Long-term evolution of seismogenic faults in the central Apennines

A careful assessment of the long-term deformation response of the seismogenic upper crust is necessary for a better assessment of the dynamical control on crustal deformation and the seismic hazard models. On this regard, a growing body of evidence has documented that the deformation history along the trace of major seismically active faults may be elucidated by characterizing the hydrodynamic structure of the exhumed, fault-related damage and core zones (fault hydrodynamics), where structures relative to the (fossil) inter- and coseismic cycles can be recognized and used to propose a model of seismogenic faulting in space and time. The seismogenic fault pattern of the central Apennines of Italy provides a natural laboratory where studying the interactions and feedbacks between long- and short-term deformation in extensional settings. The project is aimed to integrate field and laboratory methods with up-to-date techniques for the study of exhumed and active fault zones to improve knowledge on how fault zones nucleate, propagate, and localize in the extending brittle crust. Methods and techniques will be developed for the study of exhumed and active fault zones in order to acquire trans-disciplinary research skills in the reconstruction of the fault activity in space and time. Specific research topics will deal with the fluid-mediated deformation in the brittle crust, Quaternary stratigraphy, fluid geochemistry, radiometric dating, regional tectonics, and active tectonics. The expected result will allow (i) to define the spatio-temporal (long-term) evolution of seismogenic faulting in the central Apennines, and (ii) to derive a conceptual geological model of earthquake-related fluid circulation within seismically active faults, eventually validating preseismic fluid-related hydrogeochemical and seismological anomalies.