Fault roughness controls injection-induced seismicity.

ABSTRACT: Surface roughness ubiquitously prevails in natural faults across various length scales. Despite extensive studies highlighting the important role of fault geometry in the dynamics of tectonic earthquakes, whether and how fault roughness affects fluid-induced seismicity remains elusive. Here, we investigate the effects of fault geometry and stress heterogeneity on fluid-induced fault slip and associated seismicity characteristics using laboratory experiments and numerical modeling. We perform fluid injection experiments on quartz-rich sandstone samples containing either a smooth or a rough fault. We find that geometrical roughness slows down injection-induced fault slip and reduces macroscopic slip velocities and fault slip-weakening rates. Stress heterogeneity and roughness control hypocen

SUBMITTER: Wang L 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10801853 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature