Cooling of hydrothermal fluids rich in carbon dioxide can create large karst cave systems in carbonate rocks
Abstract Karst systems, comprising interconnected voids and caves, are ubiquitous in carbonate formations and play a pivotal role in the global water supply. Accumulating evidence suggests that a significant portion of the global karst is hypogenic, formed via rock dissolution by groundwater ascendi...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Nature Portfolio
2023-12-01
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| Series: | Communications Earth & Environment |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-023-01082-z |
| _version_ | 1797397722904395776 |
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| author | Roi Roded Einat Aharonov Amos Frumkin Nurit Weber Boaz Lazar Piotr Szymczak |
| author_facet | Roi Roded Einat Aharonov Amos Frumkin Nurit Weber Boaz Lazar Piotr Szymczak |
| author_sort | Roi Roded |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Karst systems, comprising interconnected voids and caves, are ubiquitous in carbonate formations and play a pivotal role in the global water supply. Accumulating evidence suggests that a significant portion of the global karst is hypogenic, formed via rock dissolution by groundwater ascending from depth (rather than by infiltration from the surface), yet the exact formation mechanism remains unclear. Here we show that cooling of carbon dioxide-rich geothermal fluids, which turns them into highly corrosive agents due to their retrograde solubility, can dissolve and sculpt large caves on short geological timescales. A conceptual hydro-thermo-geochemical scenario is numerically simulated, showing cave formation by rising hot water discharging into a confined layer. Our models predict field observations characteristic of hypogenic caves, including enigmatic locations of the largest passages and intricate maze-like networks. Finally, we suggest that deep-seated carbon dioxide consumption during karst formation may constitute a link to the global carbon cycle. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T01:14:18Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-142c20af076b4fd98b951e844b730515 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2662-4435 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T01:14:18Z |
| publishDate | 2023-12-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Communications Earth & Environment |
| spelling | doaj.art-142c20af076b4fd98b951e844b7305152023-12-10T12:32:50ZengNature PortfolioCommunications Earth & Environment2662-44352023-12-014111510.1038/s43247-023-01082-zCooling of hydrothermal fluids rich in carbon dioxide can create large karst cave systems in carbonate rocksRoi Roded0Einat Aharonov1Amos Frumkin2Nurit Weber3Boaz Lazar4Piotr Szymczak5Institute of Earth Sciences, The Hebrew UniversityInstitute of Earth Sciences, The Hebrew UniversityInstitute of Earth Sciences, The Hebrew UniversityDepartment of Earth and Planetary Sciences, The Weizmann Institute of ScienceInstitute of Earth Sciences, The Hebrew UniversityInstitute of Theoretical Physics, Faculty of Physics, University of WarsawAbstract Karst systems, comprising interconnected voids and caves, are ubiquitous in carbonate formations and play a pivotal role in the global water supply. Accumulating evidence suggests that a significant portion of the global karst is hypogenic, formed via rock dissolution by groundwater ascending from depth (rather than by infiltration from the surface), yet the exact formation mechanism remains unclear. Here we show that cooling of carbon dioxide-rich geothermal fluids, which turns them into highly corrosive agents due to their retrograde solubility, can dissolve and sculpt large caves on short geological timescales. A conceptual hydro-thermo-geochemical scenario is numerically simulated, showing cave formation by rising hot water discharging into a confined layer. Our models predict field observations characteristic of hypogenic caves, including enigmatic locations of the largest passages and intricate maze-like networks. Finally, we suggest that deep-seated carbon dioxide consumption during karst formation may constitute a link to the global carbon cycle.https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-023-01082-z |
| spellingShingle | Roi Roded Einat Aharonov Amos Frumkin Nurit Weber Boaz Lazar Piotr Szymczak Cooling of hydrothermal fluids rich in carbon dioxide can create large karst cave systems in carbonate rocks Communications Earth & Environment |
| title | Cooling of hydrothermal fluids rich in carbon dioxide can create large karst cave systems in carbonate rocks |
| title_full | Cooling of hydrothermal fluids rich in carbon dioxide can create large karst cave systems in carbonate rocks |
| title_fullStr | Cooling of hydrothermal fluids rich in carbon dioxide can create large karst cave systems in carbonate rocks |
| title_full_unstemmed | Cooling of hydrothermal fluids rich in carbon dioxide can create large karst cave systems in carbonate rocks |
| title_short | Cooling of hydrothermal fluids rich in carbon dioxide can create large karst cave systems in carbonate rocks |
| title_sort | cooling of hydrothermal fluids rich in carbon dioxide can create large karst cave systems in carbonate rocks |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s43247-023-01082-z |
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