geographia - Studia

ANDREA GÁL
aragonite mine and Homorod1 is located near a road on the territory of an old bath). The
material discharged by the mud volcano is represented by the steep part of the cumulative
granulometric curve – which is a relatively well sorted material, probably originating from
one source layer.
3. 2. Mud mound
The term mud mound is borrowed from Brown (1990) who uses it to describe
those positive features that don’t have any obvious main vent structure. In this present study
the term mud mound will be used to mark all the dome- and mound-shaped mud volcanic
edifices regardless of the vent structure.
The external morphology of the mud mound differs from that of the gryphon firstly
because the mud mound has a shape of a dome and the intersection with the topographical
surface is realized through a circular arc.
Fig. 4. Mud mound (Filiaş3).
Mud mounds have a solid crust of about 20-60 cm, under which the liquid and
sometimes viscous mud accumulates in a mud chamber from where it will be expelled
under the pressure of gases through the vent.
The vent of the
mud mounds can be a small
opening or in extreme cases
it can be represented by a
small crater (approximately
60 cm) or it can be sealed by
vegetation. In the proximity
of the surface the feeding
channel is almost as wide as
the active part of the mud
volcano. The flanks of the
cone consist of waterlogged,
gleyic material.
Fig. 5. Idealized sketch of a mud mound.
34