Rupture and afterslip controlled by spontaneous local fluid flow in crustal rock

TL;DR

This study investigates how fluid flow influences fault slip and rupture in crustal rocks, revealing a two-stage process involving initial rupture stabilization by fluid pressure drops and subsequent fluid-induced afterslip driven by fluid recharge.

Contribution

It uncovers a previously unrecognized stage of fault slip driven by local fluid recharge, linking laboratory findings to natural crustal fault behavior.

Findings

Fault rupture involves large dilatancy and fluid pressure drops.

Post-rupture slip is promoted by fluid pressure recharge from fault walls.

Spontaneous fault zone recharge may explain early afterslip in crustal faults.

Abstract

Shear rupture and fault slip in crystalline rocks like granite produce large dilation, impacting the spatiotemporal evolution of fluid pressure in the crust during the seismic cycle. To explore how fluid pressure variations are coupled to rock deformation and fault slip, we conducted laboratory experiments under upper crustal conditions while monitoring acoustic emissions and in situ fluid pressure. Our results show two separate faulting stages: initial rupture propagation, associated with large dilatancy and stabilised by local fluid pressure drops, followed by sliding on the newly formed fault, promoted by local fluid pressure recharge from the fault walls. This latter stage had not been previously recognised and can be understood as fluid-induced afterslip, co-located with the main rupture patch. Upscaling our laboratory results to the natural scale, we expect that spontaneous fault zone recharge could be responsible for early afterslip in locally dilating regions of major crustal faults, independently from large-scale fluid flow patterns.