CH5.

1
Plate Tectonics and Volcanism
Volcanism is the eruption of magma at the surface of a planet. Rocks produced by
volcanic processes are called volcanic rocks. The most prominent feature of volcanism is the
volcano, an accumulation of volcanic material (e.g. molten rock, rock fragments, and gas)
ejected from a central chimney or vent.

Global distribution of volcanoes and tectonic plates.

The map above tells us that there is a close link between the distribution of volcanoes
and plate tectonics. The great majority of volcanoes are located along plate boundaries. Most
volcanoes displayed on the map are related to subduction zones. But volcanoes are also found
along divergent boundaries (see the East African Rift in). Since the map above does not show
volcanoes located below sea surface, those related to mid-ocean ridges are not displayed.
However, one should keep in mind that underwater volcanoes may account for as much as 80%
of Earth’s volcanoes!
  Subduction Zone
- a region in which a portion of a
tectonic plate sinks beneath another
plate into the Earth's interior.
- defined by deep oceanic trenches,
lines of volcanoes parallel to the
trenches, and zones of large
earthquakes that extend from the
trenches landward.

 Divergent Boundaries
- A occurs when two tectonic plates move away from each other. Along these boundaries,
earthquakes are common and magma (molten rock) rises from the Earth’s mantle to the
surface, solidifying to create new oceanic crust. The Mid-Atlantic Ridge is an example of
divergent plate boundaries.
 Convergent Boundaries
- When two plates come together, it is known as a convergent boundary. The impact of
the colliding plates can cause the edges of one or both plates to buckle up into a
mountain ranges or one of the plates may bend down into a deep seafloor trench.
- A chain of volcanoes often forms parallel to convergent plate boundaries and powerful
earthquakes are common along these boundaries. The Pacific Ring of Fire is an
example of a convergent plate boundary.
 Transform Plate Boundary
- Two plates sliding past each other forms a transform plate boundary. One of the most
famous transform plate boundaries occurs at the San Andreas fault zone, which extends
underwater. Natural or human-made structures that cross a transform boundary are offset
— split into pieces and carried in opposite directions.
- Rocks that line the boundary are pulverized as the plates grind along, creating a linear
fault valley or undersea canyon. Earthquakes are common along these faults.
- In contrast to convergent and divergent boundaries, crust is cracked and broken at
transform margins, but is not created or destroyed.
 Volcanism occurs wherever magma reaches Earth’s surface. This happens along
tectonic plate boundaries: mid-ocean ridges, continental rifts and subduction zones. But there is
a third geologic setting related to volcanism that is not located along a plate boundary: hot
spots.
Examples of hot spots are:
o Hawaii (see red dots in the middle of the Pacific Plate in the map)
o Yellowstone (continental hot spot in western USA), and
o Iceland (which happens to be also on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge).

The mechanism of formation of these hot spots is not very well understood. A commonly
accepted hypothesis suggests that the source of hot spots comes from deep within the mantle,
perhaps even from the mantle-core boundary, and that a hot spot forms when a narrow jet of
mantle rock called mantle plume reaches the surface.

CH5.2
Magma Composition and Eruption Style

There are as many types of volcanic eruptions as there are eruptions. Furthermore,
since an eruption can change character as it progresses. Each volcanic eruption is unique,
differing in size, style, and composition of erupted material.
One key to what makes the eruption unique is the chemical composition of the magma
that feeds a volcano, which determines (1) the eruption style, (2) the type of volcanic cone that
forms, and (3) the composition of rocks that are found at the volcano.
Different minerals within a rock melt at different temperatures. The amount of partial
melting and the composition of the original rock determine the composition of the magma.
The words that describe composition of igneous rocks also describe magma composition.

 Mafic magmas are low in silica and

contain darker, magnesium- and iron-rich
mafic minerals, such as olivine and
pyroxene.
 Felsic magmas are higher in silica and contain lighter colored minerals such as quartz and
orthoclase feldspar. The higher the amount of silica in the magma, the higher is its viscosity.
Viscosity is a liquid’s resistance to flow.

Viscosity determines what the magma will do. Mafic magma is not viscous and will flow
easily to the surface. Felsic magma is viscous and does not flow easily. Most felsic magma will
stay deeper in the crust and will cool to form igneous intrusive rocks such as granite and
granodiorite. If felsic magma rises into a magma chamber, it may be too viscous to move, so it
gets stuck. Dissolved gases become trapped by thick magma. The magma churns in the
chamber and the pressure builds.
Watch video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DL1KfubCfWM

CH5.3
Types of Volcanoes

1. Cinder Cones
Cinder cones are the
simplest type of volcano. They are
built from particles and blobs of
congealed lava ejected from a
single vent. As the gas-charged
lava is blown violently into the air, it
breaks into small fragments that
solidify and fall as cinders around
the vent to form a circular or oval
cone. Most cinder cones have a
bowl-shaped crater at the summit
and rarely rise more than a Taal is considered a cinder cone volcano even though it is
thousand feet or so above their effectively now just a large caldera filled with water.
surroundings.

Schematic representation of the internal structure of a typical cinder cone.

2. Composite Volcanoes
Some of the Earth's
grandest mountains are
composite volcanoes –
sometimes called
stratovolcanoes. They are typically steep-sided, symmetrical cones of large dimension
built of alternating layers of lava flows, volcanic ash, cinders, blocks, and bombs and
may rise as much as 8,000 feet above their bases. Some of the most conspicuous and
beautiful mountains in the world are composite volcanoes, including Mount Fuji in Japan.

Geological cross-section of Fuji volcano.

N2 = Tertiary sedimentary rocks; αN2 = Tertiary volcanic rocks; αQ1 = Komitake volcano;
α-δQ1 = Ashitaka volcano; βQ2 = Older Fuji volcano; αβQ2 = Younger Fuji volcano.

Most composite volcanoes have a crater at the summit which contains a central
vent or a clustered group of vents. Lavas either flow through breaks in the crater wall or
issue from fissures on the flanks of the cone. Lava, solidified within the fissures, forms
dikes that act as ribs which greatly strengthen the cone.

The essential feature of a composite volcano is a conduit system through which

magma from a reservoir deep in the Earth's crust rises to the surface. The volcano is
built up by the accumulation of material erupted through the conduit and increases in
size as lava, cinders, ash, etc., are added to its slopes.

Schematic representation of the internal structure of a typical composite volcano.

When a composite volcano becomes dormant, erosion begins to destroy the

cone. As the cone is stripped away, the hardened magma filling the conduit (the volcanic
plug) and fissures (the dikes) becomes exposed, and it too is slowly reduced by erosion.
Finally, all that remains is the plug and dike complex projecting above the land surface--
a telltale remnant of the vanished volcano.

Evolution of a Composite Volcano

 A. Magma, rising upward through a conduit,
erupts at the Earth's surface to form a
volcanic cone. Lava flows spread over the
surrounding area.

B. As volcanic activity continues, perhaps

over spans of hundreds of years, the cone is
built to a great height and lava flows form an
extensive plateau around its base. During
this period, streams enlarge and deepened
their valleys.

C. When volcanic activity ceases, erosion

starts to destroy the cone. After thousands of
years, the great cone is stripped away to
expose the hardened "volcanic plug" in the
conduit. During this period of inactivity,
streams broaden their valleys and dissect the
lava plateau to form isolated lava-capped
mesas.

D. Continued erosion removes all traces of

the cone and the land is worn down to a
surface of low relief. All that remains is a
projecting plug or "volcanic neck," a small
lava-capped mesa, and vestiges of the once lofty volcano and its surrounding lava
plateau.

3. Shield Volcanoes
Shield volcanoes, the third type of volcano, are built almost entirely of fluid lava
flows. Flow after flow pours out in all directions from a central summit vent, or group of
vents, building a broad, gently sloping cone of flat, domical shape, with a profile much
like that of a warrior's shield. They are built up slowly by the accretion of thousands of
highly fluid lava flows called basalt lava that spread widely over great distances, and
then cool as thin, gently dipping sheets. Lavas also commonly erupt from vents along
fractures (rift zones) that develop on the flanks of the cone.

The internal structure of a typical shield volcano

The Hawaiian Islands are composed of linear chains of these volcanoes

including Kilauea and Mauna Loa on the island of Hawaii-- two of the world's most active
volcanoes. The floor of the ocean is more than 15,000 feet deep at the bases of the
islands. As Mauna Loa, the largest of the shield volcanoes (also the world's largest
active volcano), projects 13,677 feet above sea level, its top is over 28,000 feet above
the deep ocean floor. In some eruptions, basaltic lava pours out quietly from long
fissures instead of central
vents and floods the
surrounding countryside
with lava flow upon lava
flow, forming broad
plateaus

4. Lava Domes
Lava flows move downslope the Mauna Loa volcano
 Volcanic or lava domes are formed by relatively small, bulbous masses of lava
too viscous to flow any great distance; consequently, on extrusion, the lava piles over
and around its vent. A dome grows largely by expansion from within. As it grows its outer
surface cools and hardens, then shatters, spilling loose fragments down its sides. Some
domes form craggy knobs or spines over the volcanic vent, whereas others form short,
steep-sided lava flows known as "coulees." Volcanic domes commonly occur within the
craters or on the flanks of large composite volcanoes.

Schematic representation of the internal structure of a typical volcanic dome.

Aerial view to the south of the 3-kilometer-wide Pinatubo caldera showing the start of a
small explosion on 1 August 1991. Credit: T. J. Casadevall/USGS