--> Abstract: On the Origin of Large Horizontal Stress Variations in the Earth's Crust, by Peter James; #90072 (2007)

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On the Origin of Large Horizontal Stress Variations in the Earth's Crust

Peter James
Consulting Engineering Geologist, Tasmania, Australia

Data from insitu stress measurements, from reservoir induced seismicity and from mining-related events, demonstrate that the crust of the Earth is often highly stressed, to the point of being in a state of incipient failure. Stresses may be either tensile or compressive and it is proposed that these “geoid stresses” are the result of geoid deformations imposed on the crust by latitude shifts (polar wander). At their maximum, geoid stresses are adequate to explain many major geological processes; at a less intense level, they provide the rationale for the large horizontal stress variations in the crust.
Growing evidence points to a lower mantle origin for volatiles. Upward migration of volatiles occurs under high pore pressure conditions and, when combined with geoid stresses limitations, provides a mechanics of materials rationale for earthquake patterns.

 

AAPG Search and Discovery Article #90072 © 2007 AAPG and AAPG European Region Conference, Athens, Greece