Rheology of the Northern Apennines: Lateral variations of lithospheric strength

A thermorheological WSW–ENE profile along the Northern Apennines is presented. The variations in rheology are estimated using two different models: the conventional model in which only frictional sliding and power-law creep are taken into account, and a new model in which in addition to the previous two mechanisms, a high-pressure brittle fracture mechanism is included. Upper and lower bounds for the rheology are considered: a hard case where the lower crust is mafic granulite and the lithospheric mantle is dry peridotite, and a soft case where the lower crust is felsic granulite and the lithospheric mantle is wet peridotite. Important differences in lithospheric rheological structure are inferred between the western and the eastern sectors of the chain. In the former a “crème brulée” structure generally applies; in the latter a “jelly-sandwich” structure applies. These rheological models, therefore, are not alternative but end members of a continuous spectrum of rheological behaviours.