Tag Archives: liquefaction

Erupting mud volcanoes; We have ignition

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Eruption and ignition of a mud volcano near Baku, AzerbaijanMud
It supports geological processes.
It flows, subsides, and leads to failure, sometimes catastrophically.
It can be beneficial, forming fertile river floodplains.
It can be a pain in the neck, clogging infrastructure.
It oozes when soft; dries brick-hard
People bathe in it. Pigs love it.

And it erupts, as volcanoes.

Not the magmatic kind, with 1000oC lavas or explosive ash columns, but eruptions nonetheless. Most mud volcanoes are much smaller than their magmatic counterparts; some only a metre high, others 10s of metres. Eruptions may be the quiet, oozy kind where mud flows, slithers and slides down slope, or more violent, shooting sticky stuff 10s of metres into the air (or water); some even ignite in a cascade of fireballs. And yes, they do form on the sea floor.  One example in 2015 along the Sea of Azov coast (land-locked between Russia and Ukraine), sent mud and water several metres into the air; you can see the muddy jetsam gradually expanding across the sea surface.  Continue reading

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Liquefaction; more than a sloppy puddle at the beach

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liquefaction-damage during the 2011 Christchurch earthquake

Most of us at some time have gleefully created our own liquefied puddle by stomping on wet beach sand.  I once showed my kids, intent on explaining the scientific intricacies of liquefaction, but being teenagers at the time they walked off in embarrassment.  But liquefaction is much more than a trick at the beach; it is a process that can have devastating consequences for built structures and natural slope stability. Continue reading

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Landslide! How groundwater affects the stability of slopes

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Something is amiss!

Liquefaction and collapse along Tatonduk R. valley Continue reading

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