COMBINED GEOTHERMAL-GEOPHYSICAL MODELS OF THE EARTH'S CRUST AND UPPER MANTLE FOR THE EUROPEAN CONTINENT

Abstract

An attempt is made to obtain a combined geophysical model along two regional profiles: Black Sea— White Sea and Russian Platform—French Central Massif. The process of the model construction had the following stages: 1. The relation between seismic velocity (Vp, km/s) and density (σ, g/cm3) in crustal rocks was determined from seismic profiles and observed gravity fields employing the trial and error method. 2. Relations between heat production HP (μW/m3), velocity and density were established from heat flow data and crustal models of old platforms where the mantle heat flow HFM is supposed to be constant. The HFM value was also determined to 11 ± 5 mW/m2. 3. A petrological model of the old platform crust is proposed from the velocity-density models and the observed heat flow. It includes 10–12 km of acid rocks, 15–20 km of basic/metamorphic rocks and 7–10 km of basic ones. 4. Calculation of the crustal gravity effects; its substraction from the observed field gave the mantle gravity anomalies. Extensively negative anomalies have been found in the southern part of Eastern Europe (50–70 mgal) and in Western Europe (up to 200 mgal). They correlate with high heat flow and lower velocity in the uppermost mantle. 5. A polymorphic advection mechanism for deep tectonic processes was proposed as a thermal model of the upper mantle. Deep matter in active regions is assumed to be transported (advected) upwards under the crust and in its place the relatively cold material of the uppermost mantle descends. The resulting temperature distribution depends on the type of endogeneous regime, on the age and size of geostructure. Polymorphic transitions were also taken into account.