The seismic attenuation signature of collisional orogens and sedimentary basins within the Carpathian Orogen

Borleanu F.; Petrescu L.; Seghedi I.; Thomas C.; De Siena L.

Zusammenfassung

Sedimentary basins in collisional settings result from interactions within and between lithospheric plates and sublithospheric mantle. Imaging their structure brings fundamental constraints to both the extraction of hydrocarbon or geothermal resources and seismic hazard analyses, especially in seismogenic areas affected by fluid percolation. Seismic attenuation is highly sensitive to stress, fluid saturation, and fluid-rock interaction and can often constrain small changes in the Earth's matrix better than seismic velocity. Here, we separate different attenuation mechanisms (scattering and absorption) at multiple frequencies and map them in space to constrain the properties of the Carpathian Orogen and the surrounding basins. The separation is achieved by determining S-wave peak delay times and late-time coda quality factors based on first-order Tikhonov inversion and analytical sensitivity kernels. We analysed 366 small-to-moderate crustal local earthquakes (0.7 < ML < 5.8) recorded by permanent and temporary stations operated by the Romanian Seismic Network between 2008 and 2021. Scattering and absorption appear to be frequency-dependent and highly heterogeneous throughout the region. High scattering and absorption characterise the Vrancea Seismic Zone, located in the Eastern Carpathian bend region, at all frequencies, likely due to high-stress rate and fluid inclusions. The seismically-active bend of the collisional orogen also shows high absorption and high scattering, particularly at low frequencies (∼3 Hz). Low scattering and high absorption features are observed across the Danubian section of the South Carpathians, marking the contact with the Pannonian Basin, which sits on top of a thin and highly-extended lithosphere. A transition from high to low-scattering regimes with increasing frequencies could mark small-scale heterogeneous structures in the Transylvanian Basin, an elevated sedimentary unit surrounded by high topography, comprising Cretaceous Neogene sediments deposited on top of oceanic ophiolites.