The effect of a vertical temperature gradient in the lithosphere on seismic and tectonic waves

A linear analysis of the stability of the lithosphere considered as a viscoelastic layer with an equilibrium vertical gradient of temperature is carried out. The problem is solved with a complete system of linearized equations of a continuous medium represented in the dimensionless form and containing a set of dimensionless parameters that determine thermomechanical properties of the lithosphere. As a result of the stability analysis, decrements are found that give the time dependence of perturbations and correspond to high-frequency seismic waves and low-frequency tectonic waves. The frequency and velocity of seismic waves are determined by the elasticity and inertial properties of the lithosphere, and their attenuation, by viscous properties of the lithosphere. The temperature gradient existing in the lithosphere influences seismic waves very weakly. On the contrary, the pattern of tectonic waves is controlled by the temperature gradient and viscous properties, while the effect of elastic and inertial properties on these waves is negligibly small. The stability of a viscoelastic lithosphere is examined using such rheological models as the Maxwell, standard linear, and Andrade media (the frequency of tectonic waves is zero in the Maxwell medium).     

Magma expansion and fragmentation in a propagating dyke

The influence of magma expansion due to volatile exsolution and gas dilation on dyke propagation is studied using a new numerical code. Many natural magmas contain sufficient amounts of volatiles for fragmentation to occur well below Earth's surface. Magma fragmentation has been studied for volcanic flows through open conduits but it should also occur within dykes that rise towards Earth's surface. The characteristics of volatile-rich magma flow within a hydraulic fracture are studied numerically. The mixture of melt and gas is treated as a compressible viscous fluid below the fragmentation level and as a gas phase carrying melt droplets above it. The numerical code solves for elastic deformation of host rocks, the flow of the magmatic mixture and fracturing at the dyke tip. With volatile-free magma, a dyke fed at a constant rate in a uniform medium adopts a constant shape and width and rises at a constant velocity. With volatiles involved, magma expands and hence the volume flux of magma increases. With no fragmentation, this enhanced flux leads to acceleration and thinning of the dyke. Simple scaling laws allow accurate predictions of dyke width and ascent rate for a wide range of conditions. With fragmentation, dyke behaviour is markedly different. Due to the sharp drop of head loss that occurs in gas-rich fragmented material, large internal overpressures develop below the dyke tip and induce swelling of the nose region, leading to deceleration of the dyke. These results are applied to the two-month long period of volcanic unrest that preceded the May 1980 eruption of Mount St Helens. An initial phase of rapid earthquake migration from the 7–8 km deep reservoir to shallow levels was followed by very slow progression of magma within the edifice. Such behaviour can be accounted for by magma fragmentation at the top of a dyke.     

青藏高原东缘岩石圈结构对现今地表垂向运动影响的数值分析

参考青藏高原东缘松潘-甘孜地块至四川盆地陡变地形起伏和地壳密度结构的横向差异,本文建立了二维牛顿黏性流体有限元模型,计算分析构造加载、陡变地形和重力效应控制下青藏高原东缘岩石圈变形特征,探讨横向不均匀的地壳密度结构、陡变地形和岩石圈流变性质对区域现今垂向运动的影响.计算结果显示：在构造加载作用下,松潘-甘孜地块至四川盆地地表抬升微弱.区域横向不均匀的地壳密度结构驱使松潘-甘孜地块地壳整体抬升,速率高达2 mm·a^-1,四川盆地整体下沉,速率约1 mm·a^-1,与龙门山两侧现今观测到的地表垂向变形模式相近.龙门山地区陡变地形驱使柔性地壳流动,调整区域地壳局部变形;岩石圈流变结构影响重力驱动作用下的模型变形量值和岩石圈变形耦合程度,松潘-甘孜地块较低的中地壳黏滞系数引起上、下地壳的变形解耦;模型较高的岩石圈地幔黏滞系数使重力驱动作用下区域垂向变形量降低.因此,青藏高原东缘地壳密度结构差异、地形起伏和岩石圈流变性质是现今区域垂向变形的重要动力学控制因素.

     

The spread of subducted lithospheric material along the mid-mantle boundary

Studies of phase transitions in silicate minerals at high temperatures and pressures suggest that the bulk density of subducted lithosphere at the mid-mantle boundary is intermediate between the densities of the upper and lower mantle. We argue that, if this is the case, then the lithospheric material will intrude along the mid-mantle boundary driven by buoyancy forces resulting from the compositional density differences between the intrusion and its surroundings. The rate of spread of the intrusion is given by a balance between these buoyancy forces and the viscous resistance of the mantle to motion. Using results from our recent studies of the fluid mechanics of such viscous gravity currents, we find that lithospheric material can propagate between one thousand and two thoudand kilometres in a hundred million years and can cover the entire boundary in one to six billion years. This spreading may be reflected in the global distribution of the isotopic characteristics of oceanic basalts.     

How valid are dynamic models of subduction and convection when plate motions are prescribed?

A detailed comparison between fully dynamic and kinematic plate formulations has been made in models of mantle convection. Plate velocity is computed self-consistently from fully dynamic plate models with temperature- and stress-dependent viscosity and preexisting mobile faults. In fully dynamic models, the flow is driven solely by internal buoyancy, while in kinematic models the flow is driven by a combination of the prescribed surface velocity and internal buoyancy. Only a temperature-dependent viscosity, close to the effective viscosity determined from the fully dynamic models, is used in the kinematic models. The two types of models give very similar temperature structures and slab evolutionary histories when the effective viscosity and surface velocity are nearly identical. In kinematic plate models, the additional work introduced by the prescribed velocity boundary condition is apparently dissipated within the lithosphere and has little influence on the convection under the lithosphere. In models with periodic lateral boundary conditions, slabs sink into the lower mantle at an oblique angle and this contrasts with the vertical sinking which occurs with reflecting boundary conditions. Models show that we can simulate fully dynamic models with kinematic models under either periodic boundary conditions or reflecting boundary conditions.     

The magmatic activity mechanism of the fossil spreading center in the Southwest sub-basin,South China Sea

Petrogeochemical data indicate that after the end of seafloor spreading,residual magmatic activity still exists in the deep basin of the South China Sea.By using different viscous structure models beneath the fossil spreading center of the Southwest sub-basin we simulated the amount of melt produced,the length of the melting period,and the thermal evolution process in terms of geothermics and the buoyant decompression melting mechanism.We compared the results of our model with observed heat flow,seismic,and petrogeochemistry data.The results show that depletion buoyancy induced by buoyant decompression melting plays an important role in the melting process,while retention buoyancy,thermal buoyancy,and viscous shear force have only a weak influence on the melting process.From the length of the melting period,we determined that for the three viscous structures models the magmatic activity lasted about 5,12,and 15 Ma.Under the effect of buoyant depression melting,local high-temperature areas will develop under the basin,which can explain the low-velocity layer detected by seismic exploration in the middle and upper lithosphere of the Southwest sub-basin.We also simulated the possible lithology distribution beneath the fossil spreading center with the physical conditions of different viscous structure,different temperature structure,and different melting fraction,which provided a greater understanding of the rock petrogeochemical data of the deep sea basin in the South China Sea.     

Fluid ascent through the solid lithosphere and its relation to earthquakes

The Earth is continuously expelling gases and liquids from great depths—juvenile volatiles from the mantle and recycled metamorphic products. Some of these fluids ascend through liquid rock in volcanic processes, but others utilize fractures and faults as conduits through the solid lithosphere. The latter process may have a major influence on earthquakes, since fluids at near lithostatic pressures appear to be required to activate deep faults that would otherwise remain locked.Fluids can be driven upward through solid rock by buoyancy, but only if present in sufficient concentration to form large-scale domains occupying interconnected fracture porosity. A growing fluid domain becomes so mobilized only when it attains the critical vertical dimension required for hydrostatic instability. This dimension, depending on the ultimate compressive yield strength of the rock, may be as much as several kilometers.Any column of fluid ascending through fractures in the solid lithosphere from a prolific deep source must become organized into a vertical sequence of discrete domains, separated by fluid-pressure discontinuities. This is required because a continuous hydrostatic-fluid-pressure profile extending from an arbitrarily deep source to the surface cannot be permitted by the finite strength of rock. A vertically stacked sequence of domains allows the internal fluid-pressure profile to approximate the external rock-stress profile in a stepwise fashion. The pressure discontinuity below the base of the uppermost hydrostatic domain may be responsible for some occurrences of so-called anomalous geopressures. An ascending stream of fluid that percolates upward from a deep source through a column of domains must encounter a sequence of abrupt pressure decreases at the transitions between successive domains. If supercritical gases act as solvents, the dissolved substances may drop out of solution at such pressure discontinuities, resulting in a local concentration of minerals and other substances.At great depths, brittle fracture would normally be prevented by high pressure and temperature, with all excessive stress discharged by ductile flow. Rock strata invaded by an ascending fluid domain are weakened, however, because cracks generated or reactivated by the high-pressure fluid can support the overburden, greatly reducing internal friction. This reduction of strength may cause a previously stressed rock to fail, resulting in hydraulic shear fracture. Thus, earthquakes may be triggered by the buoyant migration of deep-source fluids.The actual timing of the failure that leads to such an earthquake may be determined by the relatively rapid inflation of a fluid domain and not by any significant increase in the probably much slower rate of regional tectonic strain. Many earthquake precursory phenomena may be secondary symptoms of an increase in pore-fluid pressure, and certain coseismic phenomena may result from the venting of high-pressure fluids when faults break the surface. Instabilities in the migration of such fluid domains may also contribute to or cause the eruption of mud volcanoes, magma volcanoes, and kimberlite pipes.     

Earthquake stress drops,ambient tectonic stresses and stresses that drive plate motions

A variety of geophysical observations suggests that the upper portion of the lithosphere, herein referred to as the elastic plate, has long-term material properties and frictional strength significantly greater than the lower lithosphere. If the average frictional stress along the non-ridge margin of the elastic plate is of the order of a kilobar, as suggested by the many observations of the frictional strength of rocks at mid-crustal conditions of pressure and temperature, the only viable mechanism for driving the motion of the elastic plate is a basal shear stress of several tens of bars. Kilobars of tectonic stress are then an ambient, steady condition of the earth's crust and uppermost mantle. The approximate equality of the basal shear stress and the average crustal earthquake stress drop, the localization of strain release for major plate margin earthquakes, and the rough equivalence of plate margin slip rates and gross plate motion rates suggest that the stress drops of major plate margin earthquakes are controlled by the elastic release of the basal shear stress in the vicinity of the plate margin, despite the existence of kilobars of tectonic stress existing across vertical planes parallel to the plate margin. If the stress differences available to be released at the time of faulting are distributed in a random, white fasbion with a mean-square value determined by the average earthquake stress drop, the frequency of occurrence of constant stress drop earthquakes will be proportional to reciprocal faulting area, in accordance with empirically known frequency of occurrence statistics.     

The role of elastic stored energy in controlling the long term rheological behaviour of the lithosphere

The traditional definition of lithospheric strength is derived from the differential stresses required to form brittle and ductile structures at a constant strain rate. This definition is based on dissipative brittle and ductile deformation and does not take into account the ability of the lithosphere to store elastic strain. Here we show the important role of elasticity in controlling the long-term behaviour of the lithosphere. This is particularly evident when describing deformation in a thermodynamic framework, which differentiates between stored (Helmholtz free energy) and dissipative (entropy) energy potentials. In our model calculations we stretch a continental lithosphere with a wide range of crustal thickness (30–60 km) and heat flow (50–80 mW/m²) at a constant velocity. We show that the Helmholtz free energy, which in our simple calculation describes the energy stored elastically, converges for all models within a 25% range, while the dissipated energy varies over an order of magnitude. This variation stems from complex patterns in the local strain distributions of the different models, which together operate to minimize the Helmholtz free energy. This energy minimization is a fundamental material behaviour of the lithosphere, which in our simple case is defined by its elastic properties. We conclude from this result that elasticity (more generally Helmholtz free energy) is an important regulator of the long-term geological strength of the lithosphere.     

An experimental study on the formation of composite intrusions from zoned magma chambers

We present a model which accounts for the common, but paradoxical arrangement of composite intrusions (i.e. silicic core and mafic margins) on the basis of analogue experiments using gelatin and aqueous solutions. The present model involves simultaneous flow-out of the upper and lower magmas from a longitudinal crack along the chamber wall. Experimental results suggest that the mafic magma from the lower layer leaks from the side-wall of the chamber and travels faster than the silicic magma because of its lower viscosity, so that the mafic magma reaches the tip of the crack first. Once the mafic magma reaches the crack tip, then the rate of dyke propagation becomes determined by the viscosity of the less viscous mafic magma, and so it can advance rapidly. The viscous silicic magma can flow efficiently into the center of the dyke, being lubricated by the mafic magma margins. This model accounts for the common arrangement of composite intrusions and gives an efficient mechanism of flow of viscous silicic magmas.     

地壳岩石变形行为的转变及其温压条件

岩石脆延性转化 (brittle ductiletransition)和脆塑性转化 (brittle plastictransition)是不同的概念。脆延性转化指从岩石的局部变形破坏到宏观均匀流动变形的转化 ,它与宏观结构和力学行为的变化相关。脆塑性转化指脆性向晶体塑性变形的转化 ,它与力学行为和微观机制的变化相关。通过地壳中最主要的石英、长石的实验室和野外变形温压条件对比发现 ,达到相同的变形特征 ,在实验室和野外所需温压条件不同。建立变形机制图使解决这一矛盾成为可能。但受实验资料的限制 ,目前几种主要岩石的变形机制图还无法建立。因此 ,通过对实验与自然环境下变形特征及微观机制对比 ,找出两者温压条件的差别 ,就成为将实验研究结果外推解决实际地质问题的有效途径     

Causes and consequences of pressurisation in lava dome eruptions

High total and fluid pressures develop in the interior of high-viscosity lava domes and in the uppermost parts of the feeding conduit system as a consequence of degassing. Two effects are recognised and are modelled quantitatively. First, large increases in magma viscosity result from degassing during magma ascent. Strong vertical gradients in viscosity result and large excess pressures and pressure gradients develop at the top of the conduit and in the dome. Calculations of conduit flow show that almost all the excess pressure drop from the chamber in an andesitic dome eruption occurs during the last several hundred metres of ascent. Second, microlites grow in the melt phase as a consequence of undercooling caused by gas loss. Rapid microlite growth can cause large excess fluid pressures to develop at shallow levels. Theoretically closed-system microlite crystallization can increase local pressure by a few tens of MPa, although build up of pressure will be countered by gas loss through permeable flow and expansion by viscous flow. Microlite crystallization is most effective in causing excess gas pressures at depths of a few hundred metres in the uppermost parts of the conduit and dome interior. Some of the major phenomena of lava dome eruptions can be attributed to these pressurisation effects, including spurts of growth, cycles of dome growth and subsidence, sudden onset of violent explosive activity and disintegration of lava during formation of pyroclastic flows. The characteristic shallow-level, long-period and hybrid seismicity, characteristic of dome eruptions, is attributed to the excess fluid pressures, which are maintained close to the fracture strength of the dome and wallrock, resulting in fluid movement during formation of tensile and shear fractures within the dome and upper conduit.     

Hybrid upwind discretization of nonlinear two-phase flow with gravity

Multiphase flow in porous media is described by coupled nonlinear mass conservation laws. For immiscible Darcy flow of multiple fluid phases, whereby capillary effects are negligible, the transport equations in the presence of viscous and buoyancy forces are highly nonlinear and hyperbolic. Numerical simulation of multiphase flow processes in heterogeneous formations requires the development of discretization and solution schemes that are able to handle the complex nonlinear dynamics, especially of the saturation evolution, in a reliable and computationally efficient manner. In reservoir simulation practice, single-point upwinding of the flux across an interface between two control volumes (cells) is performed for each fluid phase, whereby the upstream direction is based on the gradient of the phase-potential (pressure plus gravity head). This upwinding scheme, which we refer to as Phase-Potential Upwinding (PPU), is combined with implicit (backward-Euler) time discretization to obtain a Fully Implicit Method (FIM). Even though FIM suffers from numerical dispersion effects, it is widely used in practice. This is because of its unconditional stability and because it yields conservative, monotone numerical solutions. However, FIM is not unconditionally convergent. The convergence difficulties are particularly pronounced when the different immiscible fluid phases switch between co-current and counter-current states as a function of time, or (Newton) iteration. Whether the multiphase flow across an interface (between two control-volumes) is co-current, or counter-current, depends on the local balance between the viscous and buoyancy forces, and how the balance evolves in time. The sensitivity of PPU to small changes in the (local) pressure distribution exacerbates the problem. The common strategy to deal with these difficulties is to cut the timestep and try again. Here, we propose a Hybrid-Upwinding (HU) scheme for the phase fluxes, then HU is combined with implicit time discretization to yield a fully implicit method. In the HU scheme, the phase flux is divided into two parts based on the driving force. The viscous-driven and buoyancy-driven phase fluxes are upwinded differently. Specifically, the viscous flux, which is always co-current, is upwinded based on the direction of the total-velocity. The buoyancy-driven flux across an interface is always counter-current and is upwinded such that the heavier fluid goes downward and the lighter fluid goes upward. We analyze the properties of the Implicit Hybrid Upwinding (IHU) scheme. It is shown that IHU is locally conservative and produces monotone, physically-consistent numerical solutions. The IHU solutions show numerical diffusion levels that are slightly higher than those for standard FIM (i.e., implicit PPU). The primary advantage of the IHU scheme is that the numerical overall-flux of a fluid phase remains continuous and differentiable as the flow regime changes between co-current and counter-current conditions. This is in contrast to the standard phase-potential upwinding scheme, in which the overall fractional-flow (flux) function is non-differentiable across the boundary between co-current and counter-current flows.     

3-D spherical shell modeling of mantle flow and its implication for global tectogenesis

In order to study the relationship between mantle flow and global tectogenesis, we present a 3-D spherical shell model with incompressible Newtonian fluid medium to simulate mantle flow which fits the global tectogenesis quite well. The governing equations are derived in spherical coordinates. Both the thermal buoyancy force and the self-gravitation are taken into account. The velocity and pressure coupled with temperature are computed, using the finite-element method with a punitive factor. The results show that the lithosphere, as the boundary layer of the earth's thermodynamic system, moves with the entire mantle. Both its horizontal and vertical movements are the results of the earth's thermal motion. The orogenesis occurs not only in the collision zones at the plates' boundaries, but also occurs within the plates. If the core-mantle boundary is impermeable and the viscosity of the lower mantle is considerable, the vertical movement is mostly confined to the upper mantle. The directions of the asthenospheric movements are not fully consistent with those of the lithospheric movements. The depths of spreading movements beneath all ridges are less than 220 km. In some regions, the shear stresses, acting on the base of the lithosphere by the asthenosphere, are the main driving force; but in other regions, the shear stresses are the resisting force.     

Magma flow revealed by magnetic fabric in the Okavango giant dyke swarm, Karoo igneous province, northern Botswana

To determine the magma flow direction of the giant, 179 Ma Okavango dyke swarm of northern Botswana, we measured the anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility (AMS) of 23 dykes. Dykes are located in two sections (Shashe and Thune Rivers), which are about 300 km and 400 km from the presumed magma source respectively; the Nuanetsi triple point. We collected samples from the margins of the dykes in order to use the imbrication of magnetic foliation to determine magma flow direction. About half of the magnetic fabric in the dykes is inverse, i.e. with the magnetic foliation perpendicular to the dyke plane. Lateral flow to the west and vertical flow is in evidence in the Shashe section. However, the overall analysis of normal and inverse magnetic fabric data supports that lateral flow to the west was dominant in the Shashe section. Across the Thune section, a poorly defined imbricated magnetic foliation also suggests lateral flow to the west.     

Effective elastic thickness of island arc lithosphere under Japan

Abstract Using topography and observed gravity anomalies, we have estimated the effective elastic thickness as a measure of strength of Japanese island arc lithosphere. The thickness is found to range from about 3 km to >20 km. The thickness seems to be controlled primarily by the thermal state of the lithosphere. The higher the heat flow, the thinner is the elastic plate. However, several areas show significant deviations. The smaller effective elastic thickness in the northern Ryukyu arc than that inferred from heat flow may be attributed to the stress regime. In Japan, extensional tectonics are going on only in the Ryukyu arc region. Shallow subducting slab under the south-western Japan frontal arc probably increases the effective thickness by several kilometers. The determined effective elastic thickness suggests that when we consider vertical movements in the volcanic arc, we should take account of topographic and subsurface loading over a few hundred kilometers. However, if the dip of the slab is shallow, the flexural responses of the underlying slab, not only that of the island arc lithosphere, should be taken into account for the compensation, as is the case of the south-western Japan frontal arc.     

Steady-state migration and diffusion of hydrocarbons in complex stratigraphic sequences

A mean-field method is used to describe both average and fluctuating flow properties of water and oil in sedimentary basins. Comparison of oil and water flow shows the relative strengths of capillarity and buoyancy in controlling the mean and fluctuating components of flow. Effects of sandiness and water-wetness are studied as is the effect of decreasing porosity with increasing subsurface burial. Numerical estimates suggest that sandiness percentages between about 20 to 80% influence mean and fluctuating components of flow. Outside of this regime the end-member situations of shale or sand prevail.The extra effects of vertical buoyancy and capillarity generally make lateral diffusion less important for oil flow than for water flow.     

新生代渤海中部强烈沉降的物理条件和深部过程

新生代时期渤海中部的强烈沉降,是多种物理条件的共同作用结果,这些条件是由裂谷期和后裂谷期的深部过程产生成的.裂谷期在异常热地幔背景下的渤海地壳隆起、减薄、张裂,地幔热物质上升侵入地壳,莫霍界面位置升高,积累了重力势能;后裂谷期岩石圈（层）的冷却、收缩及下地壳的相变导致密度增大,加上巨厚沉积物的持续增生,使地壳处于重力不平衡状态,向下的垂直力远大于向上的浮托力,同时还有东部后退位移性板块边界和下地壳侧向流动的支持,使渤海中部成为下沉速率最快、沉降幅度最大的凹陷盆地.后裂谷期的早期的盆地下沉具有分散、局部性特征,表现为多个凹陷和凸起交替组合格局;晚期转变为大范围的整体沉降,显示重力均衡和补偿过程是从浅往深发展的.先存的郯庐断裂带对沉降的空间范围有局部边界控制性作用,其本身可能受到盆地发展的强烈改造影响.盆地的基本变形机制是上地壳的水平向脆性张破裂和垂直向或近垂直向的正断层-剪切破裂,地震震源机制解和大地震时的地表破裂表现的水平错动反映中、下地壳的走滑-平移型应力状态及相应的瞬间水平剪切破裂,它与上地壳残留的伸展、下沉相容并存于三维地壳体内.     

大陆岩石圈流变学研究进展

大陆岩石圈流变学是固体地球科学领域的基本问题,也是理解大陆变形的动力学过程和构造演化史的关键.本文对近年来大陆岩石圈流变学的研究进展进行了综述.重点讨论大陆岩石圈流变学的纵向分层和横向分块特性及流变学与地震活动性、壳－幔解耦及下地壳流动变形的地球动力学意义和中国大陆地区岩石圈流变学研究状况.最后,对大陆岩石圈流变学研究存在的问题和未来的研究方向做了一定的探讨和展望.