Lubrication Dynamics for Exhumation of high-pressure Rocks in Subduction Zones
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<p>Subduction zones witness exhumation of deep crustal rocks metamorphosed under high pressure (HP) and ultra-high pressure (UHP) conditions, following burial to depths of 100 km or more. The exhumation dynamics of HP and UHP rocks still remains a lively issue of research in the Earth science community. We develop a new tectonic model based on the lubrication dynamics to show the exhumation mechanism of such deep crustal rocks in convergent tectonic settings. Our model suggests subducting plate motion produces a dynamic pressure in the subduction wedge, which supports the excess gravitational potential energy of the thicker and relatively denser overriding plate partly lying over the buoyant subduction wedge. A drop in the dynamic pressure causes the overriding plate to undergo gravitational collapse and forces the wedge materials to return to the surface. Using lubrication theory we estimate the magnitude of dynamic pressure (<em>P</em>) in the wedge as a function of subduction velocity (<em>u<sub>s</sub></em>), convergence angle (<em>&#945;</em>) and wedge viscosity (<em>&#181;</em>). We also conduct thermo-mechanical numerical experiments to implement the lubrication model in subduction zones on a real scale. Our analysis suggests that drop in wedge dynamic pressure below a threshold value due to decease in <em>u</em><sub><em>s</em>&#160; </sub>and <em>&#181;</em>, or by other processes, such as slab rollback and trench retreat facilitate exhumation of deep crustal rocks. Finally we discuss their implications for the exhumation of deep crustal rocks in different subduction setups such as the Himalayan continental subduction, the Mediterranean realm (Calabria&#8211;Apennine and Aegean belts) and Western Alps.</p>Keywords:
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In contrast to common subduction, the young and thin part of the Antarctic Plate subducts first to the south of the Chile Triple Junction (CTJ), followed by the old and thick part, corresponding to wedge subduction. A finite element model was used to simulate the wedge subduction of the Antarctic Plate and to compare it with the slab subduction of the Nazca Plate. The results show that the CTJ is not only a wedge subduction boundary but also an important factor controlling the lithospheric thermal structure of the overriding plate. The computed heat flow curves are consistent with the data observed near the trench of the two selected profiles. The different slab dips to the north and south of the CTJ are considered to be caused by wedge subduction. When the slabs are young and at the same age, the deep dip of the Antarctic slab is 22° smaller than the Nazca slab. Southward from the CTJ, the slab age of the wedge subduction increases, which leads to a larger slab dip, a colder slab, and a wider seismogenic zone. The effect of the slab age of wedge subduction on the focal depth is smaller than that of the convergence rate. A 4.8-cm/year difference in convergence rate of the wedge subduction results in an 11-km difference in the width of the seismogenic zone and a 10-km difference in the depth of the downdip limit. Among these controlling factors, the convergence rate plays a major role in the different focal depths south and north of the CTJ.
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The present study deals with the temperature structures (e.g., mantle wedge and slab) in Himalayan subduction zone. The estimated maximum temperature in the mantle wedge, Tr is 1420°C, whereas temperature at the top of the slab, Ts ranges from 1081.31119.5°C. The average value of the temperature and standard deviation at the top of the slab is 1103±10.7°C. The study shows that the temperature of the mantle wedge is more or less stable and the slab temperature of the entire Himalayan belt is slightly varied. The mantle wedge temperature of the Himalayan subduction zone is correlated with Kamchatka subduction zone (1450ºC) and Tohoku subduction zone (1400°C) in Northeast Japan. From overall observation, the Himalayan subduction zone is characterized with high compression and high seismic activity of the entire tectonic boundary along both the eastern and western sections. In these contexts, there might have a great possibility for large earthquakes to creep up in this region. The results of the research may contribute to explain geometry, rheology, heat transport and petrological processes of Himalayan subduction zone. Generally a temperature dependent process in the mantle wedge is responsible for the focusing of volcanic activity at the sharp fronts to the arcs. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/jles.v7i0.20116 J. Life Earth Sci., Vol. 7: 15-20, 2012
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We developed a 2-D finite element model to investigate the effect of shear heating and mantle hydration on the dynamics of the mantle wedge area. The model considers an initial phase of active oceanic subduction, which is followed by a post-collisional phase characterized by pure gravitational evolution. To investigate the impact of the subduction velocity on the thermomechanics of the system, three models with different velocities prescribed during the initial subduction phase were implemented. Shear heating and mantle hydration were then systematically added into the models. We then analysed the evolution of the hydrated area during both the subduction and post-collisional phases, and examined the difference in Pmax–T (maximum pressure–temperature) and P–Tmax (pressure–maximum temperature) conditions for the models with mantle hydration. The dynamics that allow for the recycling and exhumation of subducted material in the wedge area are strictly correlated with the thermal state at the external boundaries of the mantle wedge, and the size of the hydrated area depends on the subduction velocity when mantle hydration and shear heating are considered simultaneously. During the post-collisional phase, the hydrated portion of the mantle wedge increases in models with high subduction velocities. The predicted P–T configuration indicates that contrasting P–T conditions, such as Barrovian- to Franciscan-type metamorphic gradients, can contemporaneously characterize different portions of the subduction system during both the active oceanic subduction and post-collisional phases and are not indicative of collisional or subduction phases.
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Using a combined finite difference and marker‐in‐cell technique, we performed two‐dimensional coupled petrological‐thermomechanical numerical simulations of intraoceanic subduction. The simulations indicate that parts of the mantle wedge can become trapped between rheologically weak, hydrated, and partially molten upwellings (cold plumes) and the subducting slab. The structures form at various depths and develop circular, elliptic, or irregular shapes. The combined effect of the tractions caused by upwelling and subduction causes these regions to rotate. Our simulations investigate the parameters controlling the occurrence and long‐term stability of such rigid, rotating structures. Circular rotating structures like “subduction wheels” are characteristic of models with relatively young (20–30 Myr) slabs and intermediate (2–5 cm/yr) subduction rates. We propose that the development of such circular features may explain some of the isolated seismic velocity anomalies in the mantle wedge.
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Abstract Subduction zones are the main entry points of water into Earth's mantle and play an important role in the global water cycle. The progressive release of water by metamorphic dehydration induces important physical‐chemical processes, including subduction zone earthquakes. Yet, how water migrates in subduction zones is not well understood. We investigate this problem by explicitly modeling two‐phase flow processes, in which fluids migrate through a compacting and decompacting solid matrix. Our results show that water migration is strongly affected by subduction dynamics, which exhibits three characteristic stages in our models: (1) an early stage of subduction initiation; (2) an intermediate stage of gravity‐driven steepening of the slab; and (3) a late stage of quasi steady state subduction. Two main water pathways are found in the models: trenchward and arcward. They form in the first two stages and become steady in the third stage. Depending on the depth of water release from the subducting slab, water migration focuses in different pathways: a shallow release depth (e.g., 40 km) leads the water mainly through the trenchward pathway, a deep release depth (e.g., 120 km) promotes an arcward pathway and a long horizontal migration distance (~300 km) from the trench, and an intermediate release depth (e.g., 80 km) leads water to both pathways. We compare our models with seismic studies from southeast Japan (Saita et al., 2015, https://doi.org/10.1002/2015GL063084 ) and the west Hellenic subduction zone (Halpaap et al., 2018, https://doi.org/10.1002/2017JB015154 ) and provide geodynamical explanations for these seismic observations in natural subduction environments.
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We developed a 2-D finite element model to investigate the effect of shear heating and mantle hydration on the dynamics of the mantle wedge area. The model considers an initial phase of active oceanic subduction, which is followed by a post-collisional phase characterized by pure gravitational evolution. To investigate the impact of the subduction velocity on the thermomechanics of the system, three models with different velocities prescribed during the initial subduction phase were implemented. Shear heating and mantle hydration were then systematically added into the models. We then analysed the evolution of the hydrated area during both the subduction and post-collisional phases, and examined the difference in Pmax–T (maximum pressure–temperature) and P–Tmax (pressure–maximum temperature) conditions for the models with mantle hydration. The dynamics that allow for the recycling and exhumation of subducted material in the wedge area are strictly correlated with the thermal state at the external boundaries of the mantle wedge, and the size of the hydrated area depends on the subduction velocity when mantle hydration and shear heating are considered simultaneously. During the post-collisional phase, the hydrated portion of the mantle wedge increases in models with high subduction velocities. The predicted P–T configuration indicates that contrasting P–T conditions, such as Barrovian- to Franciscan-type metamorphic gradients, can contemporaneously characterize different portions of the subduction system during both the active oceanic subduction and post-collisional phases and are not indicative of collisional or subduction phases.
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Abstract A typical subduction of an oceanic plate beneath a continent is expected to be accompanied by arc volcanoes along the convergent margin. However, subduction of the Cocos plate at the Middle American subduction system has resulted in an uneven distribution of magmatism/volcanism along strike. Here we construct a new three-dimensional shear-wave velocity model of the entire Middle American subduction system, using full-wave ambient noise tomography. Our model reveals significant variations of the oceanic plates along strike and down dip, in correspondence with either weakened or broken slabs after subduction. The northern and southern segments of the Cocos plate, including the Mexican flat slab subduction, are well imaged as high-velocity features, where a low-velocity mantle wedge exists and demonstrate a strong correlation with the arc volcanoes. Subduction of the central Cocos plate encounters a thick high-velocity feature beneath North America, which hinders the formation of a typical low-velocity mantle wedge and arc volcanoes. We suggest that the presence of slab tearing at both edges of the Mexican flat slab has been modifying the mantle flows, resulting in the unusual arc volcanism.
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