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Changes in Permeability Caused by Two Consecutive Earthquakes—Insights From the Responses of a Well‐Aquifer System to Seismic Waves
Author(s) -
Sun Xiaolong,
Xiang Yang,
Shi Zheming
Publication year - 2019
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 - 10.1029/2019gl084704
Subject(s) - aquifer , geology , aftershock , permeability (electromagnetism) , seismology , seismic wave , geotechnical engineering , groundwater , membrane , biology , genetics
Earthquake‐induced aquifer permeability changes have been observed both in the laboratory and the field. However, the effects of multiple earthquakes on aquifer systems have rarely been differentiated. In this study, we analyze the piezometric response to earthquake pairs that occurred on the same day. The results show that events with higher seismic energy may result in a rise in piezometric level, and the seismic waves enhanced the permeability of the aquifer by different magnitudes. Stress/strain history from consecutive earthquakes may be retained, and permeability increased much more following the second earthquake than the first one. The method proposed in this study is useful in evaluating the permeability enhancement induced by consecutive earthquakes. The stress/strain memory of aquifers also has important implications for understanding aftershocks.