An investigation into the role of time-dependent cohesion in interseismic fault restrengthening

Earthquakes typically exhibit recurrence times that far exceed time-scales attainable in a laboratory setting. To traverse the temporal gap between the laboratory and nature, the slide-hold-slide test is commonly employed as a laboratory analogue for the seismic cycle, from which the time-dependence of fault strength may be assessed. In many studies it is implicitly assumed that all fault restrengthening emanates from an increase in the internal friction coefficient, neglecting contributions from cohesion. By doing so, important information is lost that is relevant for numerical simulations of seismicity on natural faults, as well as for induced seismicity. We conduct slide-hold-slide experiments on granular halite gouge at various normal stresses to assess the time-dependence of the internal coefficient of friction, and of the cohesion, independently of one another. These experiments reveal that both the internal friction coefficient and cohesion increase over time, but that these quantities do not share a common evolution, suggesting different underlying mechanisms.