Beyond KTB - electrical conductivity of the deep continental crust

Great strides have been made in understanding the upper part of the crust by in-situ logging in, and laboratory experiments on core recovered from super-deep bore-holes such as the KTB. These boreholes do not extend into the lower crust, and can contribute little to the elucidation of mechanisms that produce the high electrical conductivities that are commonly observed therein by magneto-telluric (MT) methods. Laboratory studies at simulated lower crustal conditions of temperature, pressure and saturation, on electrolyte saturated rocks thought to have been derived from the lower crust, have not been possible up until now due to their experimental difficulty. It is necessary to subject electrolyte-saturated rock samples to independently controlled confining and pore-fluid pressure, which implies that the rock be sleeved in some impermeable but deformable material, that can withstand the very high temperatures required. Metals are the only materials capable of being used, but these cause great difficulties for cell sealing and conductivity measurement. In this paper we describe recent breakthroughs in experimental work, specifically the development of two new types of sophisticated metal/ceramic seal, and a conductivity measurement technique that enables the measurement of saturated rock conductivity in the presence of a highly conducting metallic sleeve. The advances in experimental technique have enabled us to obtain data on the electrical conductivity of brine saturated basic, acidic and graphite-bearing rocks at lower crustal temperatures and raised pressures. These data have facilitated the comparison of MT derived crustal electrical conductivity profiles with profiles obtained from laboratory experiments for the first time. Initial modelling shows a good agreement between laboratory derived and MT derived profiles only if the mid-crust is composed of amphibolite pervaded by aqueous fluids, and the lower crust is composed of granulite that is saturated with aqueous fluids and/or contains interconnected grain surface films of graphite. The experimental data are consistent with a three layer crust consisting of an aqueous fluid saturated acidic uppermost layer, above an aqueous fluid saturated amphibolite mid-crust, and a granulite lowermost crust, which may or may not be saturated with aqueous fluids, but if not, requires the presence of an additional conduction mechanism such as conduction through thin graphite films.