Application of the critical Coulomb wedge theory to hyper-extended, magma-poor rifted margins

- Definition of the hyper-extended continental wedge of magma-poor rifted margins.
- The critical Coulomb wedge theory applied to rifted margins.
- The final shape of a hyper-extended lower plate margins corresponds to a critical gravitational wedge.
- Upper plate margins termination are tectonic extensional wedges.

The Critical Coulomb Wedge Theory (CCWT) has been extensively used in compressional tectonics to resolve the shape of orogenic or accretionary prisms, while it is less applied to extensional and gravitational wedges despite the fact that it can be described by the same equation. In particular, the hyper-extended domain at magma-poor rifted margins, forming the oceanward termination of extended continental crust, satisfies the three main requirements of the CCWT: 1) it presents a wedge shape, 2) the rocks forming the wedge are completely brittle (frictional), and 3) the base of the wedge corresponds to a low friction décollement. However hyper-extended margins present a fully frictional behaviour only for a very thin crust; therefore this study is limited to the termination of hyper-extended continental crust which deforms in the latest stage of continental rifting. In this paper we define a method to measure the surface slope and the basal deep of this wedge that we apply to 17 hyper-extended, magma-poor rifted margins in order to compare the results to the values predicted by the CCWT. Because conjugate pairs of hyper-extended, magma-poor rifted margins are commonly asymmetric, due to detachment faulting, the wedges in the upper and lower plate margins corresponding respectively to the hanging wall and footwall of the detachment system are different. While the stress field in the upper plate wedge corresponds to a tectonic extensional wedge, the one in the lower plate matches that of a gravity extensional wedge. Using typical frictional properties of phyllosilicates (e.g. clays and serpentine), the shape of the hyper-extended wedges can be resolved by the CCWT using consistent fluid overpressures. Our results show that all lower plate margins are gravitationally stable and therefore have a close to critical shape whereas the tectonic extensional wedges at upper plate margins are critical, sub or sup critical due to the detachment initial angle and the duration of the tectonic activity. In this paper we discuss the geometry and structural evolution of the most distal parts of hyper-extended continental margins and the formation of extensional allochthons during hyper-extension using the CCWT theory.

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