Deformation microstructures of glaucophane and lawsonite in experimentally deformed blueschists: Implications for intermediate-depth intraplate earthquakes

Abstract

A series of simple-shear experiments on blueschist was performed at 400-500°C and 1-2.5 GPa to understand the deformation of seismically active, subducting oceanic crust. The experiments show that brittle microstructures are mainly found at pressures of 1-2 GPa, whereas ductile microstructures form at 2.5 GPa. J-indices (a measure of fabric intensity) of glaucophane crystal preferred orientations change systematically with changing shear strain and confining pressure, and the angle between the slip plane and the shear direction of samples deformed at >2 GPa is similar to that of a strain ellipsoid. These results, together with the variable orientations of fine grains in a selected area electron diffraction image at 2 GPa, indicate that the brittle-ductile transition for glaucophane occurs at ∼2 GPa. In contrast to this, lawsonite in the experiments show abundant fracturing in most specimens and a poor correlation between the J-index, shear strain, and confining pressure. This demonstrates that lawsonite deformed by brittle failure under all experimental conditions. In the case of a starting material that has a strong fabric and deformed under dry experimental conditions, the brittle-ductile transition zone of glaucophane will be much shallower than 2 GPa. Therefore, our initial experimental results on the deformation behavior of blueschist indirectly support the dehydration embrittlement of subducting oceanic crust (glaucophane) as an important factor in the origin of intraplate earthquakes.