Petrogenesis of Al-rich chondrules: Evidence from bulk compositions and phase equilibria

We measured major, minor, and trace-element compositions for eleven Al-rich chondrules from unequilibrated ordinary chondrites to investigate the relationships between Al-rich chondrules, ferromagnesian chondrules, Ca-, Al-rich inclusions (CAIs), and amoeboid olivine aggregates (AOAs). Phase equilibrium considerations show that, for the most part, mineral assemblages in Al-rich chondrules are those expected from melts of the observed compositions. The diversity of mineral assemblages and Al-rich chondrule types arises mainly from the fact that the array of compositions spans both the spinel-saturated anorthite-forsterite reaction curve and a thermal divide defined by where the anorthite-forsterite join crosses the reaction curve. The reaction curve accounts for the two principal varieties of Al-rich chondrule, plagioclase-phyric and olivine-phyric, with or without aluminous spinel. The thermal divide influences the subsequent evolution of each variety. A third variety of Al-rich chondrule contains abundant sodium-rich glass; trace-element fractionation patterns suggest that these glassy Al-rich chondrules could have been derived from the other two by extensive alteration of plagioclase to nepheline followed by remelting. The bulk compositions of Al-rich chondrules (except sodium-rich ones) are intermediate in a volatility sense between ferromagnesian chondrules and type C CAIs. The combined trend of bulk compositions for CAIs, Al-rich chondrules, and ferromagnesian chondrules mirrors, but does not exactly match, the trend predicted from equilibrium condensation at P_T ∼ 10^-3 atm; the observed trend does not match the trend found for evaporation from a liquid of chondritic composition. We thus infer that the bulk compositions of the precursors to CAIs, Al-rich chondrules, were ferromagnesian chondrules were controlled primarily by vapor-solid reactions (condensation or sublimation) in the solar nebula. Some Al-rich chondrules are consistent with an origin by melting of a compound CAI-ferromagnesian chondrule hybrid; others cannot be so explained. Any hybrid model is restricted by the constraint that the CAI precursor consisted dominantly of pyroxene + plagioclase + spinel; melilite cannot have been a significant component. Amoeboid olivine aggregates also have the inferred mineralogical characteristics of Al-rich chondrule precursors—they are mixtures of olivine with plagioclase-spinel-pyroxene-rich CAIs—but the few measured bulk compositions are more olivine-rich than those of Al-rich chondrules.     

Matrix material in type 3 chondrites—occurrence,heterogeneity and relationship with chondrules

Matrix material in type 3 chondrites forms rims on chondrules, metal-sulfide aggregates, Ca,Al-rich inclusions and chondritic clasts; it also forms lumps up to a millimeter in size, which may contain coarser silicates. Chondrules of all types were found with internal matrix lumps that appear to have entered the chondrules before the latter had crystallized. Mean concentrations of Mg, Na, Al and Ca in matrix occurrences show up to fivefold variations in a single chondrite. Variations between mean matrix compositions of individual type 3 ordinary chondrites are almost as large and partly reflect systematic differences between H, L and LL matrices. Such variations are probably a result of nebular separation of feldspathic material and ferromagnesian silicates.Compositions of chondrules and their matrix rims are normally unrelated, although rim compositions are correlated with those of matrix lumps inside chondrules. A single chondrule was found with a composition nearly identical to that of its internal matrix lump, suggesting that some chondrules may have formed from matrix material. Matrix lumps are as heterogeneous as chondrules, but mean chondrule and matrix compositions differ, even allowing for possible loss of metallic Fe,Ni during chondrule formation. Since bulk compositions of matrix lumps and rims have probably not changed significantly since their formation except for Fe-Mg exchange, our matrix samples cannot represent typical chondrule precursor materials.     

Oxygen isotope compositions of chondrules in CR chondrites

We report in situ ion microprobe analyses of oxygen isotopic compositions of olivine, low-Ca pyroxene, high-Ca pyroxene, anorthitic plagioclase, glassy mesostasis, and spinel in five aluminum-rich chondrules and nine ferromagnesian chondrules from the CR carbonaceous chondrites EET92042, GRA95229, and MAC87320. Ferromagnesian chondrules are isotopically homogeneous within ±2‰ in Δ¹⁷O; the interchondrule variations in Δ¹⁷O range from 0 to −5‰. Small oxygen isotopic heterogeneities found in two ferromagnesian chondrules are due to the presence of relict olivine grains. In contrast, two out of five aluminum-rich chondrules are isotopically heterogeneous with Δ¹⁷O values ranging from −6 to −15‰ and from −2 to −11‰, respectively. This isotopic heterogeneity is due to the presence of ¹⁶O-enriched spinel and anorthite (Δ¹⁷O = −10 to −15‰), which are relict phases of Ca,Al-rich inclusions (CAIs) incorporated into chondrule precursors and incompletely melted during chondrule formation. These observations and the high abundance of relict CAIs in the aluminum-rich chondrules suggest a close genetic relationship between these objects: aluminum-rich chondrules formed by melting of spinel-anorthite-pyroxene CAIs mixed with ferromagnesian precursors compositionally similar to magnesium-rich (Type I) chondrules. The aluminum-rich chondrules without relict CAIs have oxygen isotopic compositions (Δ¹⁷O = −2 to −8‰) similar to those of ferromagnesian chondrules. In contrast to the aluminum-rich chondrules from ordinary chondrites, those from CRs plot on a three-oxygen isotope diagram along the carbonaceous chondrite anhydrous mineral line and form a continuum with amoeboid olivine aggregates and CAIs from CRs. We conclude that oxygen isotope compositions of chondrules resulted from two processes: homogenization of isotopically heterogeneous materials during chondrule melting and oxygen isotopic exchange between chondrule melt and ¹⁶O-poor nebular gas.     

Trace element composition of silicate minerals in the porphyritic and nonporphyritic chondrules of Elenovka (L5) and Knyahinya (L/Ll5) meteorites

The results of SIMS and EPMA studies on the silicate minerals and bulk compositions (SEM-EDS) of porphyritic and nonporphyritic chondrules from Elenovka and Knyahinya meteorites are reported. The trace element composition of silicate minerals (olivine, low-Са pyroxene) in equilibrated ordinary chondrites (EOC) has not been affected considerably by thermal metamorphism on the chondritic parent bodies. Therefore, equilibrated chondrites can be used for chondrule-forming processes studies. Low-Са pyroxene in nonporphyritic chondrules contains higher REE, Ba, Sr concentrations than that in porphyritic chondrules at similar trace element concentrations in the olivine of chondrules. The data obtained indicate that the formation of non-porphyritic chondrules was triggered by an increase in the cooling rate of chondrules upon the formation of pyroxene, rather than a difference in the initial conditions of chondrule formation. Higher refractory incompatible element (Nb, LREE) concentrations in the olivine of chondrules than those in the olivine of the matrix and contrasting trace element (Zr, Sr, Cr, REE) concentrations in the low-Са pyroxene of the chondrules and the matrix suggest that the matrix and chondrules of the meteorites formed in one reservoir under different physico-chemical conditions (density, redox state, rotation speed, homogeneity, temperature, shocks, electrical discharge, etc.).     

Microchondrule-bearing clast in the Piancaldoli LL3 meteorite: a new kind of type 3 chondrite and its relevance to the history of chondrules

In the Piancaldoli LL3 chondrite, we found a mm-sized clast containing ~100 chondrules 0.2–64 μm in apparent diameter (much smaller than any previously reported) that are all of the same textural type (radial pyroxene; FS_1–17). This clast, like other type 3 chondrites, has a fine-grained Ferich opaque silicate matrix, sharply defined chondrules, abundant low-Ca clinopyroxene and minor troilite and Si- and Cr-bearing metallic Fe,Ni. However, the very high modal matrix abundance (63 ± 8 vol. %), unique characteristics of the chondrules, and absence of microscopically-observable olivine indicate that the clast is a new kind of type 3 chondrite. Most chondrules have FeO-rich edges, and chondrule size is inversely correlated with chondrule-core FeO concentration (the first reported correlation of chondrule size and composition). Chondrules acquired Fe by diffusion from Fe-rich matrix material during mild metamorphism, possibly before final consolidation of the rock. Microchondrules (those chondrules ? 100 μm in diameter) are also abundant in another new kind of type 3 chondrite clast in the Rio Negro L chondrite regolith breccia. In other type 3 chondrite groups, microchondrule abundance appears to be anticorrelated with mean chondrule size, viz. 0.02–0.04 vol. % in H and CO chondrites and ?0.006 vol. % in L, LL, and CV chondrites.Microchondrules probably formed by the same process that formed normal-sized droplet chondrules: melting of pre-existing dustballs. Because most compound chondrules in the clast and other type 3 chondrites formed by collisions between chondrules of the same textural type, we suggest that dust grains were mineralogically sorted in the nebula before aggregating into dustballs. The sizes of compound chondrules and chondrule craters, which resulted from collisions of similarly-sized chondrules while they were plastic, indicate that size-sorting (of dustballs) occurred before chondrule formation, probably by aerodynamic processes in the nebula. We predict that other kinds of type 3 chondrites exist which contain chondrule abundances, size-ranges and proportions of textural types different from known chondrite groups.     

Relict olivine grains, chondrule recycling, and implications for the chemical, thermal, and mechanical processing of nebular materials

Chondrules and isolated forsterites in five low-subtype ordinary chondrites [NWA 3127 (LL3.1), Sahara 97210 (LL3.2), Wells (LL3.3), Chainpur (LL3.4), and Sahara 98175 (LL3.5)] were studied using petrographic, EMPA, and SIMS techniques to better constrain the origin of chondrules and the olivine grains within them. Our results imply that igneous crystallization, vapor fractionation, redox effects, and open-system behavior were important processes. All olivine grains, including normal, relict, and isolated forsterite grains, show evidence for igneous fractionation under disequilibrium conditions, with olivine crystallizing during rapid cooling (closer to 2000 °C/h than to 100 °C/h). Vapor fractionation is manifested by anti-correlated abundances between refractory elements (Al, Sc, Y, Ti, Ca, V) and volatile elements (Cr, Mn, P, Rb, Fe) in olivine. Redox effects are evidenced in various ways, and imply that Fe, Co, Ni, and P were partitioned more into metal, and V was partitioned more into olivine, under reducing conditions in the most FeO-poor melts. There is no obvious evidence for systematic variations in olivine composition according to meteorite subtype, but shock melting in Sahara 97210 resulted in the injection of glass-derived melt into olivine, resulting in artificially high abundances of Ba, Sr, Na, Ti, and some other incompatible elements in olivine. Terrestrial weathering in a hot desert environment may have mobilized Ba and Sr in some glasses.Our data suggest that chondrules in ordinary chondrites experienced repeated thermal, chemical, and mechanical processing during a “recycling” process over an extended time period, which involved multiple episodes of melting under fluctuating redox and heating conditions, and multiple episodes of chondrule break-up in some cases. Forsterite grains, including normal grains in forsterite-bearing type I chondrules, the cores of isolated forsterites, and relict forsterite in type II chondrules, all crystallized from similar, refractory melts under reducing conditions; relict Mg-olivine and isolated forsterite grains were thus derived from type I chondrules. Olivine in type II chondrules, including normal grains and ferroan overgrowths on relict Mg-olivine, crystallized from more volatile-rich, oxidized, and relatively unfractionated melts. Relict dusty olivine grains in type I chondrules were derived from type II chondrules during incomplete melting episodes involving reduction and some vaporization, with clear (non-dusty) grains in dusty olivine-bearing chondrules crystallizing from the reduced and partly vaporized melts. Melt compositions parental to normal olivine grains in type I and II chondrules are systematically enriched in refractory elements compared to bulk chondrule compositions, implying that chondrules often experienced open-system exchange with more volatile-rich surroundings after some olivine had crystallized, possibly while the chondrules were still partly molten. Type II chondrules could have been derived from type I chondrules by the addition of relatively volatile-rich material, followed by re-melting and little evaporation under oxidizing conditions. In contrast, type I chondrules could have been derived from type II chondrules by re-melting involving more-or-less evaporation under reducing conditions. Chemical, oxygen isotope, and petrographic data are best accommodated by a model in which there were several (>2-3, sometimes ?4-5) melting episodes for most chondrules in ordinary chondrites.     

Formation processes of compound chondrules in CV3 carbonaceous chondrites: Constraints from oxygen isotope ratios and major element concentrations

We found thirty compound chondrules in two CV3 carbonaceous chondrites. The abundance in each meteorite relative to single chondrules is 29/1846 (1.6%) in Allende and 1/230 (0.4%) in Axtell. We examined petrologic features, major element concentrations and oxygen isotopic compositions. Textural, compositional and isotopic evidence suggests that multiple, different mechanisms are responsible for the formation of compound chondrules.Seven compound chondrules are composed of two conjoined porphyritic chondrules with a blurred boundary. At the boundary region of this type of compounds, a poikilitic texture is commonly observed. This suggests that the two chondrules were melted when they came to be in contact. On the other hand, seventeen compound chondrules consist of two conjoined chondrules with a discrete boundary. The preservation of spherical boundary planes of an earlier-formed chondrule of this type implies that it already solidified before fusing with a later-formed chondrule that was still melted. Six samples out of 17 compound chondrules of this type are composed of two BO chondrules. The BO-BO compound chondrules have a unique textural feature in common: the directions of the barred olivines are mostly parallel between two chondrules. This cannot be explained by a simple collision process and forces another mechanism to be taken into consideration.The remaining six compound chondrules differ from the others; they consist of an earlier-formed chondrule enclosed by a later-formed chondrule. A large FeO enrichment was observed in the later-formed chondrules and the enrichment was much greater than that in the later-formed chondrules of other types of compounds. This is consistent with the relict chondrule model, which envisages that the later-formed chondrule was made by a flash melting of a porous FeO-rich dust clump on an earlier-formed chondrule. The textural evidence of this type of compound shows that the earlier-formed chondrule has melted again to varying degrees at the second heating event. This implies that FeO concentrations in bulk chondrules increases during the second heating event if an earlier-formed chondrule was totally melted together with the FeO-rich dust aggregates.Silicate minerals such as olivine and low-Ca pyroxene in compound chondrules have oxygen isotope compositions similar to those in single chondrules from CV3 chondrites. The oxygen isotope composition of each part of the compound chondrule is basically similar to their chondrule pair, but silicates in some chondrules show varying degrees of ¹⁶O-enrichment down to −15‰ in δ¹⁸O, while those in their partners have ¹⁶O-poor invariable compositions near 0 ‰ in δ¹⁸O. This implies that the two chondrules in individual compounds formed in the same environments before they became conjoined and the heterogeneous oxygen isotope compositions in some chondrules resulted from incomplete exchange of oxygen atoms between ¹⁶O-rich chondrule melts and ¹⁶O-poor nebular gas.     

Al-Mg systematics of chondrules in a primitive CO chondrite

We have conducted systematic investigations of formation age, chemical compositions, and mineralogical characteristics of ferromagnesian chondrules in Yamato-81020 (CO3.05), one of the most primitive carbonaceous chondrites, to get better understanding of the origin of chemical groups of chondrites. The ²⁶Al-²⁶Mg isotopic system were measured in fourteen FeO-poor (Type I), six FeO-rich (Type II) and two aluminum-rich (Al-rich) chondrules using a secondary ion mass spectrometer. Excesses of ²⁶Mg in plagioclase (1.0-13.5‰) are resolved with sufficient precision (mostly 0.4-6.6‰ at 2σ level) in all the chondrules studied except one. Chemical zoning of Mg and Na in plagioclase were investigated in detail in order to evaluate the applicability of ²⁶Al-²⁶Mg chronometer. We conclude that the Al-Mg isotope system of the chondrules in Y-81020 have not been disturbed by parent-body metamorphism and can be used as chronometer assuming homogeneous distribution of ²⁶Al. Assuming an initial ²⁶Al/²⁷Al ratio of 5 × 10⁻⁵ in the early solar system, ²⁶Al-²⁶Mg ages were found to be 1.7-2.5 Ma after CAI formation for Type I, 2.0-3.0 Ma for Type II and 1.9 and 2.6 Ma for Al-rich chondrules.The formation ages of ferromagnesian chondrules in Y-81020 are in good agreement with those of L and LL (type 3.0-3.1) chondrites in the literature, which indicates that common chondrules in the CO chondrite were formed contemporaneously with those in L and LL chondrites. The concurrent formation of chondrules of CO and L/LL chondrites suggests that the chemical differences between CO and L/LL chondrites might be caused by spatial separation of chondrule formation environments in the protoplanetary disk.     

On the nature and origin of isolated olivine grains in carbonaceous chondrites

Many carbonaceous chondrites contain discrete olivine fragments that have been considered to be primitive material, i.e. direct condensates from the solar nebula or pre-solar system material. Olivine occurring in chondrules and as isolated grains in C3(0) chondrites has been characterized chemically and petrographically. Type I chondrules contain homogeneous forsterite grains that exhibit a negative correlation between FeO and CaO. Type II chondrules contain zoned fayalite olivines in which FeO is positively correlated with CaO and MnO. The isolated olivines in C3(0) chondrites form two compositional populations identical to olivines in the two types of porphyritic olivine chondrules in the same meteorites. Isolated olivines contain trapped melt inclusions similar in composition to glassy mesostasis between olivines in chondrules. Such glasses can be produced by fractional crystallization of olivine and minor spinel in the parent chondrule melts if plagioclase does not nucleate. The isolated olivine grains are apparently clastic fragments of chondrules. Some similarities between olivines in C3(0), C2, and Cl chondrites may suggest that olivine grains in all these meteorites crystallized from chondrule melts.     

Oxygen isotopic constraints on the origin of magnesian chondrules and on the gaseous reservoirs in the early Solar System

We report in situ ion microprobe analyses of the oxygen isotopic composition of the major silicate phases (olivine, low-Ca pyroxene, silica, and mesostasis) of 37 magnesian porphyritic (type I) chondrules from CV (Vigarano USNM 477-2, Vigarano UH5, Mokoia, and Efremovka) and CR (EET 92042, EET 92147, EET 87770, El Djouf 001, MAC 87320, and GRA 95229) carbonaceous chondrites. In spite of significant variations of the modal proportions of major mineral phases in CR and CV chondrules, the same isotopic characteristics are observed: (i) olivines are isotopically homogeneous at the ‰ level within a chondrule although they may vary significantly from one chondrule to another, (ii) low-Ca pyroxenes are also isotopically homogeneous but systematically ¹⁶O-depleted relative to olivines of the same chondrule, and (iii) all chondrule minerals analyzed show ¹⁶O-enrichments relative to the terrestrial mass fractionation line, enrichments that decrease from olivine (±spinel) to low-Ca pyroxene and to silica and mesostasis. The observation that, in most of the type I chondrules studied, the coexisting olivine and pyroxene crystals and glassy mesostasis have different oxygen isotopic compositions implies that the olivine and pyroxene grains are not co-magmatic and that the glassy mesostasis is not the parent liquid of the olivine. The δ¹⁸O and δ¹⁷O values of pyroxene and olivine appear to be strongly correlated for all the studied CR and CV chondrules according to:

     

Relationships among intrinsic properties of ordinary chondrites: Oxidation state, bulk chemistry, oxygen-isotopic composition, petrologic type, and chondrule size

The properties of ordinary chondrites (OC) reflect both nebular and asteroidal processes. OC are modeled here as having acquired nebular water, probably contained within phyllosilicates, during agglomeration. This component had high Δ¹⁷O and acted like an oxidizing agent during thermal metamorphism. The nebular origin of this component is consistent with negative correlations in H, L, and LL chondrites between oxidation state (represented by olivine Fa) and bulk concentration ratios of elements involved in the metal-silicate fractionation (e.g., Ni/Si, Ir/Si, Ir/Mn, Ir/Cr, Ir/Mg, Ni/Mg, As/Mg, Ga/Mg). LL chondrites acquired the greatest abundance of phyllosilicates with high Δ¹⁷O among OC (and thus became the most oxidized group and the one with the heaviest O isotopes); H chondrites acquired the lowest abundance, becoming the most reduced OC group with the lightest O isotopes.Chondrule precursors may have grown larger and more ferroan with time in each OC agglomeration zone. Nebular turbulence may have controlled the sizes of chondrule precursors. H-chondrite chondrules (which are the smallest among OC) formed from the smallest precursors. In each OC region, low-FeO chondrules formed before high-FeO chondrules during repeated episodes of chondrule formation.During thermal metamorphism, phyllosilicates were dehydrated; the liberated water oxidized metallic Fe-Ni. This caused correlated changes with petrologic type including decreases in the modal abundance of metal, increases in olivine Fa and low-Ca pyroxene Fs, increases in the olivine/pyroxene ratio, and increases in the kamacite Co and Ni contents. As water (with its heavy O isotopes) was lost during metamorphism, inverse correlations between bulk δ¹⁸O and bulk δ¹⁷O with petrologic type were produced.The H5 chondrites that were ejected from their parent body ∼7.5 Ma ago during a major impact event probably had been within a few kilometers of each other since they accreted ∼4.5 Ga ago. There are significant differences in the olivine compositional distributions among these rocks; these reflect stochastic nebular sampling of the oxidant (i.e., phyllosilicates with high Δ¹⁷O) on a 0.1-1 km scale during agglomeration.     

The petrology of chondrules in the Hallingeberg meteorite

Petrographic study of 124 chondrules in the Hallingeberg (L-3) chondrite and electron probe microanalyses of olivine and low-Ca pyroxene in 96 of them reveal patterns of variation like those encountered previously in Sharps (H-3). Chondrule mineralogy, mineral composition, and the incidence of shock-related textures vary systematically with chondrule type. This fact and evidence of recrystallization in at least a fourth of the chondrules studied indicate that the pre-accretion histories of chondrules included complex and overlapping episodes of magmatic crystallization, burial, metamorphism and exhumation, in which impact shock was heavily involved. Data for Hallingeberg and Sharps suggest that orthopyroxene accompanies or replaces clinoenstatite in some chondrules and that its presence is due, in part at least, to pre-accretion recrystallization. A comparison of modes for chondrules in Sharps and Hallingeberg shows the former to contain more olivine, on the average, than the latter. It appears that the mean compositions of chondrules in H- and L-group chondrites reflect bulk chemical differences between the two groups, and that chondrule formation followed the siderophile fractionation which differentiated H-, L- and LL-group ordinary chondrites.     

Matrices of type 3 ordinary chondrites—primitive nebular records

Petrologic studies were made on the fine-grained matrices of type 3 ordinary chondrites of the lowest petrologic subtype. The matrix minerals, in order of abundance, are olivine (Fo₉₉ to Fo₉), enstatite or bronzite, augite or subcalcic augite, albite, Fe-Ni metal, troilite, magnetite, spinel (MgAl₂O₄), chromite, and calcite. Fe- and Mg-rich fluffy particles and albite-like particles are also major constituents. The chemical compositions of olivine and pyroxenes vary within and among the chondrites and are in gross disequilibrium, showing that the matrix materials were hardly heated after their formation. Textural relationships indicate that magnesian olivine was formed after Ca-pyroxene, followed by intermediate to iron-rich olivine. Intermediate olivine was formed from enstatite and metallic iron under relatively oxidizing conditions. The observations indicate that matrices of chondrites are neither the fragments of chondrules nor the precursors of chondrules. They were mostly the products of condensation and reaction among solids and/or between solids and the ambient gas mostly at low temperatures, and thus they contain records of primitive processes in the nebula. In order to explain the presence of olivines more iron-rich than Fo₅₀, the presence of free SiO₂ or a high activity of SiO₂ in the gas is necessary, which was not shown in previous thermochemical calculations. Mineral assemblages of matrix minerals of chondrites of different chemical groups differ systematically according to oxidation state of the parental meteorites, indicating that they were formed at different oxygen fugacities. The rims of chondrules, and surrounding matrix materials, must have accreted onto chondrules during turbulent movements of the nebula.     

Petrography,mineral chemistry and origin of Type I enstatite chondrites

Optical and cathodoluminescence petrography were coupled with electron microprobe analysis to relate the textures and chemical compositions of minerals in the chondrules and matrix of the Indarch, Kota-Kota, Adhi-Kot and Abee Type I enstatite chondrites. Clinoenstatites fall into two distinct chemical groups with characteristic red or blue luminescence; red crystals are higher in Ti, Al, Cr, Mn and Ca, and lower in Na, than blue ones. Rare forsterites in Indarch and Kota-Kota show distinct compositions associated with orange or blue luminescence. The chemical ranges are indistinguishable for each color type in chondrules of all textural types, and the presence of both color types in a single chondrule or a metal fragment requires mechanical aggregation of both crystals and liquids of both color types. Porphyritic chondrules are ascribed mainly to aggregation of existing crystals because both types of pyroxene and olivine occur in the same chondrule. Large crystals of one color type are surrounded by fine-grained crystals of another type in some barred and radiating chondrules. All types of chondrules are surrounded by fine-grained rims rich in sulfide. The matrix contains many broken chondrules and individual silicate grains but is rich in sulfide and metal. Analyses are given of albite (minor elements and luminescence color vary between chondrites), kamacite, schreibersite, oldhamite and niningerite.Although the mineral assemblages do not fit theoretical condensation sequences in detail, the red pyroxene and orange olivine might result ultimately from near-equilibrium crystallization in which early reduced condensates reacted with a gas, while the blue crystals might result from fractional condensation in which early condensates were removed mechanically from a gas. Subsequent episodes involving mixing, melting, crystallization, condensation, fracturing, and mechanical aggregation would be needed to produce the complex textures.     

High precision SIMS oxygen three isotope study of chondrules in LL3 chondrites: Role of ambient gas during chondrule formation

We report high precision SIMS oxygen three isotope analyses of 36 chondrules from some of the least equilibrated LL3 chondrites, and find systematic variations in oxygen isotope ratios with chondrule types. FeO-poor (type I) chondrules generally plot along a mass dependent fractionation line (Δ¹⁷O ∼ 0.7‰), with δ¹⁸O values lower in olivine-rich (IA) than pyroxene-rich (IB) chondrules. Data from FeO-rich (type II) chondrules show a limited range of δ¹⁸O and δ¹⁷O values at δ¹⁸O = 4.5‰, δ¹⁷O = 2.9‰, and Δ¹⁷O = 0.5‰, which is slightly ¹⁶O-enriched relative to bulk LL chondrites (Δ¹⁷O ∼ 1.3‰). Data from four chondrules show ¹⁶O-rich oxygen isotope ratios that plot near the CCAM (Carbonaceous Chondrite Anhydrous Mineral) line. Glass analyses in selected chondrules are systematically higher than co-existing minerals in both δ¹⁸O and Δ¹⁷O values, whereas high-Ca pyroxene data in the same chondrule are similar to those in olivine and pyroxene phenocrysts.Our results suggest that the LL chondrite chondrule-forming region contained two kinds of solid precursors, (1) ¹⁶O-poor precursors with Δ¹⁷O > 1.6‰ and (2) ¹⁶O-rich solid precursors derived from the same oxygen isotope reservoir as carbonaceous chondrites. Oxygen isotopes exhibited open system behavior during chondrule formation, and the interaction between the solid and ambient gas might occur as described in the following model. Significant evaporation and recondensation of solid precursors caused a large mass-dependent fractionation due to either kinetic or equilibrium isotope exchange between gas and solid to form type IA chondrules with higher bulk Mg/Si ratios. Type II chondrules formed under elevated dust/gas ratios and with water ice in the precursors, in which the ambient H₂O gas homogenized chondrule melts by isotope exchange. Low temperature oxygen isotope exchange may have occurred between chondrule glasses and aqueous fluids with high Δ¹⁷O (∼5‰) in LL the parent body. According to our model, oxygen isotope ratios of chondrules were strongly influenced by the local solid precursors in the proto-planetary disk and the ambient gas during chondrule melting events.     

An Fe isotope study of ordinary chondrites

The Fe isotope composition of ordinary chondrites and their constituent chondrules, metal and sulphide grains have been systematically investigated. Bulk chondrites fall within a restricted isotopic range of <0.2‰ δ⁵⁶Fe, and chondrules define a larger range of >1‰ (−0.84‰ to 0.21‰ relative to the IRMM-14 Fe standard). Fe isotope compositions do not vary systematically with the very large differences in total Fe concentration, or oxidation state, of the H, L, and LL chondrite classes. Similarly, the Fe isotope compositions of chondrules do not appear to be determined by the H, L or LL classification of their host chondrite. This may support an origin of the three ordinary chondrite groups from variable accretion of identical Fe-bearing precursors.A close relationship between isotopic composition and redistribution of Fe during metamorphism on ordinary chondrite parent bodies was identified; the largest variations in chondrule compositions were found in chondrites of the lowest petrologic types. The clear link between element redistribution and isotopic composition has implications for many other non-traditional isotope systems (e.g. Mg, Si, Ca, Cr). Isotopic compositions of chondrules may also be determined by their melting history; porphyritic chondrules exhibit a wide range in isotope compositions whereas barred olivine and radial pyroxene chondrules are generally isotopically heavier than the ordinary chondrite mean. Very large chondrules preserve the greatest heterogeneity of Fe isotopes.The mean Fe isotope composition of bulk ordinary chondrites was found to be −0.06‰ (±0.12‰ 2 SD); this is isotopically lighter than the terrestrial mean composition and all other published non-chondritic meteorite suites e.g. lunar and Martian samples, eucrites, pallasites, and irons. Ordinary chondrites, though the most common meteorites found on Earth today, were not the sole building blocks of the terrestrial planets.     

Non-spherical lobate chondrules in CO3.0 Y-81020: General implications for the formation of low-FeO porphyritic chondrules in CO chondrites

Non-spherical chondrules (arbitrarily defined as having aspect ratios ≥1.20) in CO3.0 chondrites comprise multi-lobate, distended, and highly irregular objects with rounded margins; they constitute ∼70% of the type-I (low-FeO) porphyritic chondrules in Y-81020, ∼75% of such chondrules in ALHA77307, and ∼60% of those in Colony. Although the proportion of non-spherical type-I chondrules in LL3.0 Semarkona is comparable (∼60%), multi-lobate OC porphyritic chondrules (with lobe heights equivalent to a significant fraction of the mean chondrule diameter) are rare. If the non-spherical type-I chondrules in CO chondrites had formed from totally molten droplets, calculations indicate that they would have collapsed into spheres within ∼10⁻³ s, too little time for their 20-μm-size olivine phenocrysts to have grown from the melt. These olivine grains must therefore be relicts from an earlier chondrule generation; the final heating episode experienced by the non-spherical chondrules involved only minor amounts of melting and crystallization. The immediate precursors of the individual non-spherical chondrules may have been irregularly shaped chondrule fragments whose fracture surfaces were rounded during melting. Because non-spherical chondrules and “circular” chondrules form a continuum in shape and have similar grain sizes, mineral and mesostasis compositions, and modal abundances of non-opaque phases, they must have formed by related processes. We conclude that a large majority of low-FeO chondrules in CO3 chondrites experienced a late, low-degree melting event. Previous studies have shown that essentially all type-II (high-FeO) porphyritic chondrules in Y-81020 formed by repeated episodes of low-degree melting. It thus appears that the type-I and type-II porphyritic chondrules in Y-81020 (and, presumably, all CO3 chondrites) experienced analogous formation histories. Because these two types constitute ∼95% of all CO chondrules, it is clear that chondrule recycling was the rule in the CO chondrule-formation region and that most melting events produced only low degrees of melting. The rarity of significantly non-spherical, multi-lobate chondrules in Semarkona may reflect more-intense heating of chondrule precursors in the ordinary-chondrite region of the solar nebula.     

Metamorphism of the H-group chondrites: implications from compositional and textural trends in chondrules

Major and minor element bulk compositions of 373 individual chondrules from 18 H3 to H6 chondrites were determined in polished thin sections by broad-beam electron probe analysis. Bulk chondrule FeO and Al₂O₃ increase and TiO₂ and Cr₂O₃ decrease with increasing petrologic type; normative fayalite, albite and plagioclase increase through the petrologic sequence. Chondrule diameters correlate with phenocryst sizes in porphyritic chondrules of type 3 chondrites, but this correlation is diminished in the higher petrologic types. Furthermore, for a given chondrule diameter, phenocryst sizes are larger in the higher petrologic types. We attribute most compositional trends in chondrules through the petrologic sequence to diffusion and equilibration among chondrules and between chondrules and matrix in response to increasing degrees of thermal metamorphism. Increased phenocryst sizes in the higher petrologic types are probably the result of grain growth during metamorphism.We suggest that H-group chondrites formed by accretion of high-temperature (chondrules) and low-temperature (matrix) materials. Parent materials of each of the petrologic types resembled type 3 chondrites, but had slight compositional differences (e.g. volatiles, rare gases, total iron) inherited during accretion. These differences were predominantly functions of decreasing temperature in the nebula as accretion progressed. Internal reheating of the parent materials to different temperatures and (probably) for different times, as a function of depth in the parent body, caused compositional equilibration, grain coarsening, and reduction of FeO to Fe° by carbon.     

Coarse-grained chondrule rims in type 3 chondrites

Relatively coarse-grained rims occur around all types of chondrules in type 3 carbonaceous and ordinary chondrites. Those in H-L-LL3 chondrites are composed primarily of olivine and low-Ca pyroxene; those in CV3 chondrites contain much less low-Ca pyroxene. Average grain sizes range from ～4 μm in H-L-LL3 chondrites to ～10 μm in CV3 chondrites. Such rims surround ～50%, ～10% and ≤ 1% of chondrules in CV3, H-L-LL3 and CO3 chondrites, respectively, but are rare (≤1%) around CV3 Ca,Al-rich inclusions. Rim thicknesses average ～150 μm in H-L-LL3 chondrites and ～400 μm in CV3 chondrites.The rims in H-L-LL3 chondrites are composed of material very similar to that which comprises darkzoned chondrules and recrysiallized matrix. Dark-zoned chondrules and coarse-grained rims probably formed in the solar nebula from clumps of opaque matrix material heated to sub-solidus to sub-liquidus temperatures during chondrule formation. Mechanisms capable of completely melting some material while only sintering other material require steep thermal gradients; suitable processes are lightning, reconnecting magnetic field lines and, possibly, aerodynamic drag heating.CV chondrites may have formed in a region where the chondrule formation mechanism was less efficient, probably at greater solar distances than the ordinary chondrites. The lesser efficiency of heating could be responsible for the greater abundance of coarse-grained rims around CV chondrules. Alternatively, CV chondrules may have suffered fewer particle collisions prior to agglomeration.     

Amoeboid olivine aggregates and related objects in carbonaceous chondrites: records of nebular and asteroid processes

Amoeboid olivine aggregates (AOAs) are the most common type of refractory inclusions in CM, CR, CH, CV, CO, and ungrouped carbonaceous chondrites Acfer 094 and Adelaide; only one AOA was found in the CB_b chondrite Hammadah al Hamra 237 and none were observed in the CB_a chondrites Bencubbin, Gujba, and Weatherford. In primitive (unaltered and unmetamorphosed) carbonaceous chondrites, AOAs consist of forsterite (Fa_<2), Fe, Ni-metal (5-12 wt% Ni), and Ca, Al-rich inclusions (CAIs) composed of Al-diopside, spinel, anorthite, and very rare melilite. Melilite is typically replaced by a fine-grained mixture of spinel, Al-diopside, and ±anorthite; spinel is replaced by anorthite. About 10% of AOAs contain low-Ca pyroxene replacing forsterite. Forsterite and spinel are always ¹⁶O-rich (δ^17,18O∼−40‰ to −50‰), whereas melilite, anorthite, and diopside could be either similarly ¹⁶O-rich or ¹⁶O-depleted to varying degrees; the latter is common in AOAs from altered and metamorphosed carbonaceous chondrites such as some CVs and COs. Low-Ca pyroxene is either ¹⁶O-rich (δ^17,18O∼−40‰) or ¹⁶O-poor (δ^17,18O∼0‰). Most AOAs in CV chondrites have unfractionated (∼2-10×CI) rare-earth element patterns. AOAs have similar textures, mineralogy and oxygen isotopic compositions to those of forsterite-rich accretionary rims surrounding different types of CAIs (compact and fluffy Type A, Type B, and fine-grained, spinel-rich) in CV and CR chondrites. AOAs in primitive carbonaceous chondrites show no evidence for alteration and thermal metamorphism. Secondary minerals in AOAs from CR, CM, and CO, and CV chondrites are similar to those in chondrules, CAIs, and matrices of their host meteorites and include phyllosilicates, magnetite, carbonates, nepheline, sodalite, grossular, wollastonite, hedenbergite, andradite, and ferrous olivine.Our observations and a thermodynamic analysis suggest that AOAs and forsterite-rich accretionary rims formed in ¹⁶O-rich gaseous reservoirs, probably in the CAI-forming region(s), as aggregates of solar nebular condensates originally composed of forsterite, Fe, Ni-metal, and CAIs. Some of the CAIs were melted prior to aggregation into AOAs and experienced formation of Wark-Lovering rims. Before and possibly after the aggregation, melilite and spinel in CAIs reacted with SiO and Mg of the solar nebula gas enriched in ¹⁶O to form Al-diopside and anorthite. Forsterite in some AOAs reacted with ¹⁶O-enriched SiO gas to form low-Ca pyroxene. Some other AOAs were either reheated in ¹⁶O-poor gaseous reservoirs or coated by ¹⁶O-depleted pyroxene-rich dust and melted to varying degrees, possibly during chondrule formation. The most extensively melted AOAs experienced oxygen isotope exchange with ¹⁶O-poor nebular gas and may have been transformed into magnesian (Type I) chondrules. Secondary mineralization and at least some of the oxygen isotope exchange in AOAs from altered and metamorphosed chondrites must have resulted from alteration in the presence of aqueous solutions after aggregation and lithification of the chondrite parent asteroids.