The influence of faults in basin-fill deposits on land subsidence,Las Vegas Valley,Nevada, USA

The role of horizontal deformation caused by pumping of confined-aquifer systems is recognized as contributing to the development of earth fissures in semiarid regions, including Las Vegas Valley, Nevada. In spite of stabilizing water levels, new earth fissures continue to develop while existing ones continue to lengthen and widen near basin-fill faults. A three-dimensional granular displacement model based on Biot's consolidation theory (Biot, MA, 1941, General theory of three-dimensional consolidation. Jour. Applied Physics 12:155–164) has been used to evaluate the nature of displacement in the vicinity of two vertical faults. The fault was simulated as (1) a low-permeability barrier to horizontal flow, (2) a gap or structural break in the medium, but where groundwater flow is not obstructed, and (3) a combination of conditions (1) and (2). Results indicate that the low-permeability barrier greatly enhances horizontal displacement. The fault plane also represents a location of significant differential vertical subsidence. Large computed strains in the vicinity of the fault may suggest high potential for failure and the development of earth fissures when the fault is assumed to have low permeability. Results using a combination of the two boundaries suggest that potential fissure development may be great at or near the fault plane and that horizontal deformation is likely to play a key role in this development. Electronic Publication     

Excess air during aquifer storage and recovery in an arid basin (Las Vegas Valley, USA)

The Las Vegas Valley Water District in Nevada, USA, has operated an artificial recharge (AR) program since 1989. In summer 2001, observations of gas exsolving from tap water prompted a study that revealed total dissolved gas (TDG) pressures approaching 2?atm with a gas composition that it is predominantly air. Measurements of TDG pressure at well heads and in the distribution system indicated two potential mechanisms for elevated TDG pressures: (1) air entrainment during AR operations, and (2) temperature changes between the winter recharge season and the summer withdrawal season. Air entrainment during pumping was investigated by intentionally allowing the forebay (upstream reservoir) of a large pumping station to drawdown to the point of vortex formation. This resulted in up to a 0.7?atm increase in TDG pressure. In general, the solubility of gases in water decreases as the temperature increases. In the Las Vegas Valley, water that acquired a modest amount of dissolved gas during winter artificial recharge operations experienced an increase in dissolved gas pressure (0.04?atm/°C) as the water warmed in the subsurface. A combination of air entrainment during AR operations and its amplification by temperature increase after recharge can account for most of the observed amounts of excess gas at this site.     

Pumping-induced stress and strain in aquifer systems in Wuxi,China

Excessive groundwater withdrawal from an aquifer system leads to three-dimensional displacement, causing changes in the states of stress and strain. Often, land subsidence and sometimes earth fissures ensue. Field investigation indicates that land subsidence and earth fissures in Wuxi, a city in eastern China, are mainly due to excessive groundwater withdrawal, and that they are temporally and spatially related to groundwater pumping. Groundwater withdrawal may cause tensile strain to develop in aquifer systems, but tensile strain does not definitely mean tensile stress. Where earth fissures are concerned, the stress state should be adopted in numerical simulations instead of the strain state and displacement. The numerical simulation undertaken for the Wuxi area shows that the zone of tensile strain occupies a large area on the ground surface; nevertheless, the zone of tensile stress is very limited. The zone of tensile stress often occurs near the ground surface, beneath which the depth to the bedrock surface is relatively small and has considerable variability. Earth fissures often initiate near the ground surface where tensile stress occurs. Tensile stress and earth fissures rarely develop at the centers of land subsidence bowls, where compressive stress is dominant.     

Why conceptual groundwater flow models matter: a trans-boundary example from the arid Great Basin, western USA

Spring and Snake valleys, western USA, are scheduled for development and groundwater export to Las Vegas, Nevada (USA). New work, compared to published studies, illustrates the critical role of conceptual models to underpin water withdrawals in arid regions. Interbasin flow studies suggest that 30–55?% of recharge to Snake Valley arrives from adjacent Spring Valley. This study, however, suggest little or no interbasin flow; rather, Spring and Snake valleys comprise separate systems. Contrary to expectation, δD and δ¹⁸O contours are perpendicular to proposed interbasin flow paths. ¹⁴C age gradients up to 10?ka along interbasin flow paths indicate that old waters are not displaced by such fluxes. ¹⁴C and ³H patterns indicate local recharge occurs in adjacent mountain ranges and is transferred to basin-fill by losing streams, mountain front recharge, and upward leakage from carbonate bedrock beneath basins. The choice of conceptual models is critical for groundwater development. Simple analyses of water withdrawals indicate that monitoring discharges at desert springs is an inadequate protective measure. Once flows decline, recovery is lengthy even if pumping is stopped. The conceptual framework behind quantitative evaluations of sustainable yield is critical to determine the ability of a groundwater system to deliver sustained withdrawals.     

先存断裂对抽水沉降及地裂缝活动影响的数值模拟

过度抽取地下水对断层构造型地裂缝的加剧作用是很明显的,但具体的作用机制却很复杂,过去的研究多是简单的定性分析,数值模拟和定量计算少有报道。笔者采用比奥(Biot)固结渗流理论和基于A、B面接触判断的库仑滑动和张裂的接触面单元,对抽水作用下地裂缝的活动进行了数值模拟,初步探讨了抽水活动引发和加剧地裂缝活动的机制。结果表明:抽水作用下抽水井周围水平应力场发生近井区挤压、远井区拉张的变化,当拉张区内的拉应力超过土体抗拉强度时将会出现自上而下的张裂缝;先存断裂的存在将影响应力变化的模式,同时由于断裂的软弱性,使得地层容易沿其发生滑动或拉裂,从而加剧地裂缝的活动;先存断裂对地面沉降和地裂缝具有诱导、隔离和放大的作用。     

徐州矿区地裂缝成因机制的探讨

调查了徐州矿区几类非采矿沉陷造成的地裂缝的形态和环境,认为因构造、采矿、不均匀沉降产生的隐伏张裂隙是地裂缝的基础,干旱和超采浅层地下水使第四系浅部失水收缩激活和扩大了隐伏张裂隙。大雨后地裂缝显现,雨水沿裂隙面下渗时,发生潜蚀、刷大、贯通而造成塌陷。      

Late Quaternary deformation and slip rates in the northern San Andreas fault zone at Olema Valley, Marin County, California

Quaternary sedimentary deposits along the structural depression of the San Andreas fault (SAF) zone north of San Francisco in Marin County provide an excellent record of rates and styles of neotectonic deformation in a location near where the greatest amount of horizontal offset was measured after the great 1906 San Francisco earthquake. A high-resolution gravity survey in the Olema Valley was used to determine the depth to bedrock and the thickness of sediment fill along and across the SAF valley. In the gravity profile across the SAF zone, Quaternary deposits are offset across the 1906 fault trace and truncated by the Western and Eastern Boundary faults, whose youthful activity was previously unknown. The gravity profile parallel to the fault valley shows a basement surface that slopes northward toward an area of present-day subsidence near the head of Tomales Bay. Surface and subsurface investigations of the late Pleistocene Olema Creek Formation (Qoc) indicate that this area of subsidence was located further south during deposition of the Qoc and that it has migrated northward since then. Localized subsidence has been replaced by localized contraction that has produced folding and uplift of the Qoc. This apparent alternation between transtension and transpression may be the result of a northward-diverging fault geometry of fault strands that includes the valley-bounding faults as well as the 1906 SAF trace. The Vedanta marsh is a smaller example of localized subsidence in the fault zone, between the 1906 SAF trace and the Western Boundary fault. Analyses of Holocene marsh sediments in cores and a paleoseismic trench indicate thickening, and probably tilting, toward the 1906 trace, consistent with coseismic deformation observed at the site following the 1906 earthquake.New age data and offset sedimentary and geomorphic features were used to calculate four late Quaternary slip rate estimates for the SAF at this latitude. Luminescence dates of 112–186 ka for the middle part of the Olema Creek Formation (Qoc), the oldest Quaternary deposit in this part of the valley, suggest a late Pleistocene slip rate of 17–35 mm/year, which replaces the unit to a position adjacent to its sediment source area. A younger alluvial fan deposit (Qqf; basal age 30 ka) is exposed in a quarry along the medial ridge of the fault valley. This fan deposit has been truncated on its western side by dextral SAF movement, and west-side-down vertical movement that has created the Vedanta marsh. Paleocurrent measurements, clast compositions, sediment facies distributions, and soil characteristics show that the Bear Valley Creek drainage, now located northwest of the site, supplied sediment to the fan, which is now being eroded. Restoration of the drainage to its previous location provides an estimated slip rate of 25 mm/year. Furthermore, the Bear Valley Creek drainage probably created a water gap located north of the Qqf deposit during the last glacial maximum 18 ka. The amount of offset between the drainage and the water gap yields an average slip rate of 21–30 mm/year. Finally, displacement of a 1000-year-old debris lobe approximately 20 m from its hillside hollow along the medial ridge indicates a minimum late Holocene slip rate of 21–25 mm/year. Similarity of the late Pleistocene rates to the Holocene slip rate, and to previous rates obtained in paleoseismic trenches in the area, indicates that the rates may not have changed over the past 30 ka, and perhaps the past 200–400 ka. Stratigraphic and structural observations also indicate that valley-bounding faults were active in the late Pleistocene and suggest the need for further study to evaluate their continued seismic potential.     

Structural geology of the Upper Cretaceous Chalk Central Mass, Isle of Wight, U.K.

Remapping the Chalk of the Central Chalk Mass of the Isle of Wight between Carisbrooke (Newport), Calbourne and Shalcombe, including the Bowcombe Valley, has identified a complex series of tectonic ‘rolls’ and ‘flats’ in a region that has been interpreted to be a relay ramp between the Needles and the Sandown faults. A major new WNW trending fault at Cheverton throws the Chalk down by >50 m to the SW in a 80-100 m wide zone of faulting within which some chalk blocks have near vertical dips. The fault location and trend closely follows the edge of the Cranbourne-Fordingbridge High and could also reflect, for the first time, the surface expression of part of the Needles Fault, a major inversion reverse fault. Located along this fault zone deep Quaternary weathering of the Chalk and Quaternary gravel deposits are present. The trend of the Cheverton Fault brings it towards Gotten Leaze where a groundwater pumping station is located and groundwater springs regularly cause flooding on the Brighstone-Calbourne Road. Analyses of the jointing in the Chalk show that stratabound fracture patterns typical of the Chalk formations elsewhere in Southern England are present in the Central Mass. In addition, there are numerous small faults along which valleys have formed. Tectonic structure and lithology have had a profound influence on the geomorphology and groundwater flow in the Chalk in the Central Mass.     

中国地面沉降及其需要解决的几个问题

我国地面沉降主要出现在东、中部17个省市,总面积超过5×104km2,同时在17个省市出现成因上与它有关的地裂缝,危害是多方面的。沉降发生在经济高速发展的东部地区,造成的危害和损失也更大。我国地面沉降有下列特点:过量开采地下水是主要原因;各土层变形量既与其压缩性有关,也与它本身的厚度有关;砂土变形基本特征是压缩过程中总的应力与应变关系为非线性,压缩变形以塑性变形为主并包含有蠕变;水位恢复到开采前水平,沉降仍在继续,存在滞后等。从目前研究,特别是模拟研究的现状出发,指出存在8个方面的不足,进而提出需要研究解决的6个科学问题,为提高我国的研究水平献策。     

采煤塌陷裂缝对沙蒿吸水来源影响试验研究

采煤塌陷引起的地裂缝不仅造成地质灾害,还会影响矿区植被的生长发育,破坏矿区生态系统。为深入探讨采煤塌陷裂缝对沙蒿吸水来源的定量影响,在神东矿区活鸡兔井田22312工作面选取了受采煤塌陷裂缝影响程度不同的3个试验区进行同位素标记水模拟降水试验。3个试验区根据沙蒿与裂缝的距离不同划分,其采煤塌陷情况分别为未开采区(试验样地内沙蒿距离裂缝大于50 m)、受采煤塌陷影响但无明显裂缝区(简称无明显裂缝区,试验样地内沙蒿距离裂缝大于5 m)以及裂缝区(试验样地内分布有宽度15 cm左右的裂缝通过,且距离沙蒿0~20 cm)。本次试验选择6株沙蒿作为研究对象,划分6个土壤剖面,采用液态水同位素分析仪LGR和Isoprime 100同位素比值质谱仪IRMS分别计算不同土层土壤水和植物样本木质部水的δ18O和δ2H同位素含量,并利用R脚本的MixSIAR贝叶斯混合模型量化降水后不同土层对沙蒿吸水的贡献,探讨土壤水分补给机制和植物水分来源。结果表明:(1) 裂缝区的优先流比例为18.2%;(2) 在未开采区,沙蒿吸收的59.7%的水分来自10~20 cm的土层;(3) 在无裂缝区,沙蒿主要从40~60 cm土层(46.6%)和0~10 cm土层(39.4%)吸水;(4) 在裂缝区,沙蒿吸收的85.9%的水分主要来自40~60 cm的土层。研究结果对揭示采煤塌陷裂缝区土壤水补给机制以及沙蒿吸水模式具有重要意义。      

北京宋庄地裂缝灾害特征及影响因素分析

近年来由于北京市平原区地裂缝灾害凸显,不仅加速地表水土流失,而且对灾害区基础设施建设造成严重影响。为分析地裂缝形成原因,缓解及减轻地裂缝灾害造成的经济、财产损失,本文以新发现的宋庄地裂缝作为靶区,通过地质调查、InSAR监测、槽探、钻探等方法,揭示了宋庄地裂缝空间发育特征,从地质构造、地层岩性、地面沉降等方面,深入分析成因。结果显示:（1）宋庄地裂缝影响长度达8.7 km,NEE向延伸,受灾体主要展现出拉张形变;（2）区域拉张应力场为宋庄地裂缝形成提供内动力条件,构造影响下的第四系沉积厚度差异及地层岩性不均一,为宋庄地裂缝形成提供重要地质背景;（3）南苑-通县断裂为宋庄地裂缝形成提供了应力积累和传递媒介;（4）地下水超采引发的土体水平、垂向变形是地裂缝形成的诱发条件。受基底伸展变形、隐伏断裂及地下水开采影响,土体发生水平及垂向变形,使得在非饱和带断层区附近形成拉应力集中区,当达到土体抗拉强度时,形成盲裂缝,在雨水侵蚀或潜水位回升作用下,扩展至地表形成裂缝及串珠状土洞。     

地下水水位及水温在查明矿区岩溶水补给条件中的应用——以福建马坑铁矿为例

综合利用马坑矿区积累的水位、水温资料,结合前期对矿区水文地质条件的认识,查明了矿区岩溶水在疏干条件下的补给的变化特征。矿区岩溶含水层以石炭系船山组至二叠系栖霞组灰岩为主,大气降水为其主要补给来源。矿区开采过程中由于矿山采石场开采灰岩造成的溶洞出露地表、采空塌陷裂隙、第四系扰动及沟谷堵塞等使大气降水入渗补给量增大;断层破碎带使分布于灰岩含水层上部的二叠系文笔山组泥质砂岩地层具有了良好的含水性及导水性,致使其上部加福组砂岩裂隙水通过小娘坑断层及F3断层等破碎带补给岩溶水;溪马河河水沿河床与F1断层交汇段渗漏补给岩溶水;深部花岗岩低温热水也沿F1及F10断层破碎带进入矿坑。      

Anthropogenic subsidence in the Mexicali Valley,Baja California,Mexico, and slip on the Saltillo fault

Deep fluid extraction in the Cerro Prieto geothermal field (CPGF) has caused subsidence and induced slip on tectonic faults in the Mexicali Valley (Baja California, Mexico). The Mexicali Valley is located in the southern part of the Salton Trough, at the boundary between the Pacific and North American plates. The Valley is characterized by being a zone of continuous tectonic deformation, geothermal activity, and seismicity. Within the Cerro Prieto pull-apart basin, seismicity is concentrated mainly in swarms, while strong earthquakes have occurred in the Imperial and Cerro Prieto transform faults, that are the eastern and western bound of the basin. Since 1973, fluid extraction at the CPGF has influenced deformation in the area, accelerating the subsidence and causing rupture (frequently as vertical slip or creep) on the surface traces of tectonic faults. Both subsidence and fault slip are causing damage to infrastructure like roads, railroad tracks, irrigation channels, and agricultural fields. Currently, accelerated extraction in the eastern part of CPGF has shifted eastwards the area of most pronounced subsidence rate; this accelerated subsidence can be observed at the Saltillo fault, a southern branch of the Imperial fault in the Mexicali Valley. Published leveling data, together with field data from geological surveys, geotechnical instruments, and new InSAR images were used to model the observed deformation in the area in terms of fluid extraction. Since the electricity production in the CPGF is an indispensable part of Baja California economy, extraction is sure to continue and may probably increase, so that the problem of damages caused by subsidence will likely increase in the future.     

The impact of the geologic setting on the Quaternary aquifer,El-Tur area,Southwest Sinai,Egypt

The groundwater extracted from the unconfined Quaternary aquifer is the main source of water supply in El-Tur area. The area is bounded from the east by the elevated basement complex of Southern Sinai and from the west by El-Qabaliyat Ridge. The wadis dissecting these highlands form effective watersheds of the Quaternary aquifer. These wadis form areas of focused recharge. Recharge also occurs directly via the Quaternary sediments covering El-Qaa Plain. Subsurface lateral groundwater flow from the fractured basement contributes significant recharge to the aquifer as well. The aquifer sediment facies affect the type and quality of groundwater. In the eastern part where the aquifer is composed mainly of gravel and coarse sand with fragments of weathered basement, the Na-Cl-SO₄ water dominates. In the west where the facies change is rapid and complex, many water types arise. The base exchange index (BEX) is positive in this part reflecting the role of clay minerals in changing the water types via cation exchange. In the east where clays are insignificant in the aquifer, the BEX is negative. In the western part next to El-Qabaliyat Ridge, the wells discharging from the calcareous sand zone have low groundwater salinities compared to the wells discharging from the alluvium. In general, the groundwater salinity increases in the direction of groundwater flow from the northeast to the southwest which reflects the dissolution of aquifer sediments. The concentration relationships between the major ions on one hand and chloride on the other reflect the dissolution of calcium carbonates, precipitation of K- and Mg-bearing minerals, and cation exchange of Ca for Na on clay minerals. The hydrochemical models support these reactions. In addition, they show that the effect of evaporation on the recharge water in the western catchment is about four times its effect on the eastern recharge water which reflects the rapid recharge through the wadis draining the fractured basement. Moreover, the contribution from the eastern catchment in sample No. 23 is more than four-folds the contribution from the western recharge area. The stable isotopes (²H and ¹⁸O) show that the Quaternary aquifer is recharging from recent rainfall. However, upward leakage of Paleogene groundwater (depleted in ¹⁸O) also occurs. The groundwater level map shows strong overpumping impact especially in the areas close to El-Tur city.     

Geological characteristics and analysis of hydrothermal genesis in the Suijiang-1 well in Yunnan Province,China

The geothermal water hydrochemistry and isotopic characteristics of boreholes in the Suijiang-1 well in Yunnan Province were studied based on the actual drilling geology, regional geological structure and hydrogeological conditions. The analysis results show that the geothermal water is SO_4-Ca·Mg type, the recharge elevation is 1 381-1 646 m, the recharge source is atmospheric precipitation, the geothermal reservoir temperature is 42-45 ℃, and the geothermal water is controlled by lithology and geological structure conditions of study area. Atmospheric precipitation enters the groundwater circulation system through the surface karst form of the Wujiaobao anticline, northwest-southeast tensile faults, fissures and karst depression, and geothermal water formed through the rising deep cycle water temperature, then blocked by the double rivers' fault zone and drilling explosion.     

Geological characteristics and analysis of hydrothermal genesis in the Suijiang-1 well in Yunnan Province,China

The geothermal water hydrochemistry and isotopic characteristics of boreholes in the Suijiang-1 well in Yunnan Province were studied based on the actual drilling geology, regional geological structure and hydrogeological conditions. The analysis results show that the geothermal water is SO4-Ca?Mg type, the recharge elevation is 1 381-1 646 m, the recharge source is atmospheric precipitation, the geothermal reservoir temperature is 42-45 ℃, and the geothermal water is controlled by lithology and geological structure conditions of study area. Atmospheric precipitation enters the groundwater circulation system through the surface karst form of the Wujiaobao anticline, northwest-southeast tensile faults, fissures and karst depression, and geothermal water formed through the rising deep cycle water temperature, then blocked by the double rivers’ fault zone and drilling explosion.     

地震泵抽吸作用与油气运聚成藏物理模拟

地震泵抽吸作用是在断裂活动开启过程中,引发流体进入断裂带,并发生垂向运移的作用方式。在裂隙递进扩张形成优势裂隙并进一步发展成大的断裂面的演化过程中,地震泵抽吸作用发生,围岩中的流体在相对负压抽吸作用下进到断裂带中,之后主要在构造应力和异常高孔隙流体压力的共同作用下向上运移,并向着邻近断裂的封闭程度差、体积大、物性好的储层中充注运移,运移效率远远高于达西流和扩散流。断裂周期性破裂活动的特征决定了油气沿断裂的垂向泵吸运移呈周期性、间歇性和脉动的特点,同时也决定了油气易于在断裂错开的最新层位聚集成藏。通过克拉2气田天然气运聚成藏过程物理模拟实验结果表明,紧邻圈闭的盐下断裂为有效的天然气运移通道,穿盐断裂为无效的天然气运移通道,天然气在地震泵抽吸作用下沿断裂运移速度快、效率高,在断裂活动的短时间内可以大规模运聚成藏。     

河北平原隆尧地裂缝成因机理与模式研究

隆尧地裂缝是华北平原地区规模最大、活动性最强、灾害程度最为严重的构造地裂缝,但其与断裂之间的成因研究一直缺少系统的证明材料和完整的理论分析,即隆尧地裂缝与断裂之间是怎样的成生关系仍较为模糊。文章根据现场调查、探槽、地球物理探测和钻孔联合剖面等方法,分析了隆尧地裂缝几何运动特点和深部构造特征,探讨了隆尧地裂缝的成因机理和模式。研究结果表明:隆尧地裂缝（主要指西段）的发育位置与隆尧活动断裂基本重合,地裂缝走向近EW,倾向南,倾角60°~80°,南盘相对北盘下降,具正断性;同时,地裂缝面处黏土层中发育擦痕,上盘发育的分支裂缝与主裂缝相交成“y”型,地裂缝上下盘位移差随深度增加;地球物理探测解译隆尧活动断裂上断点埋深40~50 m,钻孔联合剖面揭示隆尧地裂缝向下延伸与隆尧活动断裂上断点吻合。地裂缝发育位置、产状、几何特点、运动特征与物探解译、钻孔联合剖面揭示的隆尧活动断裂一致,因此,隆尧地裂缝与隆尧活动断裂直接相连。根据上述成因理论,提出了构造地裂缝的一种成因模式——断层直剪式,即:在区域应力加强或转变的基础上,基地隐伏断裂开始蠕滑运动,断层面或断层带向地表延伸,切穿第四系岩土层,在地表形成陡坎。并据此分析了隆尧地裂缝的形成、显现和发展过程,为断层直剪式地裂缝成因研究提供理论指导。     

临汾地面沉降数值模拟及其与地裂缝灾害关系研究

临汾市区是继西安、大同等地区之后又一地裂缝灾害比较严重的地区, 已经严重影响着临汾市经济的可持续性发展。经研究表明, 地下水超采为影响该区地裂缝灾害的第二大因子, 它是通过地面沉降来促使地裂缝的形成和发展。本文通过对临汾市区地面沉降进行数值模拟, 总结出了地面沉降的变化规律。分析认为, 地裂缝灾害的易出现部位为沉降梯度陡变带, 即沉降梯度最大处。