The role of geologic structure and stress in triggering remote seismicity in Creighton Mine, Sudbury, Canada

A study was undertaken at the Creighton Mine, near Sudbury, Canada, to investigate the relationships between geologic structure, stress, and seismicity. Creighton Mine hosts numerous families of shear zones and experiences frequent microseismic and often macroseismic events. Underground structural mapping as well as microstructural and kinematic analysis are used to characterize faults. Fault geometries are then compared to those derived from seismic event focal mechanisms. Focal mechanism information is next used for stress inversion to obtain estimates of in-situ principal stresses for three spatial clusters of events on the 7400-foot (2256 m) level. Fault characteristics are then integrated into a numerical discontinuum model of the 7400-foot level of the mine to examine the distribution of stresses in the study volume. The synthesis of these elements is used to determine the sources of seismicity within the deepest levels of the mine. The major shear zones within the mine have not been found to contribute to seismicity via fault-slip but do influence the flow of stress around the main excavation. An anomalous cluster of microseismic events is postulated to be a result of induced stresses from mine development on deeper levels.

[1]  P. M. Clifford,et al.  Mafic Dyke Swarms: H.C. Halls and W.F.Fahrig, editors. Geological Association of Canada, Special Paper 34, 1987, 501p., with map folder, $65.00(GAC members), $79.00(non-members)(plus $3.00 postage and handing)(ISBN 0-919216-33-1). , 1988 .

[2]  M. Zoback,et al.  Recent state of stress change in the Walker Lane zone, western Basin and Range province, United States , 1995 .

[3]  M. Worthington,et al.  The scaling of fracture compliance , 2007, Geological Society, London, Special Publications.

[4]  D. F. Malan,et al.  A viscoplastic discontinuum model of time-dependent fracture and seismicity effects in brittle rock , 1997 .

[5]  R. P. Young,et al.  Seismic imaging of rock mass responses to excavation , 1996 .

[6]  Analysis of exceptionally large tremors in two gold mining districts of South Africa , 1989 .

[7]  Ming Cai,et al.  Generalized crack initiation and crack damage stress thresholds of brittle rock masses near underground excavations , 2004 .

[8]  D. H. Rousell,et al.  The tectonic, magmatic and mineralization history of the Sudbury Structure , 1997 .

[9]  John W. Gephart,et al.  An improved method for determining the regional stress tensor using earthquake focal mechanism data: Application to the San Fernando Earthquake Sequence , 1984 .

[10]  Davide Elmo,et al.  Combined Finite-discrete Element Modelling of Surface Subsidence Associated With Block Caving Mining. , 2007 .

[11]  D. Wise,et al.  Fault-related rocks: Suggestions for terminology , 1984 .

[12]  R. Dietz.  Sudbury Structure as an Astrobleme , 1964, The Journal of Geology.

[13]  S. Mckinnon.  Triggering of Seismicity Remote from Active Mining Excavations , 2006 .

[14]  J. Mungall,et al.  Origins of Outliers of the Huronian Supergroup within the Sudbury Structure , 2004, The Journal of Geology.

[15]  A. Kijko,et al.  An introduction to mining seismology , 1994 .

[16]  S. Mckinnon,et al.  Stress channelling and partitioning of seismicity in the Charlevoix seismic zone, Québec, Canada , 2009 .

[17]  P. A. Cundall,et al.  NUMERICAL MODELLING OF DISCONTINUA , 1992 .

[18]  Constraining numerical models with geomechanical data and microseismic fault-plane solutions , 1993 .

[19]  Fidelis T. Suorineni,et al.  Management of High Stress and Seismicity at Vale Inco Creighton Mine , 2008 .

[20]  W. F. Cannon,et al.  The Penokean orogeny in the Lake Superior region , 2007 .

[21]  O. Bellier,et al.  Recent temporal change in the stress state and modern stress field along the North Anatolian Fault Zone (Turkey) , 1997 .

[22]  John W. Gephart,et al.  FMSI: a FORTRAN program for inverting fault/slickenside and earthquake focal mechanism data to obtain the regional stress tensor , 1990 .

[23]  C. Scholz.  The Mechanics of Earthquakes and Faulting , 1990 .

[24]  R. A. Price,et al.  Regional cross section of the Southern Province adjacent to Lake Huron, Ontario: implications for the tectonic significance of the Murray Fault Zone , 1984 .

[25]  M. Wysession,et al.  An Introduction to Seismology, Earthquakes, and Earth Structure , 2002 .

[26]  D. Ames,et al.  Geology, Sudbury bedrock compilation, Ontario , 2005 .

[27]  Lanru Jing,et al.  A review of techniques, advances and outstanding issues in numerical modelling for rock mechanics and rock engineering , 2003 .

[28]  A. Mendecki.  Seismic Monitoring in Mines , 2011 .

[29]  W. R. Schmus.  Early and Middle Proterozoic History of the Great Lakes Area, North America , 1976 .