Mechanics, Structure and Evolution of Fault Zones


Book Description

Considerable progress has been made recently in quantifying geometrical and physical properties of fault surfaces and adjacent fractured and granulated damage zones in active faulting environments. There has also been significant progress in developing rheologies and computational frameworks that can model the dynamics of fault zone processes. This volume provides state-of-the-art theoretical and observational results on the mechanics, structure and evolution of fault zones. Subjects discussed include damage rheologies, development of instabilities, fracture and friction, dynamic rupture experiments, and analyses of earthquake and fault zone data.




Understanding Faults


Book Description

Understanding Faults: Detecting, Dating, and Modeling offers a single resource for analyzing faults for a variety of applications, from hazard detection and earthquake processes, to geophysical exploration. The book presents the latest research, including fault dating using new mineral growth, fault reactivation, and fault modeling, and also helps bridge the gap between geologists and geophysicists working across fault-related disciplines. Using diagrams, formulae, and worldwide case studies to illustrate concepts, the book provides geoscientists and industry experts in oil and gas with a valuable reference for detecting, modeling, analyzing and dating faults. - Presents cutting-edge information relating to fault analysis, including mechanical, geometrical and numerical models, theory and methodologies - Includes calculations of fault sealing capabilities - Describes how faults are detected, what fault models predict, and techniques for dating fault movement - Utilizes worldwide case studies throughout the book to concretely illustrate key concepts




The Internal Structure of Fault Zones


Book Description

Faults are primary focuses of both fluid migration and deformation in the upper crust. The recognition that faults are typically heterogeneous zones of deformed material, not simple discrete fractures, has fundamental implications for the way geoscientists predict fluid migration in fault zones, as well as leading to new concepts in understanding seismic/aseismic strain accommodation. This book captures current research into understanding the complexities of fault-zone internal structure, and their control on mechanical and fluid-flow properties of the upper crust. A wide variety of approaches are presented, from geological field studies and laboratory analyses of fault-zone and fault-rock properties to numerical fluid-flow modelling, and from seismological data analyses to coupled hydraulic and rheological modelling. The publication aims to illustrate the importance of understanding fault-zone complexity by integrating such diverse approaches, and its impact on the rheological and fluid-flow behaviour of fault zones in different contexts.




Geologic Fracture Mechanics


Book Description

Introduction to geologic fracture mechanics covering geologic structural discontinuities from theoretical and field-based perspectives.




Living on an Active Earth


Book Description

The destructive force of earthquakes has stimulated human inquiry since ancient times, yet the scientific study of earthquakes is a surprisingly recent endeavor. Instrumental recordings of earthquakes were not made until the second half of the 19th century, and the primary mechanism for generating seismic waves was not identified until the beginning of the 20th century. From this recent start, a range of laboratory, field, and theoretical investigations have developed into a vigorous new discipline: the science of earthquakes. As a basic science, it provides a comprehensive understanding of earthquake behavior and related phenomena in the Earth and other terrestrial planets. As an applied science, it provides a knowledge base of great practical value for a global society whose infrastructure is built on the Earth's active crust. This book describes the growth and origins of earthquake science and identifies research and data collection efforts that will strengthen the scientific and social contributions of this exciting new discipline.




Flow Processes in Faults and Shear Zones


Book Description

Faults and their deeper level equivalents, shear zones, are localized regions of intense deformation within the Earth. They are recognized at all scales from micro to plate boundary, and are important examples of the nature of heterogeneous deformation in natural rocks. Faults and shear zones are significant as they profoundly influence the location, architecture and evolution of a broad range of geological phenomenao The topography and bathymetry of the Earth's surface is marked by mountain belts and sedimentary basins that are controlled by faults and shear zoneso In addition, faults and shear zones control fluid migration and transport including hydrothermal and hydrocarbon systems. Once faults and shear zones are established, they are often long-lived features prone to multiple reactivation over very large time-scales. This collection of papers addresses lithospheric deformation and the rheology of shear zones, together with processes of partitioning and the unravelling of fault and shear zone histories.




High-strain Zones


Book Description

This collection of research and review papers addresses the question of structural evolution during deformation to high strains and the physical properties of rocks that have been affected by high-strain zones. The discussions range from natural examples at outcrop to microscopic studies. They include experiments and numerical models based on the active processes in high-strain zones as well as studies on the physical properties of highly strained rocks in the field and laboratory. Specific questions addressed include magnetotelluric imaging of faults, magnetic fabrics, fabric development, seismic properties of highly strained rocks, change of rheology with strain, influence of melt on the localization of deformation, the relationship between deformation and metamorphism as well as new methods in the analysis of deformation. The book is aimed at an interdisciplinary group of readers interested in the effects of high strain in rocks.




The Geometry and Growth of Normal Faults


Book Description

Normal faults are the primary structures that accommodate extension of the brittle crust. This volume provides an up-to-date overview of current research into the geometry and growth of normal faults. The 23 research papers present the findings of outcrop and subsurface studies of the geometrical evolution of faults from a number of basins worldwide, complemented by analogue and numerical modelling studies of fundamental aspects of fault kinematics. The topics addressed include how fault length changes with displacement, how faults interact with one another, the controls of previous structure on fault evolution and the nature and origin of fault-related folding. This volume will be of interest to those wishing to develop a better understanding of the structural geological aspects of faulting, from postgraduate students to those working in industry.




The Mechanics of Earthquakes and Faulting


Book Description

Our understanding of earthquakes and faulting processes has developed significantly since publication of the successful first edition of this book in 1990. This revised edition, first published in 2002, was therefore thoroughly up-dated whilst maintaining and developing the two major themes of the first edition. The first of these themes is the connection between fault and earthquake mechanics, including fault scaling laws, the nature of fault populations, and how these result from the processes of fault growth and interaction. The second major theme is the central role of the rate-state friction laws in earthquake mechanics, which provide a unifying framework within which a wide range of faulting phenomena can be interpreted. With the inclusion of two chapters explaining brittle fracture and rock friction from first principles, this book is written at a level which will appeal to graduate students and research scientists in the fields of seismology, physics, geology, geodesy and rock mechanics.




Advances in Geophysics


Book Description

The critically acclaimed serialized review journal for nearly fifty years, Advances in Geophysics is a highly respected publication in the field of geophysics. Since 1952, each volume has been eagerly awaited, frequently consulted, and praised by researchers and reviewers alike. Now with over 45 volumes, the Serial contains much material still relevant today-truly an essential publication for researchers in all fields of geophysics.