Full metadata
Title
Degassing processes at persistently active explosive volcanoes
Description
Among volcanic gases, sulfur dioxide (SO2) is by far the most commonly measured. More than a monitoring proxy for volcanic degassing, SO2 has the potential to alter climate patterns. Persistently active explosive volcanoes are characterized by short explosive bursts, which often occur at periodic intervals numerous times per day, spanning years to decades. SO2 emissions at those volcanoes are poorly constrained, in large part because the current satellite monitoring techniques are unable to detect or quantify plumes of low concentration in the troposphere. Eruption plumes also often show high concentrations of ash and/or aerosols, which further inhibit the detection methods. In this work I focus on quantifying volcanic gas emissions at persistently active explosive volcanoes and their variations over short timescales (minutes to hours), in order to document their contribution to natural SO2 flux as well as investigate the physical processes that control their behavior.
In order to make these measurements, I first develop and assemble a UV ground-based instrument, and validate it against an independently measured source of SO2 at a coal-burning power plant in Arizona. I establish a measurement protocol and demonstrate that the instrument measures SO2 fluxes with < 20 % error. Using the same protocol, I establish a record of the degassing patterns at Semeru volcano (Indonesia), a volcano that has been producing cycles of repeated explosions with periods of minutes to hours for the past several decades. Semeru produces an average of 21-71 tons of SO2 per day, amounting to a yearly output of 8-26 Mt.
Using the Semeru data, along with a 1-D transient numerical model of magma ascent, I test the validity of a model in which a viscous plug at the top of the conduit produces cycles of eruption and gas release. I find that it can be a valid hypothesis to explain the observed patterns of degassing at Semeru. Periodic behavior in such a system occurs for a very narrow range of conditions, for which the mass balance between magma flux and open-system gas escape repeatedly generates a viscous plug, pressurizes the magma beneath the plug, and then explosively disrupts it.
In order to make these measurements, I first develop and assemble a UV ground-based instrument, and validate it against an independently measured source of SO2 at a coal-burning power plant in Arizona. I establish a measurement protocol and demonstrate that the instrument measures SO2 fluxes with < 20 % error. Using the same protocol, I establish a record of the degassing patterns at Semeru volcano (Indonesia), a volcano that has been producing cycles of repeated explosions with periods of minutes to hours for the past several decades. Semeru produces an average of 21-71 tons of SO2 per day, amounting to a yearly output of 8-26 Mt.
Using the Semeru data, along with a 1-D transient numerical model of magma ascent, I test the validity of a model in which a viscous plug at the top of the conduit produces cycles of eruption and gas release. I find that it can be a valid hypothesis to explain the observed patterns of degassing at Semeru. Periodic behavior in such a system occurs for a very narrow range of conditions, for which the mass balance between magma flux and open-system gas escape repeatedly generates a viscous plug, pressurizes the magma beneath the plug, and then explosively disrupts it.
Date Created
2015
Contributors
- Smekens, Jean-François (Author)
- Clarke, Amanda (Thesis advisor)
- Christensen, Philip R. (Philip Russel) (Committee member)
- Williams, Stanley (Committee member)
- Burton, Michael (Committee member)
- Fink, Jonathan (Committee member)
- Moore, Gordon (Committee member)
- Arizona State University (Publisher)
Topical Subject
Resource Type
Extent
x, 173 pages : illustrations (mostly color), color maps
Language
eng
Copyright Statement
In Copyright
Primary Member of
Peer-reviewed
No
Open Access
No
Handle
https://hdl.handle.net/2286/R.I.30054
Statement of Responsibility
by Jean-François Smekens
Description Source
Retrieved on Aug. 31, 2015
Level of coding
full
Note
thesis
Partial requirement for: Ph.D., Arizona State University, 2015
bibliography
Includes bibliographical references (pages 162-173)
Field of study: Geological sciences
System Created
- 2015-06-01 08:19:38
System Modified
- 2021-08-30 01:28:08
- 3 years 3 months ago
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