Capturing the complete stress–strain behaviour of jointed rock using a numerical approach

This paper presents the results of a series of numerical experiments using the synthetic rock mass (SRM) approach to quantify the behaviour of jointed rock masses. Field data from a massive sulphide rock mass, at the Brunswick mine, were used to develop a discrete fracture network (DFN). The constructed DFN model was subsequently subjected to random sampling whereby 40 cubic samples, of height to width ratio of two, and of varying widths (0.05 to 10 m) were isolated. The discrete fracture samples were linked to 3D bonded particle models to generate representative SRM models for each sample size. This approach simulated the jointed rock mass as an assembly of fractures embedded into the rock matrix. The SRM samples were submitted to uniaxial loading, and the complete stress–strain behaviour of each specimen was recorded. This approach provided a way to determine the complex constitutive behaviour of large‐scale rock mass samples. This is often difficult or not possible to achieve in the laboratory. The numerical experiments suggested that higher post‐peak modulus values were obtained for smaller samples and lower values for larger sample sizes. Furthermore, the observed deviation of the recorded post‐peak modulus values decreased with sample size. The ratio of residual strength of rock mass samples per uniaxial compressive strength intact increases moderately with sample size. Consequently, for the investigated massive sulphide rock mass, the pre‐peak and post‐peak representative elemental volume size was found to be the same (7 × 7 × 14 m). Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The fractal dimension of pores in sedimentary rocks and its influence on permeability

Perimeter-area power-law relationship of pores in five sedimentary rocks are estimated from scanning electron micrographs of thin sections. These relationships for the pores of four sandstones were found to lie between 1.43 and 1.49, while that of an Indiana limestone was found to be 1.67. We show how the perimeter-area power-law relationship of pores, along with a pore-size distribution, can be used to estimate the hydraulic permeability. A discussion is given of how the fractal dimension of the pore perimeter derived by Mandelbrot for islands whose boundaries are fractal: P = ε^DA^D/2, where ε is some constant that depends on the length of the measuring grid size and D is the fractal dimension of the pore perimeter, influences permeability.     

Mechanics and fluid transport in a degradable discontinuity

This paper briefly examines the mechanical and hydraulic response of discontinuity in a geologic medium that can experience degradation of its contacting regions due to shear and normal stresses acting on it. The paper discusses the methodologies that can be adopted to describe the mechanics and fluid transport behaviour of such a joint. The calibration capabilities of the model are illustrated by appeal to a comparison of experimental results with computational predictions.     

An empirical model for estimating hydraulic conductivity of highly disturbed clastic sedimentary rocks in Taiwan

This paper presents the establishment of an empirical HC model for estimating rock mass hydraulic conductivity of highly disturbed clastic sedimentary rocks in Taiwan using high-resolution borehole acoustic televiewer and double packer hydraulic tests. Four geological parameters including rock quality designation (RQD), depth index (DI), gouge content designation (GCD), and lithology permeability index (LPI) were adopted for establishing the empirical HC model. To verify rationality of the proposed HC model, 22 in-situ hydraulic tests were carried out to measure the hydraulic conductivity of the highly disturbed clastic sedimentary rocks in three boreholes at two different locations in Taiwan. Besides, the model verification using another borehole data with four additional in-situ hydraulic tests from similar clastic sedimentary rocks was also conducted to further verify the feasibility of the proposed empirical HC model. The field results indicated that the rock mass in the study area has a conductivity between the order of 10^− 10 m/s and 10^− 6 m/s at the depth between 34 m and 275 m below ground surface. Results demonstrate that the empirical HC model may provide a useful tool to predict hydraulic conductivity of the highly disturbed clastic sedimentary rocks in Taiwan based on measured HC-values.     

Interpretation of torsional shear results for nonlinear stress–strain relationship

Torsional tests are frequently used in material testing to determine shear stress–strain relationships. In the tests, torque is applied to a solid or hollow cylindrical specimen, whose twist angle is recorded as the response. While the raw test results are readily available in terms of torque–twist sets, converting them into intrinsic stress–strain relationships is not always straightforward, owing to the nonlinear stress–strain behavior and the non‐uniform radial distribution of the stress and strain fields. It follows that the approaches currently used to interpret torsional data are essentially empirical based. The present paper addresses this data interpretation issue from a more rigorous perspective. The paper includes two parts: the first part concerns hollow cylindrical specimens under torsion, where an analytical‐based recursive procedure is developed; and the second part deals with solid torsional specimens, for which an analytical solution given by Nadai is directly employed. Examples pertaining to these two cases are examined and the resulting shear stress–strain curves are compared with those based on a number of popular empirical methods. The proposed analytical approaches can serve as a benchmark for checking the accuracy and validity of those empirical propositions. It is worth noting that, for brittle materials exhibiting softening behavior, only the analytical method gives the correct interpretation. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Upscaling of Navier–Stokes equations in porous media: Theoretical, numerical and experimental approach

The accurate estimation of hydraulic conductivity is important for many geotechnical engineering applications, as the presence of fluids affects all aspects of soil behaviour, including its strength. Darcy’s law is the key experimental (or phenomenological) equation employed to model ground water flow. Yet, this phenomenological equation can be linked to a more fundamental microscale model of flow through the pore spaces of the porous material. This paper provides an experimental verification of the relationships between Darcy’s law (macroscale) and the Navier–Stokes equations (microscale) for actual complex pore geometries of a granular material. The pore geometries are experimentally obtained through state-of-the-art X-ray computer assisted micro-tomography. From the numerical modelling of the microscale flow based on actual pore geometries, it is possible to quantify and visualize the development of pore-scale fluid preferential flow-paths through the porous material, and to assess the importance of pore connectivity in soil transport properties.     

Detrital-zircon geochronology of Paleozoic sedimentary rocks in the Hangay–Hentey basin, north-central Mongolia: Implications for the tectonic evolution of the Mongol–Okhotsk Ocean in central Asia

Understanding the development of the Central Asian Orogenic System (CAOS), which is the largest Phanerozoic accretionary orogen in the world, is critical to the determination of continental growth mechanisms and geological history of central Asia. A key to unraveling its geological history is to ascertain the origin and tectonic setting of the large flysch complexes that dominate the CAOS. These complexes have been variably interpreted as deep-marine deposits that were accreted onto a long-evolving arc against large continents to form a mega-accretionary complex or sediments trapped in back-arc to fore-arc basins within oceanic island-arc systems far from continents. To differentiate the above models we conducted U–Pb geochronological analyses of detrital-zircon grains from turbidites in the composite Hangay–Hentey basin of central Mongolia. This basin was divided by a Cenozoic fault system into the western and eastern sub-basins: the Hangay Basin in the west and Hentey basin in the east. This study focuses on the Hentey basin and indicates two groups of samples within this basin: (1) a southern group that were deposited after the earliest Carboniferous ( 339 Ma to 354 Ma) and a northern group that were deposited after the Cambrian to Neoproterozoic ( 504 Ma to 605 Ma). The samples from the northern part of the basin consistently contain Paleoproterozoic and Archean zircon grains that may have been derived from the Tuva–Mongol massif and/or the Siberian craton. In contrast, samples from the southern part of the basin contain only a minor component of early Paleozoic to Neoproterozoic zircon grains, which were derived from the crystalline basement bounding the Hangay–Hentey basin. Integrating all the age results from this study, we suggest that the Hangay–Hentey basin was developed between an island-arc system with a Neoproterozoic basement in the south and an Andean continental-margin arc in the north. The initiation of the southern arc occurred at or after the early Carboniferous, allowing accumulation of a flysch complex in a long-evolving accretionary complex.     

Provenance of Paleozoic–Mesozoic sedimentary rocks in the Inner Zone of Southwest Japan: An evaluation based on Nd model ages

Nd model ages using depleted mantle (TDM) values for the sedimentary rocks in the Inner Zone of the SW Japan and western area of Tanakura Tectonic Line in the NE Japan allow classification into five categories: 2.6–2.45, 2.3–2.05, 1.9–1.55, 1.45–1.25, and 1.2–0.85 Ga. The provenance of each terrane/belt/district is interpreted on the basis of the TDMs, ¹⁴⁷Sm / ¹⁴⁴Nd vs. ¹⁴³Nd / ¹⁴⁴Nd relation, Nd isotopic evolution of the source rocks in East China and U–Pb zircon ages. The provenance of 2.6–1.8 Ga rocks, which are reported from Hida–Oki and Renge belts and Kamiaso conglomerates, is inferred to be the Sino–Korean Craton (SKC). The 2.3–1.55 Ga rocks, mostly from Ryoke, Mino and Ashio belts, are originally related with the SKC and/or Yangtze Craton (YC). The provenances of the sedimentary rocks with 1.45–0.85 Ga, from the Suo belt, Higo and some districts in the Mino and Ashio belts, are different from the SKC and YC. Especially, the Higo with 1.2–0.85 Ga is considered as a fragment of collision zone in East China. Akiyoshi belt probably belongs to the youngest age category of 1.2–0.85 Ga.Some metasedimentary rocks from the Ryoke belt have extremely high ¹⁴⁷Sm / ¹⁴⁴Nd and ¹⁴³Nd / ¹⁴⁴Nd ratios, whose main components are probably derived from mafic igneous rocks within the Ryoke belt itself and from the adjacent Tamba belt.     

Large-strain deformation and strain partitioning in polyphase rocks: Dislocation creep of olivine–magnesiowüstite aggregates

Aggregates composed of olivine and magnesiowüstite have been deformed to large strains at high pressure and temperature to investigate stress and strain partitioning, phase segregation and possible localization of deformation in a polyphase material. Samples with 20 vol.% of natural olivine and 80 vol.% of (Mg_0.7Fe_0.3)O were synthesized and deformed in a gas-medium torsion apparatus at temperatures of 1127 °C and 1250 °C, a confining pressure of 300 MPa and constant angular displacement rates equivalent to constant shear strain rates of 1–3.3 × 10^− 4 s^− 1. The samples deformed homogeneously to total shear strains of up to γ  15. During constant strain rate measurements the flow stress remained approximately stable at 1250 °C while it progressively decreased after the initial yield stress at the lower temperature. Mechanical data, microstructures and textures indicate that both phases were deforming in the dislocation creep regime. The weaker component, magnesiowüstite, controlled the rheological behavior of the bulk material and accommodated most of the strain. Deformation and dynamic recrystallization lead to grain refinement and to textures that were not previously observed in pure magnesiowüstite and may have developed due to the presence of the second phase. At 1127 °C, olivine grains behaved as semi-rigid inclusions rotating in a viscous matrix. At 1250 °C, some olivine grains remained largely undeformed while deformation and recrystallization of other grains oriented for a-slip on (010) resulted in a weak foliation and a texture typical for pure dry olivine aggregates. Both a-slip and c-slip on (010) were activated in olivine even though the nominal stresses were up to 2 orders of magnitude lower than those needed to activate these slip systems in pure olivine at the same conditions.     

P–T evolution of the Precambrian Metamorphic Complex,NW Iran: a study of metapelitic rocks

The Mahneshan Metamorphic Complex (MMC) is one of the Precambrian terrains exposed in the northwest of Iran. The MMC underwent two main phases of deformation (D₁ and D₂) and at least two metamorphic events (M₁ and M₂). Critical metamorphic mineral assemblages in the metapelitic rocks testify to regional metamorphism under amphibolite‐facies conditions. The dominant metamorphic mineral assemblage in metapelitic rocks (M₁) is muscovite, biotite I, Garnet I, staurolite, Andalusite I and sillimanite. Peak metamorphism took place at 600–620°C and ∼7 kbar, corresponding to a depth of ca. 24 km. This was followed by decompression during exhumation of the crustal rocks up to the surface. The decrease of temperature and pressure during exhumation produced retrograde metamorphic assemblages (M₂). Secondary phases such as garnet II biotite II, Andalusite II constrain the temperature and pressure of M₂ retrograde metamorphism to 520–560°C and 2.5–3.5 kbar, respectively. The geothermal gradient obtained for the peak of metamorphism is 33°C km⁻¹, which indicates that peak metamorphism was of Barrovian type and occurred under medium‐pressure conditions. The MMC followed a ‘clockwise’ P–T path during metamorphism, consistent with thermal relaxation following tectonic thickening. The bulk chemistry of the MMC metapelites shows that their protoliths were deposited at an active continental margin. Together with the presence of palaeo‐suture zones and ophiolitic rocks around the high‐grade metamorphic rocks of the MMC, these features suggest that the Iranian Precambrian basement formed by an island‐arc type cratonization. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

3D numerical modelling of bit–rock fracture mechanisms in percussive drilling with a multiple‐button bit

This paper considers numerical modelling of rock fracture induced by dynamic bit–rock interaction in percussive drilling. The work presented here extends the author's earlier research on the topic from the axisymmetric case to 3D case. The numerical method for modelling rock fracture includes a constitutive model for rock and a contact mechanics‐based technique to simulate the bit–rock interaction. The constitutive model is based on a combination of the recent viscoplastic consistency model, the isotropic damage concept and a parabolic compression cap. This model is improved here from its earlier state by calibrating the softening laws using fracture energies G_Ic and G_IIc in tension and compression, respectively. Moreover, the viscosity modulus in tension is calibrated based on the dynamic Brazilian disc test. With these enhancements, the developed method is applied to 3D case of the bit–rock interaction problem assuming one symmetry plane. Single impact with single and multiple‐button bits is simulated. In the latter case, an initial borehole is modelled in order to simulate the usual in‐situ drilling conditions. The different failure types observed in the experiments as well as the interaction between the buttons resulting in chipping are realistically captured in the simulations. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

The timing of migmatization in the northern Arabian–Nubian Shield: Evidence for a juvenile sedimentary component in collision‐related batholiths

Collision‐related granitoid batholiths, like those of the Hercynian and Himalayan orogens, are mostly fed by magma derived from metasedimentary sources. However, in the late Neoproterozoic calcalkaline (CA) batholiths of the Arabian–Nubian Shield (ANS), which constitutes the northern half of the East African orogen, any sedimentary contribution is obscured by the juvenile character of the crust and the scarcity of migmatites. Here, we use paired in situ LASS‐ICP‐MS measurements of U–Th–Pb isotope ratios and REE contents of monazite and xenotime and SHRIMP‐RG analyses of separated zircon to demonstrate direct linkage between migmatites and granites in the northernmost ANS. Our results indicate a single prolonged period of monazite growth at 640–600 Ma, in metapelites, migmatites and peraluminous granites of three metamorphic suites: Abu‐Barqa (SW Jordan), Roded (S Israel) and Taba–Nuweiba (Sinai, Egypt). The distribution of monazite dates and age zoning in single monazite grains in migmatites suggest that peak thermal conditions, involving partial melting, prevailed for c. 10 Ma, from 620 to 610 Ma. REE abundances in monazite are well correlated with age, recording garnet growth and garnet breakdown in association with the prograde and retrograde stages of the melting reactions, respectively. Xenotime dates cluster at 600–580 Ma, recording retrogression to greenschist facies conditions as garnet continued to destabilize. Phase equilibrium modelling and mineral thermobarometry yield P–T conditions of ~650–680°C and 5–7 kbar, consistent with either water‐fluxed or muscovite‐breakdown melting. The expected melt production is 8–10 vol.%, allowing a melt connectivity network to form leading to melt segregation and extraction. U–Pb ages of zircon rims from leucosomes indicate crystallization of melt at 610 ± 10 Ma, coinciding with the emplacement of a vast volume of CA granites throughout the northern ANS, which were previously considered post‐collisional. Similar monazite ages (c. 620 Ma) retrieved from the amphibolite facies Elat schist indicate that migmatites are the result of widespread regional rather than local contact metamorphism, representing the climax of the East African orogenesis.     

Numerical modelling of bit–rock fracture mechanisms in percussive drilling with a continuum approach

This paper presents a numerical method for continuum modelling of the dynamic bit–rock interaction process in percussive drilling. The method includes a constitutive model based on a combination of the recent viscoplastic consistency model, the isotropic damage concept and a parabolic compression cap. The interaction between the drill bit and rock is modelled using contact mechanics by treating the bit as a rigid body. As the bit–rock interaction in percussive drilling is a transient event, the method is implemented in explicit dynamics FEM. The rock strength heterogeneity is characterized at the mesoscopic level statistically using the Weibull distribution. The bit–rock interaction is simulated under axisymmetric conditions using cylindrical and hemispherical buttons. The choice of the quite complex constitutive model accounting, e.g. for plastic compaction, viscoplastic shear and tensile failure along with induced damage and rate dependency is justified by numerical simulations. Moreover, the quasi‐static and dynamic cases are compared in plane strain simulations. Finally, some results clarifying the discrepancy of opinions found in the literature concerning the side (lateral) crack formation are obtained. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Mafic plutonic rocks in a continental‐arc setting: geochemistry of 1.87–1.78 Ga rocks from south‐central Sweden and models of their palaeotectonic setting

Mafic intrusive rocks (1.79–1.78 Ga) of the Transscandinavian Igneous Belt (TIB) and the c. 1.87 Ga Hedesunda Igneous Complex in the Fennoscandian Shield of south‐central Sweden were studied using whole‐rock and isotope geochemistry. Rock types vary from gabbros/norites (and leucogabbros) to quartz diorites, with Mg# between 76 and 49, and wt% SiO₂ between 43.6 and 59.7, indicating some variation in evolutionary levels and variable cumulus components. Geochemical signatures are calc‐alkaline to shoshonitic, large ion lithophile elements and light rare earth elements enriched and high‐field strength elements depleted of continental‐arc type. ε_Nd(t) ranges between +1.0 and +2.7, and ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr(t) between 0.7020 and 0.7038. There is no systematic correlation between chemical parameters and isotope ratios. These isotopic data overlap with other mafic plutonic TIB rocks; samples from the Dala Province (DP) tend to overlap with the c. 1.7 Ga basic Dala lavas of TIB at slightly elevated relative Sr/Nd ratios. With two exceptions, the ε_Nd(t) of +1 to +2 conform to an isotopically ‘mildly depleted’ source, typical for mafic TIB rocks and many Svecofennian rocks in the region. Reported values above ε_Nd(t) +2.0 are scarce in the TIB. Mantle sources represent depleted mantle wedge material that was enriched by fluids/melts not long before (T_DM c. 2.0 Ga), that is during subduction in the preceding Svecofennian (2.0–1.87 Ga) and/or during the TIB‐0&1 event (1.85–1.78 Ga). The palaeotectonic settings inferred are active continental margins; N–S‐directed convergence at 1.87 Ga and E–W‐directed at 1.79–1.78 Ga. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Kinematic analysis of pile behavior for improvement of slope stability in fractured and saturated Hoek–Brown rock masses

Because of a multitude of steep slopes being constructed adjacent to roadways, there is greater concern of landslide occurrence, particularly in instances where poor geomaterials are present. Installation of piles along the slope is one commonly adopted method. This paper presents the assessment of the stability of a rock slope with stabilizing piles based on kinematic analysis. The pile effect is introduced with a resultant lateral force and a moment. Upper bound solutions of the pile's lateral force are derived with a log‐spiral rotational failure mechanism. The slope performance based on the bearing capacity of surcharge loading is also discussed with consideration of pore water pressure. In order to substantiate the derived theoretical solutions, numerical analysis with optimization technique is carried out. Results demonstrate that rock materials with high quality are conducive to ensure slope stability. Reduced lateral force on the pile is produced with lower rock weight, slope height, and surcharge loading. Finally, the safety factor and stability coefficient are discussed to complete the evaluation of the slope stability. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Comparison of Fry strain ellipse and AMS ellipsoid trends to tectonic fabric trends in very low-strain sandstone of the Appalachian fold–thrust belt

In moderately to highly strained sandstones, both the long axis of the bedding-parallel finite-strain ellipse, as calculated by the normalized Fry method, and the projection of the long axis of the AMS ellipsoid on the plane of bedding, align well with local “structural grain” (trends of cleavage, folds, and faults). This relationship implies that results of both 2D Fry and AMS analyses represent the local layer-parallel tectonic strain component. Do both methods provide comparable results for very low-strain sandstone (e.g., <5%)? To address this question, Fry and AMS analyses were conducted in very low-strain sandstone from two localities in the Appalachian foreland fold–thrust belt: near Rosendale in New York and the Lackawanna synclinorium of Pennsylvania. We compared the map projections of both bedding-parallel Fry ellipses and AMS ellipsoids to the local structural grain. In both study areas, projections of the long axis of Fry strain ellipses do not cluster in a direction parallel to structural grain, whereas the projection of the long axes of AMS ellipsoids do cluster closely to structural grain. This observation implies that in very low-strain sandstone, AMS analysis provides a more sensitive “quick” indicator of tectonic fabric than does normalized Fry analysis.     

Active strike–slip faulting and macroscopically nonrigid deformation of volcanic rocks in central Japan inferred from a paleomagnetic study

Detailed paleomagnetic investigation of a pyroclastic flow deposit has clarified the deformation mode around an active fault. In central Japan, the early Quaternary Nyukawa Pyroclastic Flow Deposit is cut by the active dextral Enako fault. Activity level of the fault is evaluated on the basis of geological and geomorphological surveys. Then, paleomagnetic samples are collected from 22 sites at exposures located on a lineament that is adjoining and parallel to the Enako fault. Stable thermoremanent magnetization (TRM) of the pyroclastic deposit is isolated through progressive thermal and/or alternating field demagnetization tests. Untilted site-mean directions of the TRMs simultaneously acquired during initial cooling indicate significant clockwise vertical-axis rotation. The lineament was then activated with right-lateral motions through the early Quaternary. Together with the late Quaternary activities along the adjoining Enako fault evaluated by our study, the present result exemplifies a migration of active segments within a fault system during the Quaternary. Paleomagnetic directions on the strike–slip fault are not concordant with uniform deformation predicted by the model of rotation of rigid blocks aligned on a master fault, but suggestive of a periodic deformation as a result of intense fracturing and differential rotation of blocks bounded by nested parallel faults.     

He–Ar and Nd–Sr isotopic compositions of late Pleistocene felsic plutonic back arc basin rocks from Ulleungdo volcanic island, South Korea: Implications for the genesis of young plutonic rocks in a back arc basin

We report analyses of noble gases and Nd–Sr isotopes in mineral separates and whole rocks of late Pleistocene (< 0.2 Ma) monzonites from Ulleungdo, South Korea, a volcanic island within the back arc basin of the Japan island arc. A Rb–Sr mineral isochron age for the monzonites is 0.12 ± 0.01 Ma. K–Ar biotite ages from the same samples gave relatively concordant ages of 0.19 ± 0.01and 0.22 ± 0.01 Ma. ⁴⁰Ar/³⁹Ar yields a similar age of 0.29 ± 0.09 Ma. Geochemical characteristics of the felsic plutonic rocks, which are silica oversaturated alkali felsic rocks (av., 12.5 wt% in K₂O + Na₂O), are similar to those of 30 alkali volcanics from Ulleungdo in terms of concentrations of major, trace and REE elements. The initial Nd–Sr isotopic ratios of the monzonites (⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr = 0.70454–0.71264, ¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd = 0.512528–0.512577) are comparable with those of the alkali volcanics (⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr = 0.70466–0.70892, ¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd = 0.512521–0.512615) erupted in Stage 3 of Ulleungdo volcanism (0.24–0.47 Ma). The high initial ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr values of the monzonites imply that seawater and crustally contaminated pre-existing trachytes may have been melted or assimilated during differentiation of the alkali basaltic magma.A mantle helium component (³He/⁴He ratio of up to 6.5 RA) associated with excess argon was found in the monzonites. Feldspar and biotite have preferentially lost helium during slow cooling at depth and/or during their transportation to the surface in a hot host magma. The source magma noble gas isotopic features are well preserved in fluid inclusions in hornblende, and indicate that the magma may be directly derived from subcontinental lithospheric mantle metasomatized by an ancient subduction process, or may have formed as a mixture of MORB-like mantle and crustal components. The radiometric ages, geochemical and Nd–Sr isotopic signatures of the Ulleungdo monzonites as well as the presence of mantle-derived helium and argon, suggests that these felsic plutonic rocks evolved from alkali basaltic magma that formed by partial melting of subcontinental lithospheric mantle beneath the back arc basin located along the active continental margin of the southeastern part of the Eurasian plate.     

Palaeoproterozoic U–Pb SHRIMP zircon age from basement rocks in Bangladesh: A possible remnant of the Columbia supercontinent

We present new U–Pb SHRIMP zircon geochronological data for basement rocks in Bangladesh, and discuss the relationship with the formation of the Columbia supercontinent. Euhedral zircons from a diorite sample yield a concordia age of 1730 ± 11 Ma, which is interpreted as the crystallization age. The Palaeoproterozoic age of the examined basement rock and the common occurrences of similar 1.7-Ga geologic units in the Central Indian Tectonic Zone and Meghalaya-Shillong Plateau in Indian Shield suggest their apparent continuation. This, together with the occurrence of similar 1.7-Ga geologic units in the Albany-Fraser belt in Australia and East Antarctica, are used to suggest that the basement rocks in Bangladesh formed towards the final stages of the assembly of the Columbia supercontinent.     

Thermal maturity of a fold–thrust belt based on vitrinite reflectance analysis in the Western Foothills complex, western Taiwan

Burial depth, cumulative displacement, and peak temperature of frictional heat of a fault system are estimated by thermal analysis in the fold–thrust belt of the Western Foothills complex, western Taiwan based on the vitrinite reflectance technique. The regional thermal structure across the complex reveals that the rocks were exposed to maximum temperatures ranging from 100 °C to 180 °C, which corresponds to a burial depth of 3.7–6.7 km. A large thermal difference of 90 °C were observed at the Shuilikeng fault which make the eastern boundary of the fold–thrust belt where it is in contact with metamorphic rock of Hsuehshan Range. The large thermal difference corresponds to cumulative displacements on the Shuilikeng fault estimated to be in the range of 5.2–6.9 km. However, thermal differences in across the Shuangtung and Chelungpu faults cannot be determined apparently due to small vertical offsets. The large displacement observed across the Shuilikeng fault is absent at the other faults which are interpreted to be younger faults within the piggyback thrust system. Localized high temperatures adjacent to fault zones were observed in core samples penetrating the Chelungpu fault. Three major fracture zones were observed at core lengths of 225 m, 330 m, and 405 m and the two lower zones which comprise dark gray narrow shear zones. A value of vitrinite reflectance of 1.8%, higher than the background value of 0.8%, is limited at a narrow shear zone of 1 cm thickness at the fracture zone at 330 m. The estimated peak temperature in the range of 550–680 °C in the shear zone is far higher than the background temperature of 130 °C, and it is interpreted as due to frictional heating during seismic faulting.