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Stimulation of reservoir and induced microseismicity - Zurich, Switzerland, Workshop3
Stimulation of reservoir and induced microseismicity - Zurich, Switzerland, Workshop3
from 29 June 2006 to 01 July 2006 Kartause Ittingen, Switzerland
 
Fault mechanisms of induced seismicity at the superdeep KTB borehole and their relation to fault structure and stress field
 
125 Fault plane solutions for microearthquakes induced during a long-term
fluid-injection experiment at the KTB boreholes (Germany) in 2000 are investigated. A
predominant strike-slip mechanism is observed, partly with components of normal but
also reverse faulting. Adding 54 fault plane solutions of an earlier injection
experiment at the KTB we determine the local stress field and find a subhorizontal NS
orientation for the maximum principal stress and a near vertical orientation for the
intermediate principal stress. The stress field exhibits no temporal or spatial
variations within the resolved accuracy of 15°. However, the results of the stress
tensor inversion point to heterogeneities of second order.
Based on the hypocentral distribution of the induced microearthquakes and the
similarity of fault mechanisms we relate our data to the fault structure at the KTB.
We find that the larger faults act as pathways for the injected fluid whereas the
brittle failure occurs on fault asperities of the larger mapped faults and nearby
smaller faults both in agreement with the local stress field. Applying a thorough
error analysis of the individual fault plane solutions we correlate the diversity of
mechanisms with their strength and find that the strongest events tend to a
representative mechanism that is in good correspondence with the stress field. In
contrast, the diversity of fault mechanisms is larger for the smaller events
indicating local stress perturbations. 

Keywords: Induced seismicity, fault mechanism data, stress field, fault structure, KTB
 
Id: 17
Place: Kartause Ittingen, Switzerland
CH-8532 Warth TG
www.kartause.ch
Starting date:
30-Jun-2006   14:40
Duration: 20'
Primary Authors: BOHNHOFF, Marco (GeoForschungsZentrum Potsdam)
Presenters: BOHNHOFF, Marco
Material: slides Slides
 




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