Download or read book Grain scale Comminution and Alteration of Arkosic Rocks in the Damage Zone of the San Andreas Fault at Safod written by Bretani Rebecca Heron and published by . This book was released on 2012 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Spot core from the San Andreas Fault Observatory at Depth (SAFOD) borehole provides the opportunity to characterize and quantify damage and mineral alteration of siliciclastics within an active, large-displacement plate-boundary fault zone. Deformed arkosic, coarse-grained, pebbly sandstone, and fine-grained sandstone and siltstone retrieved from 2.55 km depth represent the western damaged zone of the San Andreas Fault, approximately 130 m west of the Southwest Deforming Zone (SDZ). The sandstone is cut by numerous subsidiary faults that display extensive evidence of repeating episodes of compaction, shear, dilation, and cementation. The subsidiary faults are grouped into three size classes: 1) small faults, 1 to 2 mm thick, that record an early stage of fault development, 2) intermediate-size faults, 2 to 3 mm thick, that show cataclastic grain size reduction and flow, extensive cementation, and alteration of host particles, and 3) large subsidiary faults that have cemented cataclastic zones up to 10 mm thick. The cataclasites contain fractured host-rock particles of quartz, oligoclase, and orthoclase, in addition to albite and laumontite produced by syn-deformation alteration reactions. Five structural units are distinguished in the subsidiary fault zones: fractured sandstones, brecciated sandstones, microbreccias, microbreccias within distinct shear zones, and principal slip surfaces. We have quantified the particle size distributions and the particle shape of the host rock mineral phases and the volume fraction of the alteration products for these representative structural units. Shape characteristics vary as a function of shear strain and grain size, with smooth, more circular particles evolving as a result of increasing shear strain. Overall, the particle sizes are consistent with a power law distribution over the particle size range investigated (0.3 ℗æm

Download or read book Chemical and Physical Changes Within the Damage Zone of the Mojave Segment of the San Andreas Fault written by and published by . This book was released on 2010 with total page 55 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: We mapped a tabular zone of pink potassium feldspar alteration in granitic rocks within the damage zone of the San Andreas fault from Arrowhead Springs to Gorman in southern California. Alteration of K-feldspar to a pink color is spatially associated with the active trace of the fault. In the literature, such coloration is commonly attributed to metasomatism. To better understand the processes leading to this alteration along the San Andreas, we studied two transects perpendicular to the trace of the fault with different structural histories near Littlerock and Lake Hughes, California. Lake Hughes is on a portion of the San Andreas that has been active throughout much of the faults history, while Littlerock is on a relatively young strand that was one a part of an extensional step over. Furthermore, Littlerock exhibits a broad zone of pulverization within the inner damage zone whereas Lake Hughes contains a much narrower zone of pulverization within this part of the fault zone, in spite of its larger displacement. To study the origin of the pink coloration and to better understand the deformation processes active with the damage zone, we collected samples from all three distinct zones along each transect; parent rock, outer damage zone, and pulverized rocks within the inner damage zone. In order to calculate porosity, the collected samples were analyzed for bulk and grain density. XRF was used to determine their chemical composition. Thin sections were made in order to study textures and microstructures, and selected samples were analyzed for particle size distribution. The results of our study indicate that mechanical fragmentation dominates in both transects, and that pink K-feldspar is the result of an increase in volumetric strain due to an increase in fracture density and porosity, which then acted as a conduit for fluid migration within the fault zone. Fluids within intra-granular fractures oxidize the iron inclusions that are commonly found within K-feldspar crystal structure, resulting in the pink coloration. Fracturing and fluid migration within the fault zone appears to be cyclic as indicated by numerous cross cutting open, healed, and in filled cracks. The two transects differ slightly in their chemical alteration signal. Littlerock experienced a bulk mass increase of about 10% in the outer damage zone and 12% in the pulverized rocks of the inner damage zone due to elemental mass changes, while Lake Hughes experienced no bulk mass change and relatively little elemental mass change. Both sites contain evidence for crystal-plastic deformation within feldspars and quartz. However, at Littlerock these features increase within the damage zone towards the fault core, whereas at Lake Hughes, they are present within the wall rock and only increase slightly within the damage zone. Both sites contain plagioclase which has been altered to sericite, and at Littlerock, some has been altered to laumontite. However, at Lake Hughes, sericite is also present within the wall rock samples. At Littlerock biotite is altered to chlorite, while at Lake Hughes the wall rock contains chlorite and biotite partially altered to clay. Some of the observed mineral alteration products are generally associated with elevated temperatures. The pink alteration of K-feldspar at both sites is a clear indicator of micro-scale fracturing and fluid migration associated with the San Andreas fault. It appears that at Littlerock, migration of hydrothermal fluids occurred within an extensional step-over whereas at Lake Hughes fluid migration occurred in a more simple setting.

Download or read book Rock Properties and Structure Within the San Andreas Fault Observatory at Depth SAFOD Borehold Northwest of Parkfield California written by Kelly Keighley Bradbury and published by . This book was released on 2012 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Scales Depencence of Fracture Density and Fabric in the Damage Zone of a Large Displacement Continental Transform Fault written by Muhammed Faith Ayyildiz and published by . This book was released on 2013 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Characterization of fractures in an arkosic sandstone from the western damage zone of the San Andreas Fault (SAF) at San Andreas Fault Observatory at Depth (SAFOD) was used to better understand the origin of damage and to determine the scale dependence of fracture fabric and fracture density. Samples for this study were acquired from core taken at approximately 2.6 km depth during Phase 1 drilling at SAFOD. Petrographic sections of samples were studied using an optical petrographic microscope equipped with a universal stage and digital imaging system, and a scanning electron microscope with cathodoluminescence (SEM-CL) imaging capability. Use of combined optical imaging and SEM-CL imaging was found to more successfully acquire true fracture density at the grain scale. Linear fracture density and fracture orientation were determined for transgranular fractures at the whole thin section scale, and intragranular fractures at the grain scale. The microscopic scale measurements were compared to measurements of mesoscopic scale fractures in the same core, as well as to published data from an ancient, exhumed trace of the SAF in southern California. Fracturing in the damage zone of the SAF fault follows simple scaling laws from the grain scale to the km scale. Fracture density distributions in the core from SAFOD are similar to distributions in damaged arkosic sandstone of the SAF along other traces. Transgranular fractures, which are dominantly shear fractures, indicate preferred orientation approximately parallel to the dominant sets of the mesoscale faults. Although additional work is necessary to confirm general applicability, the results of this work demonstrate that fracture density and orientation distribution over a broad range of scales can be determined from measurements at the mesoscopic scale using empirical scaling relations. The electronic version of this dissertation is accessible from http://hdl.handle.net/1969.1/148095

Download or read book Displacement Along the San Andreas Fault California written by John C. Crowell and published by Geological Society of America. This book was released on 1962 with total page 72 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book The Fabric of Clasts Veins and Foliations Within the Actively Creeping Zones of the San Andreas Fault at Safod written by David Wayne Sills and published by . This book was released on 2012 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Recovered core samples from the San Andreas Fault Observatory at Depth (SAFOD), located near Parkfield, CA, offer a unique opportunity to study the products of faulting and to learn about the mechanisms of slip at 3 km depth. Casing deformation reflects active creep along two strands of the San Andreas Fault (SAF) at SAFOD. The two fault strands are referred to as the Southwest Deforming Zone (SDZ) at 3194 m measured depth (MD) and the Central Deforming Zone (CDZ) at 3301 m MD. The SDZ and CDZ contain remarkably similar gouge layers, both of which consist of a clay-bearing, ultrafine grain matrix containing survivor clasts of sandstone and serpentinite. The two gouges have sharp boundary contacts with the adjacent rocks. We have used X-ray Computed Tomography (XCT) imaging, at two different sampling resolutions, to investigate the mesoscale and microscale structure of the fault zone, specifically to characterize the shape, preferred orientation, and size distribution of the survivor clasts. Using various image processing techniques, survivor clast shape and size are characterized in 3D by best-fit ellipsoids. Renderings of survivor clasts illustrate that survivor clasts have fine tips reminiscent of sigma type tails of porphyroclasts observed in myolonites. The resolution of the XCT imaging permits characterization of survivor clasts with equivalent spherical diameters greater than 0.63 mm. The survivor clast population in both the SDZ and CDZ gouge layers have similar particle size distributions (PSD) which fit a power law with a slope of approximately -3; aspect ratio (major to minor axis ratios) distributions also are similar throughout ranging between 1.5 and 4, with the majority occurring between 2-2.5. The volume- and shape- distributions vary little with position across the gouge zones. A strong shape preferred orientation (SPO) exists in both creeping zones. In both the SDZ and CDZ the minor axes form a SPO approximately normal to the plane of the San Andreas Fault (SAF), and the major axes define a lineation in the plane of the SAF. The observation that the size-, shape- and orientation-distributions of mesoscale, matrix-supported clasts are similar in the SDZ and CDZ gouge layers, and vary little with position in each gouge layer, is consistent with the hypothesis that aseismic creep in the SDZ and CDZ is achieved by distributed, shearing. The consistency between the SPO and simple-shear, strike-slip kinematics, and the marked difference of PSD, fabric, cohesion and clast lithology of the gouge with that of the adjacent rock, is consistent with the hypothesis that the vast majority of the shear displacement on the SAF at SAFOD is accommodated within the gouge layers and the gouge displays a mature, nearly steady-state structure.

Download or read book Rock properties and structure within the San Andreas Fault Observatory at Depth SAFOD borehole northwest of Parkfield California written by Kelly Keighley Bradbury and published by . This book was released on 2012 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book The San Andreas Fault System written by Robert E. Powell and published by Geological Society of America. This book was released on 1993 with total page 360 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The authors of the ten chapters in this volume critically examine the geologic evidence that constrains timing and magnitude of movement on various faults of the San Andreas system, and they develop and discuss paleogeologic reconstructions based on these constraints. The volume offers new insight into the evolution of the San Andreas fault system,

Download or read book Fault Zone Architecture of the San Jacinto Fault Zone in Horse Canyon Southern California written by and published by . This book was released on 2010 with total page 93 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Stream cuts in Horse Canyon southwest of Anza, California have exposed the fault core, adjacent damage zone, and wall rocks of the San Jacinto fault at an approximate depth of 0.4 km. Here the juxtaposition of tonalitic plutons provides a unique opportunity to assess the formation of fault zone rocks with similar host-rock lithologies. We present results on the physical properties, chemistry and mineralogy of distinct zones identified within the fault zone. Samples from these zones were analyzed using bulk and grain density measurements, geochemical data, clay mineralogy, and textural and modal mineralogy. Progressive mechanical deformation is characterized by initial mode I cracking in quartz and plagioclase and subsequent shearing of fractured rock. These processes produce anastomosing seams of microbreccia and gouge that increase in frequency, thickness, and degree of grain communition towards a strongly indurated cataclasite fault core. Damage progression towards the fault core is accompanied by decreased bulk and grain density and increased porosity and dilational volumetric strain. A-CN-K plots indicate that fault zone rocks are altered along a trend from unweathered tonalitic wall rocks towards an end member that includes illite-mica. Such a trend is different from that expected from normal surface weathering. Chemical alteration along this trend is reflected in elemental mass changes that are most pronounced in the fault core where dissolution of plagioclase has resulted in a core that is highly enriched in quartz. Moreover, the illite/smectite to illite conversion is preserved in the cataclasite core, suggesting elevated temperatures that may have approached ~150°C. The above relationships are consistent with higher water /rock ratios within the fault core than in the surrounding damage zones of gouge and microbreccia. These results, in conjunction with published data on the permeability behavior of cataclasite during deformation events, indicate that hot pore fluids likely circulate upward via a narrow conduit within the San Jacinto fault zone during and after dynamic shearing episodes. Given the ~0.4 km maximum depth of rocks studied in this investigation, such fluids must have reached very shallow levels. Though difficult to constrain, the site studied during this investigation may represent the top of a series of narrow hydrothermal circulation cells that dissipate heat generated from rupture events at deeper levels (> 4 km).

Download or read book The San Andreas Fault System in the Vicinity of the Central Transverse Ranges Province Southern California written by Jonathan C. Matti and published by . This book was released on 1992 with total page 110 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Net Dextral Slip Neogene San Gregorio Hosgri Fault Zone Coastal California written by William R. Dickinson and published by Geological Society of America. This book was released on 2005-01-01 with total page 50 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Three Dimensional Structure and Earthquake Locations Along the San Andreas Fault Near Parkfield California written by Kyle A. Roberts and published by . This book was released on 2003 with total page 104 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Mesoscale Fracture Fabric and Paleostress Along the San Andreas Fault at SAFOD written by Rafael Vladimir Almeida and published by . This book was released on 2010 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Spot cores from Phase 1 drilling of the main borehole at the San Andreas Fault Observatory at Depth (SAFOD) were mapped to characterize the mesoscale structure and infer paleostress at depth. Cores were oriented by comparing mapped structures with image logs of the borehole. The upper core (1476-1484 m measured depth, MD) is a medium-grained, weakly foliated, hornblende-biotite granodiorite containing leucocratic phenocrysts and lenses. Principal structures are sub-vertical veins, shallow dipping shears, and natural fractures of unknown kinematics. The features are compatible with horizontal extension and right-lateral, normal, oblique-slip on faults striking approximately parallel to the SAF. The lower core (3055.6-3067.2 m MD) has massivebedded, pebble conglomerates and coarse to fine grained arkosic sandstones grade into siltstones. Principal structure features are conjugate shears and two minor faults. The fracture fabric is consistent with strike-slip faulting and a maximum principal compressive paleostress at ~80° to the SAF plane. This paleostress is essentially parallel to the current in situ stress measured in the main borehole and to paleostresses inferred from fracture fabrics in exhumed faults of the San Andreas system to the south. The similarity between the current state of stress and paleostress states supports the suggestion that the maximum principal compressive stress direction is, on average, at high angles to the SAF and that the fault has been weak over geologic time.

Download or read book Confirmation of a New Geometric and Kinematic Model of the San Andreas Fault at Its Southern Tip Durmid Hill Southern California written by Daniel K. Markowski and published by . This book was released on 2016 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The southern - 100 km long Coachella section of the San Andreas fault is the only section of the fault in southern California that has not experienced a historical earthquake, and it may be the most overdue section of the fault. Numerical models of rupture propagation shows that a large earthquake with a nucleation one in the Durmid Hill field area would produce particularly destructive and deadly ground shaking in southern California. This is used as the model earthquake for the ShakeOut exercises in southern California because it is may represent the worst-case scenario for southern California but does not appear to be a very likely scenario following this research. Building on existing geologic mapping that shows major Pleistocene to Holocene contraction near the hypothesized nucleation, we use geologic mapping to develop and validate a competing geometric and kinematic model for the southern tip of the San Andreas Fault. A ladder-like-fault model explains the widespread contraction in the Durmid Hill study area as the result of contraction between the main strand of the San Andreas fault and East Shoreline strand. The East Shoreline strand of the San Andreas fault is the newly discovered fault and is dispersed across a zone between 0.5 to 1 km wide, and encompasses an area on the northeast shore of the Salton Sea. There is persistent and strong contraction across the entire - 1.5 to 3.5 km wide San Andreas fault zone because both dextral "side-rail" faults are counterclockwise, and in a contractional bend, relative to current plate motions. This contractional bend was previously documented for the main strand of San Andreas fault. A new digital geologic map and field studies document the stratigraphy and structures at a range of scales between Bombay Beach and Salt Creek. Numerous folds, narrow strike-slip and oblique-slip faults, and sheared damaged rocks in latest Miocene (?) to Holocene sediment lie within the wide and very complex damage zone of the main strand of the San Andreas fault zone. The East Shoreline strand of the San Andreas fault system buffers the main strand from major stress changes produced by deformation along the sinistral to sinistral-normal Extra fault array under the Salton Sea.

Download or read book Heterogeneous Slip and Rupture Models of the San Andreas Fault Zone Based Upon Three dimensional Earthquake Tomography written by William Foxall and published by . This book was released on 1992 with total page 364 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Multi scale Analysis of San Andreas Fault Zone Physical Properties written by Tamara Jeppson and published by . This book was released on 2014 with total page 174 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book San Andreas Fault San Francisco Peninsula written by and published by . This book was released on 1971 with total page 16 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: