Articles | Volume 13, issue 9
https://doi.org/10.5194/se-13-1431-2022
© Author(s) 2022. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/se-13-1431-2022
© Author(s) 2022. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Multiscale lineament analysis and permeability heterogeneity of fractured crystalline basement blocks
Dipartimento di Scienze Biologiche, Geologiche ed Ambientali – BiGeA, Alma Mater Studiorum – Università di Bologna – via Zamboni, 67, 40126 Bologna, Italy
present address: Geological Institute, Department of Earth Sciences, ETH Zurich, Sonneggstrasse 5, 8092 Zurich, Switzerland
Giulia Tartaglia
Dipartimento di Scienze Biologiche, Geologiche ed Ambientali – BiGeA, Alma Mater Studiorum – Università di Bologna – via Zamboni, 67, 40126 Bologna, Italy
Marco Antonellini
Dipartimento di Scienze Biologiche, Geologiche ed Ambientali – BiGeA, Alma Mater Studiorum – Università di Bologna – via Zamboni, 67, 40126 Bologna, Italy
Giulio Viola
Dipartimento di Scienze Biologiche, Geologiche ed Ambientali – BiGeA, Alma Mater Studiorum – Università di Bologna – via Zamboni, 67, 40126 Bologna, Italy
Related authors
Peter Achtziger-Zupančič, Alberto Ceccato, Alba Simona Zappone, Giacomo Pozzi, Alexis Shakas, Florian Amann, Whitney Maria Behr, Daniel Escallon Botero, Domenico Giardini, Marian Hertrich, Mohammadreza Jalali, Xiaodong Ma, Men-Andrin Meier, Julian Osten, Stefan Wiemer, and Massimo Cocco
Solid Earth, 15, 1087–1112, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-15-1087-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-15-1087-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
We detail the selection and characterization of a fault zone for earthquake experiments in the Fault Activation and Earthquake Ruptures (FEAR) project at the Bedretto Lab. FEAR, which studies earthquake processes, overcame data collection challenges near faults. The fault zone in Rotondo granite was selected based on geometry, monitorability, and hydro-mechanical properties. Remote sensing, borehole logging, and geological mapping were used to create a 3D model for precise monitoring.
Selina Bonini, Riccardo Asti, Giulio Viola, Giulia Tartaglia, Stefano Rodani, Gianluca Benedetti, Massimo Comedini, and Gianluca Vignaroli
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci., 25, 2981–2998, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-25-2981-2025, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-25-2981-2025, 2025
Short summary
Short summary
Considering the structural complexity related to the internal architecture of active and capable faults, seismic hazard may be linked to different fault attributes depending on the fault domain crossed by a linear infrastructure. We propose a structural geology-based approach for the preliminary study of the area potentially affected by earthquake-induced surface ruptures during infrastructural design, based on the geometric relationships between the active fault and the infrastructure itself.
Riccardo Asti, Selina Bonini, Giulio Viola, and Gianluca Vignaroli
Solid Earth, 15, 1525–1551, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-15-1525-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-15-1525-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
This study addresses the tectonic evolution of the seismogenic Monti Martani Fault System (northern Apennines, Italy). By applying a field-based structural geology approach, we reconstruct the evolution of the stress field and we challenge the current interpretation of the fault system in terms of both geometry and state of activity. We stress that the peculiar behavior of this system during post-orogenic extension is still significantly influenced by the pre-orogenic structural template.
Peter Achtziger-Zupančič, Alberto Ceccato, Alba Simona Zappone, Giacomo Pozzi, Alexis Shakas, Florian Amann, Whitney Maria Behr, Daniel Escallon Botero, Domenico Giardini, Marian Hertrich, Mohammadreza Jalali, Xiaodong Ma, Men-Andrin Meier, Julian Osten, Stefan Wiemer, and Massimo Cocco
Solid Earth, 15, 1087–1112, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-15-1087-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-15-1087-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
We detail the selection and characterization of a fault zone for earthquake experiments in the Fault Activation and Earthquake Ruptures (FEAR) project at the Bedretto Lab. FEAR, which studies earthquake processes, overcame data collection challenges near faults. The fault zone in Rotondo granite was selected based on geometry, monitorability, and hydro-mechanical properties. Remote sensing, borehole logging, and geological mapping were used to create a 3D model for precise monitoring.
Matthew S. Hodge, Guri Venvik, Jochen Knies, Roelant van der Lelij, Jasmin Schönenberger, Øystein Nordgulen, Marco Brönner, Aziz Nasuti, and Giulio Viola
Solid Earth, 15, 589–615, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-15-589-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-15-589-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
Smøla island, in the mid-Norwegian margin, has complex fracture and fault patterns resulting from tectonic activity. This study uses a multiple-method approach to unravel Smøla's tectonic history. We found five different phases of deformation related to various fracture geometries and minerals dating back hundreds of millions of years. 3D models of these features visualise these structures in space. This approach may help us to understand offshore oil and gas reservoirs hosted in the basement.
Emilia Chiapponi, Sonia Silvestri, Denis Zannoni, Marco Antonellini, and Beatrice M. S. Giambastiani
Biogeosciences, 21, 73–91, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-73-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-21-73-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
Coastal wetlands are important for their ability to store carbon, but they also emit methane, a potent greenhouse gas. This study conducted in four wetlands in Ravenna, Italy, aims at understanding how environmental factors affect greenhouse gas emissions. Temperature and irradiance increased emissions from water and soil, while water column depth and salinity limited them. Understanding environmental factors is crucial for mitigating climate change in wetland ecosystems.
Gerardo Romano, Marco Antonellini, Domenico Patella, Agata Siniscalchi, Andrea Tallarico, Simona Tripaldi, and Antonello Piombo
Nat. Hazards Earth Syst. Sci., 23, 2719–2735, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-23-2719-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/nhess-23-2719-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
The Nirano Salse (northern Apennines, Italy) is characterized by several active mud vents and hosts thousands of visitors every year. New resistivity models describe the area down to 250 m, improving our geostructural knowledge of the area and giving useful indications for a better understanding of mud volcano dynamics and for the better planning of safer tourist access to the area.
Giulio Viola, Giovanni Musumeci, Francesco Mazzarini, Lorenzo Tavazzani, Manuel Curzi, Espen Torgersen, Roelant van der Lelij, and Luca Aldega
Solid Earth, 13, 1327–1351, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-13-1327-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-13-1327-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
A structural-geochronological approach helps to unravel the Zuccale Fault's architecture. By mapping its internal structure and dating some of its fault rocks, we constrained a deformation history lasting 20 Myr starting at ca. 22 Ma. Such long activity is recorded by now tightly juxtaposed brittle structural facies, i.e. different types of fault rocks. Our results also have implications on the regional evolution of the northern Apennines, of which the Zuccale Fault is an important structure.
Leonardo Del Sole, Marco Antonellini, Roger Soliva, Gregory Ballas, Fabrizio Balsamo, and Giulio Viola
Solid Earth, 11, 2169–2195, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-11-2169-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-11-2169-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
This study focuses on the impact of deformation bands on fluid flow and diagenesis in porous sandstones in two different case studies (northern Apennines, Italy; Provence, France) by combining a variety of multiscalar mapping techniques, detailed field and microstructural observations, and stable isotope analysis. We show that deformation bands buffer and compartmentalize fluid flow and foster and localize diagenesis, recorded by carbonate cement nodules spatially associated with the bands.
Cited articles
Achtziger-Zupančič, P., Loew, S., and Mariéthoz, G.: A new global database to improve predictions of permeability distribution in crystalline rocks at site scale, J. Geophys. Res.-Sol. Ea., 122, 3513–3539, https://doi.org/10.1002/2017JB014106, 2017.
Ackermann, R. V., Schlische, R. W., and Withjack, M. O.: The geometric and statistical evolution of normal fault systems: an experimental study of the effects of mechanical layer thickness on scaling laws, J. Struct. Geol., 23, 1803–1819, https://doi.org/10.1016/S0191-8141(01)00028-1, 2001.
Andrews, B. J., Roberts, J. J., Shipton, Z. K., Bigi, S., Tartarello, M. C., and Johnson, G.: How do we see fractures? Quantifying subjective bias in fracture data collection, Solid Earth, 10, 487–516, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-10-487-2019, 2019.
Bell, R. E., Jackson, C. A. L., Whipp, P. S., and Clements, B.: Strain migration during multiphase extension: Observations from the northern North Sea, Tectonics, 33, 1936–1963, https://doi.org/10.1002/2014TC003551, 2014.
Bertrand, L., Géraud, Y., Le Garzic, E., Place, J., Diraison, M., Walter, B., and Haffen, S.: A multiscale analysis of a fracture pattern in granite: A case study of the Tamariu granite, Catalunya, Spain, J. Struct. Geol., 78, 52–66, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsg.2015.05.013, 2015.
Bistacchi, A., Mittempergher, S., Martinelli, M., and Storti, F.: On a new robust workflow for the statistical and spatial analysis of fracture data collected with scanlines (or the importance of stationarity), Solid Earth, 11, 2535–2547, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-11-2535-2020, 2020.
Bonnet, E., Bour, O., Odling, N. E., Davy, P., Main, I., Cowie, P., and Berkowitz, B.: Scaling of fracture systems in geological media, Rev. Geophys., 39, 347–383, 2001.
Bossennec, C., Frey, M., Seib, L., Bär, K., and Sass, I.: Multiscale characterisation of fracture patterns of a crystalline reservoir analogue, Geosciences, 11, 1–23, https://doi.org/10.3390/geosciences11090371, 2021.
Bossennec, C., Seib, L., Frey, M., van der Vaart, J., and Sass, I.: Structural Architecture and Permeability Patterns of Crystalline Reservoir Rocks in the Northern Upper Rhine Graben: Insights from Surface Analogues of the Odenwald, Energies, 15, 1310, https://doi.org/10.3390/EN15041310, 2022.
Bour, O., Davy, P., Darcel, C., and Odling, N.: A statistical scaling model for fracture network geometry, with validation on a multiscale mapping of a joint network (Hornelen Basin, Norway), J. Geophys. Res.-Sol. Ea., 107, ETG 4-1, https://doi.org/10.1029/2001JB000176, 2002.
Brace, W. F.: Permeability of Crystalline Rocks: New in Situ Measurements, J. Geophys. Res., 89, 4327–4330, https://doi.org/10.1029/jb089ib06p04327, 1984.
Caine, J. S. and Tomusiak, S. R. A.: Brittle structures and their role in controlling porosity and permeability in a complex Precambrian crystalline-rock aquifer system in the Colorado Rocky Mountain Front Range, GSA Bull., 115, 1410–1424, https://doi.org/10.1130/B25088.1, 2003.
Caine, J. S., Evans, J. P., and Forster, C. B.: Fault zone architecture and permeability structure, Geology, 24, 1025–1028, https://doi.org/10.1130/0091-7613(1996)024<1025:FZAAPS>2.3.CO;2, 1996.
Cao, W. and Lei, Q.: Influence of Landscape Coverage on Measuring Spatial and Length Properties of Rock Fracture Networks: Insights from Numerical Simulation, Pure Appl. Geophys., 175, 2167–2179, https://doi.org/10.1007/s00024-018-1774-4, 2018.
Castaing, C., Halawani, M. A., Gervais, F., Chilès, J. P., Genter, A., Bourgine, B., Ouillon, G., Brosse, J. M., Martin, P., Genna, A., and Janjou, D.: Scaling relationships in intraplate fracture systems related to Red Sea rifting, Tectonophysics, 261, 291–314, https://doi.org/10.1016/0040-1951(95)00177-8, 1996.
Ceccato, A., Viola, G., Antonellini, M., Tartaglia, G., and Ryan, E. J.: Constraints upon fault zone properties by combined structural analysis of virtual outcrop models and discrete fracture network modelling, J. Struct. Geol., 152, 104444, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsg.2021.104444, 2021a.
Ceccato, A., Viola, G., Tartaglia, G., and Antonellini, M.: In–situ quantification of mechanical and permeability properties on outcrop analogues of offshore fractured and weathered crystalline basement: Examples from the Rolvsnes granodiorite, Bømlo, Norway, Mar. Petrol. Geol., 124, 104859, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpetgeo.2020.104859, 2021b.
Ceccato, A., Tartaglia, G., Antonellini, M., and Viola, G.: “Online Data Repository for Ceccato et al. 2022 – SolidEarth”, Mendeley Data [data set], V1, https://doi.org/10.17632/3ymhkpmr9s.1, 2022.
Chabani, A., Trullenque, G., Ledésert, B. A., and Klee, J.: Multiscale characterization of fracture patterns: A case study of the noble hills range (Death valley, CA, USA), application to geothermal reservoirs, Geosciences, 11, 25–27, https://doi.org/10.3390/geosciences11070280, 2021.
Davy, P., Bour, O., De Dreuzy, J. R., and Darcel, C.: Flow in multiscale fractal fracture networks, Geol. Soc. Spec. Publ., 261, 31–45, https://doi.org/10.1144/GSL.SP.2006.261.01.03, 2006.
Dershowitz, W. S. and Herda, H. H.: Interpretation of fracture spacing and intensity. The 33rd U. S. Symposium on Rock Mechanics (USRMS), Santa Fe, New Mexico, June 1992, 757–766, http://onepetro.org/ARMAUSRMS/proceedings-pdf/ARMA92/All-ARMA92/ARMA-92-0757/1987502/arma-92-0757.pdf (last access: 6 September 2022), 1992.
Dichiarante, A. M., McCaffrey, K. J. W., Holdsworth, R. E., Bjørnarå, T. I., and Dempsey, E. D.: Fracture attribute scaling and connectivity in the Devonian Orcadian Basin with implications for geologically equivalent sub-surface fractured reservoirs, Solid Earth, 11, 2221–2244, https://doi.org/10.5194/se-11-2221-2020, 2020.
Evans, J. P., Forster, C. B., and Goddard, J. V.: Permeability of fault-related rocks, and implications for hydraulic structure of fault zones, J. Struct. Geol., 19, 1393–1404, https://doi.org/10.1016/S0191-8141(97)00057-6, 1997.
Fossen, H., Khani, H. F., Faleide, J. I., Ksienzyk, A. K., and Dunlap, W. J.: Post-Caledonian extension in the West Norway–northern North Sea region: the role of structural inheritance, Geol. Soc. London Spec. Publ., 439, 465–486, https://doi.org/10.1144/SP439.6, 2017.
Fossen, H., Ksienzyk, A. K., Rotevatn, A., Bauck, M. S., and Wemmer, K.: From widespread faulting to localised rifting: Evidence from K-Ar fault gouge dates from the Norwegian North Sea rift shoulder, Basin Res., 33, 1934–1953, https://doi.org/10.1111/BRE.12541/CITE/REFWORKS, 2021.
Fredin, O., Viola, G., Zwingmann, H., Sørlie, R., Brönner, M., Lie, J. E., Grandal, E. M., Müller, A., Margreth, A., Vogt, C., and Knies, J.: The inheritance of a mesozoic landscape in western Scandinavia, Nat. Commun., 8, 14879, https://doi.org/10.1038/ncomms14879, 2017.
Gabrielsen, R. H. and Braathen, A.: Models of fracture lineaments – Joint swarms, fracture corridors and faults in crystalline rocks, and their genetic relations, Tectonophysics, 628, 26–44, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tecto.2014.04.022, 2014.
Gabrielsen, R. H., Braathen, A., Dehis, J., and Roberts, D.: Tectonic lineaments of Norway, Norsk Geol. Tidsskr., 82, 153–174, 2002.
Gee, D. G., Fossen, H., Henriksen, N., and Higgins, A. K.: From the Early Paleozoic Platforms of Baltica and Laurentia to the Caledonide Orogen of Scandinavia and Greenland, Episodes, 31, 44–51, https://doi.org/10.18814/EPIIUGS/2008/V31I1/007, 2008.
Gillespie, P. A., Howard, C. B., Walsh, J. J., and Watterson, J.: Measurement and characterisation of spatial distributions of fractures, Tectonophysics, 226, 113–141, https://doi.org/10.1016/0040-1951(93)90114-Y, 1993.
Gillespie, P. A., Walsh, J. J., Watterson, J., Bonson, C. G., and Manzocchi, T.: Scaling relationships of joint and vein arrays from The Burren, Co. Clare, Ireland, J. Struct. Geol., 23, 183–201, https://doi.org/10.1016/S0191-8141(00)00090-0, 2001.
Hardebol, N. J., Maier, C., Nick, H., Geiger, S., Bertotti, G., and Boro, H.: Multiscale fracture network characterization and impact on flow: A case study on the Latemar carbonate platform, J. Geophys. Res.-Sol. Ea., 120, 8197–8222, https://doi.org/10.1002/2015JB011879, 2015.
Healy, D., Rizzo, R. E., Cornwell, D. G., Farrell, N. J. C., Watkins, H., Timms, N. E., Gomez-Rivas, E., and Smith, M.: FracPaQ: A MATLABTM toolbox for the quantification of fracture patterns, J. Struct. Geol., 95, 1–16, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsg.2016.12.003, 2017.
Hirata, T.: Fractal Dimension of Fault Systems in Japan: Fractal Structure in Rock Fracture Geometry at Various Scales, Fractals Geophys., 131, 157–170, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-0348-6389-6_9, 1989.
Holdsworth, R. E., McCaffrey, K. J. W., Dempsey, E., Roberts, N. M. W., Hardman, K., Morton, A., Feely, M., Hunt, J., Conway, A., and Robertson, A.: Natural fracture propping and earthquake-induced oil migration in fractured basement reservoirs, Geology, 47, 700–704, https://doi.org/10.1130/G46280.1, 2019.
Kolyukhin, D. and Torabi, A.: Power-Law Testing for Fault Attributes Distributions, Pure Appl. Geophys., 170, 2173–2183, https://doi.org/10.1007/s00024-013-0644-3, 2013.
Kruhl, J. H.: Fractal-geometry techniques in the quantification of complex rock structures: A special view on scaling regimes, inhomogeneity and anisotropy, J. Struct. Geol., 46, 2–21, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsg.2012.10.002, 2013.
Le Garzic, E., de L'Hamaide, T., Diraison, M., Géraud, Y., Sausse, J., de Urreiztieta, M., Hauville, B., and Champanhet, J. M.: Scaling and geometric properties of extensional fracture systems in the proterozoic basement of Yemen. Tectonic interpretation and fluid flow implications, J. Struct. Geol., 33, 519–536, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsg.2011.01.012, 2011.
Lundmark, A. M., Sæther, T., and Sørlie, R.: Ordovician to silurian magmatism on the Utsira High, North Sea: Implications for correlations between the onshore and offshore Caledonides, Geol. Soc. Spec. Publ., 390, 513–523, https://doi.org/10.1144/SP390.21, 2014.
Manzocchi, T., Walsh, J. J., and Bailey, W. R.: Population scaling biases in map samples of power-law fault systems, J. Struct. Geol., 31, 1612–1626, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsg.2009.06.004, 2009.
Marrett, R., Gale, J. F. W., Gómez, L. A., and Laubach, S. E.: Correlation analysis of fracture arrangement in space, J. Struct. Geol., 108, 16–33, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsg.2017.06.012, 2018.
McCaffrey, K. J. W., Holdsworth, R. E., Pless, J., Franklin, B. S. G., and Hardman, K.: Basement reservoir plumbing: fracture aperture, length and topology analysis of the Lewisian Complex, NW Scotland, J. Geol. Soc. London, 177, 1281–1293, https://doi.org/10.1144/jgs2019-143, 2020.
Michas, G., Vallianatos, F., and Sammonds, P.: Statistical mechanics and scaling of fault populations with increasing strain in the Corinth Rift, Earth Planet. Sc. Lett., 431, 150–163, https://doi.org/10.1016/J.EPSL.2015.09.014, 2015.
Munro, M. A. and Blenkinsop, T. G.: MARD-A moving average rose diagram application for the geosciences, Comput. Geosci., 49, 112–120, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cageo.2012.07.012, 2012.
Nyberg, B., Nixon, C. W., and Sanderson, D. J.: NetworkGT: A GIS tool for geometric and topological analysis of two-dimensional fracture networks, Geosphere, 14, 1618–1634, https://doi.org/10.1130/GES01595.1, 2018.
Odling, N. E.: Scaling and connectivity of joint systems in sandstones from western Norway, J. Struct. Geol., 19, 1257–1271, https://doi.org/10.1016/S0191-8141(97)00041-2, 1997.
Odling, N. E., Gillespie, P., Bourgine, B., Castaing, C., Chiles, J. P., Christensen, N. P., and Watterson, J.: Variations in fracture system geometry and their implications for fluid flow in fractures hydrocarbon reservoirs, Petrol. Geosci., 5, 373–384, https://doi.org/10.1144/petgeo.5.4.373, 1999.
Peacock, D. C. P. and Sanderson, D. J.: Structural analyses and fracture network characterisation: Seven pillars of wisdom, Earth-Sci. Rev., 184, 13–28, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.earscirev.2018.06.006, 2018.
Peacock, D. C. P., Sanderson, D. J., Bastesen, E., Rotevatn, A., and Storstein, T. H.: Causes of bias and uncertainty in fracture network analysis, Norw. J. Geol., 99, 1–16, https://doi.org/10.17850/njg99-1-06, 2019.
Pennacchioni, G., Ceccato, A., Fioretti, A. M., Mazzoli, C., Zorzi, F., and Ferretti, P.: Episyenites in meta-granitoids of the Tauern Window (Eastern Alps): unpredictable?, J. Geodyn., 101, 73–87, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jog.2016.04.001, 2016.
Phillips, N. J. and Williams, R. T.: To D or not to D? Re-evaluating particle-size distributions in natural and experimental fault rocks, Earth Planet. Sc. Lett., 553, 116635, https://doi.org/10.1016/J.EPSL.2020.116635, 2021.
Place, J., Géraud, Y., Diraison, M., Herquel, G., Edel, J. B., Bano, M., Le Garzic, E., and Walter, B.: Structural control of weathering processes within exhumed granitoids: Compartmentalisation of geophysical properties by faults and fractures, J. Struct. Geol., 84, 102–119, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsg.2015.11.011, 2016.
Preiss, A. D. and Adam, J.: Basement fault trends in the Southern North Sea Basin, J. Struct. Geol., 153, 104449, https://doi.org/10.1016/J.JSG.2021.104449, 2021.
Rizzo, R. E., Healy, D., and De Siena, L.: Benefits of maximum likelihood estimators for fracture attribute analysis: Implications for permeability and up-scaling, J. Struct. Geol., 95, 17–31, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsg.2016.12.005, 2017.
Sanderson, D. J. and Peacock, D. C. P.: Line sampling of fracture swarms and corridors, J. Struct. Geol., 122, 27–37, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsg.2019.02.006, 2019.
Scheiber, T. and Viola, G.: Complex Bedrock Fracture Patterns: A Multipronged Approach to Resolve Their Evolution in Space and Time, Tectonics, 37, 1030–1062, https://doi.org/10.1002/2017TC004763, 2018.
Scheiber, T., Fredin, O., Viola, G., Jarna, A., Gasser, D., and Łapińska-Viola, R.: Manual extraction of bedrock lineaments from high-resolution LiDAR data: methodological bias and human perception, GFF, 137, 362–372, https://doi.org/10.1080/11035897.2015.1085434, 2015.
Scheiber, T., Viola, G., Wilkinson, C. M., Ganerød, M., Skår, Ø., and Gasser, D.: Direct dating of Late Ordovician and Silurian brittle faulting in the southwestern Norwegian Caledonides, Terra Nova, 28, 374–382, https://doi.org/10.1111/TER.12230, 2016.
Schneeberger, R., Egli, D., Lanyon, G. W., Mäder, U. K., Berger, A., Kober, F., and Herwegh, M.: Structural-permeability favorability in crystalline rocks and implications for groundwater flow paths: a case study from the Aar Massif (central Switzerland), Hydrogeol. J., 26, 2725–2738, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10040-018-1826-y, 2018.
Scholz, C. H.: The Mechanics of Earthquakes and Faulting, 2nd edn., Cambridge University Press, https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9780511818516, 2002.
Schultz, R. A., Klimczak, C., Fossen, H., Olson, J. E., Exner, U., Reeves, D. M., and Soliva, R.: Statistical tests of scaling relationships for geologic structures, J. Struct. Geol., 48, 85–94, https://doi.org/10.1016/J.JSG.2012.12.005, 2013.
Slagstad, T., Davidsen, B., and Stephen Daly, J.: Age and composition of crystalline basement rocks on the norwegian continental margin: Offshore extension and continuity of the Caledonian-Appalachian orogenic belt, J. Geol. Soc. London, 168, 1167–1185, https://doi.org/10.1144/0016-76492010-136, 2011.
Souque, C., Knipe, R. J., Davies, R. K., Jones, P., Welch, M. J., and Lorenz, J.: Fracture corridors and fault reactivation: Example from the Chalk, Isle of Thanet, Kent, England, J. Struct. Geol., 122, 11–26, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsg.2018.12.004, 2019.
Stephens, M. A.: Use of the Kolmogorov–Smirnov, Cramér–Von Mises and Related Statistics Without Extensive Tables, J. Roy. Stat. Soc. B Met., 32, 115–122, https://doi.org/10.1111/J.2517-6161.1970.TB00821.X, 1970.
Stober, I. and Bucher, K.: Hydraulic conductivity of fractured upper crust: Insights from hydraulic tests in boreholes and fluid-rock interaction in crystalline basement rocks, Geofluids, 15, 161–178, https://doi.org/10.1111/gfl.12104, 2015.
Tartaglia, G., Viola, G., van der Lelij, R., Scheiber, T., Ceccato, A., and Schönenberger, J.: “Brittle structural facies” analysis: A diagnostic method to unravel and date multiple slip events of long-lived faults, Earth Planet. Sc. Lett., 545, 116420, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.epsl.2020.116420, 2020.
Tartaglia, G., Ceccato, A., Scheiber, T., van der Lelij, R., Schönenberger, J., and Viola, G.: Time-constrained multiphase brittle tectonic evolution of the onshore mid-Norwegian passive margin, GSA Bull., 1–22, https://doi.org/10.1130/b36312.1, 2022.
Torabi, A. and Berg, S. S.: Scaling of fault attributes: A review, Mar. Petrol. Geol., 28, 1444–1460, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpetgeo.2011.04.003, 2011.
Torabi, A., Alaei, B., and Ellingsen, T. S. S.: Faults and fractures in basement rocks, their architecture, petrophysical and mechanical properties, J. Struct. Geol., 117, 256–263, https://doi.org/10.1016/J.JSG.2018.07.001, 2018.
Trice, R., Hiorth, C., and Holdsworth, R.: Fractured basement play development on the UK and Norwegian rifted margins, Geol. Soc. London Spec. Publ., SP495-2018-174, 495, https://doi.org/10.1144/sp495-2018-174, 2019.
Viola, G., Scheiber, T., Fredin, O., Zwingmann, H., Margreth, A., and Knies, J.: Deconvoluting complex structural histories archived in brittle fault zones, Nat. Commun., 71, 1–10, https://doi.org/10.1038/ncomms13448, 2016.
Xu, S. S., Nieto-Samaniego, A. F., Alaniz-Álvarez, S. A., and Velasquillo-Martínez, L. G.: Effect of sampling and linkage on fault length and length-displacement relationship, Int. J. Earth Sci., 95, 841–853, https://doi.org/10.1007/s00531-005-0065-3, 2006.
Yielding, G., Needham, T., and Jones, H.: Sampling of fault populations using sub-surface data: A review, J. Struct. Geol., 18, 135–146, https://doi.org/10.1016/S0191-8141(96)80039-3, 1996.
Short summary
The Earth's surface is commonly characterized by the occurrence of fractures, which can be mapped, and their can be geometry quantified on digital representations of the surface at different scales of observation. Here we present a series of analytical and statistical tools, which can aid the quantification of fracture spatial distribution at different scales. In doing so, we can improve our understanding of how fracture geometry and geology affect fluid flow within the fractured Earth crust.
The Earth's surface is commonly characterized by the occurrence of fractures, which can be...