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<p>The thermal structure of subduction zones controls key geodynamic processes, including dehydration reactions, partial melting, and postseismic viscoelastic deformation. We present a workflow that couples the open-source finite element platform Firedrake with the mesh generator Gmsh to model mantle wedge flow and thermal structure in both 2D and 3D subduction zone configurations. Kinematic velocities are imposed on the subducting slab, and the Stokes equations are solved to obtain the mantle wedge velocity field, which is then used as input for the steady-state or time-dependent energy equation. The accuracy of our Firedrake-based implementation was verified by benchmarking against previously published TerraFERMA and Sepran solutions. We tested both constant-viscosity and power-law viscosity rheologies. The power-law model yields higher slab-interface temperatures and faster corner flow than the constant-viscosity model, reflecting stronger advective heat transport driven by strain-rate-dependent viscosity. Beyond idealized single-angle geometries, we modeled curved slab configurations in 2D and 3D. For geophysically constrained models, 3D slab geometries were extracted from the Slab2 dataset and integrated into the Gmsh–Firedrake workflow. We constructed 3D models for six major Pacific subduction zones: Kermadec, Izu–Bonin–Mariana, Kuril, Aleutian, Cascadia, and Central America. Along-strike variations in slab dip and curvature generate trench-parallel mantle flow that is absent in idealized 3D curved models, producing spatially heterogeneous thermal structures along the trench. These results demonstrate that the Gmsh–Firedrake framework effectively captures geometry-dependent variations in mantle wedge thermal structure.</p>

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Numerical Modeling of Subduction Zone Thermal Structure with Firedrake and Gmsh

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2026年7月27日

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  • Minji Seong,
  • Hyeon-Seob Kim,
  • Kyeong-Min Lee,
  • Jeonghyeop Kim,
  • Byung-Dal So

摘要

The thermal structure of subduction zones controls key geodynamic processes, including dehydration reactions, partial melting, and postseismic viscoelastic deformation. We present a workflow that couples the open-source finite element platform Firedrake with the mesh generator Gmsh to model mantle wedge flow and thermal structure in both 2D and 3D subduction zone configurations. Kinematic velocities are imposed on the subducting slab, and the Stokes equations are solved to obtain the mantle wedge velocity field, which is then used as input for the steady-state or time-dependent energy equation. The accuracy of our Firedrake-based implementation was verified by benchmarking against previously published TerraFERMA and Sepran solutions. We tested both constant-viscosity and power-law viscosity rheologies. The power-law model yields higher slab-interface temperatures and faster corner flow than the constant-viscosity model, reflecting stronger advective heat transport driven by strain-rate-dependent viscosity. Beyond idealized single-angle geometries, we modeled curved slab configurations in 2D and 3D. For geophysically constrained models, 3D slab geometries were extracted from the Slab2 dataset and integrated into the Gmsh–Firedrake workflow. We constructed 3D models for six major Pacific subduction zones: Kermadec, Izu–Bonin–Mariana, Kuril, Aleutian, Cascadia, and Central America. Along-strike variations in slab dip and curvature generate trench-parallel mantle flow that is absent in idealized 3D curved models, producing spatially heterogeneous thermal structures along the trench. These results demonstrate that the Gmsh–Firedrake framework effectively captures geometry-dependent variations in mantle wedge thermal structure.