SFB 574: Volatiles and Fluids in Subduction Zones: Climate Feedback and the Causes of Natural Disasters
Final Report Abstract
The SFB 574 investigated the pathways, fluxes and turnover processes of fluids and volatiles, such as water, carbon, sulfur and halogens through subduction zones, because these control the severity and frequency of natural hazards (e.g. earthquakes and volcanic eruptions), the formation of resources (e.g. gas hydrates), and the regional to global climate via volcanic emissions and lithosphere-ocean-atmosphere elemental exchange fluxes. These objectives have been addressed through the combined work of 18 scientific subprojects and 1 junior research group established during the 11 year lifetime of SFB 574, which covered a wide range of disciplines and methods under the following themes: (A) Subduction zone processes and structure, (B) Fore-arc volatile turnover and fluid flow, and (C) Slab-arc-atmosphere transfer. The first regional focus was on the erosive subduction zone of Central America, which is transitional in the sense that upper plate crust changes from oceanic to continental northward. The second regional focus was then on the accretionary subduction zone of southern Chile with a continental upper-plate crust that thickens northward. Major results that are internationally associated with the SFB 574 are: 1. Recognition of mantle serpentinization as a major carrier of water into the subduction zone, facilitated by bend-faulting of the plate as it approaches the trench (observed offshore of Central America and Chile) and via multi-splay fracture zones off the Central and Southern segments of the Chilean Southern Volcanic Zone. The hydrogeological and thermodynamical conditions controlling the extent of serpentinization have been constrained by field measurements and by numerical modeling. Furthermore, it has been shown for both study areas that serpentinization of the upper mantle of the incoming plate can influence the entire range of subduction processes, from earthquake activity to magma production and also the chemical composition of the erupted lavas and ultimately the release of climate-influencing volatiles into the atmopshere. Serpentinization was one of the major unifying themes throughout the entire 11 years of the SFB. 2. Serpentinization of the forearc mantle and its role in defining the lower limit of the seismogenic zone and hence the size of rupture zones and earthquake magnitudes. 3. Improvement of our understanding of the hydrogeological system of the forearc at erosive and accretionary margins in relation to tectonic structures, the rates and depths of dewatering at the decollement and how this defines the onset of the seismogenic zone. 4. Stability of the continental slope as a function of the distribution of gas hydrates, the rates and pathways of cold-seep fluid emissions and the input of terrigenous sediment into the trench at erosional and accretionary margins. 5. The importance of the benthic filter in controlling methane fluxes into the ocean. 6. Combination of geophysical and geochemical evidence to demonstrate and measure 3-D flow within the mantle wedge, and development of complex numerical models to investigate the physical parameters of such flow conditions. 7. Evidence for external controls on volcanic degassing and eruption behaviour over a range of temporal scales from seismic stresses through Earth tides to glacial cycles. 8. Quantification of the mass budgets of volatile transfer through the investigated subduction zones through combination of empirical methods and fluid-thermodynamic modeling. 9. Compilation of empirical data for, and climate-modelling of, the effects of arc-volcanic volatile emissions on past, present and future atmosphere and climate conditions.
Publications
- (2003) Bending, faulting and mantle serpentinization at the Middle America Trench. Nature 425: 367-373
Ranero CR, Phipps-Morgan J, McIntosh K, Reichert C
- (2004) Fluid expulsion related to mud extrusion off Costa Rica - a window to the subducting slab. Geology 32: 201-204
Hensen C, Wallmann K, Schmidt M, Ranero CR, Suess E
- (2004) Serpentine and the Subduction Zone Water Cycle. Earth Planet Sci Lett 223: 17-34
Rüpke LH, Phipps Morgan J, Hort M, Connolly J
- (2004) Trace element fractionation during fluid-induced eclogitization in a subducting slab: trace element and Lu-Hf/Sm-Nd isotope systematics. Earth Planet Sci Lett 227: 441-456
John T, Scherer E, Haase K, Schenk V
- (2005) Heat flow and bending-related faulting at subduction trenches: Case studies offshore of Nicaragua and Central Chile. Earth Planet Sci Lett 236: 238-248
Grevemeyer I, Kaul N, Diaz-Naveas JL, Villinger HW, Ranero CR, Reichert C
- (2005) In-situ benthic fluxes from an intermittently active mud volcano at the Costa Rica convergent margin. Earth Planet Sci Lett 235: 79-95
Linke P, Wallmann K, Suess E, Hensen C, Rehder G
(See online at https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2005.03.009) - (2006) Estimates of methane output from mud extrusions at the erosive convergent margin off Costa Rica. Marine Geology 225: 129-144
Mau S, Sahling H, Rehder G, Suess E, Linke P, Soeding E
- (2006), Volcanic hazards in Nicaragua: Past, present, and future. In: WI Rose, GJS Bluth, et al. (eds) Volcanic hazards in Central America. Geol Soc Am Spec Publ 412: 141-165
Freundt A, Kutterolf S, Schmincke H-U, Hansteen TH, Wehrmann H, Perez W, Strauch W, Navarro M
- (2007) Fumarolic gases at Mombacho volcano (Nicaragua): presence of magmatic gas species and implications for volcanic surveillance. Bull Volcanol 69: 785-795
Garofalo K, Tassi F, Vaselli O, Delgado-Huertas A, Tedesco D, Frische M, Hansteen TH, Poreda RJ, Strauch W
(See online at https://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00445-006-0108-z) - (2007) Passive and active seismological study of bending-related faulting and mantle serpentinization at the Middle America trench. Earth Planet Sci Lett 258: 528-542
Grevemeyer I, Ranero CR, Flüh ER, Kläschen D, Bialas J
- (2008) Arc-Parallel Flow in the Mantle Wedge Beneath Costa Rica and Nicaragua. Nature
Hoernle K, Abt DL, Fischer KM, Nichols H, Hauff F, Abers G, van den Bogaard P, Heydolph K, Alvarado G, Protti JM, Strauch W
(See online at https://dx.doi.org/10.1038/nature06550) - (2008) Lifetime and cyclicity of fluid venting at forearc mound structures determined by tephrostratigraphy and radiometric dating of authigenic carbonates. Geology 36: 707-710
Kutterolf S, Liebetrau V, Mörz T, Freundt A, Hammerich T, Garbe-Schönberg D
- (2008) Subduction cycling of volatiles and trace elements through the Central American volcanic arc: evidence from melt inclusions. Contrib Mineral Petrol 155: 433-456
Sadofsky S, Portnyagin M, Hoernle K, van den Bogaard P
(See online at https://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00410-007-0251-3) - (2008) The hydrogeological system of erosional convergent margins and its influence on tectonics and interplate seismogenesis. Geochem Geophys Geosys 9(3): Q03S04
Ranero CR, Grevemeyer I, Sahling H, Barckhausen U, Hensen C, Wallmann K, Weinrebe W, Vannucchi P, von Huene R, McIntosh K
(See online at https://dx.doi.org/10.1029/2007GC001679) - (2008). Impact of bending related faulting on the seismic properties of the incoming oceanic plate offshore of Nicaragua. J Geophys Res 113: B05410
Ivandic M, Grevemeyer I, Berhorst A, Flueh E R, McIntosh K
(See online at https://dx.doi.org/10.1029/2007JB005291) - (2010) Nitrogen recycling in subducted oceanic lithosphere: The record in high- and ultra-high pressure metabasaltic rocks. Geochim Cosmochim Acta 74: 1636-1652
Halama R, Bebout G, John T, Schenk V
(See online at https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.gca.2009.12.003) - (2011) A stable (Li, O) and radiogenic (Sr, Nd) isotope perspective on metasomatic processes in a subducting slab. Chemical Geology 281: 151-166
Halama R, John T, Herms P, Hauff F, Schenk V
(See online at https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.chemgeo.2010.12.001) - (2011) Active tectonics of the South Chilean marine fore arc (35°S - 40°S). Tectonics 30: TC3006
Geersen J, Behrmann JH, Völker D, Krastel S, Ranero CR, Diaz-Naveas J, Weinrebe W
(See online at https://dx.doi.org/10.1029/2010TC002777) - (2011) Arc parallel shear deformation and escape flow in the mantle wedge of the Central America subduction zone: Evidence from P-wave anisotropy. Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems 12: Q05S31
Rabbel W, Koulatov I, Dinc AN, Jakovlev A
(See online at https://dx.doi.org/10.1029/2010GC003325) - (2011) Comparative mass balance of volcanic edifices at the Southern Volcanic Zone of the Andes between 33°S and 46°S. J Volcanol Geotherm Res 205: 114-129
Völker D, Kutterolf S, Wehrmann H
- (2011) Elasmobranch egg capsules associated with modern and ancient cold seeps: A nursery for marine deep-water predators. Marine Ecology Progress Series 437: 175-181
Treude T, Kiel S, Linke P, Peckmann J, Goedert JL
- (2011) Magnetotelluric image of the fluid cycle in the Costa Rican subduction zone. Nature Geoscience 4: 108-111
Worzewski T, Jegen M, Kopp H, Brasse H, Taylor Castillo W
(See online at https://dx.doi.org/10.1038/ngeo1041) - (2011) Mantle wedge hydration in Nicaragua from local earthquake tomography. Geophys J Int 186: 99-112
Dinc AN, Rabbel W, Flüh ER, Taylor W
(See online at https://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-246X.2011.05041.x) - (2011) Submarine slope failures along the convergent continental margin of the Middle America Trench. G-cubed 12: Q05S32
Harders R, Ranero C, Weinrebe W, Behrmann J
(See online at https://dx.doi.org/10.1029/2010GC003401) - (2011) The influence of eruption season on the global aerosol evolution and radiative impact of tropical volcanic eruptions. Atmos Chem Phys 11: 12351-12367
Toohey M, Krüger K, Niemeier U, Timmreck C
(See online at https://dx.doi.org/10.5194/acp-11-12351-2011) - (2011) Volcanic CO2 output at the Central American subduction zone inferred from melt inclusions in olivine crystals from mafic tephras. G-cubed 12: Q06003
Wehrmann H, Hoernle K, Portnyagin M, Wiedenbeck M, Heydoph K
(See online at https://dx.doi.org/10.1029/2010GC003412) - (2012) Evidence for channelized external fluid flow and element transfer in subducting slabs (Raspas Complex, Ecuador). Chem Geol 310-311: 79-96
Herms P, John T, Bakker RJ, Schenk V
(See online at https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemgeo.2012.03.023) - (2012) Formation of carbonate concretions in surface sediments of two mud mounds offshore Costa Rica: A stable isotope study. Int J Earth Sci
Mavromatis V, Botz R, Schmidt M, Liebetrau V, Hensen C
(See online at https://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00531-012-0843-7) - (2012) Moho topography and subducting oceanic slab of the Chilean continental margin in the maximum slip segment of the 1960 Mw 9.5 Valdivia (Chile) earthquake from P-receiver functions. Tectonophysics 530-531: 180-192
Dzierma Y, Thorwart M, Rabbel W
(See online at https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tecto.2011.12.016) - (2012) On the likelihood of future eruptions in the Chilean Southern Volcanic Zone: interpreting the past century's eruption record based on statistical analyses. Andean Geology 39: 380-393
Dzierma Y, Wehrmann H
(See online at https://doi.org/10.5027/andgeoV39n3-a02) - (2012) Quantification of methane emission from bacterial mat sites at Quepos Slide offshore Costa Rica. Int J Earth Sci
Karaca D, Schleicher T, Hensen C, Linke P, Wallmann K
(See online at https://doi.org/10.1007/s00531-012-0839-3) - (2012) Radiative forcing and climate impact resulting from the SO2 injections based on a 200,000 year record of Plinian eruptions along the Central American Volcanic Arc. Int J Earth Sci
Metzner D, Kutterolf S, Toohey M, Niemeier U, Timmreck C, Freundt A, Krüger K
(See online at https://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00531-012-0814-z) - (2012) Seismic evidence of tectonic control on the depth of water influx into incoming oceanic plates at subduction trenches. Geochem Geophys Geosyst 13: Q05013
Lefeldt M, Ranero CR, Grevemeyer I
(See online at https://doi.org/10.1029/2012GC004043) - (2012) Seismic velocity structure of the slab and continental plate in the region of the 1960 Valdivia (Chile) slip maximum - insights into fluid release and plate coupling. Earth Planet Sci Lett 331-332: 164-176
Dzierma Y, Rabbel W, Thorwart M, Koulakov I, Wehrmann H, Hoernle K, Comte D
(See online at https://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2012.02.006) - (2012) Tracing the effects of highpressure metasomatic fluids and seawater alteration in blueschist-facies overprinted eclogites: Implications for subduction channel processes. Chem Geol 292-293: 69-87
van der Straaten F, Halama R, John T, Schenk V, Hauff F, Andersen N
(See online at https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chemgeo.2011.11.008) - (2013) A Detection of Milankovitch Frequencies in Global Volcanic Activity. Geology 41: 227-230
Kutterolf S, Jegen M, Mitrovica JX, Kwasnitschka T, Freundt A, Huybers P
(See online at https://doi.org/10.1130/G33419.1) - (2013) Across-arc geochemical variations in the Southern Volcanic Zone, Chile (34.5°- 38.0°S): Constraints on mantle wedge and source input compositions. Geochim Cosmoschim Acta
Jacques G, Hoernle K, Gill J, Hauff F, Wehrmann H, Garbe-Schönberg D, van den Bogaard P, Bindeman I, Lara L
(See online at https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gca.2013.05.016) - (2013) Combined bromine and chlorine release from large explosive volcanic eruptions: A threat to stratospheric ozone? Geology
Kutterolf S, Hansteen TH, Appel K, Freundt A, Krüger K, Perez W, Wehrmann H
(See online at https://dx.doi.org/10.1130/G34044.1) - (2013) Comparison of seismic activity for Llaima and Villarrica volcanoes prior to and after the Maule 2010 earthquake. Int J Earth Sci
Mora-Stock C, Thorwart M, Wunderlich T, Bredemeyer S, Rabbel W
(See online at https://doi.org/10.1007/s00531-012-0840-x) - (2013) Submarine weathering of silicate minerals and the extent of pore water freshening at active continental margins. Geochim Cosmochim Acta 100: 200-216
Scholz F, Hensen C, Schmidt M, Geersen J
