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Method for estimating the stress field from seismic moment tensor data based on the flow rule in plasticity theory
Author(s) -
Matsumoto S.
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
geophysical research letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.007
H-Index - 273
eISSN - 1944-8007
pISSN - 0094-8276
DOI - 10.1002/2016gl070129
Subject(s) - plasticity , cauchy stress tensor , geology , stress field , stress (linguistics) , field (mathematics) , inversion (geology) , constitutive equation , moment (physics) , moment tensor , geophysics , geotechnical engineering , seismology , classical mechanics , mathematical analysis , mathematics , structural engineering , physics , deformation (meteorology) , engineering , finite element method , linguistics , philosophy , tectonics , oceanography , pure mathematics , thermodynamics
The stress field is a key factor controlling earthquake occurrence and crustal evolution. In this study, we propose an approach for determining the stress field in a region using seismic moment tensors, based on the classical equation in plasticity theory. Seismic activity is a phenomenon that relaxes crustal stress and creates plastic strain in a medium because of faulting, which suggests that the medium could behave as a plastic body. Using the constitutive relation in plastic theory, the increment of the plastic strain tensor is proportional to the deviatoric stress tensor. Simple mathematical manipulation enables the development of an inversion method for estimating the stress field in a region. The method is tested on shallow earthquakes occurring on Kyushu Island, Japan.