Temperature distributions from cooling of a magma chamber in Los Azufres geothermal field, Michoacan, Mexico
Main Article Content
Abstract
The temperature distribution in Los Azufres geothermal field, Michoacan, has been modelled assuming a shallow magma chamber at a depth of -5 km. The evolution of the magma chamber is controlled by the processes of magma recharge as well as fractional crystallization, the latter being the dominant petrogenetic process. The heat contribution of these processes is taken into account. The heat transfer equation was solved by a finite difference explicit method. The process of fractional crystallization requires a time interval of -0.1 Ma for the chamber to cool from basalt to rhyolite liquidus temperatures. The corresponding heat contribution amounts to a temperature increase of -410°C. This value is considerably larger than the -300°C estimated for "one-step" cooling. The recharge of the chamber is assumed equivalent to -36 km3 of basaltic magma during the past 0.36 Ma. This was modelled thermally by assuming a recharge rate of 0.1 km3 of magma per 1000 years over 0.36 Ma. Convective processes within the geothermal reservoir were considered at least during the past 0.1 Ma. The processes of fractional crystallization, magma recharge and convection must all be considered for optimal agreement between the simulated and measured temperatures.
Article Details
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
References
AGUILAR-Y-VARGAS, V. H. and S. P. VERMA, 1987. Composición química (elementos mayores) de los magmas en el Cinturón Volcánico Mexicano. Geofísica Internacional, Special Volume on Mexican Volcanic Belt-Part 3B (ed. S. P. VERMA) 26, 195-272. DOI: https://doi.org/10.22201/igeof.00167169p.1987.26.2.1110
ANDAVERDE, J. and S. P. VERMA, 1993. Programa de cómputo para involucrar Ia cristalización fraccionada en el modelado térmico de cámaras magmáticas. Geotermia Rev. Mex. Geoener. 9, 59-74.
ANDAVERDE, J., S. P. VERMA and F. SCHILDKNECHT, 1991. Aporte de calor al medio por el proceso de cristalización fraccionada de Ia cámara magmática del campo geotérmico de Los Azufres, Michoacán, México. Actas Fac. Ciencias Tierra UANL Linares (eds. S. P. VERMA, J. A. RAMIREZ F., C. O. RODRIGUEZ DE B., J. M. BARBARIN C., G. IZQUIERDO M., M. A. ARMIENTA H. and D. J. TERRELL) 6, 137-141.
ANDAVERDE, J., S. P. VERMA and F. SCHILDKNECHT, 1993. Aporte de calor al medio por el proceso de cristalización fraccionada en dos centros geotérmicos del Cinturón Volcánico Mexicano. Geofísica Internacional, Special Volume on Geochemistry in Mexico (eds. S. P. VERMA, C. RODRIGUEZ DE B. and J. A. RAMIREZ F.) 32, 331-339. DOI: https://doi.org/10.22201/igeof.00167169p.1993.32.2.566
BALLINA, H. R., 1987. Perfiles gravimétricos y magnetométricos en el campo geotérmico de Los Azufres, Michoacán. Geoterm. Rev. Mex. Geoener. 3, 275-283.
CAMPOS-ENRIQUEZ, J. O. and V. H. GARDUNO-MONROY, 1995. Los Azufres silicic center (Mexico): inferences of caldera structural elements from gravity, aeromagnetic, and geoelectric data. J. Volcanol. Geotherm. Res. 67, 123-152. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/0377-0273(94)00094-W
CARRASCO-NUNEZ, G., 1989. Petrología del campo volcánico de Los Azufres. Bol. Mineral. 4, 3-18.
CASTILLO-ROMAN, J. and S. P. VERMA, 1989. Modelado térmico como una herramienta en estudios de áreas geotérmicas y volcánicas. Union Geofís. Mex. Bol., Geos, época II, 9, 217-230.
CASTILLO-ROMAN, J., S. P. VERMA and J. ANDAVERDE, 1991. Modelado térmico de Ia Caldera de Los Humeros, Puebla, México, en términos de Ia profundidad de Ia cámara. Geofísica Internacional, 30, 135-148. DOI: https://doi.org/10.22201/igeof.00167169p.1991.30.3.597
CATHELINEAU, M., R. OLIVER and D. NIEV A, 1987. Geochemistry of volcanic series of the Los Azufres geothermal field (Mexico). Geofísica Internacional, Special Volume on Mexican Volcanic Belt-Part 3B (ed. S. P. VERMA) 26, 273-290. DOI: https://doi.org/10.22201/igeof.00167169p.1987.26.2.1109
CONTRERAS, E., B. DOMINGUEZ, E. IGLESIAS, A. GARCIA and R. HUITRON, 1988. Compendio de resultados de mediciones petrofísicas de núcleos de perforación del campo geotérmico Los Azufres, Geotermia Rev. Mex. Geoener. 4, 79-105.
DOBSON, P. F. and G. A. MAHOOD, 1985. Volcanic stratigraphy of the Los Azufres geothermal area, Mexico. J. Volcanol. Geotherm. Res. 25, 273-287. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/0377-0273(85)90017-4
DRURY, M. J., V. S. ALLEN and A. M. JESSOP, 1984. The measurement of thermal diffusivity of rock cores. Tectonophysics 103, 321-333. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/0040-1951(84)90094-5
ELDERS, W. A., D. K. BIRD, A. E. WILLIAMS and P. SCHIFFMAN, 1984. Hydrothermal flow regime and magmatic heat source of the Cerro Prieto geothermal system, Baja California, Mexico. Geothermics 13, 27-47. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/0375-6505(84)90005-1
FERRARI, L., V. H. GARDUÑO, G. PASQUARÈ and A. TIBALDI, 1991. Geology of Los Azufres caldera, Mexico, and its relationships with regional tectonics. In: Calderas: Genesis, Structure and Unrest (ed. S. P. VERMA) J. Volcanol. Geotherm. Res. 47, 129-148. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/0377-0273(91)90105-9
GIBERTI, G., S. MORENO and G. SARTORIS, 1984. Evaluation of approximations in modelling the cooling of magmatic bodies. J. Volcanol. Geotherm. Res. 20, 297-310. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/0377-0273(84)90045-3
GOLDSTEIN, N. E., M. J. WILT and D. J. CORRIGAN, 1984. Analysis of the Nuevo León magnetic anomaly and its possible relation to the Cerro Prieto magmatic-hydrothermal system. Geothermics, 13, 3-11. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/0375-6505(84)90003-8
HERNANDEZ RAMIREZ, I., A. GARCIA GUTIERREZ and J. M. MORALES ROSAS, 1993. Estimación de temperaturas de los fluidos de perforación durante Ia circulación. Geotermia Rev. Mex. Geoener. 9, 305-319.
HORAI, K., 1972. Thermal conductivity of nineteen igneous rocks, II: Estimation of the thermal conductivity of rock from the mineral and chemical compositions. Phys. Earth Planet. Int. 5, 157-166. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/0031-9201(72)90085-4
KAPPELMEYER, O. and R. HAENEL, 1974. Geothermics. Geopublication Associates, Berlin-Stuttgart, 235 p.
LE BAS, M. J., R. W. LE MAITRE, A. STRECKEISEN and B. ZANETTIN, 1986. A chemical classification of volcanic rocks based on the total alkali-silica diagram. J. Petrol. 27, 745-750. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/petrology/27.3.745
NIEVA, D., E. IGLESIAS, V. ARELLANO, E. CONTRERAS, M. CATHELINEAU and L. QUIJANO, 1986. Developments in geothermal energy in Mexico-IV: Evaluation of geothermal resources multidisciplinary studies of the Los Azufres field, Mexico. Heat Rec. Sys. 6, 201-207. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/0198-7593(86)90003-2
PRADAL, E. and C. ROBIN, 1994. Long-lived magmatic phases at Los Azufres volcanic center, Mexico. J. Volcanol. Geothermal. Res. 63, 201-215. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/0377-0273(94)90074-4
PROL, R. M. and T. GONZALEZ-MORAN, 1982. Modelado preliminar del régimen térmico conductivo en la caldera de Los Humeros, Puebla. Geofísica Internacional, 21, 295-307. DOI: https://doi.org/10.22201/igeof.00167169p.1982.21.3.827
QUINTANILLA M., A. L. and F. SUAREZ V., 1994. Fuente de calor en el campo geotérmico de Cerro Prieto y su relación con la anomalía magnética Nuevo León, México. Geofísica Internacional, 33, 575-584. DOI: https://doi.org/10.22201/igeof.00167169p.1994.33.4.593
RODRIGUEZ-GONZALEZ, U. and S. P. VERMA, 1992. Aporte de calor por desintegración de elementos radioactivos en el campo geotérmico de La Primavera, Jalisco, México. Actas Fac. Ciencias Tierra UANL Linares (eds. S. P. VERMA, M. GUEVARA, G. IZQUIERDO M., E. SANTOYO, I. NAVARRO-L., C. O. RODRIGUEZ DE B., J. M. BARBARIN C. and J. A. RAMIREZ F.) 7, 229-232.
ROMERO, J. C. and P. O. PALMA, 1983. Estudios geoeléctricos en el campo geotérmico de Los Azufres, Michoacán. Mem. Prim. Reunión Interdis. Act. Campo Geoterm. Los Azufres Mich. 1, 2-10.
SANTOYO, E., S. P. VERMA, D. NIEVA and E. PORTUGAL, 1991. Variability in the gas phase composition of fluids discharged from Los Azufres geothermal field, Mexico. In: Calderas: Genesis, Structure and Unrest (ed. S. P. VERMA) J. Volcanol. Geotherm. Res. 47, 161-181. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/0377-0273(91)90107-B
VERMA, M. P., S. P. VERMA and H. SANVICENTE, 1990. Temperature field simulation with stratification model of magma chamber under Los Humeros, Puebla, Mexico. Geothermics 19, 187-197. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/0375-6505(90)90015-4
VERMA, S. P., 1985. On the magma chamber characteristics as inferred from surface geology and geochemistry: examples from Mexican geothermal areas. Phys. Earth Planet. Int. 41, 207-214. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/0031-9201(85)90035-4
VERMA, S. P., 1990. Metodología para el estudio del Cinturón Volcánico Mexicano. Bol. IIE 14, 224-229.
VERMA, S. P. and J. ANDAVERDE, 1995. Temperature field distribution from cooling of a magma chamber. Proc. World Geothermal Congress 1995, Florence, Italy, 2, 1119-1124.
VERMA, S. P. and P. F. DOBSON, 1987. Sr, Nd, O and Pb isotopic evidence for complex petrogenetic evolution of silicic lavas in the Los Azufres volcanic field, Michoacán, Mexico. Eos Trans. Am. Geophys. Union, 68, 1520 (abstract).
VERMA, S. P. and U. RODRIGUEZ-GONZALEZ, 1995. Temperature field distribution from cooling of a magma chamber in La Primavera caldera, Jalisco, Mexico. Geothermics (in preparation).
VERMA, S. P., I. NAVARRO-L. and L. GARCIA CACHO, 1992. Major-element geochemistry and mineralogy of the Huichapan Caldera, Hidalgo, Mexico. J. South Am. Earth Sci. 5, 327-336. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/0895-9811(92)90030-3