Geometrical-statistical modelling of systems of fracture zones along oceanic ridges

A mechanical-statistical model is presented that aims to help to understand the history and geometry of the process of formation of fracture zones along oceanic ridges. It uses ideas of statistical fracture theory used in engineering, namely the Weibull fracture model. The approximate parallelism of the fracture zones along ridges makes it possible to use a one-dimensional point process model with points along the ridge axes, which represent the transform faults. The ratios of the lengths of the corresponding fracture zones to the ocean width are used to obtain a rough estimate of the Weibull modulus, which is an important material parameter in fracture theory. The theory is refined by introducing a hard-core point process model. The corresponding positive minimum distance between subsequent fracture zones results from stress relaxation in the vicinity of a given fracture zone.