University of Naples Parthenope, Department of Science and Technologies, 80138 Naples, Italy.
Instituto de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras INVEMAR, Santa Marta, Colombia.
Sci Total Environ. 2021 Mar 10;759:144225. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.144225. Epub 2020 Dec 8.
The Caribbean coast is characterized by the presence of mud volcanoes, a secondary phenomenon of volcanism similar to mud diapirs for its development and evolution, but different in terms of geological features and forms. These mud volcanoes are often located close to tectonic faults and oil and gas deposits. Their geological context is dominated by the presence of clay sediments and brackish water, that favors the decomposition of organic material and the formation of methane. Mud volcanoes can thus be an important reservoir of hydrocarbons. This paper aims to fill the existing gap in the knowledge of mud volcanoes (MVs) of Colombia. We analyze the physical and geochemical characteristics of nine onshore mud volcanoes located in the Departments of Atlántico (La Laguna), Bolívar (Las Palomas, La Bonga, Santa Catalina, Yerbabuena, Clemencia, and Membrillal), Cordóba (Los Olivos), and Magdalena (Cañaveral). These structures present a kaolinitic composition, except for La Laguna mud volcano in which smectite is predominant. Apart from tectonic processes, this influences the shape and size of MVs and, also, the type and frequency of eruptions. The abundance of methane in all sites confirms the thermogenic origin of these structures. MVs are often considered landscape attractions as well as a therapeutic resources, but unfortunately they also represent a serious risk for the local communities, due to the frequent unexpected, eruptions, sometimes accompanied by the release of toxic gases or by landslides, that can damage the infrastructures and hurt the population living in the area. The MVs are classified into five vulnerability classes using a novel synthetic index which could improve the understanding of risks associated with the presence of MVs in proximity to towns and infrastructures.
加勒比海岸的特点是存在泥火山，这是一种类似于泥底辟的火山作用的次要现象，其发育和演化过程相似，但在地质特征和形态上有所不同。这些泥火山通常位于构造断层和油气藏附近。它们的地质背景主要由粘土沉积物和微咸水组成，有利于有机物质的分解和甲烷的形成。因此，泥火山可以成为碳氢化合物的重要储层。本文旨在填补哥伦比亚泥火山（MVs）知识的现有空白。我们分析了位于大西洋省（拉拉古纳）、玻利瓦尔省（拉斯帕洛马斯、拉邦加、圣卡塔琳娜、耶尔瓦布埃纳、克莱门西亚和梅姆布里亚尔）、科尔多瓦省（洛斯奥利沃斯）和马格达莱纳省（卡纳韦拉尔）的九个陆上泥火山的物理和地球化学特征。这些结构具有高岭石组成，除了拉拉古纳泥火山，其中以蒙脱石为主。除了构造过程外，这还影响了 MVs 的形状和大小，以及喷发的类型和频率。所有地点甲烷的丰度证实了这些构造的热成因。MVs 通常被视为景观景点和治疗资源，但不幸的是，由于频繁的意外喷发，有时伴随着有毒气体的释放或山体滑坡，它们也对当地社区构成了严重威胁，这些喷发可能会破坏基础设施并伤害生活在该地区的人口。使用一种新的综合指数，将 MVs 分为五个脆弱性等级，可以提高对与城镇和基础设施附近存在 MVs 相关风险的理解。
