Serpentine alteration as source of high dissolved silicon and elevated δ³⁰Si values to the marine Si cycle

Serpentine alteration is recognized as an important process for element cycling, however, related silicon fluxes are unknown. Pore fluids from serpentinite seamounts sampled in the Mariana forearc region during IODP Expedition 366 were investigated for their Si, B, and Sr isotope signatures (δ³⁰Si, δ¹¹B, and ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr, respectively) to study serpentinization in the mantle wedge and shallow serpentine alteration to authigenic clays by seawater. While serpentinization in the mantle wedge caused no significant Si isotope fractionation, implying closed system conditions, serpentine alteration by seawater led to the formation of authigenic phyllosilicates, causing the highest natural fluid δ³⁰Si values measured to date (up to +5.2 ± 0.2‰). Here we show that seafloor alteration of serpentinites is a source of Si to the ocean with extremely high fluid δ³⁰Si values, which can explain anomalies in the marine Si budget like in the Cascadia Basin and which has to be considered in future investigations of the global marine Si cycle.