Supplementary Table 1 - Nature · Supplementary Table 1 ... ALB 40± 8 25.7±5.5 2 20 2-3 250 55...

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATIONDOI: 10.1038/NGEO1902

NATURE GEOSCIENCE | www.nature.com/naturegeoscience 1

Structure of orogenic belts controlled by lithosphere age

Frederic Mouthereau, Anthony B. Watts and Evgueni Burov

Supplementary Table 1

Name Te

(km) ± 20%

Shortening (%)

± (1-σ) at 95%* N

Age of Collision

(Ma) Ref.

Age of Thermal

reset (Ma)

Ref. tT-S ± 20% (Ma)

ALAI 53± 11 35±7 1 25 1 300 56 275±55 ALB 40± 8 25.7±5.5 2 20 2-3 250 55 230±46 APN 17± 3 35±16 2 5 4-5 250 56 245±49 APP 52±10 34±7.46 5 375 6-7 1050 56 675±135 BOL 71±14 37.77±5.21 5 60 8-12 950 56 890±178 BR 52±10 50±10 1 200 13 1900 56 1700±340 CAN 35±7 52.17±10.43 1 65 14 2000 58 1935±387 CANT 11± 2 59.14±7.12 2 310 15-16 1800 15 1490±298 COL 51±10 30.6±6 2 60 17-18 950 56 890±178 CPT 28± 6 59.5±4.9 2 110 19-20 1600 56 1409±298 DIN 12± 2 32±6.4 1 30 21 250 56 220±44 EH 44± 9 63±10.18 1 50 22-24 1800 56 1750±350 HAT 16± 3 25.71±5.14 1 65 25 200 25 135±27

NA 11± 2 23.33±4.67 1 30 26 250 56 220±44 NEP 92± 18 71.73±5.51 3 50 27-29 1800 56 1750±350 NP 10± 2 35±7 1 65 30 250 56 185±37 NWI 65± 13 65±13 2 50 31-32 1800 56 1750±350 PAK 55± 11 64±12.8 1 50 33 1800 56 1750±350 PER 51±10 28.9±5.78 1 60 34 950 57 890±178 POT 53± 11 46.15±7.53 2 13 35-36 1800 58 1687±337 RHE 43± 9 52±10.4 1 325 37 1490 37 1165±233 SA 9± 2 24±4.8 1 30 38 250 57 220±44 SEV 43±9 62.5±12.5 1 145 39 1700 58 1555±311 SP 13± 3 46.25±20.45 4 65 40-43 250 56 185±37 SPA 49± 10 30.33±10.5 3 60 44-46 950 56 890±178 SUL 49± 10 45.42±1.41 2 50 35-36 1800 56 1750±350 TA 14± 3 34.5±6.9 1 5 47 55 57 50±10 TAD 54± 11 35±7 1 52 48 300 56 248±49 TS 34± 7 26±5.9 2 25 49-50 300 56 275±55 ZA 43± 9 37±7.4 4 20 51-54 250 55 230±46

Compilation of shortening data, Te estimates in adjacent forelands with constraints on the age

of collision and timing of the last thermotectonic resetting of the continental lithosphere. tT-S

parameter denotes the ages of the lithosphere at time of shortening as plotted in Figure 2B.

Errors on shortening data account for the number of individual shortening estimate and

scattering of measurements with confidence interval of 95%. It is 20% on average. In thrust

© 2013 Macmillan Publishers Limited. All rights reserved.

http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/ngeo1902

belts where shortening is constrained by a single restored cross-section, a consistent average

error of 20% was assumed. Such single data are provided for large-scale cross-sections that

aim at combining years of structural analysis. Hence, shortening is not necessarily less well

constrained in case of one single measurement. Shortening were obtained from matching the

same external parts of collisional belts, where syn-convergence burial can be considered

limited. This is required to ensure the preservation of cross-sectional area during deformation,

which is a prerequisite for using balancing techniques and providing robust shortening

estimates. For instance, due to high metamorphic grade the Greater Himalaya Sequence were

not considered in shortening. With this approach, the compilation is intended to show

shortening for the same pre-collisional portions of the lithosphere.

Abbreviations of thrust belts are : ALAI, Alai Ranges; ALB, Alborz; APN, Apennines; APP,

Appalachians; BOL, Sub-Andean Bolivian thrust belt; BR, Brooks Ranges; CAN, Canadian

Rockies; CANT, Cantabrian Mountains; COL, Sub-Andean Colombian trust belt; CPT,

Carpathians; DIN, Dinarides; EH, Eastern Himalayas thrust belt (e.g. Sikkim, Bhoutan);

HAT, High Atlas; NA, Northern Alps; NEP, Nepalese thrust belt; NP, Northern Pyrenees;

NWI, North-western Himalaya; PAK, Pakistan Himalayan thrust belt; PER, Peruvian thrust

belt; POT, Potwar Plateau; RHE, Rheno-hercynian thrust belt; SA, Southern Alps; SEV,

Sevier thrust belt; SP, Southern Pyrenees; SPA, Sierras Pampeanas; SUL, Sulaiman Range;

TA, Taiwan; TAD, Tadjik thrust belt; TS, Tien-Shan; ZA, Zagros.

References cited in the Table are as follows : 1 (Coutand et al., 2002) ; 2-3(Allen et al., 2003;

Guest et al., 2006); 4-5 (Coward et al., 1999; Scrocca et al., 2005); 6-7 (Herman et al., 1997;

Thomas and Bayona, 2002) ; 8-12 (Sheffels, 1990; Baby et al., 1997; Kley and Monaldi,

1998; McQuarrie, 2002; Moretti et al., 2007) ; 13 (Blythe et al., 1996); 14 (Hardebol et al.,

2009); 15-16 (Perez-Estaun et al., 1988; Veselovsky, 2004); 17-18 (Colletta et al., 1990; Kley

et al., 1999) ; 19-20 (Roca et al., 1995; Matenco and Bertotti, 2000); 21 (Roure et al., 2004);

22-24 (Mitra et al., 2010; Yin et al., 2010; Long et al., 2011); 25 (Beauchamp et al., 1999); 26

(Burkhard and Sommaruga, 1998); 27-29 (Schelling and Arita, 1991; DeCelles et al., 2001;

Robinson et al., 2006); 30 (Teixell, 1998); 31-32 (Srivastava and Mitra, 1994; DeCelles et al.,

1998); 33 (COWARD et al., 1987); 34 (Kley and Monaldi, 1998); 35-36 (Banks and

Warburton, 1986; Jadoon et al., 1997); 37 (Oncken et al., 1999); 38 (Ford and Lickorish,

2004); 39 (DeCelles and Coogan, 2006); 40-43; (Roure et al., 1989; Muñoz, 1992; Vergés et

al., 1995; Teixell, 1998); 44-46 (Allmendinger et al., 1990; Zapata and Allmendinger, 1996;


Cristallini and Ramos, 2000); 47 (Yue et al., 2005); 48 (Bourgeois et al., 1997); 49-50 (Yin et

al., 1998; Allen et al., 1999); 51-54 (McQuarrie, 2004; Sherkati and Letouzey, 2004;

Molinaro et al., 2005; Mouthereau et al., 2007) ; 55 (Alavi, 1980); 56 (Watts, 2001); 57

(Mouthereau and Petit, 2003); 58 (Artemevia, 2006).

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Supplementary Figure S1

Te data were obtained from inverse (i.e. spectral) modeling based on coherence between Bouguer gravity anomaly data and forward modeling of the gravity and present-day topography/bathymetry. Data sources are summarized in Watts (2007). Original data can be downloaded at http://www.earth.ox.ac.uk/~tony/watts/downloads.htm or on request to A.B. Watts.

Watts AB. 2007. An overview. In: Treatise of Geophysics. Volume 6: Crust and lithosphere dynamics, ed. AB Watts, pp. 1-48: Elsevier


Lithosphere age and structural styles in orogenic belts


Supplementary Figure S2 and discussion

Shortening in steady-state mountain ranges for variable shortening rates and depth of

detachment H. Inset shows particles trajectories within the wedge.

For thrust wedges that have reached a steady-state geometry, the ongoing erosional flux at the

top of the wedge is balanced by the accretionary flux at the front1. This assumption allows a

simple derivation of the kinematic field at given time steps within the wedge and therefore the

calculation of the distribution of shortening of interest.

In the example presented in Figure S1, crustal thickening results from frontal accretion alone.

Hence, the component of accretion by underplating is neglected. In this case, following

modification of formulation by 2 the horizontal velocity U within the wedge at the distance x

from the thrust front is given by

In this example, erosion e(x) is assumed to be uniformly distributed and is integrated over the

entire width of the wedge W. The depth of the detachment h(x) is

where is the depth of the décollement at the front and the décollement dip.


For stationary mountain ranges, wedge width W is constant and velocity field is not

dependent on time, therefore short-term velocity distribution for any particle in the wedge

equals the longer term position x of particle. The long-term shortening defined by the

long-term position difference between a particle at the rear and at the front, is therefore given

by the velocity difference (ie., position for stationary orogen) at any given time t between the

moving particle at the rear and front of the thrust wedge and

the percentage of shortening is

.

The graph shows the influence of the thickness of accreted material. This depth is controlled

by the position and weakness of decoupling levels in the crust. They are related to the

inherited rheological layering, which illustrates the role of the thermotectonic state of the

crust and lithosphere.

The highest percentages of shortening (up to 70%) are expected for high shortening rates,

higher than 47 km/Ma in our example, but also for a specific range of detachment depths,

here, shallower than 7 km. The lowest (down to 20%) will be found for regions with more

variable shortening rates but associated with deeper detachment typically below 10 km in the

middle-lower crust. This indicates that lower shortening are found for regions with more

vertically distributed crustal shortening, where deformation typically involves reverse

reactivation of inherited faults and basement.

A general correlation appears when the above predicted shortening is compared to observed

crustal shortening in mountain belts (Figure 2).

1 Dahlen, F. A. critical taper model of fold-and-thrust belts and accretionary wedges. Annual Review of Earth and Planetary Sciences 18, 55-99 (1990).

2 Pazzaglia, F. J. & Brandon, M. T. A fluvial record of long-term steady-state uplift and erosion across the Cascadia forearc high, western washington state. Am. J. Sci. 301, 385-431 (2001).




Supplementary Figure S3 and methodology

Figure S3: Initial yield stress envelopes, geotherm, Te, and lithosphere structure for end-member continental lithospheres with thermal ages of 50 Ma and 1Ga.

Thermal structure of continental lithosphere


To compute the continental geotherms Tcont presented in Figure 3, one can use the equation

(1) taking into account, in Tstd, the stationary part of the geotherm and contribution due to the

radiogenic heat production Hs in the crust, and correction T(age) due to transient cooling of

the lithosphere that depends on its age, or, more precisely, the time since the last major plate-

scale thermal event.

€

Tcont (z,age,Hs) = Tstd (z,Hs)+ T(age) (1)

The radiogenic contribution Tr in the crust depends on the thickness of the crust hc, density ρc,

radiogenic production Hs, radiogenic production decay depth hr, and thermal conductivity

coefficient kc (2):

2

1c

r

hhc s r

rc

H hT ek

ρ −⎛ ⎞⋅ ⋅= ⋅ −⎜ ⎟⎜ ⎟

⎝ ⎠ (2)

Temperature Tm at Moho depth, hc , is used for calculation of temperature at depths below the

Moho and is given by :

€

Tm = T0 +qmkc⋅ hc + Tr (3)

where T0 and qm correspond, respectively, to the temperature at the surface and the heat flux

calculated at the Moho. This heat flux is given by:

€

qm =Thl −T0 −Trhckc

+hl − hckm

(4)

where Thl is temperature at the thermal base of lithosphere (of a thickness hl) and km is

coefficient of thermal conductivity for the mantle.

Temperature at a depth z can thus be calculated as:

-‐ If

€

z ≤ hc :

€

Tstd (z) = T0 +qmkc⋅ z + Tr (5)

-‐ If

€

z f hc :

€

Tstd (z) = Tm + qm ⋅(z − hc )km

(6)

Table 3a: Thermal and mechanical constants used to calculate continental geotherms and


brittle stress profiles presented in Figure 3.

Definition Value

Thermal Surface temperature (0 km depth) , T0, 0°C

Temperature at base of thermal lithosphere , Thl 1330°C

Thermal conductivity of crust 2.5 Wm-1 °C-1

Thermal conductivity of mantle 3.3 Wm-1 °C-1

Radiogenic heat production at surface 2.5×10-9 W kg-1

Thermal diffusivity of mantle 10-6 m².s-1

Radiogenic heat production decay length 10 km

Thermo-tectonic age of the lithosphere 50 Ma and 1 Ga

Mechanical Density of the upper crust 2750 kg.m-3

Density of the lower crust 2900 kg.m-3

Density of the undepleted mantle lithosphere 3330 kg.m-3

Density of the asthenosphere 3310 kg.m-3

Byerlee’s law – Friction angle 30°

Byerlee’s law – cohesion 20 MPa

This temperature profile is then corrected for transient cooling that depends on thermotectonic

age (age) of the lithosphere using formulation from 1 adapted for the continental lithosphere.

€

T(age) =2π⋅ Thl −T0( )⋅TT(age) (7)

where

€

TT(age) =−1( )n+1

n⋅ exp −km ⋅ π

2 ⋅ age ⋅ n2

ρm ⋅Cm ⋅ hl2

⎛

⎝ ⎜

⎞

⎠ ⎟

n=1

∞

∑ ⋅ sin n ⋅ π ⋅ zhl

⎛

⎝ ⎜

⎞

⎠ ⎟ (8)

with Cm and ρm are respectively the specific heat capacity and the density for the mantle.

Values for the parameters used for the initial geotherm are given in Table 3a.

Yield stress envelopes

Based on the continental geotherm calculated above and presented in Figure 3 for different

lithosphere ages, we calculate the corresponding yield stress profiles.


To do this, we assume a homogeneous brittle property of rocks for the upper part of the

lithosphere. This is best described by the experimental Byerlee’s law of rock failure 2

τ = S + σn tg φ (9)

where φ is the internal friction angle of 30°, S is cohesion (< 20 MPa) and τ is the shear stress

and σn is the normal stress.

The ductile-viscous term is represented by non-linear power law with three sets of material

parameters (Table 3b) that correspond to the properties of four lithological layers: upper crust

(wet quartzite), lower crust (diabase), mantle and asthenosphere (olivine):

! = !"!"

!/!!!!/!!(!/!"#) (10)

where !"!"

is strain rate, H is the activation enthalpy, H = Q + PV where Q is activation

energy, P is pressure and V is molar volume, R is the gas constant, n is the power law

exponent and T is temperature in K (Table 3b).

Byerlee’s law may be not applicable for depths exceeding 30-50 km3. One alternative

mechanism refers to Peierl’s plasticity 4 that takes place at high differential stresses (>100-200

MPa) and low temperature, when mixed dislocation glide and climb occur (Katayama et al.,

2008). In that case, the maximal strength of the mantle lithosphere is supposed to be limited by

the Peierl’s flow law.


Table 3b: Ductile flow parameters. Dislocation creep parameters of rocks and mineral used in

model calculations after5-7. Parameters of Peierl’s flow law for wet and dry olivine are after 4,8. Case of Peierl’s law for wet olivine is shown in Figure 3. We use here the most common

“historically” introduced material parameters .

Layer Composition

Pre-exponential

stress constant

A (Pa-n.s-1)

Activation energy

Q (kJ.mol-1)

Power law

exponent

n

Upper Crust Wet Quartzite 1.1x10-14 223 4

Lower Crust Dry Maryland Diabase 8 485 4.7

Mantle Olivine (dry) 3x104 520 3

Peierls law Olivine Peierls activation

energy

107.8×10-12

Peierls stress limit

2.9 GPa (wet

olivine) or 9.1 GPa

(dry olivine)

Te of stratified lithosphere

We calculate Te values for two end-member old cratonized and young extended continental

lithosphere. Te of a multilayer visco-elastic-plastic plate reflects the combined strength of all

the brittle, elastic and ductile layers9. Due to the presence of weak rheological interfaces

between different lithologies, it is not a simple sum of the thickness of these layers:

!" !"# ~(ℎ!! + ℎ!! + ℎ!! +⋯ )!/! = ℎ!!!!!!

!/! < ℎ!!!!! (11)

Te of stratified lithosphere is hence smaller than summary thickness of the mechanical layers.

For instance, in case of two equally strong layers (n=2) of total thickness h (e.g. crust and

mantle), Te~0.6h instead of h, that is, the integrated strength is reduced by about a factor 2

compared to a mono-layer plate (e.g. old craton with strong coupled lower crust).


References 1 Parsons, B. & Sclater, J. G. An analysis of the variation of ocean floor bathymetry and heat

flow with age. J. Geophys. Res. 82, 803-‐827 (1977). 2 Byerlee, J. Friction of rocks. Pure Appl. Geophys. 116, 615-‐626 (1978). 3 Kirby, S. H., Durham, W. & Stern, L. Mantle phase changes and deep-‐earthquake faulting in

subducting lithosphere. Science 252 (1991). 4 Evans, B. & Goetze, C. Temperature variation of hardness of olivine and its implication for

polycrystalline yield stress. J. Geophys. Res. 84, 5504-‐5524 (1979). 5 Chopra, P. N. & Paterson, M. S. The role of water in the deformation of dunite,. J. Geophys.

Res. 89, 7861–7876, doi:doi:10.1029/JB089iB09p07861 (1984). 6 Gleason, G. C. & Tullis, J. A flow law for dislocation creep of quartz aggregates determined

with the molten salt cell. Tectonophysics 247, 1-‐23, doi:10.1016/0040-‐1951(95)00011-‐b (1995).

7 Mackwell, S. J., Zimmerman, M. E. & Kohlstedt, D. L. High-‐temperature deformation of dry diabase with application to tectonics on Venus. J. Geophys. Res. 103, 975–984, doi:doi:10.1029/97JB02671 (1998).

8 Katayama, M., Yuen, D. A. & Karato, S.-‐I. Rheological structure and deformation of subducted slabs in the mantle transition zone: implications for mantle circulation and deep earthquakes. Physics of the Earth and Planetary Interiors 168, 125-‐133 (2008).

9 Burov, E. B. & Diament, M. The effective elastic thickness (Te) of continental lithosphere: What does it really mean ? J. Geophys. Res. 100, 3905-‐3927 (1995).




Supplementary Figure S4

This Figure shows the dependence of the amount of subduction/underthrusting before break-off, a proxy for subduction stability, on convergence rates and plate strength, here expressed as the effective thickness Te (after results of experiments presented in several publications1-5).

It can be concluded that stable underthrusting is favored for higher integrated strength and are therefore interlinked. Because of higher crustal and mantle strength shortening localizes in the uppermost crust leading to higher percentage of shortening.


Cited references

1 Burov, E. & Yamato, P. Continental plate collision, P–T–t–z conditions and unstable vs. stable plate dynamics: Insights from thermo-mechanical modelling. Lithos 103, 178-204 (2008).

2 Yamato, P., Burov, E., Agard, P., Le Pourhiet, L. & Jolivet, L. HP-UHP exhumation during slow continental subduction: Self-consistent thermodynamically and thermomechanically coupled model with application to the Western Alps. Earth Planet. Sci. Lett. 271, 63-74 (2008).

3 Yamato, P., Mouthereau, F. & Burov, E. Taiwan mountain building: insights from 2D thermo-mechanical modelling of a rheologically-stratified lithosphere. Geophys. J. Int. 176, 307-326 (2009).

4 Sizova, E., Gerya, T., Brown, M. & Perchuk, L. L. Subduction styles in the Precambrian: Insight from numerical experiments. Lithos 116, 209-229 (2010).

5 Burov, E., Francois, T., Yamato, P. & Wolf, S. Mechanisms of continental subduction and exhumation of HP and UHP rocks. Gondwana Res, http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.gr.2013.02.005 (2013).


Supplementary Table 1 - Nature · Supplementary Table 1 ... ALB 40± 8 25.7±5.5 2 20 2-3 250 55...

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Transcript of Supplementary Table 1 - Nature · Supplementary Table 1 ... ALB 40± 8 25.7±5.5 2 20 2-3 250 55...