Abstract
Hydraulic fracturing, induced by thermal expansion of water, is invoked as a common phenomenon by which metamorphic fluid is progressively lost from a sediment pile undergoing metamorphism and subsequent orogeny. On linear thermal gradients, water loss may occur by this mechanism for all gradients greater than 12°C/km at depths greater than 5 to 10 km. During burial on lower gradients, water is retained in the pile and may cause widespread metasomatism.
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