Descripción del proyecto
Transformación de nuestros conocimientos sobre los terremotos
Los fenómenos sísmicos tectónicos (terremotos) se producen debido a una liberación repentina de energía almacenada (carga de falla) a lo largo de un plano de falla. Esta energía puede ser el resultado de una compresión (refuerzo de la carga) o de una extensión (debilitamiento de la carga) en los límites entre las placas tectónicas. Ambos procesos deforman las rocas que rodean el plano de la falla a medida que la energía se acumula, aunque de forma diferente. Se sabe poco sobre el debilitamiento de la carga, motivo por el que, en el proyecto financiado con fondos europeos SHEAR, se emprenderá una investigación de laboratorio empleando equipos de deformación y técnicas acústicas. La integración de los resultados en modelos microfísicos y los datos de estudios de campo facilitarán futuros experimentos ampliados. En última instancia, el proyecto cosechará una mayor comprensión de los procesos en las fallas tectónicas.
Objetivo
The extent to which earthquake phenomena can be accurately assessed ultimately depends on how well the underlying physical processes are understood. Earthquake physics is primarily controlled by fault frictional properties and fluid pressure, which have been widely tested in laboratory rock deformation experiments. During the last 50 years, these experiments have provided fundamental contributions to our understanding of earthquake physics. However, in most experiments, the fault is loaded toward earthquake-slip under constant effective normal stress or via an increase in effective normal stress, i.e. load-strengthening. Nonetheless, numerous natural faults are affected by a reduction in effective normal stress during tectonic loading, i.e. load-weakening, and this condition is dominant in induced earthquakes due to fluid-injections in modern energy production. Further, along mature fault zones characterized by a thick damage zone and fault core, load-weakening likely promotes fault dilation, instead of compaction, with strong implications for fault hydro-mechanical behaviour. With SHEAR, I propose to fill this knowledge gap via laboratory experiments designed specifically to investigate the influence of loading path, and in particular the load-weakening path in fault physics, taking advantage of a world-class deformation apparatus. Laboratory results will be integrated with acoustic techniques to shed light on the physical processes at play and inform microphysical models that, coupled with field studies, will allow for the upscaling of experiments and provide a broader comprehensive picture of tectonic faulting. For the SHEAR action, the experience I acquired during my Post-Doc at EPFL (Switzerland) will be fundamental. The vibrant research environment in Sapienza will give me the possibility to acquire new scientific and transferable skills, ensuring me a competitive scientific profile to successfully apply for positions in academia, public and private sectors.
Ámbito científico
Programa(s)
- HORIZON.1.2 - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) Main Programme
Régimen de financiación
MSCA-PF - MSCA-PFCoordinador
00185 Roma
Italia