Physical modeling of arc-content collision: A review of 2D, 3D, purley mechanical and thermo mechanical experimental models

One of the key areas of research in the Earth Sciences are processes that occur along the boundaries of the tectonic plates that make up Earth s lithosphere. Of particular importance are the processes of tectonic accretion and erosion along convergent plate boundaries. One of the principal mechanisms of accretion occurs when intra-oceanic volcanic arcs collide with the margin of a continent in what is called arc-continent collision. Arc-continent collision has been one of the important tectonic processes in the formation of mountain belts throughout geological time and continues today along tectonically active plate boundaries such as those in the SW Pacific or the Caribbean.