Zn and Cu isotopic variations in chondrites and iron meteorites: Early solar nebula reservoirs and parent-body processes

High-precision Zn isotopic variations are reported for carbonaceous chondrites (CC), equilibrated (EOC) and unequilibrated (UOC) ordinary chondrites, iron meteorites from the IAB-IIICD (nonmagmatic) and IIIA (magmatic) groups, and metal from the Brenham pallasite. For irons, δ⁶⁵Cu values are also reported. Data have also been obtained on a coarse-grained type-B calcium-, aluminum-rich refractory inclusion (CAI) from Allende and on acid leaches of Allende (CV3), Krymka (LL3), and Charsonville (H6). Variations expressed as δ⁶⁶Zn (deviation in parts per thousand of ⁶⁶Zn/⁶⁴Zn in samples relative to a standard) spread over a range of 0.3‰ for carbonaceous chondrites, 2‰ for ordinary chondrites, and 4‰ for irons.The measured ⁶⁶Zn/⁶⁴Zn, ⁶⁷Zn/⁶⁴Zn, and ⁶⁸Zn/⁶⁴Zn ratios vary linearly with mass difference and define a common isotope fractionation line with terrestrial samples, which demonstrates that Zn was derived from an initially single homogeneous reservoir. The δ⁶⁶Zn values are correlated with meteorite compositions and slightly decrease in the order CI, CM, CV-CO, and to UOC. The isotopically light Zn of Allende CAI and the acid-resistant residues of Allende and Krymka show that the light component is associated with refractory material, presumably minerals from the spinel-group. This, together with the reverse correlation between relative abundances of light Zn isotopes and volatile element abundances, suggests that Zn depletion in planetary bodies with respect to CI cannot be ascribed to devolatilization of CI-like material. These observations rather suggest that refractory material reacted with a gas phase enriched in the lighter Zn isotopes. Alternatively, chondrules with their associated rims should carry a light Zn isotopic signature. The δ⁶⁶Zn values of unequilibrated chondrites are rather uniform, whereas equilibrated chondrites show distinctly more isotopic variability.The values of δ⁶⁵Cu-δ⁶⁶Zn in irons define two trends. The moderate and positively correlated Cu and Zn isotope variations in IIIA and pallasite samples probably reflect crystallization of silicate, sulfide, and solid metal from the liquid metal. The range of δ⁶⁶Zn values of the IAB-IIICD group is large (>3‰) and contrasts with the moderate fractionation of Cu isotopes. We interpret this feature and the negative δ⁶⁶Zn-δ⁶⁵Cu correlation as reflecting mixing, possibly achieved by percolation, between metals from a regolith devolatilized at low temperature (enriched in heavy zinc) and metallic liquids formed within the parent body.     

Chronology of meteorites and the early solar system

Understanding the chronology of the chondritic and differentiated meteorites can potentially important constraints on the accretion and origin of the solar system planets, life-time of our protoplanetary disk and circumstellar disks around solar mass stars, and astrophysical setting of the solar system formation. The special issue of Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta consists of invited and contributed papers presented at the Workshop on The Chronology of Meteorites and the Early Solar System, Kauai, 2007 and is honoring the outstanding contributions of C.J. Allégre, G.W. Lugmair, L.E. Nyquist, D.A. Papanastassiou, and G.J. Wasserburg to our understanding of the chronology of the early Solar System.     

Short-lived radioactive nuclides in meteorites and early solar system processes

Now extinct, short-lived radioactive nuclides, such as ⁷Be (T_1/2 = 53 days), ¹⁰Be (T_1/2 = 1.5 Ma), ²⁶Al (T_1/2 = 0.74 Ma), ³⁶Cl (T_1/2 = 0.3 Ma), ⁴¹Ca (T_1/2 = 0.1 Ma), ⁵³Mn (T_1/2 = 3.7 Ma) and ⁶⁰Fe (T_1/2 = 1.5 Ma), were present in the protosolar nebula when the various components of meteorites formed. The presence of these radioactive isotopes requires a ‘last-minute’ origin, either nucleosynthesis in a massive star dying close in space and time to the nascent solar system or production by local irradiation of part of the protosolar disk by high-energy solar cosmic rays. In this review, we list: (i) the different observations indicating the existence of multiple origins for short-lived radioactive nuclides, namely ⁷Be, ¹⁰Be and ³⁶Cl for irradiation scenario and ⁶⁰Fe for injection scenario; (ii) the constraints that exist on their distribution (homogeneous or heterogeneous) in the accretion disk; (iii) the constraints they brought on the timescales of nebular processes (from Ca–Al-rich inclusions to chondrules) and of the accretion and differentiation of planetesimals.     

A search for nickel isotopic anomalies in iron meteorites and chondrites

We report Ni isotopic data, for ^58,60-62Ni, on (1) FeNi metal and sulfides in different groups of iron meteorites, (2) sulfides and a whole rock sample of the St. Séverin chondrite, and (3) chondrules from the Chainpur chondrite. We have developed improved, Multiple-Collector, Positive ion Thermal Ionization Mass Spectrometric (MC-PTIMS) techniques, with Ni⁺ ionization efficiency at 1‰, and chemical separation techniques for Ni which reduce mass interferences to the 1 ppm level, so that no mass interference corrections need be applied, except for ⁶⁴Ni (from ⁶⁴Zn, at the 0.1‰ level), for which we do not report results. We normalize the data to ⁶²Ni/⁵⁸Ni to correct for mass dependent isotope fractionation. No evidence was found for resolved radiogenic or general Ni isotope anomalies at the resolution levels of 0.2 and 0.5 εu (εu = 0.01%) for ⁶⁰Ni/⁵⁸Ni and ⁶¹Ni/⁵⁸Ni, respectively. From the ⁵⁶Fe/⁵⁸Ni ratios and ε(⁶⁰Ni/⁵⁸Ni) values, we calculate upper limits for the initial value of (⁶⁰Fe/⁵⁶Fe)₀ of (a) <2.7 × 10⁻⁷ for Chainpur chondrules, (b) <10⁻⁸ for the St. Séverin sulfide, and (c) <4 × 10⁻⁹ for sulfides from iron meteorites. We measured some of the same meteorites measured by other workers, who reported isotopic anomalies in Ni, using Multiple-Collector, Inductively-Coupled Mass Spectrometry. Our results do not support the previous reports of Ni isotopic anomalies in sulfide samples from Mundrabilla by Cook et al. [Cook D. L., Clayton R. N., Wadhwa M., Janney P. E., and Davis A. M. (2008). Nickel isotopic anomalies in troilite from iron meteorites. Geophy. Res. Lett. 35, L01203] and in sulfides from Toluca and Odessa by Quitté et al. [Quitté G., Meier M., Latkoczy C., Halliday A. N., and Gunther D., (2006). Nickel isotopes in iron meteorites-nucleosynthetic anomalies in sulfides with no effects in metals and no trace of ⁶⁰Fe. Earth Planet. Sci. Lett. 242, 16-25]. Hence, we find no need for specialized physical-chemical planetary processes for the preservation of different Ni isotope compositions, between FeNi metal and sulfides in the same iron meteorites, as proposed by the above reports nor for complex astrophysical scenarios to provide the very peculiar Ni isotope anomalies reported by these workers for sulfides.     

Confirmation of mass-independent Ni isotopic variability in iron meteorites

We report high-precision analyses of internally-normalised Ni isotope ratios in 12 bulk iron meteorites. Our measurements of ⁶⁰Ni/⁶¹Ni, ⁶²Ni/⁶¹Ni and ⁶⁴Ni/⁶¹Ni normalised to ⁵⁸Ni/⁶¹Ni and expressed in parts per ten thousand (?) relative to NIST SRM 986 as and , vary by 0.146, 0.228 and 0.687, respectively. The precision on a typical analysis is 0.03?, 0.05? and 0.08? for , and , respectively, which is comparable to our sample reproducibility. We show that this ‘mass-independent’ Ni isotope variability cannot be ascribed to interferences, inaccurate correction of instrumental or natural mass-dependent fractionation, fractionation controlled by nuclear field shift effects, nor the influence of cosmic ray spallation. These results thus document the presence of mass-independent Ni isotopic heterogeneity in bulk meteoritic samples, as previously proposed by Regelous et al. (2008) (EPSL 272, 330-338), but our new analyses are more precise and include determination of ⁶⁴Ni. Intriguingly, we find that terrestrial materials do not yield homogenous internally-normalised Ni isotope compositions, which, as pointed out by Young et al. (2002) (GCA 66, 1095-1104), may be the expected result of using the exponential (kinetic) law and atomic masses to normalise all fractionation processes. The certified Ni isotope reference material NIST SRM 986 defines zero in this study, while appropriate ratios for the bulk silicate Earth are given by the peridotites JP-1 and DTS-2 and, relative to NIST SRM 986, yield deviations in , and of −0.006?, 0.036? and 0.119?, respectively. There is a strong positive correlation between and in iron meteorites analyses, with a slope of 3.03 ± 0.71. The variations of Ni isotope anomalies in iron meteorites are consistent with heterogeneous distribution of a nucleosynthetic component from a type Ia supernova into the proto-solar nebula.     

Presolar grains from meteorites: Remnants from the early times of the solar system

This review provides an introduction to presolar grains - preserved stardust from the interstellar molecular cloud from which our solar system formed - found in primitive meteorites. We describe the search for the presolar components, the currently known presolar mineral populations, and the chemical and isotopic characteristics of the grains and dust-forming stars to identify the grains’ most probable stellar sources.     

铁陨石及中铁陨石的稀有气体同位素丰度和放射性核素活度

测定了两个铁陨石及两个中铁陨石的稀有气体同位素丰度和＾１０Ｂｅ、＾２６Ａｌ和＾３６Ｃｌ的放射性核素活度。在所研究的４个陨石中,东乌珠穆沁旗（类型Ⅰ）、渭源（类型Ⅲ）中铁陨石及宁波铁陨石（ⅣＡ）是在中国回收的,另一个无结构铁陨石Ｒａｆｒｕｔｉ是于１８８６年在瑞士发现的。根据＾１０Ｂｅ－＾２１Ｎｅ、＾２６Ａｌ－＾２１Ｎｅ和＾３６Ｃｌ－＾３６Ａｒ计算了两个铁陨石的产率及宇宙射线暴露年龄。其中Ｒａｆｒｕｔ     

The isotopic composition and concentration of Ag in iron meteorites and the origin of exotic silver

The isotopic composition of Ag and the concentration of Ag and Pd have been determined in Canyon Diablo (IA), Grant (IIIB), Hoba, Santa Clara, Tlacotepec and Warburton Range (IVB), Piñon and Deep Springs (anom.). Troilite from Grant and Santa Clara have also been analyzed. All of these meteorites, with the exception of Canyon Diablo, give ${}^{107}\text{Ag}{}^{109}\text{Ag}$ in the metal phase that is greater than the terrestrial value with the enrichments of ¹⁰⁷Ag ranging from ~2% to 212%. These data show that Ag of anomalous isotopic composition is common to all IVB and anomalous meteorites. The results on Grant suggest that the anomalies may be widespread including more common meteorite groups. There is a general correlation of ${}^{107}\text{Ag}{}^{109}\text{Ag}$ with $\text{Pd}\text{Ag}$ except for the data from FeS of Santa Clara. It is concluded that the excess ¹⁰⁷Ag is the result of decay of ¹⁰⁷Pd, a nuclide that is extinct at present with an abundance of ${}^{107}\text{Pd}{}^{108}\text{Pd}$ of about 3 × 10^?5. The troilite in Grant exhibits normal ${}^{107}\text{Ag}{}^{109}\text{Ag}$ to within errors, a high Ag concentration and a low ratio of ${}^{108}\text{Pd}{}^{109}\text{Ag}$ ~0.17. Grant metal has ${}^{107}\text{Ag}{}^{109}\text{Ag}$ that is ~2% greater than normal and a high ratio of ${}^{108}\text{Pd}{}^{109}\text{Ag}$ ~ 10³. The data from Grant appear to represent a ¹⁰⁷Pd-¹⁰⁷Ag isochron and indicate that the cooling rate at elevated temperatures was sufficiently rapid to preserve substantial isotopic differences between metal and troilite. Troilite in Santa Clara was found to contain Ag with a very high ${}^{107}\text{Ag}{}^{109}\text{Ag}$ ratio (108% above normal), an Ag concentration only a factor of three above the metal and a high value of ${}^{108}\text{Pd}{}^{109}\text{Ag}$ ~1.3 × 10⁴. The troilite has a higher ${}^{107}\text{Ag}{}^{109}\text{Ag}$ than the metal. These data are not compatible with a simple model of in situ decay and subsequent local Ag redistribution between metal and troilite during cooling. These data suggest that Ag in Santa Clara and possibly other IVB meteorites is made up of almost pure ¹⁰⁷Ag produced from ¹⁰⁷Pd decay and ¹⁰⁹Ag produced by nuclear reactions with only a small amount of “normal” Ag. This indicates an intense energetic particle bombardment history in the early solar system (~10²⁰ p/m²) which occurred after the formation of small planetary bodies. We infer that a T-Tauri activity by the early sun contributed to some late stage “nucleosynthesis” and the heating of a dust cloud. In addition, implications on the early thermal evolution of iron meteorites are presented based on ¹⁰⁷Pd decay and models of the cooling history.     

The isotopic composition of silver and lead in two iron meteorites: Cape York and Grant

Silver in the metal phases of Cape York (IIIA) and Grant (IIIB) has been determined after an extensive surface cleaning process. The ${}^{107}\text{Ag}{}^{109}\text{Ag}$ was found to be enriched over that found in terrestrial Ag by ~7%. to 19%., demonstrating the presence of excess ¹⁰⁷Ag (¹⁰⁷Ag¹) in this class of meteorites. An effort was made to find schreibersite with a distinctive ¹⁰⁸Pd/¹⁰⁹Ag ratio in order to establish a three-point isochron, but the results are not markedly different from those obtained for the bulk metal. The Ag isotopic ratio of sulfides from the same meteorites were nearly normal in composition. These results demonstrate correlations of ${}^{107}\text{Ag}{}^{109}\text{Ag}$ with ${}^{108}\text{Pd}{}^{109}\text{Ag}$ between coexisting phases of two iron meteorites that are associated with planetary differentiation processes. The ratios ${}^{107}\text{Ag}{}^1{}^{108}\text{Pd}$ were found to be 1.7 × 10^?5 and 1.2 × 10^?5 for Cape York and Grant, respectively. These observations are in support of the widespread presence of ¹⁰⁷Pd in the early solar system. The difference in isotopic composition between metal and sulfide phases demonstrates that silver diffusion was small (over 6.5 × 10⁶ y) indicating a cooling rate much greater than 150°C/my for meteorites which have been attributed to small planetary cores. Uranium determinations were carried out on the metal phases and concentrations of ~ $\text{1 × 10}{}^{12}$ g U/g and 2 × 10^?10g U/g were found for Cape York and Grant, respectively. The Pb in these meteorites was determined using the improved cleaning procedures and chemical separations with low blank levels. The results confirm the presence of variable proportions of radiogenic Pb in both the metal and sulfide phases of iron meteorites. No simple explanation for the presence of radiogenic lead is apparent; while terrestrial contamination may appear to be the obvious explanation, it is possible that this effect could result from relatively recent metamorphism in the meteorite parent body.     

Highly siderophile element evidence for early solar system processes in components from ordinary chondrites

Separated magnetic and nonmagnetic components from the ordinary chondrites Dhajala (H3.8) and Ochansk (H4) were analyzed for their Re-Os isotopic compositions, as well as for the abundances of the highly siderophile elements (HSE) Re, Os, Ir, Ru, Pt and Pd. The Re-Os isotopic systematics of these components are used to constrain the timing of HSE fractionations, and assess the level of open-system behavior of these elements in each of the different components. The high precision, isotope dilution mass spectrometric analyses of the HSE are used to constrain the origins of, and possible relations between some of the diverse components present in these chondrites. The relative and absolute abundances of the HSE differ considerably among the components. Metal fractions have Re/Os that are factors of ∼2 (Dhajala) to ∼3 (Ochansk) higher than those of their nonmagnetic fractions. The isotopic data for both meteorites are consistent with the largest Re-Os fractionations occurring between metal and nonmagnetic components early in solar system history, although minor to moderate late stage, open-system behavior, and limited variations in Re/Os preclude a precise determination of the age for that fractionation. Open-system behavior is generally absent to minor in the metal fractions, and highly variable in nonmagnetic fractions. Re/Os ratios of nonmagnetic fractions deviate as much as 40% from a primordial isochron. Although some deviations are large for isochron applications, nearly all are negligible with respect to consideration of fractionation processes controlling the HSE.Metal from both meteorites contains about 90% of the total budget of HSE. Metal in Ochansk has ∼2 to 10 times the abundances of the bulk meteorite, while metal from the matrix of Dhajala has ∼2 to 4 times the abundances of the bulk. Fine metal in both meteorites has higher abundances than coarse metal, as has been previously observed. Nonmagnetic components, consisting of chondrules and matrix from which metal was removed in the laboratory, have highly fractionated HSE, characterized by much lower Re/Os than the bulk meteorites, as well as large relative depletions in Pd. The abundances of Re, Os, Ir, Ru and Pt in the nonmagnetic fractions are 14-120 ng/g, much higher than would be expected if they had equilibrated with the metal phases present (150-16,000 ng/g). Collectively, the data are consistent with the HSE budget in ordinary chondrites being dominated by two HSE-bearing carrier phases with distinct compositions. These phases formed separately, and never subsequently equilibrated. Metal components incorporated a HSE carrier that formed at high through moderate temperatures and relatively high pressures, such that the relatively volatile Pd behaved coherently with the more refractory HSE. Nonmagnetic fractions from both chondrules and matrix have HSE compositions that likely require at least two processes that fractionated the HSE. Depletions in Pd are consistent with the presence of HSE carriers that formed as either highly refractory condensates, or residues of high degrees of metal melting. Depletions in Re may implicate a period of relatively high f_O2 during which a volatile form of Re was separated from the other HSE.     

Li and B isotopic variations in an Allende CAI: Evidence for the in situ decay of short-lived Be and for the possible presence of the short-lived nuclide Be in the early solar system

The concentrations and isotopic compositions of lithium, beryllium, and boron, analyzed in situ by ion microprobe in 66 spots of a type B1 Ca-Al-rich inclusion (CAI 3529-41) from the Allende meteorite, are reported. Large variations are observed for both the Li and the B isotopic ratios with ⁷Li/⁶Li ranging from 9.2 ± 0.22 to 12.22 ± 0.43 (a ≈250‰ range in δ⁷Li values) and ¹⁰B/¹¹B ranging from 0.2468 ± 0.0057 to 0.4189 ± 0.0493 (a 410‰ range in δ¹¹B values). The very low Li concentrations (<1 ppb) observed in several anorthite and fassaite grains require that a correction for the contribution of spallogenic Li produced during irradiation of the Allende meteoroid by galactic cosmic rays (GCR) be made (after this correction ⁷Li/⁶Li ranges from 9.2 ± 0.22 to 13.44 ± 0.56, i.e., a ≈350‰ range in δ⁷Li values). In 3529-41, the ¹⁰B/¹¹B ratios are positively correlated with ⁹Be/¹¹B in a manner indicating the in situ decay of short-lived ¹⁰Be (half-life = 1.5 Ma) with a ¹⁰Be/⁹Be ratio at the time of formation of the CAI of 8.8 ± 0.6 × 10⁻⁴, which is in agreement with previous findings [McKeegan, K.D., Chaussidon, M., Robert, F., 2000. Incorporation of short-lived ¹⁰Be in a calcium-aluminum-rich inclusion from the Allende meteorite. Science289, 1334-1337]. The present detailed investigation demonstrates that only minor perturbations of the ¹⁰Be-¹⁰B system are present in 3529-41, contrary to the ²⁶Al/²⁶Mg system for which numerous examples of isotopic redistribution following crystallization were observed [Podosek, F.A., Zinner, E.K., MacPherson, G.J., Lundberg, L.L., Brannon, J.C., Fahey, A.J., 1991. Correlated study of initial ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr and Al-Mg systematics and petrologic properties in a suite of refractory inclusions from the Allende meteorite. Geochim. Cosmochim. Acta55, 1083-1110]. Petrographically based criteria were developed to identify within the 66 analyzed spots in 3529-41, those where post-magmatic perturbation of the Li and Be distributions occurred. Li and Be concentrations measured in different analytical spots are compared with those predicted by using experimentally determined partition coefficients according to a model of closed-system crystallization of the CAI melt. These criteria show that 56% of the spots in melilite, 38% in anorthite, and 8% in fassaite suffered post-crystallization perturbations of Li and/or Be distributions. In the remaining spots, which do not show obvious indication of redistribution of Li or Be, the ⁷Li/⁶Li isotopic variations (corrected for GCR exposure) are positively correlated with⁹Be/⁶Li suggesting the in situ decay of now-extinct ⁷Be. The derived isochron implies that at the time of its formation, the CAI melt had a ⁷Be/⁹Be ratio of 0.0061 ± 0.0013 and a ⁷Li/⁶Li ratio of 11.49 ± 0.13. In contrast, all the spots in 3529-41, which do show evidence for post-magmatic redistribution of Li and Be, have relatively constant ⁷Li/⁶Li, averaging 11.72 ± 0.56, which is consistent with mass balance calculations for Li isotopic homogenization in the CAI after the decay of ⁷Be. The incorporation of live ⁷Be in 3529-41 requires, because of the very short half-life of this nuclide (53 days), that it be produced essentially contemporaneously with the formation of the CAI. Therefore, the irradiation processes responsible for production of ⁷Be must have occurred within the solar accretion disk. Calculations developed in the framework of the x-wind model [Gounelle, M., Shu, F.H., Shang, H., Glassgold, A.E., Rehm, E.K., Lee, T., 2004. The origin of short-lived radionuclides and early Solar System irradiation (abstract). Lunar Planet. Sci.35, 1829] reproduce the ⁷Be and ¹⁰Be abundances observed in 3529-41. The correlated presence of ⁷Be and ¹⁰Be in 3529-41 is thus a strong argument that ¹⁰Be, which is observed rather ubiquitously in CAIs, is also a product of irradiation in the early solar system, as might be a significant fraction of other short-lived radionuclides observed in early solar system materials.     

Uranium isotopic evidence for the origin of the Bahariya iron deposits, Egypt

The economic iron ore deposits of Egypt are located at Bahariya Oasis in the Lower Middle Eocene limestone. The main iron minerals are goethite, hematite, siderite, pyrite, and jarosite. Manganese minerals are pyrolusite and manganite. Gangue minerals are barite, glauconite, gibbsite, alunite, quartz, halite, kaolinite, illite, smectite, palygorskite, and halloysite. Geochemical comparison between the ore and the Nubia sandstone showed that the ore is depleted in the residual elements (Al, Ti, V, and Ni) and enriched in the mobile elements (Fe, Mn, Zn, Ba, and U) which indicates that the Bahariya iron ore is not a lateritic deposit despite the deep weathering in this area. On the other hand, the Nubia sandstone showed depletion in the mobile elements, which demonstrates the leaching process in the Nubia Aquifer. The presence of such indicator minerals as jarosite, alunite, glauconite, gibbsite, palygorskite, and halloysite indicate that the ore was deposited under strong acidic conditions in fresh water.Isotopic analyses of the uranium in the amorphous and crystalline phases of the ore, in the country rocks, and dissolved in the Nubia Aquifer water, all support the conclusion that U and Fe were precipitated together from warm ascending groundwater. U and Fe display strong co-variation in the ore, and the ²³⁴U/²³⁸U activity ratio of the newly precipitated U in the country rock and the leached component of U in the groundwater are identical. There is only slightly more uranium in the amorphous phase than in the crystalline and only a slightly lower ²³⁴U/²³⁸U activity ratio, suggesting that the iron in the two phases have a similar origin. Comparison of the excess ²³⁴U in the water and in the total ore leads to the conclusion that the precipitation of the U, and by inference the iron, occurred within the last million years. However, that both precipitation and leaching of U have occurred over the last 300,000 years is evidenced by the extreme ²³⁰Th/²³⁴U disequilibria observed in some of the samples. Some of the amorphous depositional events have been very recent, perhaps within the last 10,000 years.     

Presolar Grains and Their Isotopic Anomalies in Meteorites

Study on presolar grains including diamond,silicon carbide,graphite,silicon nitrite(Si3N4),coundum and spinel isolated from meteorites is summarized in this paper.Except for nanometer-sized diamond,the other grains are micrometers to submicrometers in size.The presolar grains survived mainly in the fine-grained matrix of primitive chondrites and were isolated by chemical treatments.Diamond contains Xe isotopes(Xe-HL),typically produced in p-and r-processes,probably formed in supernovae.Mainstream silicon carbides are enriched in ^29,30Si and ^13C,but depleted in ^15N.They also contain various s-process products,consistent with calculations of AGB stars.Other silicon carbides exhibit much larger isotopic anomalies and are classified as groups X,Y,Z and AB.Among them,group X of SiC is characterized by enrichment of ^28Si and daughter isotopes of various short-lived nuclides,suggesting an origin from supernovae.Graphite can be divided into four density fractions with distince isotopic compositions.They may form in AGB stars,novae and supernovae,respctively,Si3N4 is similar to X-SiC in isotopic composition.Corundum is classified as four groups based on theid oxygen isotopic compositions.AGB and red giang stare are possible sources for the oxide.More comprehensive study of presolar grains,especially discovery of the other types of oxides and silicates,isotopic analyses of individual submicrometer-sized grains and distribution of presolar grains among various chemical groups and petropaphic types of chondrites will provide new information on nucleosynthesis,stellar evolution and formation of the solar nebula.     

On the origins of trapped helium,neon and argon isotopic variations in meteorites—II. Carbonaceous meteorites

Data are presented from stepwise heating experiments on five carbonaceous chondrites: Alais, Ivuna, Orgueil, Cold Bokkeveld and Nogoya. The data indicate the presence of two isotopically distinct major trapped components, components A and B. Two additional components, ‘C’ and ‘E,’ were isolated on the basis of neon isotopic structure. Components B and C, found in. gas-rich meteorites, are attributed to ion implantation by the present day solar wind and solar flares respectively. Component A is interpreted as a mixture of component E and component D (Paper I), where component D is identified with the primitive solar wind and component E is assigned an extra solar system origin.     

Europium isotopic variations in Allende CAIs and the nature of mass-dependent fractionation in the solar nebula

We measured the ¹⁵³Eu/¹⁵¹Eu ratio by MC-ICP-MS for a terrestrial basalt, two terrestrial soils, and four meteorites (whole rocks and/or chondrules of Bjurböle, Forest City, Murchison, and Allende) and found no isotopic variations. By contrast, two CAI separates from two different pieces of Allende show a ¹⁵³Eu deficit of up to one per mil. Such a shortage in the heavy isotopes, which had also been identified in Allende CAIs for Sr [Patchett, P.J. 1980b. Sr isotopic fractionation in Allende chondrules: a reflection of solar nebular processes. Earth Planet. Sci. Lett.50, 181-188], cannot reflect evaporative fractionation. The lack of Sm isotope fractionation in the same samples further makes fractionation by purely kinetic processes an unlikely cause of the anomalous Eu isotopic composition. An alternative interpretation is condensation from a vapor already significantly depleted in Eu, but in such a scenario the fate of the missing material is unclear. We therefore prefer yet another interpretation, based on the low ionization potential of Eu (and Sr), in which electromagnetic separation of the ionized gas preferentially depletes the nebular gas in heavy isotopes.     

Elemental and isotopic variations in subduction related basalts: evidence for a three component model

Subduction related basalts display wide ranges in large ion lithophile element ratios (e.g., Rb/Ba and Rb/ Sr) which are unlikely to result from mixing, but suggest a role for small degree partial melting of a relatively Rb-poor mantle wedge source. However, these variations do not correlate with other trace element criteria, such as the depletions of high field strength elements (HFSE) and light rare earth elements (LREE) relative to the LILE, which characterise subduction related magmatism. Integration of radiogenic isotope and trace element data demonstrates that the elemental enrichment cannot be simply related to two component mixtures inferred from isotopic variations. Thus a minimum of three components is required to describe the geochemistry of subduction zone basalts. Two are subduction related: high Sr/Nd material is derived from the dehydration of subducted basaltic ocean crust, and a low Sr/Nd component is thought to be from subducted terrigenous sediment. The third component is in the mantle wedge, it is usually similar to the source of MORB, particularly in its isotopic composition. However, in some cases, notably continental areas, more enriched mantle wedge material with relatively high ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr, low ¹⁴³Nd/¹⁴⁴Nd and elevated incompatible trace element contents may be involved Mixing of these three components is capable of producing both the entire range of Sr, Nd and Pb isotope signatures observed in destructive margin basalts, and their distinctive trace element compositions. The isotope differences between Atlantic and Pacific island arc basalts are attributed to the isotope compositions of sediments in the two oceans.     

Short-lived nuclides in the early solar system

Isotopic records in meteorites provide evidence for the presence of several short-lived nuclides in the early solar system with half-lives varying from 10⁵ to ∼8x10⁷ years. Most of the nuclides with longer half-life (> 10⁷ years) are considered to be products of stellar nucleosynthesis taking place over long time scales in our galaxy. However, for the relatively shorter-lived nuclides, two possibilities exist; they could be products of energetic particle interactions taking place in a presolar or early solar environment, or, they could have been produced in a stellar source and injected into the protosolar molecular cloud just prior to its collapse. The presently available data appear to support the latter case and put a stringent constraint of less than a million years for the time scale for the collapse of the protosolar molecular cloud to form the Sun and some of the first solar system solids. This short time scale also suggests the possibility of a triggered origin for the solar system with the very process of injection of the short-lived nuclides acting as the trigger for the collapse of the protosolar molecular cloud. Fossil records of the short-lived nuclides in meteorites also provide very useful chronological information on the early solar system processes like the time scale for nebular processing, the time scales for differentiation and for metal/silicate fractionation within planetesimals. The currently available data suggest a time scale of a few million years for nebular processing and a relatively short time scale of about ten million years within which differentiation, melting and recrystallization in some of the planetesimals took place.     

The isotopic composition of titanium in the Allende and Leoville meteorites

We describe the analytical techniques developed for the precise measurement of the titanium isotope abundances using a TiO⁺ ion beam. Terrestrial, lunar, and bulk meteorite samples yield identical results. Using a normalization to ${}^{46}\text{Ti}{}^{48}\text{Ti}$ for mass dependent isotope fractionation, we obtain the normal Ti composition: ${}^{46}\text{Ti}{}^{48}\text{Ti}\text{= 0.108548}$; ${}^{47}\text{Ti}{}^{48}\text{Ti}\text{= 0.099315 ± 0.000005}$; ${}^{49}\text{Ti}{}^{48}\text{Ti}\text{= 0.074463 ± 0.000004}$; ${}^{50}\text{Ti}{}^{48}\text{Ti}\text{= 0.072418 ± 0.000004}$ (2σ grand mean), taking ${}^{18}\text{O}{}^{16}\text{O}\text{= 0.002045}$ and ${}^{17}\text{O}{}^{16}\text{O}\text{= 0.00037}$. Measurements on thirteen coarse-grained and fine-grained Ca-Al-Ti-rich inclusions from the Allende and Leoville meteorites show the presence of widespread, significant, nonlinear isotope anomalies in the Ti isotopes which were not used for normalization. The data require the addition of at least three exotic components. The distinct correlation of non-linear effects for the most neutron-rich isotopes of Ca and Ti and the absence of substantial effects at ⁴⁶Ca in the FUN samples EK-1-4-1 and C-1 indicate that the effects reflect neutron-rich equilibrium or quasi-equilibrium nucleosynthetic processes in the outer layers of a supernova core. The results on Ca and Ti in conjunction with the isotopic effects on other elements (Mg, Sr, Ba, Nd, Sm) show that the samples represent mixtures of different nucleosynthetic components from distinctive processes (‘e’, ‘r’, ‘p’) which do not appear to be related to processes in the same stellar sites.