Fig. 10: Estimating mush pile accumulation rates using a simple box model.
From: Microstructural constraints on magmatic mushes under Kīlauea Volcano, Hawaiʻi
a A cylinder is supplied with primary melt (16.5 wt% MgO) at a rate of 0.1 km3/year (see ref. 71). Fractionation of these primary melts to the average whole-rock MgO contents of erupted lavas (~10 wt%) requires fractionation of 14 vol.% olivine crystals (ref. 15). b The play off between cylinder radius and accumulation time is shown for mush piles with thicknesses of 180 and 720 m (assuming 40% porosity). Available constraints on reservoir radius from interferometric synthetic aperture radar (InSAR) are shown in yellow (see ref. 72). Melt inclusion trace element diversity at Kīlauea indicates that crystals are stored in mush piles for >170 years (see ref. 70; gray box). These geometric and temporal constraints bracket the range of mush thicknesses estimated in this study.
