Thesis (M.S.)--University of Wyoming, 2007. / Title from PDF title page (viewed on Mar. 4, 2009). Includes bibliographical references (p. 50-59).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Joint Program in Oceanography (Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Earth, Atmospheric and Planetary Sciences, and the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution), 2001. / Page 250 blank. / Includes bibliographical references. / Half of the ocean crust is formed at spreading centers with total opening rates less than 40 km/Myr. The objective of this Thesis is to investigate temporal variations in active ridge processes and crustal aging at slow-spreading centers by comparing axial crustal structure with that on conjugate flanks of the slow-spreading Mid-Atlantic Ridge (MAR) (full rate, 20 km/Myr) and the ultra-slow spreading Southwest Indian Ridge (SWIR) (full rate, 14 km/Myr). Seismic refraction data collected along the rift valley and flanking rift mountains of the OH-1 segment (35ʻN) at the MAR show that the entire crustal section is constructed within a zone that is less than 5 km wide. Shallow-level hydrothermal circulation within the axial valley is suggested by the rift mountain seismic profiles, which show that the upper crust is 20% thinner and 16% faster along strike than zero-age crust. These effects probably result from fissure sealing within the extrusive crust. Deeper crustal velocities remain relatively constant at the segment midpoint within the first 2 Myr, but are reduced near the segment offsets presumably by faulting and fracturing associated with uplift out of the rift valley. / (cont.) A temporal variation in axial melt supply is suggested by a 15% difference in along-strike crustal thickness between the rift valley and rift mountains, with relatively less melt supplied today than 2 Ma. Crustal accretion at the SWIR appears to occur in a similar manner as at the MAR, although gravity and seismic data indicate that the average crustal thickness is 2-4 km less at theultra-slow spreading SWIR. A 25 Myr record on both flanks of the ridge shows that seafloor spreading has been highly asymmetric through time, with 35% faster crustal accretion on the Antarctic (south) plate. A small-offset non-transform discontinuity between two ridge segments is just as stable as two neighboring transform discontinuities, although a single mantle Bouguer gravity anomaly centered over the non-transform offset indicates that this boundary does not significantly perturb underlying mantle flow. Off-axis magnetic anomalies are recorded with high fidelity despite the very low spreading rates and the absence of a basaltic upper crust in one area. The lower crust may be the dominant off-axis carrier of the magnetic signal, contrary to traditionalmodels of crustal magnetic structure. Morphological and gravity data show evidence of asymmetric crustal accretion across the SWIR ridge axis, with slightly warmer mantletemperatures beneath the slower-spreading African (north) plate. / by Allegra Hosford. / Ph.D.

La circulation hydrothermale océanique est un élément clé dans le transfert de chaleur et de matière des profondeurs de la Terre vers sa surface. Certains sites hydrothermaux produisent de grandes quantités d’hydrogène et de méthane. C’est le cas du site de Rainbow (36°N), situé sur la dorsale médio-atlantique, auquel on s’intéresse ici. Les fortes concentrations d’hydrogène ([H2]=16 mM kg-1) et de méthane ([CH4]=2,5 mM kg-1) des fluides chauds (~365°C) émis par ce site ont été interprétées comme étant issues de l’hydratation des péridotites du diapir mantellique qui constitue son socle géologique du site, mais l’altération d’assemblages gabbroïques pourrait également être à l’origine de sa production d’hydrogène. Ces processus géochimiques dépendent fortement des caractéristiques de l’écoulement des fluides au sein de la matrice poreuse et fracturée du site. Cette étude a donc consisté au développement et à l’application de modèle numériques, thermo-hydrogéologique et géochimique et de leur chaînage, dans le but de caractériser la circulation hydrothermale, la production d’hydrogène et son transport au sein du site de Rainbow. Plusieurs résultats découlent de ces modélisations : la circulation hydrothermale est tridimensionnelle, de faible extension horizontale (Ø~2-8km), doit très probablement être canalisée par un chemin préférentiel de forte perméabilité, et peut être stable sur plusieurs milliers d’années. Nous avons pu montrer que l’hydrogène est produit par serpentinisation en amont de la zone de décharge et estimer les coefficients cinétiques in situ, la quantité d’hydrogène produite et montrer la possibilité d’une production d’une durée supérieure à 25 000 ans. / Hydrothermal activity along the axis of mid-ocean ridges is a key driver for energy and matter transfer from the Earth’s interior to the ocean floor. Numerous hydrothermal sites have been discovered, and some of them emit high quantities of hydrogen and methane. In this manuscript, the presented studies focus on the Rainbow site (36°N), situated on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge crest. The high hydrogen and methane concentrations ([H2]=16 mM kg-1and [CH4]=2,5 mM kg-1) of the hot fluids at this site have been interpreted as indicators of ongoing serpentinization processes. However, such high hydrogen and methane concentrations might be also produced by gabbroic alteration processes which could lead to a mineral assemblage such as chlorite + talc + magnetite + tremolite. These alteration processes are strongly dependent on the hydrothermal circulation characteristics and behaviours. In this study, we developed and used thermo-hydrogeological and geochemical numerical models, and their coupling, for characterization of hydrothermal circulation, and hydrogen production and transport, of the Rainbow vent site. We showed that hydrothermal circulation is conditioned by its 3D spatial configuration. This circulation is of small dimension (Ø > 2km), and should probably be organized by a preferential pathway of high permeability values. It has remained stable for several thousand years. We also showed that hydrogen was a product of serpentinization process that occurs far from the discharge zone. We estimated in situ kinetic coefficients, and the hydrogen mass currently produced each year. We showed the possibility of a long lifetime hydrogen production (>25000 yrs).

Le travail de recherche qui sera présenté porte sur la mise en évidence des différentes formes du cuivre présentes et des échanges qui existent entre les fractions particulaires, dissoutes et colloïdales du milieu profond. Il s’intéresse à la zone de mélange entre les sources profondes et l’eau de mer. L’amélioration de nos connaissances et l’optimisation de l’instrumentation permettent aujourd’hui de proposer le développement d’une stratégie d’échantillonnage et d’une approche qui prennent en compte les contraintes associées à la nature et à l’accessibilité de ces milieux éloignés. Ce travail a donné lieu à la mise en place de méthodes d’analyse effectives pour la mesure du cuivre et de ses ligands. Nos résultats ont montré que la spéciation physique semble essentiellement contrôlée par le pH et l’évolution des caractéristiques oxydoréductrices du milieu au cours de la dilution du fluide hydrothermal par l’eau de mer. La spéciation chimique du cuivre semble quant à elle principalement contrôlée par les ligands soufrés et le caractère oxydant du milieu. Elle a montré que le milieu est globalement plus complexant sur le site hydrothermal Lucky Strike que dans le bassin de Guaymas. A l’échelle du fumeur, la pseudopolarographie et les mesures de capacité complexante ont montré que le milieu est plus complexant dans la zone anoxique, près de la source, que dans la zone oxique où le cuivre est généralement labile et en excès par rapport à ses ligands (ses concentrations peuvent atteindre 100 nM). Dans la zone oxique, environ 27% des complexes formés sont dissociés par oxydation, tandis qu’environ 73% des complexes organiques et inorganiques CuHS+ est stabilisée. / This work presents the copper speciation in the deep ocean and the exchanges existing between different size fractions : particulate, dissolved and colloidal. It focus on the mixing zone between deep sources and seawater. The enhancement of our knowledge and the optimization of instrumentation make possible the development of sampling and analysis strategies accorded with the nature and the accessibility of these extreme environments. A part of this work consisted in the development of effective analysis methods for the quantification of copper and copper’s ligands. Our results showed that physical speciation seems to be essentially controlled by the variations of pH and oxydoreductive caracteristics during the dilution of the hydrothermal fluid by seawater. The chemical speciation of copper seems essentially controlled by sulfide ligands and the oxydative caracteristics of the environment. The environment is generally more complexing on Lucky Strike vent field than in Guaymas Basin. Around each vent, pseudopolarography and complexing capacities showed that the environment is more complexing in the anoxic zone, near the source, than in the oxic zone. In the oxic zone, copper is generally labile and its concentrations (they can reach 100 nM) exceed the ligands concentrations. In the oxic zone, around 27% of the complexes are dissociated, whereas around 73% remains stabilised.

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