Salt diapirs are associated with the formation of salt domes in the subsurface. Recently, they have received increased attention since offshore oil exploration often involves drilling in proximity of diapir structures. The simulation of salt diapirs is a complex problem at the basin scale, since buoyant instabilities of deposited salt layers may induce large deformations in the subsurface. The current state of the art in the simulation of salt diapirs relies on a nonlinear form of the Stokes flow equations, which is considered by structural geologists as an oversimplified treatment of the over/under-burden of salt layers. In this presentation, a new approach is pursued, based on nonlinear solid mechanics and immersed boundary methods. When considering the deformation of the Earth‚Äôs crust, the continental tectonics induces accumulation of stresses that are released by seismic events. Computationally, it is highly inefficient to track seismic events, if characteristic time scales of million of years are pursued. Dual-scale asymptotic expansions are proposed to simplify the governing equations and avoid seismicity tracking. Because of large deformations, the solid mechanics approach, little explored over the past decades, may offer considerable advantages. Finally, the various geologic strata of the subsurface may interact at their interfaces, which need to be characterized numerically. For this purpose, a new immersed interface approach is sought, based on the ‚Äúshifted boundary method,‚Äù recently developed by the presenter‚Äôs research group at Duke University.


A nonlinear mechanics computational framework for the simulation of salt diapirs

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