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Metal-silicate Partitioning at High Pressure and Temperature: Experimental Methods and a Protocol to Suppress Highly Siderophile Element Inclusions
Published on: June 13, 2015
Superheating effects on metal-silicate partitioning of siderophile elements.
Science (New York, N.Y.)
|December 17, 1993
Summary
High temperatures cause liquid metal-liquid silicate partition coefficients to approach unity, offering insights into Earth's mantle composition and challenging core element hypotheses.
Area of Science:
- Geochemistry
- High-pressure experimental petrology
- Planetary science
Background:
- The "excess" siderophile element (SE) problem in Earth's mantle suggests incomplete core formation segregation.
- Understanding element partitioning between core and mantle is crucial for planetary evolution models.
Purpose of the Study:
- To experimentally determine liquid metal-liquid silicate partition coefficients at high pressures and temperatures.
- To investigate the role of sulfur and carbon in Earth's core formation.
Main Methods:
- High-pressure, high-temperature experiments using carbon capsules.
- Analysis of element partitioning between immiscible metallic and silicate liquids.
Main Results:
- Partition coefficients for several elements converge to unity with increasing temperature (up to 3000 K) at 100 kbar.
- Sulfur and carbon compete with oxygen for metallic liquid sites, challenging the oxygen core hypothesis.
Conclusions:
- Experimental results partially explain the "excess" siderophile element problem but do not fully resolve it.
- The competition of sulfur and carbon with oxygen suggests alternative light elements in Earth's core.
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