Earthquakes Trigger Rapid Flash Boiling Front at Optimal Geologic Conditions

Abstract

The interplay between seismic activity and fluid flow is essential during the evolution of hydrothermal systems. Although earthquakes can trigger transient fluid flow and phase changes in dilational jogs, the temporal scale and the geologic conditions that enhance such process are poorly quantified. Here, we use numerical simulations of deformation and fluid flow to constrain the conditions that maximize adiabatic boiling-referred to as flashing-and estimate the extent and duration of such process. We show that there is an optimal geometry for a dilational jog that maximizes co-seismic flashing within the jog. Fluid flow simulations indicate that the duration, intensity, and propagation of the flashing front are limited and highly dependent on the magnitude of the co-seismic slip and the initial pressure-enthalpy conditions. Our results are valuable to better understand the implications of pressure fluctuations during the seismogenic cycle, as well the mineralization processes in the Earth’s crust. Earthquakes can strongly affect circulating fluids within the Earth’s crust, mainly where faults bend or split into different fault segments and produce dilatant areas. In these areas, earthquakes play an important role in forming ore deposits, because the co-seismic volume change can produce a pressure drop that drives boiling with gas exsolution and subsequent mineralization. This process, in which boiling is triggered by a pressure drop rather than a temperature rise, is called flash vapourization or flashing. Here, we used a computer code to unravel scenarios where optimal geometry and pressure-temperature conditions maximize flash vapourization. Furthermore, we found that the duration and extension of the flashing event are limited and highly dependent on the magnitude of the triggering earthquake and the physico-chemical conditions of the system. Such results are valuable for assessing the implications of pressure fluctuations during the seismogenic cycle and for better understanding mineralization processes in the Earth’s crust.