Search results for "Geophysic"

Stability of Embankments Resting on Foundation Soils with A Weak Layer

2021

The presence of weak layers in geotechnical systems, including soil or rock masses, both natural and man-made, is more frequent than is normally believed. Weak layers can affect both failure mechanisms, in drained and in undrained conditions, as well as in static and seismic conditions, and the safety factor. In the present study, conducted numerically using the finite-element method (FEM) Plaxis 2D code, the influence of a horizontal thin weak layer on stress and strain distribution, on failure mechanisms and on the overall stability of an embankment was evaluated. The results obtained prove that when the weak layer is located at a significant depth from the foundation plane, the failure m…

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

2014

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…

Os, Sr, Nd, Pb, O isotope and trace element data from the Ferrar flood basalts, antarctica: evidence for an enriched subcontinental lithospheric sour…

1996

Os, Sr, Nd, Pb and O isotopes and trace element data are reported for basaltic andesite and andesite whole rocks and, in part, for selected mineral separates from the Jurassic Ferrar flood basalt province. Radiogenic Sr (> 0.709), unradiogenic Nd (εNd= −3 to −5), and radiogenic Pb isotopes, as well as low Nb/La ratios of 0.4 – 0.6 and Nb/La ratios between 0.45 and 0.6 are found for all rocks including our most primitive sample (Mg# = 71.9). This indicates involvement of either continental crust or enriched lithospheric mantle in magma genesis. 187Re/188Os correlates strongly with 187Os/188Os, with an age of 172 ± 5 Ma, in agreement with published Arsingle bondAr data. Initial 187Os/188Os of…

Source Mechanisms of Laboratory Earthquakes During Fault Nucleation and Formation

2021

Identifying deformation and pre-failure mechanisms preceding faulting is key for fault mechanics and for interpreting precursors to fault rupture. This study presents the results of a new and robust derivation of first motion polarity focal mechanism solutions (FMS) applied to acoustic emission (AE). FMS are solved using a least squares minimization of the fit between projected polarity measurements and the deviatoric stress field induced by dilatational (T-type), shearing (S-type), and compressional (C-type) sources. 4 × 10 cm cylindrical samples of Alzo Granite (AG, porosity <1%) and Darley Dale Sandstone (DDS, porosity ≈14%) underwent conventional triaxial tests in order to investigat…

Persistence in complex systems

2022

Persistence is an important characteristic of many complex systems in nature, related to how long the system remains at a certain state before changing to a different one. The study of complex systems' persistence involves different definitions and uses different techniques, depending on whether short-term or long-term persistence is considered. In this paper we discuss the most important definitions, concepts, methods, literature and latest results on persistence in complex systems. Firstly, the most used definitions of persistence in short-term and long-term cases are presented. The most relevant methods to characterize persistence are then discussed in both cases. A complete literature r…

Insights on Hydrothermal‐Magmatic Interactions and Eruptive Processes at Poás Volcano (Costa Rica) From High‐Frequency Gas Monitoring and Drone Measu…

2019

Texto completo del documento Identification of unambiguous signals of volcanic unrest is crucial in hazard assessment. Processes leading to phreatic and phreatomagmatic eruptions remain poorly understood, inhibiting effective eruption forecasting. Our 5‐year gas record from Poás volcano, combined with geophysical data, reveals systematic behavior associated with hydrothermal‐magmatic eruptions. Three eruptive episodes are covered, each with distinct geochemical and geophysical characteristics. Periods with larger eruptions tend to be associated with stronger excursions in monitoring data, particularly in SO2/CO2 and SO2 flux. The explosive 2017 phreatomagmatic eruption was the largest erupt…

Recent results from Borexino and the first real time measure of solar pp neutrinos

2014

International audience; The Borexino detector was built starting from 1996 in the underground hall C of Gran Sasso National Laboratory (LNGS) in Italy under about 1400 m of rock (3800 m.w.e) and it is mostly aimed to the study in real-time of the low-energy solar neutrinos.Since the beginning of data taking, in May 2007, the unprecedented detector radio-purity made the performances of the detector unique: a milestone has been very recently achieved with the measurement of solar pp neutrino flux, providing the first direct observation in real time of the key fusion reaction powering the Sun.In this contribution the most important Borexino achievements to the fields of solar, geo-neutrino and…

Climate signatures on decadal to interdecadal time scales as obtained from mollusk shells (Arctica islandica) from Iceland

2013

Abstract Pronounced decadal climate oscillations are detected in a multi-centennial record based on shell growth rates of the marine bivalve mollusk, Arctica islandica, from Iceland. The corresponding analysis of patterns in sea level pressure and temperature exhibit large-scale teleconnections with North Atlantic climate quantities. We find that the record projects onto blocking situations in the northern North Atlantic. The associated circulation shows a low-pressure signature over Greenland and the Labrador Sea and a high-pressure system over Western Europe associated with northeasterly flow towards Iceland and weakening in the westerly zonal flow over Europe. It can be speculated that s…

2020

Although volcanic eruptions represent short periods in the whole history of a volcano, the large amount of loose pyroclastic material produced, combined with aeolian processes, can lead to continuous, long-lasting reworking of volcanic products. Driven by wind, these processes significantly influence the geomorphology and prolong the impacts of eruptions on exposed communities and ecosystems. Since such phenomena are of interest to scientists from a range of disciplines (e.g. volcanology, atmospheric and soil sciences), a well-defined, common nomenclature is necessary to optimize the multidisciplinary characterisation of both processes and deposits. We, therefore, first describe ash wind-re…

New lithostratigraphy for the Cantabrian Mountains: A common tectono-stratigraphic evolution for the onset of the Alpine cycle in the W Pyrenean real…

2019

The Pyrenean-Cantabrian Orogen arose through the collision of the Iberian and Eurasian plates, mostly in Cenozoic times. This orogen comprises two main mountain ranges, the Pyrenees to the east, and the Cantabrian Mountains to the west. To date, the early Alpine tectono-sedimentary phases preserved in the Cantabrian Mountains, of Permian and Triassic age, have been considered independently from the same phases in neighbouring basins of SW Europe, and even from the eastern part of the same orogeny (the Pyrenean orogeny). In consequence, the beginning of the Alpine cycle in the Cantabrian Mountains has been interpreted within a specific geodynamic context, far from the general evolutionary ph…