Estimation of in-situ stress field surrounding the Namcha Barwa region and discussion on the tectonic stability

Abstract

The Namjag Barwa syntaxis is in the eastern Himalayan syntaxis area with the most intensive neotectonic activity. There are many late Quaternary active fault belts and strong seismicities. The tectonic stability of these active fault belts, such as the Jiali, Dongjiu-Milin, and Motuo fault belts, may influence the project's construction. In-situ stress is a critical parameter for estimating regional tectonic stability. Currently, there is a lack of abundant in-situ stress results about the Namjag Barwa syntaxis. It is challenging to assess geological safety risks for major projects. Based on focal mechanism solutions, the paper reveals the orientation of the maximum principal stress surrounding the Namjag Barwa syntaxis using the stress tensor inversion method. According to the critical condition of fault instability, the magnitudes of principal stresses around the Namjag Barwa syntaxis are also estimated by combining the inversion of the stress shape ratio and the frictional coefficient. The results indicate that the maximum principal stress direction in the Namjag Barwa syntaxis area is NE-NNE. The maximum and minimum horizontal principal stresses increase linearly with depth at a gradient of 0.032~0.0355 MPa/m and 0.0227~0.0236 MPa/m, respectively. Heterogeneous features of the in-situ stress field still exist. Generally, the results estimated in this study are in good concordance with the in-situ stress measurements. They can provide reliable in-situ stress parameters for evaluating the tectonic stability in the Namcha Barwa region.

Keywords

• namcha barwa
• in-situ stress
• focal mechanics solutions
• tectonic stability