Characterization of fractures in an arkosic sandstone from the western damage zone of the San Andreas Fault (SAF) at San Andreas Fault Observatory at Depth (SAFOD) was used to better understand the origin of damage and to determine the scale dependence of fracture fabric and fracture density. Samples for this study were acquired from core taken at approximately 2.6 km depth during Phase 1 drilling at SAFOD. Petrographic sections of samples were studied using an optical petrographic microscope equipped with a universal stage and digital imaging system, and a scanning electron microscope with cathodoluminescence (SEM-CL) imaging capability. Use of combined optical imaging and SEM-CL imaging was found to more successfully acquire true fracture density at the grain scale. Linear fracture density and fracture orientation were determined for transgranular fractures at the whole thin section scale, and intragranular fractures at the grain scale. The microscopic scale measurements were compared to measurements of mesoscopic scale fractures in the same core, as well as to published data from an ancient, exhumed trace of the SAF in southern California. Fracturing in the damage zone of the SAF fault follows simple scaling laws from the grain scale to the km scale. Fracture density distributions in the core from SAFOD are similar to distributions in damaged arkosic sandstone of the SAF along other traces. Transgranular fractures, which are dominantly shear fractures, indicate preferred orientation approximately parallel to the dominant sets of the mesoscale faults. Although additional work is necessary to confirm general applicability, the results of this work demonstrate that fracture density and orientation distribution over a broad range of scales can be determined from measurements at the mesoscopic scale using empirical scaling relations.

Seismogenically active faults (those that produce earthquakes) are very complex systems that constantly change through time. When an earthquake occurs, the rocks surrounding a fault (the “fault rocks”) become altered or damaged. Studying these fault rocks directly can inform what processes operated in the fault and how the fault evolved in space and time. Examining these key aspects of faults helps us understand the earthquake hazards of active fault systems. The Mecca Hills, southern California, consist of a set of hills adjacent to the southernmost San Andreas Fault. The topography is related to motion on the San Andreas fault, which poses the largest seismic hazard in the lower forty-eight United States. The southernmost San Andreas fault, and the Mecca Hills study location may be reaching the end of its earthquake cycle and is due for a major, potentially catastrophic earthquake. The seismic hazards of the region, coupled with its proximity to major populated areas (Coachella Valley, Los Angeles Basin) make it a critical research area to understand fault zone evolution and the protracted history of fault development. The goal of this thesis was to directly examine the fault rocks in the Mecca Hills to understand how San Andreas-related faults in this area have evolved and behaved through time. This study integrates a variety of field and laboratory techniques to characterize the structural, geochemical, and thermal properties of the Mecca Hills fault rocks. The results herein document two distinct phases of deformation in the rocks exposed in the Mecca Hills, one around 24 million years ago and the other in the last one million years. This more recent phase of deformation is characterized by fault block exhumation and fluid flow in the fault zones, likely related to changing dynamics of the southernmost San Andreas Fault system. The older event informs how and when these rocks came close to Earth’s surface before the San Andreas Fault initiated.

Structures within very large displacement, mature fault zones, such as the North Branch San Gabriel Fault (NBSGF), are the product of a complex combination of processes. Off-fault damage within a damage zone and first-order geometric asperities, such as bends and steps, are thought to affect earthquake rupture propagation and energy radiation, but the effects are not completely understood. We hypothesize that the rate of accumulation of new damage decreases as fault maturity increases, and damage magnitude saturates in very large displacement faults. Nonetheless, geometric irregularities in the fault surface may modify damage zone characteristics. Accordingly, we seek to investigate the orientation, kinematics, and density of features at a range of scales within the damage zone adjacent to an abrupt 13 degree bend over 425 m in the NBSGF in order to constrain the relative role of the initiation of new damage versus the reactivation of preexisting damage adjacent to a bend. Field investigation and microstructural study focused on structural domains before, within, and after the fault bend on both sides of the fault. Subsidiary fault fabrics are similar in all domains outside the bend, which suggests a steady state fracture density and orientation distribution is established on the straight segments before and after the bend. The density of fractures within and outside the bend is similar; however, subsidiary fault orientations and kinematics are different within the bend relative to the straight segments. These observations are best explained by relatively low rates of damage generation relative to rates of fault reactivation during the later stages of faulting on the NBSGF, and that damage zone kinematics is reset as the host rock moves into the bend and again upon exiting the bend. Consequently, significant energy released during earthquake unloading can be dissipated by reactivation and slip on existing fractures in the damage zone, particularly adjacent to mesoscale faults. Thus, areas of heightened reactivation of damage, such as adjacent to geometric irregularities in the fault surface, could affect earthquake rupture dynamics.

京都大学 / 0048 / 新制・課程博士 / 博士(理学) / 甲第22260号 / 理博第4574号 / 新制||理||1657(附属図書館) / 京都大学大学院理学研究科地球惑星科学専攻 / (主査)教授 岩田 知孝, 教授 福田 洋一, 准教授 宮﨑 真一 / 学位規則第4条第1項該当 / Doctor of Science / Kyoto University / DGAM

[pt] Zonas de falha são estruturas geológicas usualmente presentes em subsuperfície. Na indústria de óleo e gás, tais estruturas podem trazer diferentes impactos, tanto no comportamento geomecânico dos campos quanto na produção nos reservatórios. Em geral, as zonas de falha são compostas pelo núcleo e pela zona de dano. O núcleo é responsável pela compartimentalização de reservatórios atuando como barreira para a passagem de fluidos. A zona de dano, região de rocha deformada adjacente ao núcleo, pode ter um impacto direto na produção, criando caminhos de fluxo preferencial ou barreiras, dependendo das feições geológicas formadas no processo de deformação. Enquanto o núcleo pode ser caracterizado com larguras da ordem de centímetros a alguns metros, as larguras das zonas de dano são uma grande incerteza. Este trabalho apresenta uma metodologia para a modelagem numérica da geração de zonas de dano. A metodologia é baseada no método de elementos finitos, em modelos constitutivos elastoplásticos representativos do comportamento geomecânico de rochas, e na aplicação de deslocamentos prescritos (rejeito) para simular o processo de formação da falha. Diversos cenários são analisados considerando o impacto dos parâmetros geomecânicos das rochas e as distâncias relativas entre duas falhas na definição das zonas de dano. Em seguida, a metodologia é utilizada para a análise de regiões favoráveis à trajetória de um poço de produção localizado entre três falhas geológicas. Os resultados obtidos demonstram que a metodologia proposta pode servir como base para caracterizar as zonas de dano em falhas geológicas. / [en] Fault zones are geological structures usually present in subsurface. In the oil and gas industry, such structures can have different impacts on geomechanical behavior and on reservoir production. In general, fault zones are composed by a core and a damage zone. The core is responsible for the compartmentalization of reservoirs, acting usually as a barrier for fluid flow. The damage zone is the region of rock deformed adjacent to the core that may directly impact on production, creating preferential flow paths or barriers, depending on the geological features triggered in the deformation process. While the core width can be in the order of centimeters to a few meters, the damage zone width is uncertain. This work presents a methodology for numerical modeling of the generation of damage zones. The methodology is based on finite element method, elastoplastic constitutive models representative of the geomechanical behavior of rocks, and on the application of prescribed displacements to simulate the fault formation process. Several scenarios are analyzed considering the impact of the geomechanical parameters of rocks and the relative distances between two faults to characterize the damage zones. Then, the methodology is used to analyze regions favorable to the trajectory of a production well located between three geological faults. The obtained results demonstrate that the proposed methodology can serve as a basis for characterizing damage zones in geological faults.

Hydrogeologically important features of fault zones include undamaged country rock, the damage zone, and the core zone. Fault cores generally have low porosity and permeability, and often act as a barrier to groundwater flow. The damage zone, by contrast, consists of small faults and fracture networks, which can act as conduits. Timpoweap Canyon near Hurricane, Utah has superb exposures of the fault core and damage zone of the Hurricane Fault. Also within the canyon, springs discharge from the damage zone into the Virgin River, providing an ideal natural laboratory for the study of groundwater discharge from a fault zone. The Hurricane fault is an active, steeply dipping, normal fault that is 250 km long, and exhibits about 2500 m of displacement. The damage zone in Timpoweap Canyon controls thermal groundwater (~40°C) and CO2 gas discharge from highly fractured limestone. Total spring discharge is 260 L/s. Approximately 4 L/s of CO2 gas also discharges with the springs. The δ^2H and δ^16O composition of the springs exhibits a geothermal shift from the global meteoric waterline. This suggests that the circulation depth is about 3 km below the ground surface (bgs) in basement bedrock. The CO2 gas discharging originates from either magmatic sources or from diagenesis. The fracture density in a typical damage zone decreases with increasing distance from the fault, thus spring discharge should also decrease with increasing distance from the fault. The damage zone in Timpoweap Canyon does not follow this pattern because pre-existing fractures that developed from Laramide and Sevier Orogeny stresses suppress the pattern. Collapse structures from gypsum dissolution and large fractures also control the location of spring discharge.

[pt] A caracterização das zonas de dano no entorno das falhas geológicas é importante para a indústria de óleo e gás pois as estruturas geológicas presentes podem afetar tanto os processos de fluxo nos reservatórios quanto o comportamento geomecânico dos campos. Como aproximação inicial, a espessura das zonas de dano tem sido correlacionada diretamente com os rejeitos de falha. No entanto, a dispersão dos dados levantados em campo indica que outras variáveis, além do rejeito, também podem afetar à espessura da zona de dano, particularmente em rochas carbonáticas. Neste sentido, o objetivo desta dissertação é a avaliação do impacto das propriedades geomecânicas dos carbonatos na previsão da espessura da zona de dano em falhas geológicas dos campos do pré-sal Brasileiro. Em função das incertezas na definição das propriedades geomecânicas, estas foram inferidas a partir de correlações empíricas que foram estabelecidas com a porosidade. Em seguida, fazendo uso de modelagem numérica, se realizou um planejamento de experimentos, obtendo-se a espessura da zona de dano a partir de diferentes combinações de parâmetros geomecânicos. Logo, empregando o método da superfície de resposta, foram definidos modelos de regressão que preveem a espessura da zona de dano a partir do rejeito e da porosidade das rochas carbonáticas avaliadas. Os resultados indicam que os modelos de regressão propostos permitem estimar espessuras de zonas de dano consistentes com as observações em campo, e, portanto, podem ser utilizadas para uma caracterização preliminar das zonas de dano nos processos exploratórios da indústria de óleo e gás. / [en] The characterization of damage zones surrounding geological faults is important for the oil and gas industry, as the geological structures present can affect both the fluid flow in reservoirs and the geomechanical behavior of fields. As an initial approximation, the width of damage zones has been directly correlated with fault throw. However, the dispersion of data collected in the field indicates that other variables, besides fault throw, can also affect the width of the damage zone, particularly in carbonate rocks. In this sense, the objective of this dissertation is to evaluate the impact of geomechanical properties of carbonates on the prediction of the thickness of the damage zone in geological faults in the Brazilian pre-salt fields. Due to uncertainties in defining geomechanical properties, they were inferred from empirical correlations that were established with porosity. Then, using numerical modeling, a design of experiments was carried out, obtaining the width of the damage zone from different combinations of geomechanical parameters. Next, employing the response surface method, regression models were defined that predict the width of the damage zone from fault throw and porosity of the evaluated carbonate rocks. The results indicate that the proposed regression models allow for the estimation of damage zone widths consistent with field observations and therefore can be used for preliminary characterization of damage zones in exploration processes in the oil and gas industry.

The intent of this thesis is to contribute to the understanding of the origin of fractures in rock. The man-made fracturing from engineering activities in crystalline rock as well as the fracturing induced by the natural process of meteorite impacts is studied by means of various characterization methods. In contrast to engineering induced rock fracturing, where the goal usually is to minimize rock damage, meteorite impacts cause abundant fracturing in the surrounding bedrock. In a rock mass the interactions of fractures on the microscopic scale (mm-cm scale) influence fractures on the mesoscopic scale (dm-m scale) as well as the interaction of the mesocopic fractures influencing fractures on the macroscopic scale (m-km scale). Thus, among several methods used on different scales, two characterization tools have been developed further. This investigation ranges from the investigation of micro-fracturing in ultra-brittle rock on laboratory scale to the remote sensing of fractures in large scale structures, such as meteorite impacts. On the microscopic scale, the role of fractures pre-existing to the laboratory testing is observed to affect the development of new fractures. On the mesoscopic scale, the evaluation of the geometric information from 3D-laser scanning has been further developed for the characterisation of fractures from tunnelling and to evaluate the efficiency of the tunnel blasting technique in crystalline rock. By combining information on: i) the overbreak and underbreak; ii) the orientation and visibility of blasting drillholes and; iii) the natural and blasting fractures in three dimensions; a analysis of the rock mass can be made. This analysis of the rock mass is much deeper than usually obtained in rock engineering for site characterization in relation to the blasting technique can be obtained based on the new data acquisition. Finally, the estimation of fracturing in and around two meteorite impact structures has been used to reach a deeper understanding of the relation between fracture, their water content and the electric properties of the rock mass. A correlation between electric resistivity and fracture frequency in highly fractured crystalline rock has been developed and applied to potential impact crater structures. The results presented in this thesis enables more accurate modelling of rock fractures, both supporting rock engineering design and interpretation of meteorite impact phenomena. / QC 20100709

No description available.

No description available.