The Lower Mantle Minerals in Ophiolite-hosted Diamond

<正>Ophiolites are fragments of ancient ocean lithosphere emplaced on continental margins,in island arcs or in accretionary prisms,and have long been studied to better understand the evolution of ocean basins and collision of tectonic plates,the processes of mountain building and the occurrence of valuable ore bodies,such as podiform     

Asymmetrically zoned reaction rims: assessment of grain boundary diffusivities and growth rates related to natural diffusion-controlled mineral reactions

This study explores garnet coronas around hedenbergite, which were formed by the reaction plagioclase + hedenbergite→garnet + quartz, to derive information about diffusion paths that allowed for material redistribution during reaction progress. Whereas quartz forms disconnected single grains along the garnet/hedenbergite boundaries, garnet forms ～20‐μm‐wide continuous polycrystalline rims along former plagioclase/hedenbergite phase boundaries. Individual garnet crystals are separated by low‐angle grain boundaries, which commonly form a direct link between the reaction interfaces of the plagioclase|garnet|hedenbergite succession. Compositional variations in garnet involve: (i) an overall asymmetric compositional zoning in Ca, Fe²⁺, Fe³⁺ and Al across the garnet layer; and (ii) micron‐scale compositional variations in the near‐grain boundary regions and along plagioclase/garnet phase boundaries. These compositional variations formed during garnet rim growth. Thereby, transfer of the chemical components occurred by a combination of fast‐path diffusion along grain boundaries within the garnet rim, slow diffusion through the interior of the garnet grains, and by fast diffusion along the garnet/plagioclase and the garnet/hedenbergite phase boundaries. Numerical simulation indicates that diffusion of Ca, Al and Fe²⁺ occurred about three to four, four and six to seven orders of magnitude faster along the grain boundaries than through the interior of the garnet grains. Fast‐path diffusion along grain boundaries contributed substantially to the bulk material transfer across the growing garnet rim. Despite the contribution of fast‐path diffusion, bulk diffusion through the garnet rim was too slow to allow for chemical equilibration of the phases involved in garnet rim formation even on a micrometre scale. Based on published garnet volume diffusion data the growth interval of a 20‐μm‐wide garnet rim is estimated at ～10³–10⁴ years at the inferred reaction conditions of 760 ± 50 °C at 7.6 kbar. Using the same parameterization of the growth law, 100‐μm‐ and 1‐mm‐thick garnet rims would grow within 10⁵–10⁶ and 10⁶–10⁷ years respectively.     

Focused Ion Beam (FIB) – TEM: Exploring Earth Materials with Ions and Electrons

<正>Focused ion beam techniques have been applied in Geosciences since 10–15 years.The basic principal of FIB is using accelerated Ga-ions to sputter material from a target.At the beginning of FIB application in Geosciences it was utilized as a tool to prepare site-specific samples for transmission electron microscopy(TEM).FIB enabled     

Phlogopite and quartz lamellae in diamond‐bearing diopside from marbles of the Kokchetav massif,Kazakhstan: exsolution or replacement reaction?

Exsolution lamellae of pyroxene in garnet (grt), coesite in titanite and omphacite from UHPM terranes are widely accepted as products of decompression. However, interpretation of oriented lamellae of phyllosilicates, framework silicates and oxides as a product of decompression of pyroxene is very often under debate. Results are presented here of FIB‐TEM, FEG‐EMP and synchrotron‐assisted infrared (IR) spectroscopy studies of phlogopite (Phlog) and phlogopite + quartz (Qtz) lamellae in diamond‐bearing clinopyroxene (Cpx) from ultra‐high pressure (UHP) marble. These techniques allowed collection of three‐dimensional information from the grain boundaries of both the single (phlogopite), two‐phase lamellae (phlogopite + quartz), and fluid inclusions inside of diamond included in K‐rich Cpx and understanding their relationships and mechanisms of formation. The Cpx grains contain in their cores lamellae‐I, which are represented by topotactically oriented extremely thin lamellae of phlogopite (that generally are two units cell wide but locally can be seen to be somewhat broader) and microdiamond. The core composition is: (Ca_0.94K_0.04Na_0.02) (Al_0.06Fe_0.08Mg_0.88) (Si_1.98Al_0.02)O_6.00. Fluid inclusions rich in K and Si are recognized in the core of the Cpx, having no visible connections to the lamellae‐I. Lamellar‐II inclusions consist of micron‐size single laths of phlogopite and lens‐like quartz or slightly elongated phlogopite + quartz intergrowths; all are situated in the rim zone of the Cpx. The composition of the rim is (Ca_0.95Fe_0.03Na_0.02) (Al_0.05Fe_0.05Mg_0.90)Si₂O₆, and the rim contains more Ca, Mg then the core, with no K there. Such chemical tests support our microstructural observations and conclusion that the phlogopite lamellae‐I are exsolved from the K‐rich Cpx‐precursor during decompression. It is assumed that Cpx‐precursor was also enriched in H₂O, because diamond included in the core of this Cpx contains fluid inclusions. The synchrotron IR spectra of such diamond record the presence of OH^? stretching and H₂O bending motion regions. Lamellar‐II inclusions are interpreted as forming partly because of modification of the lamellae‐I in the presence of fluid enriched in K, Fe and Si during deformation of the host diopside; the latter is probably related to the shallower stage of exhumation of the UHP marble. This study emphasizes that in each case to understand the mechanism of lamellar inclusion formation more detailed studies are needed combining both compositional, structural and three‐dimensional textural features of lamellar inclusions and their host.     

Airborne measurements of dust layer properties, particle size distribution and mixing state of Saharan dust during SAMUM 2006

The Saharan Mineral Dust Experiment (SAMUM) was conducted in May/June 2006 in southern Morocco. As part of SAMUM, airborne in situ measurements of the particle size distribution in the diameter range 4 nm < D _p < 100 μm were conducted. The aerosol mixing state was determined below D _p < 2.5 μm. Furthermore, the vertical structure of the dust layers was investigated with a nadir-looking high spectral resolution lidar (HSRL). The desert dust aerosol exhibited two size regimes of different mixing states: below 0.5 μm, the particles had a non-volatile core and a volatile coating; larger particles above 0.5 μm consisted of non-volatile components and contained light absorbing material. In all cases, particles larger than 10 μm were present, and in 80% of the measurements no particles larger than 40 μm were present. The abundance of large particles showed almost no height dependence. The effective diameter D _eff in the dust plumes investigated showed two main ranges: the first range of D _eff peaked around 5 μm and the second range of D _eff around 8 μm. The two ranges of D _eff suggest that it may be inadequate to use one average effective diameter or one parametrization for a typical dust size distribution.     

Depolarization ratio profiling at several wavelengths in pure Saharan dust during SAMUM 2006

Vertical profiles of the linear particle depolarization ratio of pure dust clouds were measured during the Saharan Mineral Dust Experiment (SAMUM) at Ouarzazate, Morocco (30.9°N, –6.9°E), close to source regions in May–June 2006, with four lidar systems at four wavelengths (355, 532, 710 and 1064 nm). The intercomparison of the lidar systems is accompanied by a discussion of the different calibration methods, including a new, advanced method, and a detailed error analysis. Over the whole SAMUM periode pure dust layers show a mean linear particle depolarization ratio at 532 nm of 0.31, in the range between 0.27 and 0.35, with a mean Ångström exponent (AE, 440–870 nm) of 0.18 (range 0.04–0.34) and still high mean linear particle depolarization ratio between 0.21 and 0.25 during periods with aerosol optical thickness less than 0.1, with a mean AE of 0.76 (range 0.65–1.00), which represents a negative correlation of the linear particle depolarization ratio with the AE. A slight decrease of the linear particle depolarization ratio with wavelength was found between 532 and 1064 nm from 0.31 ± 0.03 to 0.27 ± 0.04.     

Spatial distribution and optical properties of Saharan dust observed by airborne high spectral resolution lidar during SAMUM 2006

Airborne measurements of pure Saharan dust extinction and backscatter coefficients, the corresponding lidar ratio and the aerosol optical thickness (AOT) have been performed during the Saharan Mineral Dust Experiment 2006, with a high spectral resolution lidar. Dust layers were found to range from ground up to 4–6 km above sea level (asl). Maximum AOT values at 532 nm, encountered within these layers during the DLR Falcon research flights were 0.50–0.55. A significant horizontal variability of the AOT south of the High Atlas mountain range was observed even in cases of a well-mixed dust layer. High vertical variations of the dust lidar ratio of 38–50 sr were observed in cases of stratified dust layers. The variability of the lidar ratio was attributed to dust advection from different source regions. The aerosol depolarization ratio was about 30% at 532 nm during all measurements and showed only marginal vertical variations.