Premium
Melt and shear interactions in the lithosphere: Theory and numerical analysis of pure shear extension
Author(s) -
Mohajeri Arash,
Finzi Yaron,
Muhlhaus Hans,
Rosenbaum Gideon
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
journal of geophysical research: solid earth
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.983
H-Index - 232
eISSN - 2169-9356
pISSN - 2169-9313
DOI - 10.1002/jgrb.50183
Subject(s) - shear (geology) , geology , shear zone , lithosphere , strain partitioning , rift , extensional definition , shear stress , tectonics , mechanics , petrology , seismology , physics
We present a linear instability analysis and numerical simulations describing deformation and melt patterns in pure shear extension of a partly molten rock. Our models implement numerical techniques that enable strong strain localization and are applied to study melt‐strain interactions during continental rifting. Our results show that instabilities can initiate with either strain localization or melt localization, followed by a coupled evolution of melt and shear bands driven by a strong melt‐viscosity‐shear feedback. This indicates that a local increase in melt fraction due to segregation and/or local melting promotes strain localization and may lead to the formation of large shear bands. Melt‐shear interactions can therefore enable rifting where tectonic forces are not sufficient to induce melt‐free rifting, resulting in lubricated faults, but not necessarily observed volcanism. Finally, our simulations reveal significant asymmetry in melt segregation around localized shear bands, providing new insights into melt distribution across rift boundary faults and other extensional structures.