Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

The Capacity Of Hydrous Fluids To Transport And Fractionate Incompatible Elements And Metals Within The Earth's Mantle, John Adam, Marek Locmelis, Juan Carlos Afonso, Tracy Rushmer, Marco L. Fiorentini

Geosciences and Geological and Petroleum Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

Both silicate melts and aqueous fluids are thought to play critical roles in the chemical differentiation of the Earth's crust and mantle. Yet their relative effects are poorly constrained. We have addressed this issue by measuring partition coefficients for 50 trace and minor elements in experimentally produced aqueous fluids, coexisting basanite melts, and peridotite minerals. The experiments were conducted at 1.0-4.0 GPa and 950-1200°C in single capsules containing (either 40 or 50 wt %) H₂O and trace element-enriched basanite glass. This allowed run products to be easily identified and analyzed by a combination of electron microprobe and LAM-ICP-MS. …