Absorbent Porous Paper Reveals How Earthquakes Could be Mitigated

Earthquakes nucleate when large amounts of elastic energy, stored in the earth's crust, are suddenly released due to abrupt sliding over a fault. Fluid injections can reactivate existing seismogenic faults and induce/trigger earthquakes by increasing fluid pressure. Here we develop an analogous experimental system simultaneously loaded wetted absorbent porous paper quantify theoretically process wetting-induced earthquakes. This strategy allows us gradually release energy provoking low intensity tremors. We identify key parameters that control outcome applied injection strategy, which include initial stress state, fault segmentation, segment-activation rate. Subsequent injections, initiated at high levels, drive faster toward its instability point, nucleating earthquake. Starting however, they reduce magnitude natural event least one unit.