This NERC funded project brings together expertise and knowledge from the field studies of actively degassing volcanoes, petrological studies of volatile solubilities in magmatic systems, and fluid mechanical models of magma circulation within volcanoes. The project has several objectives:
1) Improved understanding and quantification of the mechanisms of persistent volcanic degassing; including magma chamber and conduit convection, and permeability development in magmas.
2) Numerical models for the prediction of volcanic gas chemistry and flux based on subterranean volcanic processes. This will lead to a quantitative evaluation of the utility of volcanic gas measurements as predictive tools for assessing volcanic hazard.
3) Empirical solubility laws for S and Cl in basalts. These are to be published as a user friendly computer package.
4) Continuation of an extensive dataset of gas chemistry and flux for Masaya volcano, Nicaragua.