Tom Darrah

Water and gas chemistry at Lake Kivu (DRC): Geochemical evidence of vertical and horizontal heterogeneities in a multibasin structure

[1]xa0Waters and dissolved gases collected along vertical profiles in the five basins (Main, Kabuno Bay, Kalehe, Ishungu, and Bukavu) forming the 485 m deep Lake Kivu (Democratic Republic of the Congo) were analyzed to provide a geochemical conceptual model of the several processes controlling lake chemistry. The measured horizontal and vertical variations of water and gas compositions suggest that each basin has distinct chemical features produced by (1) different contribution from long circulating fluid system containing magmatic CO2, responsible of the huge CO2(CH4)-rich reservoir hosted within the deep lake water; (2) spatial variations of the biomass distribution and/or speciation; and (3) solutes from water-rock interactions. The Kabuno Bay basin is characterized by the highest rate of magmatic fluid input. Accordingly, this basin must be considered the most hazardous site for possible gas outburst that could be triggered by the activity of the Nyiragongo and Nyamulagira volcanoes, located a few kilometers north of the lake.

Gas isotopic signatures (He, C, and Ar) in the Lake Kivu region (western branch of the East African rift system): Geodynamic and volcanological implications

[1]xa0On 17 January 2002, the city of Goma was partly destroyed by two of the several lava flows erupted from a roughly N-S oriented fracture system opened along the southern flank of Mount Nyiragongo (Democratic Republic of Congo), in the western branch of the East African rift system. A humanitarian and scientific response was promptly organized by international, governmental, and nongovernmental agencies coordinated by the United Nations and the European Union. Among the different scientific projects undertaken to study the mechanisms triggering this and possible future eruptions, we focused on the isotopic (He, C, and Ar) analysis of the magmatic-hydrothermal and cold gas discharges related to the Nyiragongo volcanic system, the Kivu and Virunga region. The studied area includes the Nyiragongo volcano, its surroundings, and peripheral areas inside and outside the rift. They have been subdivided into seven regions characterized by distinct 3He/4He (expressed as R/Rair) ratios and/or δ13C-CO2 values. The Nyiragongo summit crater fumaroles, whose R/Rair and δ13C-CO2 values are up to 8.73 and from −3.5‰ to −4.0‰ VPDB, respectively, show a clear mantle, mid-ocean ridge basalt (MORB)-like contribution. Similar mantle-like He isotopic values (6.5–8.3 R/Rair) are also found in CO2-rich gas emanations (mazukus) along the northern shoreline of Lake Kivu main basin, whereas the 13δC-CO2 values range from −5.3‰ to −6.8‰ VPDB. The mantle influence progressively decreases in (1) dissolved gases of Lake Kivu (2.6–5.5 R/Rair) and (2) the distal gas discharges within and outside the two sides of the rift (from 0.1 to 1.7 R/Rair). Similarly, δ13C-CO2 ratios of the peripheral gas emissions are lighter (from −5.9‰ to −11.6‰ VPDB) than those of the crater fumaroles. Therefore, the spatial distribution of He and C signatures in the Lake Kivu region is mainly produced by mixing of mantle-related (e.g., Nyiragongo crater fumaroles and/or mazukus gases) and crustal-related (e.g., gas discharges in the Archean craton) fluids. The CO2/3He ratio (up to 10 × 1010) is 1 order of magnitude higher than those found in MORB, and it is due to the increasing solubility of CO2 in the foiditic magma feeding the Nyiragongo volcano. However, the exceptionally high 40Ar*/4He ratio (up to 8.7) of the Nyiragongo crater fumaroles may be related to the difference between He and Ar solubility in the magmatic source. The results of the present investigation suggest that in this area the uprising of mantle-originated f luids seems strongly controlled by regional tectonics in relation to the geodynamic assessment of the rift. These fluids are mainly localized in a relatively small zone between Lake Kivu and Nyiragongo volcano, with important implications in terms of volcanic activity.

Geochemical model of a magmatic–hydrothermal system at the Lastarria volcano, northern Chile

Lastarria volcano (25°10′u2009S, 68°31′u2009W; 5,697xa0mu2009above sea level), located in the Central Andes Volcanic Zone (northern Chile), is characterized by four distinct fumarolic fields with outlet temperatures ranging between 80°C and 408°C as measured between May 2006–March 2008 and April–June 2009. Fumarolic gasses contain significant concentrations of high temperature gas compounds (i.e., SO2, HCl, HF, H2, and CO), and isotopic ratios (3He/4He, δ13C–CO2, δ18O–H2O, and δD–H2O) diagnostic of magmatic gas sources. Gas equilibria systematics, in both the H2O-H2-CO2-CO-CH4 and alkane–alkene C3 system, suggest that Lastarria fumarolic gasses emanate from a superheated vapor that is later cooled and condensed at relatively shallow depths. This two-stage process inhibits the formation of a continuous aquifer (e.g., horizontal liquid layer) at relatively shallow depth. Recent developments in the magmatic gas system may have enhanced the transfer and release of heat causing shallow aquifer vaporization. The consequent pressure increase and aquifer vaporization likely triggered the inflation events beginning in 2003 at the Lastarria volcano.