Determining the Relative Age of Fault Activity through Analyses of Gouge Mineralogy and Geochemistry: A Case Study from Vápenná (Rychleby Mts), Czech Republic

Lucie Nováková, Pavel Hájek, Martin Stastny

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DOI: 10.4236/ijg.2010.12009                

Abstract

The relative age of fractures can be determined through structural analyses in the field or through the detailed mineralogical (XRD) and chemical analyses (AAS method, volumetric, and gravimetric analysis) of fault gouge in the laboratory. The aim of this work was to compare these approaches. It was hypothesised that the two methods would yield consistent results. The studied faults were located in the Rychleby Mts, part of the Sudetic Marginal Fault Zone. The relative age of the faults was determined in the field through the application of the intersection law. The fault gouges were sampled in a crystalline limestone quarry near the village of Vápenná. The mineralogical composition of the fault gouges has been established by XRD analysis of powder samples and analysis of preferentially oriented clay minerals. From our result, it is clear that these two approaches yielded consistent results with regard to the relative age of the faults.

Keywords

Crystalline Limestone, Intersecting Faults, Fault Gouge, Relative Chronology

Conflicts of Interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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