Effects of heterogeneous hydration in the incoming plate, slab rehydration, and mantle wedge hydration on slab-derived H2O flux in subduction zones

We quantify the effects of heterogeneous hydration in the incoming oceanic plate, rehydration in the subducting slab, and hydration in the lowermost mantle wedge on the pattern of H2O release from the slab in the forearc and arc regions of subduction zones. The release and uptake of H2O by dehydration and hydration reactions, respectively, are calculated using a subduction zone thermal model and thermodynamic calculations for the distribution of mineralogically bound H2O for idealized lithologies. We consider two end-member models for the initial hydration state of the incoming plate: (1) uniform hydration, in which H2O is stored homogeneously within each lithologic unit, and (2) localized hydration, in which H2O is stored at its saturation level in discrete zones. The former is commonly assumed in thermo-petrologic models, while the latter approximates the effect of localized hydration along faults in the oceanic plate inferred from geophysical observations. Our modeling results show that for the same bulk H2O content, localized hydration results in shallower H2O release compared to uniform hydration, and that the H2O flux off the subducting slab beneath the forearc and arc regions can be almost twice as large from a locally hydrated slab as from a uniformly hydrated slab. Rehydration can occur in the subducting slab and delays the liberation of H2O. The effect of pervasive rehydration in the slab on the pattern of fluid release in the forearc and arc regions is relatively small if the slab is uniformly hydrated, but it is large if the slab is locally hydrated. Hydration of the overlying mantle also delays the liberation of H2O, but the volume of H2O absorbed in the mantle is small compared to that released from the subducting slab, thereby implying that mantle wedge hydration has only a modest effect on the pattern of fluid release.

► We model the pattern of H2O release from the downgoing slab at subduction zones. ► We investigate incoming plates that are either uniformly or locally hydrated. ► Localized hydration results in shallower H2O release than does uniform hydration. ► Pervasive rehydration in the slab causes a significant delay in H2O liberation. ► Mantle wedge rehydration consumes only a small portion of slab-derived H2O.