Fluids driving the evolution of the continental crust: influence of pathway networks, fluxes, and time scales.

ended

Water is arguably the single most important volatile phase in the Earth’s continental crust. Fluids transfer and concentrate elements, enhance chemical reactions and facilitate deformation. In addition, through impact on porosity and permeability, fluids facilitate mass movement of fluids and dissolved substances. The transported elements may eventually concentrate in economically important reserves. Finding and responsibly exploiting such reserves depends on understanding how, when and where fluids flow from the scale of micrometres to kilometres. Dwindling or geopolitically restricted supply and increasing demand for resources accentuate the urgency for fluid transport models based on more comprehensive data and groundtruthing. The overall scientific aim of FluidNET is to contribute to the underpinning data, development and testing of new nano- to crustal-scale models of crustal fluid flux by constraining the time and length scales, mechanisms and provenance of crustal fluid fluxes at different crustal levels. To truly advance research on fluid fluxes, and thus impact society and in particular industry, a new generation of skilled personnel is required, who can work with such complex systems, and make interpretations and predictions based on large and incomplete datasets. FluidNET will provide a stimulating cross-disciplinary environment for the training of a cohort of early stage researchers, ESRs, in skills that are essential across the resources sector. Our training programme will challenge the ESRs with societally relevant questions, and will encourage them to ‘think outside the box’. They will learn to apply field observations, innovative analytical techniques and creative modelling approaches; to communicate effectively with a broad range of audiences; and to engage effectively with end-users of their research. Such skills will meet future employment demand and will enhance Europe’s capacity to provide innovative solutions to critical resource requirements.