Abstract
This paper presents the results from the simulation of a phreatomagmatic eruption, in which the formation of the eruptive column is controlled by interaction between magma and water or ice. The process leads to intensive fragmentation of the magma and to mixing of ash and steam with ambient air. Such processes were typical of the initial phase in the April 2010 eruption of Eyjafjallajökull Volcano. It is hypothesized that phreatic explosions produce a dynamic pulsating system that consists of buoyant volumes of the mixture (thermals) that are forming at the base of the eruptive column. A 3-D simulation was used to assess two possible regimes in the evolution of the eruptive column: (1) continuous transport of the mixture into the eruptive column through its base for the case in which the thermals are generated at a high rate and (2) periodic flotation of the thermals whose diameters are comparable with that of the base of the eruptive column. It is shown that one can find a suitable selection of the initial concentrations of ash, steam, and air to achieve a satisfactory agreement between theory and actually observed heights of the gas–ash “clouds” that were formed during the Eyjafjallajökull eruption. The data for our calculations were taken from publications. We also investigated how wind and the changes in the initial parameters affect the process.
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Original Russian Text © V.M. Khazins, V.V. Shuvalov, 2017, published in Vulkanologiya i Seismologiya, 2017, No. 1, pp. 17–27.
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Khazins, V.M., Shuvalov, V.V. The model of an eruptive column produced by phreatomagmatic explosions. J. Volcanolog. Seismol. 11, 33–42 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1134/S074204631701002X
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1134/S074204631701002X