HR: 0800h
AN: V31D-0661    [Abstracts]
TI: En Echelon Hydrothermal Systems
AU: * Ryan, M P
EM: mryan@usgs.gov
AF: US Geological Survey, MS 926A 12201 Sunrise Valley Drive, Reston, VA 20192 United States
AU: Carr, P M
EM: pcarr@usgs.gov
AF: US Geological Survey, MS 926A 12201 Sunrise Valley Drive, Reston, VA 20192 United States
AU: Daniels, D L
EM: ddaniels@usgs.gov
AF: US Geological Survey, 954 National Center, Reston, VA 20192 United States
AU: Sutphin, D M
EM: sutphin@usgs.gov
AF: US Geological Survey, 954 National Center, Reston, VA 20192 United States
AB: En echelon hydrothermal systems develop within the porous rocks that surround, in three-dimensions, their distinctive plan-form and cross-sectional basaltic intrusion geometry. Examples that span several (self-similar) spatial scales include the en echelon off-set area of the East Rift Zone of Kilauea Volcano, Hawaii; the Northeast Rift Zone of Mauna Loa Volcano; the intrusive-eruptive fissures of the Krafla Central Volcano, Northeast Iceland; the ensemble of the three Icelandic central volcanoes Theistarekir-Krafla-Fremrinamur; major segments of the East Pacific Rise and the Mid-Atlantic Ridge; and several paleo-hydrothermal systems of the Mesozoic basins of eastern North America, including the Culpeper Basin. An en echelon hydrothermal system comprises two or more en echelon--arranged magma-filled fractures enclosed in a fluid-saturated porous matrix. Blocks of country rock between individual offset fracture segments are similarly porous and fluid-saturated. In 3-D, the system resembles the fan blades of a turbine rotor, with blades (dikes) emanating from a deep "master" fracture and turning smoothly in response to the local variations in the least compressive regional stress component. The primary geometric, hydrologic and thermal attributes of the system (on a horizontal plane) include dike thickness, dike-to-dike offset and overlap, the (initial) intrusion temperature, duration of magma flow, dike widths and lengths, the mean seepage velocity of regional subsurface aqueous fluid flow, and the mean flow azimuth in relationship to the plan-form geometry of the en echelon array. Finite element single phase models in horizontal cross-section have been developed for dike widths of 100 m, dike lengths of 1,500 m, overlaps of 500 m, dike-to-dike offsets of 500 m, intrusion temperatures of 1,200 C, horizontal seepage fluxes imposed at the sides of ~ 1,000 g cm-2 yr-1, and a matrix permeability of 10-14 m2. The regional flow field has been parameterized in dike-orthogonal, dike-parallel, and 45 degree angles of attack with respect to the major axes of the individual dikes within the en echelon array. Depending on the magnitudes and geometric arrangement of key system attributes, an en echelon hydrothermal system may either act as an efficient thermal radiator, effectively shedding heat to the surroundings, or may it act as an effective heater, thermally enhancing the environment between neighboring dikes in 3-D. Conditions that promote the efficient loss of heat include thin dikes of short length, large dike-to-dike offset, high matrix fluid velocities, and regional flow azimuths that are orthogonal to the individual dikes. Conditions that promote differential heating between the dikes include wide dikes with maximal overlap and minimal offset, low regional flow velocities and "angles of attack" of the regional flow field that provide for maximum hydrodynamic "shelter" for individual dikes within the interior of the en echelon array.
DE: 1832 Groundwater transport
DE: 8135 Hydrothermal systems (0450, 1034, 3017, 3616, 4832, 8424)
DE: 8424 Hydrothermal systems (0450, 1034, 3017, 3616, 4832, 8135)
SC: Volcanology, Geochemistry, Petrology [V]
MN: Fall Meeting 2005