Petrological studies of volcanic ash from Sakurajima volcano in 2013, Southern Kyushu, Japan

Abstract

Many petrological studies of volcanic rocks have attempted to better predict future volcanic activity. In this study, we examined volcanic ash samples from Showa Crater in Sakurajima, Japan, which were erupted from January to October 2013. This study was used two types of juvenile material; black vesicular volcanic rock (BVVR) and black non-vesicular volcanic rock (BNVVR) to determine the variable of magmatic processes in the magma conduit during the 2013 eruption. We divided the duration into three periods such as January to April, April to July, and July to October based on the variable tendency of SiO2 contents and volume abundance of the interstitial glasses in BVVR and BNVVR. The estimated melt compositions demonstrate that the variability of SiO2 contents and volume abundance of microcrystal in the groundmass (BVVR and BNVVR) over time were caused by micro-crystallization processes. The estimated of water contents and vesicle volume shows the influence of degassing process in the rock forming. Also, the correlation of petrological features with the number of eruptions and eruptive volumes, exhibit the variable of magma supply into conduit in each period. Consequently, careful monitoring of the petrological features of erupted materials may provide useful constraints on future eruptive activity and thereby assist in the mitigation of volcanic hazards.