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Di Toro, Giulio
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Di Toro, Giulio
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giulio.ditoro@unipd.it
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- PublicationOpen AccessFrictional Instabilities and Carbonation of Basalts Triggered by Injection of Pressurized H2O- and CO2- Rich Fluids(2018-06-28)
; ; ; ; ; ; ; ;; ; ; ; ;The safe application of geological carbon storage depends also on the seismic hazard associated with fluid injection. In this regard, we performed friction experiments using a rotary shear apparatus on precut basalts with variable degree of hydrothermal alteration by injecting distilled H2O, pure CO2, and H2O + CO2 fluid mixtures under temperature, fluid pressure, and stress conditions relevant for large-scale subsurface CO2 storage reservoirs. In all experiments, seismic slip was preceded by short-lived slip bursts. Seismic slip occurred at equivalent fluid pressures and normal stresses regardless of the fluid injected and degree of alteration of basalts. Injection of fluids caused also carbonation reactions and crystallization of new dolomite grains in the basalt-hosted faults sheared in H2O + CO2 fluid mixtures. Fast mineral carbonation in the experiments might be explained by shear heating during seismic slip, evidencing the high chemical reactivity of basalts to H2O + CO2 mixtures.143 14 - PublicationRestrictedEffect of water and rock composition on re-strengthening of cohesive faults during the deceleration phase of seismic slip pulses(2019)
; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; The elastic strain energy release rate and seismic waves emitted during earthquakes are controlled by the on-fault temporal evolution of the shear stress during rupture propagation. High velocity friction experiments highlighted that shear stress on the fault surface evolves rapidly during seismic slip pulses. This temporal evolution of shear stress is controlled by both fault weakening at seismic slip initiation and re-strengthening rate towards the end of slip. While numerous studies focused on fault weakening, less attention was given to co-seismic re-strengthening processes. Here we performed 53 friction experiments (normal stress ≤30 MPa, slip-rate ≤6.5 m s−1) imposing constant slip acceleration and deceleration (7.8 m s−2), on cohesive Carrara marble (99% calcite) and micro-gabbro (silicate-built rock) under dry, vacuum and water pressurized conditions. Microstructural observations showed that micro-gabbro accommodated seismic slip by bulk melting of the sliding surfaces, whereas Carrara marble by coupled decarbonation and grain-size dependent crystal plastic processes. Under room humidity conditions and low imposed power density (i.e., product of normal stress per slip rate), re-strengthening rate during the deceleration stage was up to ∼ 17 times faster in marble than in micrograbbro. In the latter, the re-strengthening rate increased slightly with the power density. The presence of water enhanced further this trend. On the contrary, in marbles the re-strengthening rate decreased drastically with power density and in the presence of water. Our experimental observations highlighted the first order importance of the mineralogy and rheology of the slip zone materials and, to a second order, of the presence of water in controlling co-seismic re-strengthening of faults during seismic slip deceleration.140 2 - PublicationRestrictedThe structure of an exhumed intraplate seismogenic fault in crystalline basement(2013-04)
; ; ; ; ; ;Smith, S. A. F.; Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia, Sezione Roma1, Roma, Italia ;Bistacchi, A.; Dipartimento di Scienze Geologiche e Geotecnologie, Università di Milano Bicocca, Piazza delle Scienza 4, 20126, Milan, Italy ;Mitchell, T.; Department of Geosciences, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, 44780, Bochum, Germany ;Mittempergher, S.; Dipartimento di Geoscience, Università di Padova, Via G. Gradenigo 6, 35131, Padua, Italy ;Di Toro, G.; Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia, Sezione Roma1, Roma, Italia; ; ; ;The 600 m-thick Gole Larghe Fault Zone (GLFZ) is hosted in jointed crystalline basement and exposed across glacier-polished outcrops in the Italian Alps. Ancient seismicity is attested by the widespread occurrence of cataclasites associated with pseudotachylytes (solidified frictional melts) formed at 9–11 km depth and ambient temperatures of 250–300 °C. Previous work focused on the southern part of the fault zone; here we quantitatively document fault zone structure across the full width of the GLFZ and surrounding tonalite host rocks by using a combination of structural line transects and image analysis of samples collected across fault strike. These new datasets indicate that the GLFZ has a broadly symmetric across-strike damage structure and contains distinct southern, central and northern zones distinguished by large variations in fracture density, distribution of pseudotachylytes, volume of fault rock materials, and microfracture sealing characteristics. The c. 100 m wide central zone is bound by two thick (~ 2 m) and laterally continuous (> 1 km) protocataclastic to ultracataclastic horizons. Within and immediately surrounding the central zone, fracture density is relatively high due to cataclastic fault–fracture networks that reworked earlier-formed pseudotachylytes. The fault–fracture networks were associated with pervasive microcracking and fluid–rock interaction, resulting in the development of a c. 200 m thick alteration zone delimited by lobate fluid infiltration fronts. In the c. 250 m thick southern and northern zones, fracture densities are much lower and pseudotachylytes systematically overprint cataclastic faults that exploited pre-existing magmatic cooling joints. Analysis of the structure of the GLFZ suggests that it shares certain characteristics with the seismogenic source responsible for the 2002 Au Sable Forks intraplate earthquake sequence in the northeastern USA, including seismicity distributed across a fault zone 500–1000 m thick and large (> 100 MPa) static stress drops associated with frictional melting.125 18 - PublicationOpen AccessUltra-thin clay layers facilitate seismic slip in carbonate faults(2017)
; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ;; ; Many earthquakes propagate up to the Earth's surface producing surface ruptures. Seismic slip propagation is facilitated by along-fault low dynamic frictional resistance, which is controlled by a number of physico-chemical lubrication mechanisms. In particular, rotary shear experiments conducted at seismic slip rates (1 ms-1) show that phyllosilicates can facilitate co-seismic slip along faults during earthquakes. This evidence is crucial for hazard assessment along oceanic subduction zones, where pelagic clays participate in seismic slip propagation. Conversely, the reason why, in continental domains, co-seismic slip along faults can propagate up to the Earth's surface is still poorly understood. We document the occurrence of micrometer-thick phyllosilicate-bearing layers along a carbonate-hosted seismogenic extensional fault in the central Apennines, Italy. Using friction experiments, we demonstrate that, at seismic slip rates (1 ms-1), similar calcite gouges with pre-existing phyllosilicate-bearing (clay content ≤3 wt.%) micro-layers weaken faster than calcite gouges or mixed calcite-phyllosilicate gouges. We thus propose that, within calcite gouge, ultra-low clay content (≤3 wt.%) localized along micrometer-thick layers can facilitate seismic slip propagation during earthquakes in continental domains, possibly enhancing surface displacement.133 44 - PublicationRestrictedPrincipal Slip Zones in Limestone: Microstructural Characterization and Implications for the Seismic Cycle (Tre Monti Fault, Central Apennines, Italy)(2011)
; ; ; ; ;Smith, S.; Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia, Sezione Roma1, Roma, Italia ;Di Toro, G.; Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia, Sezione Roma1, Roma, Italia ;Speiss, R.; Dipartimento di Geoscienze, Universita` degli Studi di Padova, 1 Via Giotto, 35137 Padova, Italy ;Billi, A.; Istituto di Geologia Ambientale e Geoingegneria, CNR, Via Salaria km 29.3, 00015 Monterotondo (Rome), Italy; ; ; Abstract—Earthquakes in central Italy, and in other areas worldwide, often nucleate within and rupture through carbonates in the upper crust. During individual earthquake ruptures, most fault displacement is thought to be accommodated by thin principal slip zones. This study presents detailed microstructural observations of the slip zones of the seismically active Tre Monti normal fault zone. All of the slip zones cut limestone, and geological constraints indicate exhumation from\2 km depth, where ambient temperatures are 100 C. Scanning electron microscope observations suggest that the slip zones are composed of 100% calcite. The slip zones of secondary faults in the damage zone contain protocataclastic and cataclastic fabrics that are cross-cut by systematic fracture networks and stylolite dissolution surfaces. The slip zone of the principal fault has much more microstructural complexity, and contains a 2–10 mm thick ultracataclasite that lies immediately beneath the principal slip surface. The ultracataclasite itself is internally zoned; 200–300 lm-thick ultracataclastic sub-layers record extreme localization of slip. Syn-tectonic calcite vein networks spatially associated with the sub-layers suggest fluid involvement in faulting. The ultracataclastic sub-layers preserve compelling microstructural evidence of fluidization, and also contain peculiar rounded grains consisting of a central (often angular) clast wrapped by a laminated outer cortex of ultra-fine-grained calcite. These ‘‘clast-cortex grains’’ closely resemble those produced during layer fluidization in other settings, including the basal detachments of catastrophic landslides and saturated high-velocity friction experiments on clay-bearing gouges. An overprinting foliation is present in the slip zone of the principal fault, and electron backscatter diffraction analyses indicate the presence of a weak calcite crystallographic preferred orientation (CPO) in the fine-grained matrix. The calcite c-axes are systematically inclined in the direction of shear. We suggest that fluidization of ultracataclastic sub-layers and formation of clast-cortex grains within the principal slip zone occurred at high strain rates during propagation of seismic ruptures whereas development of an overprinting CPO occurred by intergranular pressure solution during post-seismic creep. Further work is required to document the range of microstructures in localized slip zones that cross-cut different lithologies, and to compare natural slip zone microstructures with those produced in controlled deformation experiments.188 21 - PublicationOpen AccessAn empirically based steady state friction law and implications for fault stability(2016-04-16)
; ; ; ; ; ; ; Empirically based rate-and-state friction laws (RSFLs) have been proposed to model the dependence of friction forces with slip and time. The relevance of the RSFL for earthquake mechanics is that few constitutive parameters define critical conditions for fault stability (i.e., critical stiffness and frictional fault behavior). However, the RSFLs were determined from experiments conducted at subseismic slip rates (V < 1 cm/s), and their extrapolation to earthquake deformation conditions (V > 0.1 m/s) remains questionable on the basis of the experimental evidence of (1) large dynamic weakening and (2) activation of particular fault lubrication processes at seismic slip rates. Here we propose a modified RSFL (MFL) based on the review of a large published and unpublished data set of rock friction experiments performed with different testing machines. The MFL, valid at steady state conditions from subseismic to seismic slip rates (0.1 µm/s < V < 3 m/s), describes the initiation of a substantial velocity weakening in the 1-20 cm/s range resulting in a critical stiffness increase that creates a peak of potential instability in that velocity regime. The MFL leads to a new definition of fault frictional stability with implications for slip event styles and relevance for models of seismic rupture nucleation, propagation, and arrest.127 36 - PublicationOpen AccessFriction Experiments on Lunar Analog Gouges and Implications for the Mechanism of the Apollo 17 Long Runout Landslide(2023-05-11)
; ; ; ; ; ; ;; ; ;; The Light Mantle landslide is a hypermobile landslide on the Moon. Apollo 17 astronauts collected a core sample of the top 60 cm of the Light Mantle deposit, which is currently being analyzed as part of the NASA's Apollo Next Generation Sample Analysis program. The origin of its hypermobility remains undetermined, as the proposed mechanisms are difficult to prove because of the lack of theoretical and experimental support and the scarcity of field data related to the internal structures of its deposit. Regardless of the emplacement mechanisms, it has been proposed that localized dynamic frictional weakening is responsible for the early stage instability that leads to catastrophic failure. Here, we conduct friction experiments under vacuum to investigate the viability of dynamic friction weakening in lunar analog anorthosite-bearing gouges (i.e., rock powders). Our results show that localized dynamic friction weakening does not occur in these gouges at loading conditions where, instead, weakening is observed in other materials on Earth. Therefore, possibly other fluidization-related mechanisms contributed to the initiation of the hypermobile Light Mantle landslide. Finally, we describe the microstructures formed in the experiments, including the presence of clast cortex aggregates. Preliminary investigation of the Light Mantle core samples (73001/73002) shows the presence of similar microstructures. Therefore, our microstructural observations will help the analysis and interpretation of the Apollo 17 core samples, as keys to insights about internal processes occurring during the emplacement of the landslide.71 7 - PublicationOpen AccessOn the transient behavior of frictional melt during seismic slip(2010-06-01)
; ; ; ; ; ; ;Nielsen, S.; Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia, Sezione Roma1, Roma, Italia ;Mosca, P.; Scienze Fisiche, Università di Napoli, Federico II ;Giberti, G.; Scienze Fisiche, Università di Napoli, Federico II ;Di Toro, G.; Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia, Sezione Roma1, Roma, Italia ;Hirose, T.; Kochi Institute for Core Sample Research, Japan Agency Marine Earth Science and Technology, Kochi, Japan. ;Shimamoto, T.; Hiroshima University, Dpt. of Earth and Planetary Systems Science, Higashi-Hiroshima, Japan.; ; ; ; ; In a recent work on the problem of sliding surfaces under the presence of frictional melt (applying in particular to earthquake fault dynamics), we derived from first principles an expression for the steady state friction compatible with experimental observations. Building on the expressions of heat and mass balance obtained in the above study for this particular case of Stefan problem (phase transition with a migrating boundary) we propose here an extension providing the full time-dependent solution (including the weakening transient after pervasive melting has started, the effect of eventual steps in velocity and the final decelerating phase). A system of coupled equations is derived and solved numerically. The resulting transient friction and wear evolution yield a satisfactory fit (1) with experiments performed under variable sliding velocities (0.9-2 m/s) and different normal stresses (0.5-20 MPa) for various rock types and (2) with estimates of slip weakening obtained from observations on ancient seismogenic faults that host pseudotachylite (solidified melt). The model allows to extrapolate the experimentally observed frictional behavior to large normal stresses representative of the seismogenic Earth crust (up to 200 MPa), high slip rates (up to 9 m/s) and cases where melt extrusion is negligible. Though weakening distance and peak stress vary widely, the net breakdown energy appears to be essentially independent of either slip velocity and normal stress. In addition, the response to earthquake-like slip can be simulated, showing a rapid friction recovery when slip rate drops. We discuss the properties of energy dissipation, transient duration, velocity weakening, restrengthening in the decelerating final slip phase and the implications for earthquake source dynamics.166 269 - PublicationRestrictedSeismic tremor in subduction zones: the rock-physics evidence(2009)
; ; ; ;Burlini, L.; ETH Zurich ;Di Toro, G.; Istituto Nazionale di Geofisica e Vulcanologia, Sezione Roma1, Roma, Italia ;Meredith, P.; ICL London; ; Episodic tremor and slip (ETS) have been correlated with rupture phenomena in subducting oceanic lithosphere at 30–45 km depth, where high VP/VS ratios, which suggest high-fluid pressures, have been observed. ETS, by accommodating slip in the down-dip portion of the subduction zone, may trigger megathrust earthquakes up-dip in the locked section. During dehydration experiments on serpentinite (typical rock of the oceanic lithosphere) at temperatures found in nature at 30–45 km depth (400– 550 C), we observe seismic signals in the form of acoustic emissions that closely resemble low frequency earthquakes, seismic tremor and regular earthquakes. Our findings support the concept that water released during dehydration reactions increases the pore pressures and can trigger ETS and regular earthquakes by reducing slip resistance. Citation: Burlini, L., G. Di Toro, and P. Meredith (2009), Seismic tremor in subduction zones: Rock physics evidence, Geophys. Res. Lett., 36, L08305, doi:10.1029/2009GL037735.160 22 - PublicationOpen AccessFluid pressurisation and earthquake propagation in the Hikurangi subduction zone(2021-04-30)
; ; ; ; ; ; ;; ;In subduction zones, seismic slip at shallow crustal depths can lead to the generation of tsunamis. Large slip displacements during tsunamogenic earthquakes are attributed to the low coseismic shear strength of the fluid-saturated and non-lithified clay-rich fault rocks. However, because of experimental challenges in confining these materials, the physical processes responsible for the coseismic reduction in fault shear strength are poorly understood. Using a novel experimental setup, we measured pore fluid pressure during simulated seismic slip in clay-rich materials sampled from the deep oceanic drilling of the Pāpaku thrust (Hikurangi subduction zone, New Zealand). Here, we show that at seismic velocity, shear-induced dilatancy is followed by pressurisation of fluids. The thermal and mechanical pressurisation of fluids, enhanced by the low permeability of the fault, reduces the energy required to propagate earthquake rupture. We suggest that fluid-saturated clay-rich sediments, occurring at shallow depth in subduction zones, can promote earthquake rupture propagation and slip because of their low permeability and tendency to pressurise when sheared at seismic slip velocities.231 22