Damaged rocks in the Earth’s upper crust are heterogeneous and anisotropic across multiple spatial scales. Assessing the scale-dependence of rock physical properties is therefore a prerequisite to upscale observations from laboratory to field conditions. Characterizing rock damage is particularly relevant in several fields of applied geology, for example in the context fluid-flow properties of reservoir rocks that are strongly affected by anisotropy and heterogeneity. A quantitative description of damage is necessary to efficiently exploit subsurface resources. The characterization of damage around fault zones and its temporal evolution contributes to a better understanding of seismological observations and the mechanics of earthquakes. The spatial and temporal distribution of physical rock properties can be used to constrain their structure.

For this session, we welcome contributions from fields of rock physics, structural geology, seismology and applied geology including studies employing microstructural analyses (e.g. microscopy and high-resolution µCT-scanning), numerical and analytical models (e.g. digital rock physics), laboratory experiments, and fieldwork. We particularly encourage contributions dealing with the correlation between structural discontinuities and THMC rock physical transport properties.