Water and other fluids play a vital role in the processes that shape the earth's crust, possibly even influencing earthquakes and volcanism. Fluids affect the movement of chemicals and heat in the crust, and they are the major factor in the formation of hydrothermal ore deposits. Yet, fluids have been overlooked in many geologic investigations. The Role of Fluids in Crustal Processes addresses this lack of attention with a survey of what experts know about the role of fluids in the Earth's crustâ€"and what future research can reveal. The overview discusses factors that affect fluid movement and the coupled equations that represent energy and mass transport processes, chemical reactions, and the relation of fluids to stress distribution.

Published by the American Geophysical Union as part of the Maurice Ewing Series, Volume 4. From May 12 to May 16, 1980, eighty-eight scientists from eleven countries attended a Symposium on Earthquake Prediction at Mohonk Mountain House, Mohonk, New York. This was the third in a biennial series honoring Maurice Ewing, first director of Lamont-Doherty Geological Observatory. The Symposium was one of several events that were held in 1980 to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences at Columbia University. The two earlier Ewing Symposia, on island arcs and deep sea drilling, reflected Ewing's lifelong interest in the structure and evolution of the ocean floor. In the Third Ewing Symposium we touch another area—earthquake seismology—that played an important part in Ewing's career. Work on surface waves and long-period seismology under Ewing's direction during the 1950's and 1960's, along with his exploration of the earth beneath the oceans, provided much of the framework on which current ideas on earthquake generation and plate tectonics are based.

Knowledge of the presence of abnormally-high pressure zones (AHFP) prior to drilling into them can prevent considerable economic losses and, possibly, save human lives. The various origins (undercompaction, tectonics, etc.) of AHFPs are discussed, followed by the description of predictive techniques in clastic, carbonate and salt-bearing formations. In addition to the well-logging predictive techniques, the authors discuss smectite-illite transformation and the chemistry of interstitial solutions. Other topics covered include (a) abnormally low formation pressures and subsidence, and (b) mathematical modelling. Loss of potential production may result if AHFPs are not properly identified and evaluated. Many hydrocarbon-bearing formations with AHFPs are erroneously "condemned".This book is of interest to engineers and geologists involved in the (a) evaluation, (b) drilling in, (c) completing, and (d) producing from hydrocarbon reservoirs with AHFPs.

Water is one of the world's threatened resources: it is also a substance of importance in Geology. For some years I have felt the need for a book that sets out the fundamentals of fluid mechanics, written for geologists rather than engineers. The efforts to repair my own deficiencies in this respect led me along various unfamiliar paths, few of which were unrewarding. This book is the result of my journeys through the literature and as a geologist in several parts of the world. It has been written for students of geology of all ages, in the simplest terms possible, and it has one objective: to provide a basis for an understanding of the mechanical role of water in geology. It has not been written for experts in ground water hydrology, or specialists in the fluid aspects of structural geology: it has been written for geologists like me who are not very good mathematicians, so that we can take water better into account in our normal geological work, whatever it might be. The fundamentals apply equally to mineralization, geochemistry, and vulcanology although they have not been specifically mentioned. It has also been written for the university student of geology so that he or she may start a career with some appreciation of the importance of water, and understanding of its movement.