Quantitative comparisons of analogue thrust wedge experiments

SCHREURS, G.; BUITER, S.; BURBERRY, C.; CALLOT, J-P.; CAVOZZI, C.; CERCA, M.; CRUDEN, A.; CRUZ, L.; CRISTALLINI, E.O.; DANIEL, J.M.; HOFMANN, F.; GARCÍA, V.H.; GOMES, C.; GRALL, C.; GUILLOT, Y.; GUZMÁN, C.G.; HIDAYAH, T.N.; HILLEY, G.; LU, C-Y.; KLINKMÜLLER, M.; KOYI, H.; MACAULEY, J.; MAILLOT, B.,; MERIAUX, C.; NILFOUROUSHAN, F.; PAN, C-C.; PILLOT, D.; PORTILLO, R.; ROSENAU, M.; SCHELLART, W.P.; SCHLISCHE, R.; TAKE, A.; VENDEVILLE, B.; VETTORI, M.; VERGNAUD, M.; WANG, S-H.; WITHJACK, M.; YAGUPSKY, D.L.; YAMADA, Y.

Fribourg, Suiza

Congreso; 8th Swiss Geoscience Meeting; 2010

Analogue (sandbox) experiments have a long history of modelling orogenic wedge processes, examining, for example, out-of-sequence thrusting, surface slope evolution and the roles of basal friction or surface processes. However, as for all models,their results bear a signal of the initial conditions, the choice of materials, the modelling apparatus and the technique of building model. This may make it difficult to compare model results directly. In order to evaluate the variability among models and to appraise the reproducibility and limits of interpretation, we have performed a direct comparison of experimentalresults of 15 analogue modelling laboratories for three different thrust experiments. Our quantitative analysis of the results has direct implications for comparisons between structures in analogue models and natural field examples.