Variability of ash deposits at Piton de la Fournaise (La Reunion Island): insights into fragmentation processes at basaltic shield volcanoes

It is commonly accepted that effusive activity emplaces the main emitted magmatic volume in basaltic shield volcanoes. At Piton de La Fournaise (La Reunion Island, France), eruptive activity occurs mostly within the non-populated Enclos Fouque caldera and generally does not pose any risk to the population. However, historical observations, recent monitoring data, and field work on tephra deposits suggest that some eruptions have produced unusual and unexpected explosive phases. A comprehensive sampling of tephra from major historical and recent eruptions on this volcano allowed us to perform systematic componentry, grain size, and chemical and morphological analyses in order to characterize the eruptive dynamics involved in these explosive basaltic eruptions. This integrative approach reveals highly variable characteristics of the studied tephra reflecting different fragmentation efficiencies and multiple associated mechanisms. Primary ductile and partially brittle fragmentation of various intensity of juvenile magma emitted during Hawaiian fountaining or mild Strombolian explosions were identified as the most common fragmentation mechanisms, in particular during the 2014–2018 dominantly effusive eruptive sequence. In parallel, we distinguished more efficient short-lived fragmentation events related to (i) plug pressurization and brittle fragmentation enhanced by syn-eruptive crystallization, (ii) magma/water interactions, (iii) rare phreatic explosions, and (iv) secondary fragmentation producing fine ash during caldera collapse. We conclude that textural, geochemical, and morphological analyses make it possible to identify and characterize the variability in eruptive processes, with the grain size, and the componentry of the ash particles being probably the most important parameters to quantify both the efficiency and the nature of the fragmentation.