocene volcanic rocks resemble continental flood basalts. Both Eocene and Miocene rocks from the Black Dome volcanic complex have high positive εNd values (+7.2 to +7.4 and +6.4 to +7.6, respectively) and low initial Sr isotopic ratios (0.702 516 – 0.703 528 and 0.703 376 – 0.703 392, respectively) comparable to modern oceanic basalts. The onset of the hiatus in magmatism at 48 Ma coincides with capture of the Kula Plate by the Pacific Plate resulting in a change in convergence direction with the North American Plate from orthogonal to margin-parallel. The margin-parallel motion is inferred to have removed a 50–100 km sliver of the Eocene forearc that formed the boundary between the Pacific and subducted Kula Plate. Reinitiation of arc magmatism at 24 Ma is related to subduction of the Farallon and associated plates and it superimposed back-arc tholeiitic magmatism on top of the Eocene arc.

The thermal structure of the central Nova Scotia Slope (eastern Canada): seafloor heat flow and thermal maturation models

2017 ◽  
Vol 54 (2) ◽  
pp. 146-162 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eric Negulic ◽  
Keith E. Louden
Keyword(s):  
Heat Flow ◽  
Thermal Structure ◽  
Conductive Heat ◽  
Borehole Data ◽  
Eastern Canada ◽  
Flow Measurements ◽  
Seismic Reflection Data ◽  
Radiogenic Heat ◽  
Reflection Data ◽  
Hydrocarbon Maturation

The thermal history and maturation potential of the central Scotian Slope is constrained using a combination of 47 recently acquired seafloor heat flow measurements, two-dimensional (2D) seismic reflection data, available well data, simple lithospheric rift models, and thermal and petroleum systems modelling. Consistent heat flow values of 41–46 mW·m−2 were measured seaward of the salt diapiric province and across the slope away from the influence of salt structures. Significant but highly variable increases in heat flow were measured for stations overlying salt diapiric structures, reaching values upwards of 72 mW·m−2. Simple models of conductive heat transfer with static salt geometries constrained from reflection profiles indicate that two of the four models fit the data, whereas two indicate much higher values suggestive of additional, convective effects. Dynamic 2D thermal models were developed to incorporate the effects of lithospheric rifting, crustal stretching, and radiogenic heat production in the sediment and basement. These models help constrain the hydrocarbon maturation potential of the central Scotian Slope, where deep borehole data are lacking. Our results suggest that a potential Late Jurassic source rock interval rests primarily within the late oil window and that salt structures act primarily to reduce maturation in the adjacent deep sediment layers.

scholarly journals A geothermal application for GOCE satellite gravity data: modelling the crustal heat production and lithospheric temperature field in Central Europe

2019 ◽  
Vol 219 (2) ◽  
pp. 1008-1031 ◽  
Author(s):  
A Pastorutti ◽  
C Braitenberg
Keyword(s):  
Steady State ◽  
Heat Flow ◽  
Heat Transport ◽  
Gravity Model ◽  
Heat Production ◽  
Crustal Thickness ◽  
Gravity Models ◽  
Conductive Heat ◽  
Flow Measurements ◽  
Global Gravity Models

SUMMARY Since the completion of the Gravity field and steady-state Ocean Circulation Explorer mission (GOCE), global gravity models of uniform quality and coverage are available. We investigate their potential of being useful tools for estimating the thermal structure of the continental lithosphere, through simulation and real-data test in Central-Eastern Europe across the Trans-European Suture Zone. Heat flow, measured near the Earth surface, is the result of the superposition of a complex set of contributions, one of them being the heat production occurring in the crust. The crust is enriched in radioactive elements respect to the underlying mantle and crustal thickness is an essential parameter in isolating the thermal contribution of the crust. Obtaining reliable estimates of crustal thickness through inversion of GOCE-derived gravity models has already proven feasible, especially when weak constraints from other observables are introduced. We test a way to integrate this in a geothermal framework, building a 3-D, steady state, solid Earth conductive heat transport model, from the lithosphere–asthenosphere boundary to the surface. This thermal model is coupled with a crust-mantle boundary depth resulting from inverse modelling, after correcting the gravity model for the effects of topography, far-field isostatic roots and sediments. We employ a mixed space- and spectral-domain based forward modelling strategy to ensure full spectral coherency between the limited spectral content of the gravity model and the reductions. Deviations from a direct crustal thickness to crustal heat production relationship are accommodated using a subsequent substitution scheme, constrained by surface heat flow measurements, where available. The result is a 3-D model of the lithosphere characterised in temperature, radiogenic heat and thermal conductivity. It provides added information respect to the lithospheric structure and sparse heat flow measurements alone, revealing a satisfactory coherence with the geological features in the area and their controlling effect on the conductive heat transport.

Heat flow measurements in Yellowstone Lake and the thermal structure of the Yellowstone Caldera

1977 ◽  
Vol 82 (26) ◽  
pp. 3719-3732 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul Morgan ◽  
David D. Blackwell ◽  
Robert E. Spafford ◽  
Robert B. Smith
Keyword(s):  
Heat Flow ◽  
Thermal Structure ◽  
Flow Measurements ◽  
Yellowstone Lake ◽  
Yellowstone Caldera

Steady-State Parametric Optimization and Transient Characterization of Heat Flow Regulation With Binary Diffusion

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (12) ◽  
pp. 1996-2007
Author(s):  
Tanya Liu ◽  
James W. Palko ◽  
Joseph S. Katz ◽  
Feng Zhou ◽  
Ercan M. Dede ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Steady State ◽  
Heat Flow ◽  
Parametric Optimization ◽  
Flow Regulation ◽  
Binary Diffusion

Systematic heat flow measurements across the Wagner Basin, northern Gulf of California

2017 ◽  
Vol 479 ◽  
pp. 340-353 ◽  
Author(s):  
Florian Neumann ◽  
Raquel Negrete-Aranda ◽  
Robert N. Harris ◽  
Juan Contreras ◽  
John G. Sclater ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Heat Flow ◽  
Gulf Of California ◽  
Flow Measurements

Thermal regime of the lithosphere in the Canadian ShieldThis article is one of a series of papers published in this Special Issue on the theme Lithoprobe — parameters, processes, and the evolution of a continent.

2010 ◽  
Vol 47 (4) ◽  
pp. 389-408 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claire Perry ◽  
Carmen Rosieanu ◽  
Jean-Claude Mareschal ◽  
Claude Jaupart
Keyword(s):  
Heat Flow ◽  
Heat Generation ◽  
Seismic Refraction ◽  
Surface Heat ◽  
Canadian Shield ◽  
P Wave ◽  
Seismic Velocities ◽  
Flow Measurements ◽  
Surface Heat Flow ◽  
Mantle Heat Flow

Geothermal studies were conducted within the framework of Lithoprobe to systematically document variations of heat flow and surface heat production in the major geological provinces of the Canadian Shield. One of the main conclusions is that in the Shield the variations in surface heat flow are dominated by the crustal heat generation. Horizontal variations in mantle heat flow are too small to be resolved by heat flow measurements. Different methods constrain the mantle heat flow to be in the range of 12–18 mW·m–2. Most of the heat flow anomalies (high and low) are due to variations in crustal composition and structure. The vertical distribution of radioelements is characterized by a differentiation index (DI) that measures the ratio of the surface to the average crustal heat generation in a province. Determination of mantle temperatures requires the knowledge of both the surface heat flow and DI. Mantle temperatures increase with an increase in surface heat flow but decrease with an increase in DI. Stabilization of the crust is achieved by crustal differentiation that results in decreasing temperatures in the lower crust. Present mantle temperatures inferred from xenolith studies and variations in mantle seismic P-wave velocity (Pn) from seismic refraction surveys are consistent with geotherms calculated from heat flow. These results emphasize that deep lithospheric temperatures do not always increase with an increase in the surface heat flow. The dense data coverage that has been achieved in the Canadian Shield allows some discrimination between temperature and composition effects on seismic velocities in the lithospheric mantle.

Heat flow and magmatism in the NW Pacific back-arc basins

1984 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
pp. 173-181
Author(s):  
P. M. Sychev ◽  
A. Y. Sharaskin
Keyword(s):  
Heat Flow ◽  
Back Arc
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