Sill Propagation Research Articles

Magma solidification effects during sill emplacement: Insights from laboratory experiments

Igneous sills and interconnected sill complexes transport magma both vertically through the Earth's crust and laterally over potentially long distances. Although cooling and solidification of magma are acknowledged to play a major role in the propagation and emplacement of sills, their contributions to sill formation remain poorly understood. Here, the effects of solidification on sill propagation dynamics and the resulting intrusion morphologies are investigated using scaled laboratory experiments. Molten coconut oil (magma analogue), which solidifies during emplacement, is injected directly into the horizontal interface between two layers of a colder, layered, solid visco-elasto-plastic gel (Laponite RD®, host rock analogue) to facilitate sill formation. The injection temperature and volumetric flow rate of the coconut oil, and the temperature of the host material, are varied between experiments to control the relative degree of solidification. When solidification effects are relatively weak, corresponding to high injection temperatures, sill propagation is continuous and forms penny-shaped intrusions that later turn into saucer-shaped sills with marginal segmentation. Conversely, when solidification effects are intermediate to relatively strong, corresponding to lower injection temperatures, sills develop complex elongate morphologies that lengthen parallel to the long-axis of the magma flow direction. Such sills also form in a discontinuous manner and propagate in pulses by growth of discrete marginal lobes, representing periods of tip arrest due to freezing, followed by growth of new lobes at the sill margins. A striking morphological feature that occurs in experiments with intermediate to relatively strong solidification effects is the presence of internal flow channels within sills, which can be: (a) thermally controlled, long-lived channels in experiments with intermediate solidification effects; or (b) structurally controlled, randomly oriented short-lived channels in experiments with relatively strong solidification effects. Our experimental findings are consistent with field and seismic observations of sill geometries, and they highlight that the relative degree of solidification during magma emplacement controls both how sills propagate and their internal flow dynamics.

Lithological influence on sill geometry in sedimentary basins: Controls and recognition in reflection seismic data

AbstractSills play a leading role in the transport of magma in sedimentary basins. The contact between sills and host rocks reflects the acting emplacement processes during sill propagation and evolution. Recent studies have shown that the propagation of sills and dykes is strongly influenced by the lithology of the host rocks, but none have detailed documentation of marginal features in large‐scale intrusive complexes. Three‐dimensional seismic data is the primary method of mapping and investigating such complexes, but it is difficult to accurately image sills due to their low thickness compared to seismic resolution. By understanding the relationship between local lithology and marginal sill features, we can better understand the imaging of sills in seismic datasets and their resulting geometry. In this study, we present a seismic‐scale sill analogue through multiple high‐resolution three‐dimensional models, with corresponding logs and field observations from Cedar Mountains, San Rafael Swell, US. This model was further used to develop a synthetic seismic dataset, providing us with a strong control on which marginal sill features fall beneath seismic resolution. We found that lithology plays a critical control in sill geometry and morphology. In Cedar Mountains, sills emplaced within massive sandstones frequently exhibit strata‐discordant base contact with the host rock. Conversely, sills found within heterolithic intervals and mudstones typically display strata‐concordant base contact with the host rocks. Sills within heterolithic intervals also tend to exhibit a more complex segmentation with multiple broken bridges. Furthermore, our findings show that sills are more than 3.7 times more likely to intrude in mudstone compared to sandstone and heterolithic intervals. These results suggest how sill geometries can be adapted to interpret lithology in seismic datasets from sedimentary basins with little to no well control. We anticipate that our findings may provide better knowledge for interpreting sills in sedimentary basins and contribute to developing more sophisticated geomechanical emplacement models for igneous intrusions.

Alkaline sill intrusions in sedimentary basins: emplacement of the Mussentuchit Wash Sill in San Rafael Swell, Utah

Sills are important components of magmatic plumbing systems because of their role in magma storage. Previous studies have indirectly investigated sill propagation and architecture by using laboratory experiments, remote sensing, modelling and theory. However, these studies often struggle to include the complexity of natural systems, which commonly involves strong interplay between hosts and intrusions. To highlight the importance of host rock and magma interaction, we present the results from a study of combined unmanned aerial vehicle and outcrop datasets from a world-class 1.3 km long, 30 m high 3D exposure of a 12 m thick alkaline trachybasalt sill in Mussentuchit Wash, San Rafael Swell, Utah. The sill intruded into Jurassic, dominantly sandy, sedimentary rocks. Results of this study show that the propagation of the Mussentuchit Wash Sill features both fracture-driven and complex non-brittle fluid interaction emplacement, which are strongly influenced by local sedimentology and presence of porewater. Segregated melt emplaced progressively within the sill during emplacement is used to document the evolution of sill inflation. The fracture-driven propagation is initiated along sedimentary discontinuities through hydrofracturing, whereas the non-brittle fluid interaction is caused by the presence of local porewater within the sedimentary host rocks. This suggests that local lithology may exert strong control on the architecture and morphology of sills in sedimentary basins. Supplementary material: Uninterpreted images of the sill are available at https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.21269265.v1 and are included as DR1.

Variable magma flow in sills: Can a magma source be constrained?

It has been increasingly recognized that emplacement of mafic sills plays an important role in magma transport throughout the crust. However, further understanding of sill propagation and merging of flow within sill complexes in large igneous provinces is needed. This study focuses on outcrop along the KwaZulu-Natal North Coast (South Africa), where dolerite sills of the Karoo Large Igneous Province intruded shales, siltstones, and sandstones of the Permian-aged Vryheid Formation. These sills intruded at high crustal levels and are associated with significant vesiculation, host rock fluidization and brecciation. An integrated approach is used to examine sill morphology, intrusive relationships, and inherent structures in the sills in relation to the magma flow processes. Mesoscale magma flow indicators preserved in the sills include bridge structures, intrusive steps, deformed vesicles, and magma lobes. The predominantly prolate magnetic fabrics determined by anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility techniques indicate magma flow in the sills was oriented NW, NE–SW and SSE, and largely locally coaxial with field evidence. The mesoscale magma flow indicators developed from linkage between numerous sill segments and variation in the magma propagation direction within the plane of intrusion and show directional variation within (and between) sills. The local flow dynamics within each sill can be revealed in this way; however, the possible variation in flow in the intrusion must be considered when interpreting the gross magma flow direction of the entire sill network. The sills occur in close vertical proximity and are inferred to have intruded through lateral and upward magma flow within merging sill segments creating an interconnected sill network, fed from an eastward local magma source. Interpretation of magma flow in sills should be done with care, to avoid oversimplification regarding regional flow, and highly variable flow in sills is best reconciled at the field scale.

Crustal folds alter local stress fields as demonstrated by magma sheet — Fold interactions in the Central Andes

For magma chambers to form or volcanic eruptions to occur magma must propagate through the crust as dikes, inclined sheets and sills. Most models that investigate magma paths assume the crust to be either homogeneous or horizontally layered, often composed of rocks of contrasting mechanical properties. In regions that have experienced orogenesis, like the Andes, the crust has been deformed over several million years, resulting in rock layers that are commonly folded and steeply dipping. The assumption of homogeneous properties or horizontal layering then does not capture all of the potential magma path-crustal interactions. Here we tackle this problem by determining the effect of a crust made of steeply inclined layers in which sills and inclined sheets are emplaced. We combine field observations from a sill emplaced in the core of an anticlinal fold at El Juncal in the Chilean Central Andes, including lithologies, sill and fold limbs attitude, length and thickness with a suite of finite element method models to explore the mechanical interactions between inclined layers and magma paths. Our results demonstrate that the properties of the host rock layers as well as the contacts between the layers and the geometry of crustal structures all play an important role in magma propagation and emplacement at shallow levels. Sill propagation and emplacement in heterogeneous and anisotropic crustal segments change the crustal stress field promoting sill arrest, deflection or further propagation. Specifically, sills are more likely to be deflected when encountering shallow dipping layers rather than steeply dipping layers of a fold. Mechanically weak contacts encourage sill deflection due to the related rotation of the stress field and this effect is attenuated when the folded layers are steeper. These processes may change the amount and style of recorded surface deformation, with implications for monitoring of active volcanoes.

The Upper Critical Zone in the Swartklip Sector, north-western Bushveld Complex, on the farm Wilgerspruit 2JQ: II. Origin by intrusion of ultramafic sills with concomitant partial melting of host norite-anorthosite cumulates

Abstract In the Bushveld Complex, the ultramafic (orthopyroxenite/harzburgite with chromitite) layers that host most of the PGE and chromite mineralization in the Upper Critical Zone display well-documented discordant basal contacts with their anorthositic and noritic host rocks. Whilst not so well documented, there is evidence that the upper contacts of these units are also discordant. We review the nature of the contacts between the ultramafic units and adjacent plagioclase-rich lithologies. These include contact phenomena like pegmatoidal lithologies and thin magmatic reaction chromite stringers. We conclude that most, if not all, ultramafic layers were intruded as sills into pre-existing norite/anorthosite cumulates. The sequence of norites and anorthosites that hosts the ultramafic layers was built up by a prior series of multiple tholeiitic (A-type) magma intrusions. The spectrum of lithologies from melanorite through to (mottled) anorthosite represents differing degrees of partial melting in response to these successive magma influxes. Density and competence contrasts between layers of plagioclase-rich rocks in turn provided pathways for sill propagation of subsequent ultramafic (U-type) magmas. The ultramafic magmas further modified the host norites and anorthosites by processes of partial melting and metasomatism. The ultramafic units themselves accumulated as composite sills in response to multiple magma injections. In the western Bushveld Complex, particularly including the Swartklip Sector in the north-western part of the complex, the Merensky Reef is represented by various facies that occur at different levels in the host stratigraphy. This phenomenon has been referred to by the term “regional potholing”, and has been attributed to the erosion of footwall cumulates by new influxes of magma. We suggest that a series of step-and-stair-type transitions of intruding sills to successive stratigraphic levels might more appropriately explain the various facies of the Merensky Reef.

An Approximate Approach to Nonisothermal Emplacement of Kilometer‐Sized Kilometer‐Deep Sills at Calderas

AbstractCaldera unrest is often caused by kilometer‐sized kilometer‐deep sills. Still unanswered questions include the following: How do sills spread? Why can magma propagate for kilometers without solidifying? Why do ground deformation data rarely, if ever, detect sill propagation? We show that kilometer‐sized kilometer‐deep magmatic sills spread like hydraulic fractures in an infinite medium. How magma propagates depends on overburden pressure, magma viscosity, injection rate, and difference between magma and rock temperatures. A small lag, filled with vapors from the fluid and/or the rock, exists between the propagating magma and fracture fronts. If the sill spreads along an interface, the lag slightly affects isothermal sill spreading but takes a key role in the case of nonisothermal propagation: A sill would stop after few tens of meters without it, unless magma intrudes rocks that are as hot as the solidification temperature or has unrealistic overpressures, because spreading velocity decreases soon to the critical value at which the tip becomes blocked with solidified magma. The lag defers magma solidification as heat exchange between the magma and the rock is effective only behind the thermal‐insulating lag, where magma has some finite thickness and sill opening grows with distance from the tip faster than thickness of solidified magma. Thus, the critical velocity decreases, allowing greater maximum sill sizes. We also show that the ground deformation pattern does not change appreciably over time if the final sill radius is smaller than 2 to 3 km, explaining why deformation is usually attributed to the inflation of a stationary source.

Inelastic deformation during sill and laccolith emplacement: Insights from an analytic elastoplastic model

AbstractNumerous geological observations evidence that inelastic deformation occurs during sills and laccoliths emplacement. However, most models of sill and laccolith emplacement neglect inelastic processes by assuming purely elastic deformation of the host rock. This assumption has never been tested so that the role of inelastic deformation on the growth dynamics of magma intrusions remains poorly understood. In this paper, we introduce the first analytical model of shallow sill and laccolith emplacement that accounts for elastoplastic deformation of the host rock. It considers the intrusion's overburden as a thin elastic bending plate attached to an elastic‐perfectly plastic foundation. We find that, for geologically realistic values of the model parameters, the horizontal extent of the plastic zone lp is much smaller than the radius of the intrusion a. By modeling the quasi‐static growth of a sill, we find that the ratio lp/a decreases during propagation, as , with ΔP the magma overpressure. The model also shows that the extent of the plastic zone decreases with the intrusion's depth, while it increases if the host rock is weaker. Comparison between our elastoplastic model and existing purely elastic models shows that plasticity can have a significant effect on intrusion propagation dynamics, with, e.g., up to a doubling of the overpressure necessary for the sill to grow. Our results suggest that plasticity effects might be small for large sills but conversely that they might be substantial for early sill propagation.

Flow dynamics in mid-Jurassic dikes and sills of the Ferrar large igneous province and implications for long-distance magma transport

Magma flow paths in sill-fed dikes of the Ferrar large igneous province (LIP), contrast with those predicted by classic models of dike transport in LIPs and magmatic rift settings. We examine anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility (AMS) flow paths in dike networks at Terra Cotta Mountain and Mt. Gran, which intruded at paleodepths of ~2.5 and ~1.5km. These intrusions (up to 30m thick) exhibit irregular, interconnected dike-sill geometries and adjoin larger sills (~200–300m thick) at different stratigraphic levels. Both shallowly dipping and sub-vertical magma flow components are interpreted from AMS measurements across individual intrusions, and often match macroscopic flow indicators and variations in dike attitudes. Flow paths suggest that intrusive patterns and magma flow directions depended on varying stress concentrations and rotations during dike and sill propagation, whereas a regional extensional tectonic control was negligible or absent. Unlike giant dike swarms in LIPs elsewhere (e.g., 1270Ma MacKenzie LIP), dikes of the Ferrar LIP show no regionally consistent vertical or lateral flow patterns, suggesting these intrusion were not responsible for long-distance transport in the province. In the absence of regionally significant, colinear dike swarms, or observed intrusions at crustal depths ≥4km, we suggest that long distance magma transport occurred in sills within Beacon Supergroup sedimentary rocks. This interpretation is consistent with existing geochemical data and thermal constraints, which support lateral magma flow for ~3,500km across the Gondwana supercontinent before freezing.

The effects of solidification on sill propagation dynamics and morphology

Sills are an integral part of the formation and development of larger plutons and magma reservoirs. Thus sills are essential for both the transport and the storage of magma in the Earth's crust. However, although cooling and solidification are central to magmatism, their effects on sills have been so far poorly studied. Here, the effects of solidification on sill propagation dynamics and morphology are studied by means of analogue laboratory experiments. Hot fluid vegetable oil (magma analogue), that solidifies during its propagation, is injected as a sill in a colder layered gelatine solid (elastic host rock analogue). The injection flux and temperature are maintained constant during an experiment and systematically varied between each experiment, in order to vary and quantify the amount of solidification between each experiments. The oil is injected directly at the interface between the two gelatine layers. When solidification effects are small (high injection temperatures and fluxes), the propagation is continuous and the sill has a regular and smooth surface. Inversely, when solidification effects are important (low injection temperatures and fluxes), sill propagation is discontinuous and occurs by steps of surface-area creation interspersed with periods of momentary arrest. The morphology of these sills displays folds, ropy structures on their surface, and lobes with imprints of the leading fronts that correspond to each step of area creation. These experiments show that for a given, constant injected volume, as solidification effects increase, the area of the sills decreases, their thickness increases, and the number of propagation steps increases. These results have various geological and geophysical implications. The morphology of sills, such as lobate structures (interpretation of 3D seismic studies in sedimentary basin) and ropy flow structures (field observations) can be related to solidification during emplacement. Moreover, a non-continuous morphology as observed in the field does not necessarily involve multiple injections, but could instead reflect a continuous, yet complex morphology induced by solidification effects during emplacement. Also, a discontinuous sill propagation induced by solidification effects should be associated with bursts of seismic activity. Finally, our study shows that once a sill has initiated, the dimensionless flux influences the sill thermal state, and in turn its propagation, and final extent and thickness. In restricting the lateral extent of sills, magma cooling and solidification are likely to impact directly the size of plutons constructed by amalgamated sills.

Controls on transgressive sill growth

Igneous sills represent an important contribution to upper crustal magma transport and storage. This study focuses on an exemplary 20–50-m-thick transgressive sill in the Faroe Islands on the European Atlantic passive margin, which is hosted in layered lavas (1–20 m thick) and basaltic volcaniclastic units (1–30 m thick). Preserved steps in the sill, and offset intrusive segments, are consistent with initial propagation via segmented fractures followed by inflation to create a through-going sheet. Although steps correspond to the position of some host rock interfaces and volcaniclastic horizons, most interfaces are bypassed. Transgressive sill contacts are subparallel to thrust faults that record ENE-WSW shortening, which are observed within the surrounding country rock and within the sill. Remnant sill segments are elongate along a NNW-SSE axis, parallel to the derived intermediate stress axis for thrust faults. The overall transgressive geometry is consistent with regional horizontal shortening, with steps indicating transitions between transgressive and lateral sill propagation are controlled locally by layering. This work emphasizes the importance of scale of observation in considering the controls on sill emplacement, and in particular, that layering is not the primary control on geometry.

The mechanics of sill inception, propagation and growth: Experimental evidence for rapid reduction in magmatic overpressure

A model of magma propagation in the crust is presented using a series of analogue experiments, where dyed water is injected at a constant flux into layers of solidified gelatine. The gelatine layers are transparent and, when intruded, deform in an almost ideal-elastic manner under the experimental conditions (low gelatine concentration: 2.5 or 3 wt%, and low temperature: 5–10 °C). The upper gelatine layer was 1.0 to 1.5 times stiffer than the lower layer, with either a ‘weak’ or ‘strong’ interface strength between the gelatine layers. The gelatine is seeded with 20–50 μm-diameter PMMA-RhB neutrally buoyant particles that are fluoresced by a pulsed, vertical laser sheet centred on the injection point. Digital image correlation (DIC) is used to calculate incremental strain and finite strain in the deforming host material as it is intruded. This is mapped in 2D for the developing experimental volcanic plumbing system that comprises a feeder dyke and sill. Since the gelatine deforms elastically, strain measurements correlate with stress. Our results indicate that, for constant magma flux, the moment of sill inception is characterised by a significant magmatic pressure decrease of up to ∼60%. This is evidenced by the rapid contraction of the feeder dyke at the moment the sill forms. Sill propagation is then controlled by the fracture properties of the weak interface, with fluid from the feeder dyke extracted to help grow the sill. Pressure drops during sill inception and growth are likely to be important in volcanic systems, where destabilisation of the magmatic plumbing system could trigger an eruption.

Granitic magma emplacement and deformation during early-orogenic syn-convergent transtension: The Staré Sedlo complex, Bohemian Massif

The Late Devonian Staré Sedlo complex, Bohemian Massif, was emplaced as a subhorizontal sheeted sill pluton into a transtension zone. The transtensional setting is documented by strong constrictional fabric, corroborated by the anisotropy of magnetic susceptibility (AMS), with variably developed subhorizontal magmatic to solid-state foliation suggesting vertical shortening. Intrusive contacts of the granitoids with metapelitic screens and tapered sill tips indicate that magma wedging was the dominant process of sill propagation. The sills exhibit two intrusive styles, ranging from thin lit-par-lit injections to widely spaced meter-thick sills. These two styles are interpreted as reflecting variable viscosities of intruding magma where low-viscosity magma percolated along foliation planes whereas high-viscosity magma produced more localized thicker sills. We propose that the magma/host rock system in transtension must have evolved from initial crack tip propagation and vertical expansion due to new magma additions through conduit flow to ductile thinning after the magma input had ceased. The sill emplacement and their subsequent deformation are then interpreted as recording early-orogenic syn-convergent sinistral transtension along the rear side of an upper-crustal wedge, which was extruded both upward and laterally in response to subduction and continental underthrusting.

Fingered Intrusion of Shallow Saucer‐shaped Igneous Sills: Insights from the Jiaojiang Sag, East China Sea

Abstract:An extensive suite of igneous sills was intruded into the Tertiary sedimentary section of the Jiaojiang sag, East China Sea. This suite has been well imaged offshore through 2D and 3D seismic surveys, showing a close relationship with CO2 content in nearby gas discoveries. A new observational model, which incorporates simple upward propagation, simple horizontal propagation, and transgressive propagation, was proposed to interpret these sill intrusions. In this model, the source magma of the saucer‐shaped sills was injected from their lowest points near the center. The transgressive propagation can be interpreted as a combination of the vertical and horizontal propagation. Most shallow sub‐volcanic intrusions in the Jiaojiang sag exhibit fingered characteristics, both vertically and horizontally. The vertical fingered propagation produced saucer‐shaped sills arranged in the flower style. Along the brims of lower sills could usually be found the upper sills, which are interpreted to have formed simultaneously with or later than the lower feeder sills. In the second type, the chilled paths of the older sills were reutilized by subsequent intrusions. The horizontal fingered propagation formed sheet intrusions that exhibit groove, lobate, tubular, and crevasse splay‐like geometry in plan view. In 3D view, the sheet intrusions have still preserved the lower center and higher rim that similar with the sub‐rounded saucer‐shaped sills. Although fracture propagation may be important, flow inflation was the key mechanism of magma intrusion. Further consideration of the mechanisms underlying sill formation may help explain the fingered characteristics of sill propagation.

Analytical model of surface uplift above axisymmetric flat-lying magma intrusions: Implications for sill emplacement and geodesy

In this paper, we develop a new axisymmetric analytic model of surface uplift upon sills and laccoliths, based on the formulation of a thin bending plate lying on an elastic foundation. In contrast to most former models also based on thin bending plate formulation, our model accounts for (i) axi-symmetrical uplift, (ii) both upon and outside the intrusion. The model accounts for shallow intrusions, i.e. the ratio a/h>5 where a and h are the radius and depth of the intrusion, respectively. The main parameter of the model is the elastic length l, which is a function of the elastic properties of the bending plate and of the elastic foundation. The model exhibits two regimes depending on the ratio a/l. When a/l<5, the uplift spreads over a substantial domain compared to that of the intrusion. In contrast, when a/l>5, the uplift is mostly restricted upon the intrusion. When the elastic foundation is very stiff, our model converges towards that of a clamped plate. We provide, as supplementary material, a Matlab function that calculates the surface uplift from the set of system and control parameters. We discuss three possible applications of our model: (i) The model can be used to describe sill propagation by introducing a propagation criterion. For realistic values, our model reproduces well the behavior of horizontal intrusions simulated in experiments; (ii) The model can also be used to compute the critical size of saucer-shaped sills. It shows, for instance, that a soft elastic foundation favors the horizontal spreading of sills before they form inclined sheets; (iii) We show that the classical Mogi point source model cannot be used to constrain sill properties from the surface uplift. We thus propose that our model can be used as a valuable alternative to both simple analytical models like Mogi's and more complex numerical models used to analyze ground deformation resulting from sill intrusions in active volcanoes.

Emplacement of shallow dikes and sills beneath a small basaltic volcanic center – The role of pre-existing structure (Paiute Ridge, southern Nevada, USA)

Late Miocene sills and dikes in the Paiute Ridge area of southern Nevada were emplaced in an extensional setting beneath a small volume, alkali basaltic volcanic center. Dikes (400–5000 m long, 1.2–9 m wide) mostly occupy pre-existing E-dipping normal faults. Elastic deformation of the wall rocks alone cannot explain dike dimensions; inelastic deformation, wall rock erosion by flowing magma, and syn-emplacement extension of the host structural system also contributed to dike widths. After primarily subvertical emplacement, flow focused toward the southern end of one of the dikes to form a volcanic conduit. This dike and a fault-hosted radial dike subsequently were subject to high pressures due to transient volcanic processes. Three small sills (extending laterally up to ∼ 500 m, and 20–46 m thick) and two larger sills (each having lateral dimensions ∼ 1 km) locally branch off some dikes within ∼ 250 m of the paleosurface. Individual small sills extend only into the hanging wall blocks of the faults that host their parent dikes, and are connected to the dikes by stems that are only a few tens of meters wide; elsewhere along their strikes the parent dikes extend above the sills. This mode of sill emplacement was caused by local rotation of principal stresses related to the intersection of the dike-hosting fault planes with the complex contact between relatively strong Paleozoic carbonates and weak Tertiary tuffs. Orientation of bedding planes in the tuffs controlled the direction of sill propagation. The three most areally extensive sills formed lopoliths with sagging roofs, indicating interaction with the free surface.

An experimental investigation of sill formation and propagation in layered elastic media

A series of experiments are described where dyed water (a magma analogue) was intruded into solid gelatine (a crustal analogue) to investigate the formation of sills. We considered a layered gelatine system with contrasting adjacent layers. By varying the density and rigidity of the gelatine we found that experimental sills form when the upper layer is more rigid than the lower layer, with intrusion occurring in a plane directly below the interface. Experimental dykes were observed to propagate to the surface when the Young's Modulus ratio of upper to lower gelatine layers was less than one. Experimental dyke arrest occurred when the upper layer was more rigid and the interface was strong. Two varieties of experimental sill formed when the upper layer was more rigid than the lower layer and the interface was sufficiently weak. The form of the intrusion depends on the balance of driving pressures and the Young's Modulus ratio of contrasting adjacent layers. When the rigidity ratio is high and there is a large driving pressure the experimental feeder dyke completely converts to propagate as a sill. However, when the rigidity ratio and driving pressure are both close to one a dyke–sill hybrid forms. Under these conditions the experimental sill formation is accompanied by contemporaneous dyke intrusion into the overlying more rigid layer. During sill propagation deformation structures such as faults and en echelon fractures are formed into the lower layer. Experimental sill propagation dynamics are controlled by viscous dissipation along the length of the sill; causing acceleration with increasing length. Our study suggests that rigidity contrasts may play a major role in the location of sills and development of igneous complexes. In ancient cratonic areas the Moho is a suitable site for the preferential formation of sills with higher rigidity continental crust overlying weaker mantle. Mantle plumes impacting ancient continents provide a situation in which large sills can form to fractionate prior to eruption of flood basalts. The boundary between the upper and lower crust (Conrad discontinuity) may provide a preferential focus for the emplacement of sheets of silicic magma at continental arcs where the lower crust is weakened by prolonged heating and possible hydration.

Forensic psychiatry as a subspecialty of psychiatry

A model of magma propagation in the crust is presented using a series of analogue experiments, where dyed water is injected at a constant flux into layers of solidified gelatine. The gelatine layers are transparent and, when intruded, deform in an almost ideal-elastic manner under the experimental conditions (low gelatine concentration: 2.5 or 3 wt%, and low temperature: 5–10 °C). The upper gelatine layer was 1.0 to 1.5 times stiffer than the lower layer, with either a ‘weak’ or ‘strong’ interface strength between the gelatine layers. The gelatine is seeded with 20–50 μm-diameter PMMA-RhB neutrally buoyant particles that are fluoresced by a pulsed, vertical laser sheet centred on the injection point. Digital image correlation (DIC) is used to calculate incremental strain and finite strain in the deforming host material as it is intruded. This is mapped in 2D for the developing experimental volcanic plumbing system that comprises a feeder dyke and sill. Since the gelatine deforms elastically, strain measurements correlate with stress. Our results indicate that, for constant magma flux, the moment of sill inception is characterised by a significant magmatic pressure decrease of up to ∼60%. This is evidenced by the rapid contraction of the feeder dyke at the moment the sill forms. Sill propagation is then controlled by the fracture properties of the weak interface, with fluid from the feeder dyke extracted to help grow the sill. Pressure drops during sill inception and growth are likely to be important in volcanic systems, where destabilisation of the magmatic plumbing system could trigger an eruption.