Laboratory measurements of ‘porosity‐free’ intrinsic Vp and Vs in an olivine gabbro of the Oman ophiolite: Implication for interpretation of the seismic structure of lower oceanic crust |
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| Authors: | Satoshi Saito Masahiro Ishikawa Makoto Arima Yoshiyuki Tatsumi |
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| Affiliation: | 1. Institute for Research on Earth Evolution, Japan Agency for Marine‐Earth Science and Technology, Yokosuka, Kanagawa, Japan;2. Department of Earth Sciences, Graduate School of Science and Engineering, Ehime University, Matsuyama, Ehime, Japan;3. Graduate School of Environment and Information Sciences, Yokohama National University, Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan;4. Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Faculty of Science, Kobe University, Kobe, Hyogo, Japan |
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| Abstract: | In order to determine ‘porosity‐free’ intrinsic ultrasonic compressional (Vp) and shear wave (Vs) velocities and Vp/Vs of an olivine gabbro from the Oman ophiolite, we developed a new experimental system using a piston‐cylinder type high‐pressure apparatus. The new system allowed us to measure velocities at pressures ranging from 0.20 to 1.00 GPa and at temperatures up to 300°C for Vp and 400°C for Vs. At room temperature, the Vp and Vp/Vs increase rapidly with pressure up to 0.40 GPa, while between 0.45 and 1.00 GPa the increase is more gradual. The change in increasing rate is attributed to closure of porosity at pressures above 0.45 GPa. Based on the linear regression of data obtained at higher pressures (0.45–1.00 GPa) and extrapolation to the lower pressures, combined with temperature derivatives of velocities of the sample measured at 1.00 GPa, we determined the intrinsic Vp and Vs of the sample as a function of pressure (P, in GPa) and temperature (T, in °C). The intrinsic velocities can be expressed as Vp (km/s) = 7.004 + 0.096 × P ? 0.00015 × T, and Vs (km/s) = 3.827 + 0.007 × P ? 0.00008 × T. We evaluated the intrinsic Vp and Vs of the olivine gabbro at oceanic crustal conditions and compared them with a velocity depth‐profile of the borehole seismic observatory WP‐2 area in the northwestern Pacific Basin. Although the intrinsic Vp (～7.0 km/s) and Vs (～3.8 km/s) for the olivine gabbro studied are comparable to those of seismic layer 3 in the WP‐2 area, the estimated vertical gradients of intrinsic velocities are significantly smaller than those reported from layer 3. These results suggest that velocity profiles of layer 3 in the WP‐2 area may reflect the presence of a minor porosity in lower oceanic crust, which closes with increasing depth and/or continuous changes in mineralogy of layer 3 rocks. |
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| Keywords: | elastic wave velocity gabbro oceanic crust Oman ophiolite piston‐cylinder high‐pressure apparatus porosity |
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