Rift nucleation, rift propagation and the creation of basement micro-plates within active rifts

Abstract In this contribution we study the dynamics of rift nucleation and the interaction of propagating rift segments. We use the East African Rift System (EARS) as a case study with special emphasis on the Albertine rift system situated within the western branch of the EARS with the 5000 m high Rwenzori horst, a basement block that was captured by two rift segments. Fieldwork in the Rwenzori mountains shows that the range is not only affected by range parallel faults but that major fault sets cut across the Rwenzoris. In order to understand these complex fault patterns and the dynamics of the process that leads to the capturing of basement blocks within the extending rift system we devel…

Stylolite interfaces and surrounding matrix material: Nature and role of heterogeneities in roughness and microstructural development

Rough pressure solution interfaces, like stylolites, are one of the most evident features of localized slow deformation in rocks of the upper crust. There is a general consensus that the development of these rough structures is a result of localized, stress enhanced, dissolution of material along a fluid filled interface, but little is known on the initiation of this roughness. The aim of this article is to reveal the role of heterogeneities initially present in the host-rock on roughness initiation. This should give insights on whether stylolite roughness is generated by a stress-induced instability or by the presence of disorder in the material (i.e. quenched noise). We use a microstructu…

Development of antitaxial fringes during non-coaxial deformation: an experimental study

Strain fringes were modelled experimentally around wooden objects in a simple-shear box containing Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS). The fringes were made of paraffin wax that was periodically poured into dilated sites next to the core-object and left to crystallise. In the experiments fringes and core-object rotated at similar decreasing rotation rates relative to extensional incremental stretching axes (ISA) of flow and rotated relative to each other by small amounts. Fringes did not necessarily open parallel to ISA due to interactions between fringes and core-object. Therefore, neither displacement-controlled fibres nor object-centre paths can be expected to record the exact orientation of th…

The influence of rock heterogeneity on the scaling properties of simulated and natural stylolites

International audience; Stylolites are among the most prominent deformation patterns in sedimentary rocks that document localized pressure solution. Recent studies revealed that stylolite roughness is characterized by two distinct scaling regimes. The main goal of the present study is to decipher whether this complex scaling behavior of stylolites is caused by the composition of the host-rock, i.e. heterogeneities in the material, or is governed by inherent processes on respective scales, namely the transition from a surface energy to an elastic energy dominated regime, as theoretically predicted. For this purpose we have developed a discrete numerical technique, based on a lattice spring m…

The importance of fracture-healing on the deformation of fluid-filled layered systems

International audience; Understanding the fracturingehealingerefracturing cycle is a fundamental part of studying the deformation dynamics and the permeability evolution of rock systems. Previous studies, however, have not examined the influence of healing i.e. fracture-closure through vein formation and the mechanical properties of the " healed " fractures (veins) on the rock deformation. We present results from a two-dimensional coupled hydro-mechanical model which simulates large time and spatial scale dynamic fracturing and healing of a porous medium under the influence of gravity, tectonic stretching and elevated fluid pressures. Our results show that healing decreases the local porosi…

Dynamics of hydrofracturing and permeability evolution in layered reservoirs

International audience; A coupled hydro-mechanical model is presented to model fluid driven fracturing in layered porous rocks. In the model the solid elastic continuum is described by a discrete element approach coupled with a fluid continuum grid that is used to solve Darcy based pressure diffusion. The model assumes poro-elasto-plastic effects and yields real time dynamic aspects of the fracturing and effective stress evolution under the influence of excess fluid pressure gradients. We show that the formation and propagation of hydrofractures are sensitive to mechanical and tectonic conditions of the system. In cases where elevated fluid pressure is the sole driving agent in a stable tec…

Disequilibrium melt distribution during static recrystallisation

Melt migration and segregation, and the rheology of partially molten rocks in the upper mantle and lower crust, strongly depend on the grain-scale distribution of the melt. Current theory for monomineralic aggregates predicts a perfectly regular melt framework, but high-temperature experiments with rock-forming minerals + melt show considerable deviations from this predicted geometry. Disequilibrium features, such as fully wetted grain boundaries and large melt patches, have been described; these were mainly attributed to surface-energy anisotropy of the minerals. We present static analogue experiments with norcamphor + ethanol that allow continuous in situ observation of the evolving liqui…

Two-dimensional numerical modeling of fracturing and shear band development in glacier fronts

In this contribution we present a two-dimensional numerical model of a deforming glacier front. The model is based on a hybrid lattice spring network approach where particles in the model can deform in a volume conservative visco-elastic manner but at the same time they can be compressed elastically and fracture by discrete failure. We restrict ourselves to a simple setting where the glacier sits on a frictionless slope that dips with 5–10°, the ice block is fixed on one side and has a free surface on the other. The glacier varies in viscosity and can flow at the base, whereas it is brittle at the top. Results show that the head of the glacier is unstable. Failure happens as a combination o…

Numerical simulation of fibre growth in antitaxial strain fringes

A two-dimensional computer model (‘Fringe Growth’) is used to simulate the incremental growth of crystal fibres in undeformed antitaxial strain fringes. The user can define the shape of a core-object (e.g. a pyrite crystal), the growth velocity and anisotropy of growing crystals, the rotation of fringes and core-object with respect to a horizontal datum and with respect to each other, and the opening velocity of fringes. Growth is simulated by movement of nodes connecting line segments that define the grain boundaries. Modelling results predict that face-controlled strain fringes will grow around smooth core-objects and strain fringes with displacement-controlled and face-controlled fibres …

Mountain-building under extension

A mechanism is presented which explains how intra-continental rifting can cause large topographic uplift. The effect is sufficient to account for the uplift of rift flanks and the very high and strongly localized uplift of the Rwenzori horst in the Western Branch of the East African Rift System. We propose that the uplift is generated by crustal bending, which is caused by a misfit of the lateral tensile stress between the upper and middle crust. The misfit is a function of different yield mechanisms when the upper crust breaks whereas the middle crust flows. Two independent numerical schemes confirm the suggested uplift mechanism. Both models—a 2 and 2.5 D elastoplastic lattice-particle mo…

Deformation and fluid flow in the Huab Basin and Etendeka Plateau, NW Namibia

Abstract The Lower Cretaceous Twyfelfontein sandstone formation in the Huab Basin in NW Namibia shows the effects of volcanic activity on a potential reservoir rock. The formation was covered by the Parana-Etendeka Large Igneous Province shortly before or during the onset of South-Atlantic rifting. Deformation bands found in the sandstone trend mostly parallel to the continental passive margin and must have formed during the extrusion of the overlying volcanic rocks, indicating that their formation is related to South-Atlantic rifting. 2D-image porosity analysis of deformation bands reveals significant porosity reduction from host rock to band of up to 70%. Cementation of the sandstone, lin…

Lattice-particle simulation of stress patterns in a Rwenzori-type rift transfer zone

Abstract A new 3D spring lattice computer model has been developed and used to calculate the stress-field in the vicinity of a rift transfer zone. The numerical setup is based on the Rwenzori block, a transfer zone in the Western Branch of the East African Rift Valley. The study has two closely related, yet independent aims: primarily to gain insight into the pattern and the causes of the stress field in the Rwenzori area. The second aim is the evaluation of the model itself, based on a comparison of the model results with local geological structures. The simulations calculate the stress in the brittle part of the crust, at the topographic surface and at a depth of 10 km. The model does the…

Development of crystal morphology during unitaxial growth in a progressively widening vein: II. Numerical simulations of the evolution of antitaxial fibrous veins

The development of fibrous morphology and capability of fibres for tracking the opening trajectory were investigated using numerical simulations of a natural antitaxial fibrous vein. Starting from a non-unique best case, variation of fracture opening velocity, grain size, wall roughness, growth anisotropy and crystal growth velocity shows that these parameters differ in importance for crystal morphology and tracking capability. Fibrous veins can be simulated using crack–seal opening of the fracture. Grain boundaries track the opening trajectory if the wall roughness is high, opening increments are small and crystals touch the wall before the next crack increment starts.

A new mixed-mode fracture criterion for large-scale lattice models

Abstract. Reasonable fracture criteria are crucial for the modeling of dynamic failure in computational lattice models. Successful criteria exist for experiments on the micro- and on the mesoscale, which are based on the stress that a bond experiences. In this paper, we test the applicability of these failure criteria to large-scale models, where gravity plays an important role in addition to the externally applied deformation. Brittle structures, resulting from these criteria, do not resemble the outcome predicted by fracture mechanics and by geological observations. For this reason we derive an elliptical fracture criterion, which is based on the strain energy stored in a bond. Simulation…

Stress sensitivity of stylolite morphology

International audience; Stylolites are rough surfaces that form by localized stress-induced dissolution. Using a set of limestone rock samples collected at different depths from a vertical section in Cirque de Navacelles (France), we study the influence of the lithostatic stress on the stylolites morphology on the basis of a recent morphogenesis model. We measured the roughness of a series of bedding-parallel stylolites and show that their morphology exhibits a scaling invariance with two self-affine scaling regimes separated by a crossover-length (L) at the millimeter scale consistent with previous studies. The importance of the present contribution is to estimate the stylolite formation s…

Contrasting stress fields on correlating margins of the South Atlantic

Made available in DSpace on 2018-12-11T17:25:39Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2015-01-01 The passiveness of passive continental margins across the globe is currently under debate since several studies have shown that these margins may experience a variety of stress states and undergo significant vertical movement post-breakup. Of special interest is the South Atlantic, because the bounding continents have very different recent geological histories, with Africa experiencing continental rifting whereas South America is influenced by subduction on the Pacific side. It is not clear to what extent the Atlantic continental margins are subject to the same stresses and vertical …

The structure of reactive grain-boundaries under stress containing confined fluids

We present numerical experiments on structure development in grain-boundaries during dissolution–precipitation creep. Two solids that are represented by an elastic spring configuration are pressed together with a compressible fluid in the grain-boundary. The solid can dissolve or precipitate depending on elastic and surface energy as well as fluid pressure and concentration of dissolved material in the fluid. We perform a number of numerical experiments with different starting configurations that represent a large-scale island-channel interface with solid–solid contacts across the islands, a rough grain-boundary interface with a fluid along the whole interface and a smooth thin-film interfa…

Fabric attractors in general triclinic flow systems and their application to high strain shear zones: A dynamical system approach

High strain zones may deform by flow with a triclinic symmetry. This paper describes triclinic flow in a reference frame where Instantaneous Stretching Axes (ISA) are fixed. The operation of triclinic flow is described in two ways: first in terms of flow and the nature of flow eigenvectors and in the second part of the paper in terms of finite strain. In monoclinic flow, at least one of the eigenvectors of the flow coincides with one of the ISA and one or two of the eigenvectors act as attractors of foliation or lineation elements. In triclinic flow some flow eigenvectors are undefined since the two largest eigenvalues (controlling the flow) are imaginary. Imaginary eigenvalues are particul…

Characterization of major discontinuities from borehole cores of the black consolidated marl formation of Draix (French Alps)

A quantitative description of rock discontinuities present in subsurface cores that were drilled (down to 20 m) in the marls of the Laval and Moulin catchments near Draix (France) is presented. Three kinds of discontinuities are studied: those fully open, those open but filled with clay rich material and those sealed with calcite. With a laser profiler, the topography of facing sides of typical discontinuities was measured with a normal resolution of 1 µm. The probability distribution of the elevation of each surface are obtained and shown to be normal. Possible self-affine scaling invariance of the topography were explored. The mineralogical content of an interface between the marl bulk an…

Fracture and vein patterns as indicators of deformation history: a numerical study

Anisotropic scaling of tectonic stylolites: A fossilized signature of the stress field?

International audience; [1] Vertical stylolites are pressure solution features, which are considered to be caused by horizontal tectonic loading, with the largest principal compressive stress being (sub-) parallel to the Earth's surface. In the present study we analyze the roughness of such tectonic stylolites from two tectonic settings in southern Germany and northeastern Spain, aiming to investigate their scaling properties with respect to the stress during formation. High-resolution laser profilometry was carried out on opened stylolite surfaces of nine samples. These data sets were then analyzed using one-and two-dimensional Fourier power spectral approaches. We found that tectonic styl…

Growth of stylolite teeth patterns depending on normal stress and finite compaction

Abstract Stylolites are spectacular rough dissolution surfaces that are found in many rock types. They are formed during a slow irreversible deformation in sedimentary rocks and therefore participate to the dissipation of tectonic stresses in the Earth's upper crust. Despite many studies, their genesis is still debated, particularly the time scales of their formation and the relationship between this time and their morphology. We developed a new discrete simulation technique to explore the dynamic growth of the stylolite roughness, starting from an initially flat dissolution surface. We demonstrate that the typical steep stylolite teeth geometry can accurately be modelled and reproduce natu…

Case studies and coupling of processes

This chapter with eight authored sections presents a selection of possible application of microdynamic simulation to address geological questions. The various processes that have been introduced in the previous chapter were used, sometimes with minor additions or modifications. Because processes in rocks never operate in isolation, the reader will see that the various authors in this chapter have combined two or more processes to simulate the microstructural development under investigation. As such the authors have fully taken advantage of the possibility of the Elle software to couple processes.

The transition from single layer to foliation boudinage: A dynamic modelling approach

Abstract Foliation boudinage is a deflection of foliation in the vicinity of a central discontinuity in foliated rocks, mostly filled with vein material. It shows evidence for brittle deformation and void-opening during ductile flow. We used a two-dimensional visco-elastic spring model based on a discrete element approach to study the dynamic development of foliation boudinage and the behaviour of anisotropic visco-elastic material deformed under pure shear conditions. The anisotropies are set by defining rheological heterogeneities in the models with (1) a single layer in a weaker matrix; (2) multi-layers with different elastic properties and (3) random-distributed “micas”, rows of horizon…

Brittle reactivation of ductile shear zones in NW Namibia in relation to South Atlantic rifting

Rifting has occurred worldwide along preexisting mobile belts, which are therefore thought to control rift orientation on a large scale. On a smaller scale, shear zones within mobile belts are reactivated as rift faults. In NW Namibia, shear zones of the Neoproterozoic Kaoko Belt run subparallel to the present-day continental passive margin and are inferred to have been reactivated during the opening of the South Atlantic Ocean. However, the extent of this reactivation and the influence of the reactivated shear zones on South Atlantic rifting are largely unknown. A combined remote sensing and field study was conducted to quantify offsets that are a direct function of shear zone reactivation…

Influence of pre-existing fabrics on fault kinematics and rift geometry of interacting segments: Analogue models based on the Albertine Rift (Uganda), Western Branch-East African Rift System

This study aims at showing how far pre-existing crustal weaknesses left behind by Proterozoic mobile belts, that pass around cratonic Archean shields (Tanzania Craton to the southeast and Congo Craton to the northwest), control the geometry of the Albertine Rift. Focus is laid on the development of the Lake Albert and Lake Edward/George sub-segments and between them the greatly uplifted Rwenzori Mountains, a horst block located within the rift and whose highest peak rises to >5000 m above mean sea level. In particular we study how the southward propagating Lake Albert sub-segment to the north interacts with the northward propagating Lake Edward/George sub-segment south of it, and how this i…

Fluid-triggered earthquake swarms in the Rwenzori region, East African Rift—Evidence for rift initiation

The Rwenzori Mountains are located within the Albertine Rift Valley in western Uganda. To monitor the microseismic activity in the area we have deployed a seismic network of up to 35 stations for a period of about 20 months. The analysis of the recordings revealed several earthquake clusters within a restricted area NE of the mountain block. The clusters form elongated pipes with 1–2 km diameter and vertical extensions of 3–5 km. Most of them are located in 5–16 km depths; however one cluster reaches down to 22 km. Each cluster is composed of a series of single earthquake swarms with durations between a few days and more than a week, interrupted by intervals of inactivity of up to several m…

Shear sense indicators in striped bedding-veins

Striped bedding-veins are veins that lie subparallel to bedding and have an internal layering or lineation at a small angle to the veins’ long axis. They form during bedding-parallel slip and can be used as shear sense indicators. Solid inclusion trails produce the visible internal layering or lineation and track the opening direction of the veins. Elongate quartz crystals however can be oriented at an angle of up to 80° to the opening direction, are non-tracking, and contain almost no information on the shear sense. The striped bedding-veins can be separated into three types according to the geometry of their internal segmentation. Veins of type B opened parallel to jogs oriented at a low …

Melange: A viscoelastic lattice-particle model applicable to the lithosphere

[1] This article introduces the software Melange, a 3D lattice-particle hybrid model. The software was specifically designed in order to simulate ductile visco-elasto-plastic deformation and can be used to study tectonic processes in the lithosphere from the micro to the macro scale. Melange is under an open source license. The code takes both relevant yield mechanisms for the deformation of lithospheric material into account: dynamic brittle failure and ductile creep, where ductile creep is modeled as viscoelasticity. The software considers effects of the local geology, of the inherent disorder of geomaterials, of rheological layering of the lithosphere and applies repulsion when the mater…

Asymmetric continental deformation during South Atlantic rifting along southern Brazil and Namibia

Abstract Plate restoration of South America and Africa to their pre-breakup position faces the problem of gaps and overlaps between the continents, an issue commonly solved with implementing intra-plate deformation zones within South America. One of these zones is often positioned at the latitude of SE/S Brazil. However, geological evidence for the existence of a distinct zone in this region is lacking, which is why it remains controversial and is not included in all modeling studies. In order to solve this problem we present a study of multiple geological aspects of both parts of the margin, SE/S Brazil and its conjugate part NW Namibia at the time of continental breakup. Our study highlig…

Modelling of stylolite geometries and stress scaling

International audience; In this contribution we present numerical simulations of stylolite growth to decipher the effects of initial rock heterogeneity and stress on their morphology. We show that stylolite growth in a rock with a uniform grain size produces different patterns than stylolite growth in a rock with a bimodal grain size distribution. Strong pinning of large heterogeneities produce stylolite structures that are dominated by pronounced teeth, whereas a uniform grain size leads to spikes and a roughness that shows variable wavelengths. We compare the simulated stylolites with natural examples and show that the model can reproduce the real structures. In addition we show that stro…

Modelling of segment structures: Boudins, bone-boudins, mullions and related single- and multiphase deformation features

Finite element modelling has been used to simulate the development of segment structures, deformed layer segments separated by veins, such as boudins, mullions, and bone-boudins. A parameter sensitivity analysis is used to compare the influence of the nature of the flow, the relative viscosities of veins in necks and the host rock, and the initial geometry of the layer segments. Parameter fields have been determined for the relative viscosity of veins and layers, and the kinematic vorticity number of flow. Reworked segment structures can have several shapes such as bone-, bulging, shortened bone-boudins and their asymmetric equivalents such as domino- and shearband-boudin geometry. The mode…