scholarly journals The fate of fluids released from subducting slab in northern Cascadia

2011 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 943-962 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. Ramachandran ◽  
R. D. Hyndman

Abstract. Large amounts of water carried down in subduction zones are driven upward into the overlying forearc upper mantle and crust as increasing temperature and pressure dehydrate the subducting crust. Through seismic tomography velocities we show that, (a) the overlying forearc mantle in Northern Cascadia is hydrated to serpentinite, and (b) the low Poisson's ratio at the base of the forearc lower crust that may represent silica deposited from the rising fluids. From the velocities observed in the forearc mantle, the volume of serpentinite estimated is ~30 %. This mechanically weak hydrated forearc region has important consequences in limits to great earthquakes and to collision tectonics. An approximately 10 km thick lower crustal layer of low Poisson's ratio (σ = 0.22) in the forearc is estimated to represent a maximum addition of ~14 % by volume of quartz (σ = 0.09). If this quartz is removed from rising silica-saturated fluids over long times it represents a significant addition of silica to the continental crust and an important contributor to its average composition.

Solid Earth ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 121-129 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. Ramachandran ◽  
R. D. Hyndman

Abstract. Large amounts of water carried down in subduction zones are driven upward into the overlying forearc upper mantle and crust as increasing temperatures and pressure dehydrate the subducting crust. Through seismic tomography velocities we show (a) the overlying forearc mantle in northern Cascadia is hydrated to serpentinite, and (b) there is low Poisson's ratio at the base of the forearc lower crust that may represent silica deposited from the rising fluids. From the velocities observed in the forearc mantle, the volume of serpentinite estimated is ∼30 %. This mechanically weak hydrated forearc region has important consequences in limits to great earthquakes and to collision tectonics. An approximately 10 km thick lower crustal layer of low Poisson's ratio (σ = 0.22) in the forearc is estimated to represent a maximum addition of ∼14 % by volume of quartz (σ = 0.09). If this quartz is removed from rising silica-saturated fluids over long times, it represents a significant addition of silica to the continental crust and an important contributor to its average composition.


2020 ◽  
Vol 224 (2) ◽  
pp. 858-870
Author(s):  
Devajit Hazarika ◽  
Somak Hajra ◽  
Abhishek Kundu ◽  
Meena Bankhwal ◽  
Naresh Kumar ◽  
...  

SUMMARY We analyse P-wave receiver functions across the Kumaon Himalaya and adjoining area to constrain crustal thickness, intracrustal structures and seismic velocity characteristics to address the role of the underlying structure on seismogenesis and geodynamic evolution of the region. The three-component waveforms of teleseismic earthquakes recorded by a seismological network consisting of 18 broad-band seismological stations have been used for receiver function analysis. The common conversion point (CCP) depth migrated receiver function image and shear wave velocity models obtained through inversion show a variation of crustal thickness from ∼38 km in the Indo-Gangetic Plain to ∼42 km near the Vaikrita Thrust. A ramp (∼20°) structure on the Main Himalayan Thrust (MHT) is revealed beneath the Chiplakot Crystalline Belt (CCB) that facilitates the exhumation of the CCB. The geometry of the MHT observed from the receiver function image is consistent with the geometry revealed by a geological balanced cross-section. A cluster of seismicity at shallow to mid-crustal depths is detected near the MHT ramp. The spatial and depth distribution of seismicity pattern beneath the CCB and presence of steep dipping imbricate faults inferred from focal mechanism solutions suggest a Lesser Himalayan Duplex structure in the CCB above the MHT ramp. The study reveals a low-velocity zone (LVZ) with a high Poisson's ratio (σ ∼0.28–0.30) at lower crustal depth beneath the CCB. The high value of Poisson's ratio in the lower crust suggests the presence of fluid/partial melt. The shear heating in the ductile regime and/or decompression and cooling associated with the exhumation of the CCB plausibly created favorable conditions for partial melting in the lower crustal LVZ.


2018 ◽  
Vol 216 (3) ◽  
pp. 2037-2043 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicolas Brantut ◽  
Emmanuel C David

SUMMARY The evolution of the ratio between P- and S-wave velocities (VP/VS) with increasing fluid-saturated porosity is computed for isotropic rocks containing spheroidal pores. The ratio VP/VS is shown to either decrease or increase with increasing porosity, depending on the aspect ratio α of the pores, fluid to solid bulk modulus ratio ζ and Poisson’s ratio ν0 of the solid constituents of the rock. A critical initial Poisson’s ratio ν0, crit is computed, separating cases where VP/VS increases (if ν0 < ν0, crit) or decreases (if ν0 > ν0, crit) with increasing porosity. For thin cracks and highly compressible fluids, ν0, crit is approximated by $0.157\, \zeta /\alpha$, whereas for spherical pores ν0, crit is given by 0.2 + 0.8ζ. When ν0 is close to ν0, crit, the evolution of VP/VS with increasing fluid-saturated porosity is near neutral and depends on subtle changes in pore shape and fluid properties. This regime is found to be relevant to partially dehydrated serpentinites in subduction zones (porosity of aspect ratio near 0.1 and ζ in the range 0.01–0.1), and makes detection of these rocks and possibly elevated fluid pressures difficult from VP/VS only.


2013 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 36-43 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ai Chi ◽  
Li Yuwei

Coal body is a type of fractured rock mass in which lots of cleat fractures developed. Its mechanical properties vary with the parametric variation of coal rock block, face cleat and butt cleat. Based on the linear elastic theory and displacement equivalent principle and simplifying the face cleat and butt cleat as multi-bank penetrating and intermittent cracks, the model was established to calculate the elastic modulus and Poisson's ratio of coal body combined with cleat. By analyzing the model, it also obtained the influence of the parameter variation of coal rock block, face cleat and butt cleat on the elastic modulus and Poisson's ratio of the coal body. Study results showed that the connectivity rate of butt cleat and the distance between face cleats had a weak influence on elastic modulus of coal body. When the inclination of face cleat was 90°, the elastic modulus of coal body reached the maximal value and it equaled to the elastic modulus of coal rock block. When the inclination of face cleat was 0°, the elastic modulus of coal body was exclusively dependent on the elastic modulus of coal rock block, the normal stiffness of face cleat and the distance between them. When the distance between butt cleats or the connectivity rate of butt cleat was fixed, the Poisson's ratio of the coal body initially increased and then decreased with increasing of the face cleat inclination.


2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (19) ◽  
pp. 5283 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gowida ◽  
Moussa ◽  
Elkatatny ◽  
Ali

Rock mechanical properties play a key role in the optimization process of engineering practices in the oil and gas industry so that better field development decisions can be made. Estimation of these properties is central in well placement, drilling programs, and well completion design. The elastic behavior of rocks can be studied by determining two main parameters: Young’s modulus and Poisson’s ratio. Accurate determination of the Poisson’s ratio helps to estimate the in-situ horizontal stresses and in turn, avoid many critical problems which interrupt drilling operations, such as pipe sticking and wellbore instability issues. Accurate Poisson’s ratio values can be experimentally determined using retrieved core samples under simulated in-situ downhole conditions. However, this technique is time-consuming and economically ineffective, requiring the development of a more effective technique. This study has developed a new generalized model to estimate static Poisson’s ratio values of sandstone rocks using a supervised artificial neural network (ANN). The developed ANN model uses well log data such as bulk density and sonic log as the input parameters to target static Poisson’s ratio values as outputs. Subsequently, the developed ANN model was transformed into a more practical and easier to use white-box mode using an ANN-based empirical equation. Core data (692 data points) and their corresponding petrophysical data were used to train and test the ANN model. The self-adaptive differential evolution (SADE) algorithm was used to fine-tune the parameters of the ANN model to obtain the most accurate results in terms of the highest correlation coefficient (R) and the lowest mean absolute percentage error (MAPE). The results obtained from the optimized ANN model show an excellent agreement with the laboratory measured static Poisson’s ratio, confirming the high accuracy of the developed model. A comparison of the developed ANN-based empirical correlation with the previously developed approaches demonstrates the superiority of the developed correlation in predicting static Poisson’s ratio values with the highest R and the lowest MAPE. The developed correlation performs in a manner far superior to other approaches when validated against unseen field data. The developed ANN-based mathematical model can be used as a robust tool to estimate static Poisson’s ratio without the need to run the ANN model.


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