dorsal/arxiv
View SchemaLong-range Static Directional Stress Transfer in a Cracked, Nonlinear Elastic Crust
| Authors | G. Ouillon, D. Sornette |
|---|---|
| Categories | |
| ArXiv ID | physics/0304054 |
| URL | https://arxiv.org/abs/physics/0304054 |
| DOI | 10.1016/j.future.2005.04.007 |
| Journal | Future Generation Computer Systems 22, 500-520 (2006) |
Abstract
Seeing the Earth crust as crisscrossed by faults filled with fluid at close to lithostatic pressures, we develop a model in which its elastic modulii are different in net tension versus compression. In constrast with standard nonlinear effects, this ``threshold nonlinearity'' is non-perturbative and occurs for infinitesimal perturbations around the lithostatic pressure taken as the reference. For a given earthquake source, such nonlinear elasticity is shown to (i) rotate, widen or narrow the different lobes of stress transfer, (ii) to modify the $1/r^2$ 2D-decay of elastic stress Green functions into the generalized power law $1/r^{\gamma}$ where $\gamma$ depends on the azimuth and on the amplitude of the modulii asymmetry. Using reasonable estimates, this implies an enhancement of the range of interaction between earthquakes by a factor up to 5-10 at distances of several tens of rupture length. This may explain certain long-range earthquake triggering and hydrological anomalies in wells and suggest to revisit the standard stress transfer calculations which use linear elasticity. We also show that the standard double-couple of forces representing an earthquake source leads to an opening of the corresponding fault plane, which suggests a mechanism for the non-zero isotropic component of the seismic moment tensor observed for some events.
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"abstract": "Seeing the Earth crust as crisscrossed by faults filled with fluid at close\nto lithostatic pressures, we develop a model in which its elastic modulii are\ndifferent in net tension versus compression. In constrast with standard\nnonlinear effects, this ``threshold nonlinearity\u0027\u0027 is non-perturbative and\noccurs for infinitesimal perturbations around the lithostatic pressure taken as\nthe reference. For a given earthquake source, such nonlinear elasticity is\nshown to (i) rotate, widen or narrow the different lobes of stress transfer,\n(ii) to modify the $1/r^2$ 2D-decay of elastic stress Green functions into the\ngeneralized power law $1/r^{\\gamma}$ where $\\gamma$ depends on the azimuth and\non the amplitude of the modulii asymmetry. Using reasonable estimates, this\nimplies an enhancement of the range of interaction between earthquakes by a\nfactor up to 5-10 at distances of several tens of rupture length. This may\nexplain certain long-range earthquake triggering and hydrological anomalies in\nwells and suggest to revisit the standard stress transfer calculations which\nuse linear elasticity. We also show that the standard double-couple of forces\nrepresenting an earthquake source leads to an opening of the corresponding\nfault plane, which suggests a mechanism for the non-zero isotropic component of\nthe seismic moment tensor observed for some events.",
"arxiv_id": "physics/0304054",
"authors": [
"G. Ouillon",
"D. Sornette"
],
"categories": [
"physics.geo-ph",
"physics.class-ph"
],
"doi": "10.1016/j.future.2005.04.007",
"journal_ref": "Future Generation Computer Systems 22, 500-520 (2006)",
"title": "Long-range Static Directional Stress Transfer in a Cracked, Nonlinear Elastic Crust",
"url": "https://arxiv.org/abs/physics/0304054"
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