Is there a Speed Limit for the Thermal Steady-State Assumption in Continental Rifts?

Heckenbach, Esther; Brune, Sascha; Glerum, Anne; Sippel, Judith

doi:10.31223/x5qk62

Cited by 1 publication

(2 citation statements)

References 65 publications

(83 reference statements)

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“…5d), due to their temperature-dependent rheology 110 . Conduction of heat outpaces heat advection in slow rifts 111 , which means that slowly extending lithosphere, where thinning crust is replaced with rheologically stronger mantle rocks, is exposed to a gradual increase of rift strength. Due to cooling, the increasing strength of the rift may eventually exceed the available driving force so that deformation ceases.…”

Section: Dynamic Resisting Processesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Whether or not a rift system evolves to break-up is controlled by the non-linear feedbacks between weakening and strengthening processes. One key variable in this interplay is rift velocity: fast rifting such as in the Gulf of Corinth 186 with ~15 mm/yr or the Woodlark Rift 187 with up to 30 mm/yr leads to fast heat advection that can not be counteracted by conductive cooling 111 . High temperatures within the rift lead to rheological weakening and enhance partial melting, both of which decrease rift strength and thus enhance tectonic activity.…”

Section: Force Balance and Rift Evolutionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Geodynamics of continental rift initiation and evolution

Brune¹,

Kolawole²,

Olive³

et al. 2023

Preprint

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A rift is a nascent plate boundary where the continental lithosphere is extended and possibly broken. In this review, we focus on fundamental rift processes and how they evolve through time. We aim at providing a modular overview of the driving forces, resisting factors, and weakening processes as well as how their interaction generates the large variety of rifts on Earth. Rifting initiates when the joint contribution of lithospheric buoyancy forces, mantle tractions, and subduction-related forces overcome the lithospheric strength. Subsequently, rifting is facilitated by softening mechanisms, such as frictional weakening, diking and surface processes, but also by inherited rheological weaknesses, such as those coinciding with currently active rifts in East Africa. These positive feedback effects may however be counter-balanced by dynamic processes resisting deformation such as isostatic forces or lithospheric cooling, which may ultimately lead to the abandonment of a rift. A fundamental understanding of the force balance in rifts is required to assess their controls on rift-wide stress fields, which is essential when georesources like geothermal energy are to be exploited in a responsible way. These cross-scale interactions can only be understood through multidisciplinary approaches that integrate geophysical and geochemical data with modern modelling techniques.

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Section: Dynamic Resisting Processesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Force Balance and Rift Evolutionmentioning

confidence: 99%