Diffuse CO2 degassing survey, NSRZ volcano, Tenerife

During repose periods, volcanoes can release large amounts of gas as visible (fumaroles, solfataras, plumes) and non-visible (diffuse degassing) emanations. The surface dynamics of gas emissions are usually controlled by local volcano-tectonics and hydrology, as permeable tectonic structures are the main pathways for the transport of gases to the surface. Because CO2 is the major gas species after water vapour both in volcanic fluids and in magmas and is an effective tracer of subsurface magma degassing, diffuse CO2 emissions at volcanoes have played an important role in volcano monitoring.

The goal of this study is to evaluate 2019 diffuse CO2 emissions from the Tenerife NSRZ volcano and compare these value to previous data. The two selected students for this programme will collaborate with field and lab work related to the INVOLCAN’s diffuse volcanic degassing monitoring of Tenerife North–South Rift Zone (NSRZ) volcano, Canary Islands.

During this program students will learn how to:

• perform in-situ soil CO2 efflux measurements
• collect soil gas samples for chemical and isotopic analysis
• apply statistical-graphical analysis on the diffuse CO2 degassing survey data
• estimate the total diffuse CO2 emission from  the Tenerife North–South Rift Zone (NSRZ) volcano using Gaussian simulations
• perform chemical analysis of the collected soil gas samples by means of micro-chromatography (microGC) and quadrupole mass spectrometry (QMS)