The partitioning of copper between silicate melts and two-phase aqueous fluids: An experimental investigation at 1 kbar, 800° C and 0.5 kbar, 850° C

 Experiments were performed in the three phase system high-silica rhyolite melt+low-salinity aqueous vapor+hydrosaline brine, to investigate the partitioning equilibria for copper in magmatic-hydrothermal systems at 800° C and 1 kbar, and 850° C and 0.5 kbar. D^aqm/mlt _Cu and apparent equilibrium constants, K^aqm/mlt _Cu,Na, between the aqueous mixture (aqm=quenched vapor+brine) and the silicate melt (mlt) are calculated. D^aqm/mlt _Cu increases with increasing aqueous chloride concentration and is a function of pressure. K^aqm/mlt _Cu,Na=215(±73) at 1 kbar and 800° C and K^aqm/mlt _Cu,Na=11(±6) at 0.5 kbar and 850°C. Decreasing pressure from 1 to 0.5 kbar lowers K^aqm/mlt _Cu,Na by a factor of approximately 20. Data revealed no difference in K^aqm/mlt _Cu,Na or D^aqm/mlt _Cu as a function of the melt aluminium saturation index. Within the 2-phase field the K^aqm/mlt _Cu,Na show no variation with total aqueous chloride, indicating that copper-sodium exchange between the vapor, brine and silicate melt is independent of the mass proportion of vapor and brine. Model copper-sodium apparent equilibrium constants for the hydrosaline brine and the silicate melt revealed a negative dependence on pressure. Model apparent equilibrium constants for copper-sodium exchange between the brine and vapor were close to unity at 1 kbar and 800° C. Received: 27 June 1994/Accepted: 30 March 1995     

The Partitioning of Tungsten bwtween Aqueous Fluids and Silicate Melts

An experimental study has been carried out to determine the partition coefficients of tungsten between aqueous fluids and granitic melts at 800 °C and 1.5 kb with natural granite as the starting material. The effects of the solutions on the partition coefficients of tungsten show a sequence of P > CO ₃ ²⁻ > B > H₂O. The effects are limited (generallyK _D < 0.3) and the tungsten shows a preferential trend toward the melt over the aqueous fluid. The value ofK _D increases with increasing concentration of phosphorus; theK _D increases first and then reduces with the concentration of CO ₃ ²⁻ when temperature decreases, theK _D between the solution of CO ₃ ²⁻ and the silicate melt increases, and that between the solution of B₄O ₇ ²⁻ and the silicate melt decreases. The partition coefficients of phosphorus and sodium between fluids and silicate melts have been calculated from the concentrations of the elements in the melts. TheK _D value for phosphorus is 0.38 and that for sodium is 0.56. Evidence shows that the elements tend to become richer and richer in the melts.     

The partitioning of copper and molybdenum between silicate melts and aqueous fluids

The partitioning of copper and molybdenum between silicate melts and aqueous fluids has been determined at 750°C, and 1.4 Kb. The experiments were conducted in a $\text{1}\text{2}$ inch ID, rapid quench, cold seal pressure vessel. The aqueous and glass phase run products were analyzed by atomic absorption spectrophotometry and ion microprobe, respectively. The vapor/melt partition coefficient for copper, $\text{D}{}^{\mathrm{<mtext>v</mtext><mtext>l</mtext>}}{}_{\mathrm{Cu}}$, defined as the ratio of the concentrations of copper in the vapor to copper in the melt was found to be $\text{D}{}^{\mathrm{<mtext>v</mtext><mtext>l</mtext>}}{}_{\mathrm{Cu}}\text{= (9.1 ± 2.5)m}{}^{\mathrm{v}}{}_{\mathrm{Cl}}$ at NNO up to at least 4.5 moles of chlorine per kg of solution. The partition coefficient for molybdenum is equal to 2.5 ± 1.6 at NNO and QFM; its value is independent of the fluorine concentration of the melt up to at least 1.7 wt. percent fluorine, and of the chlorine concentration up to at least 4.5 moles of chlorine per kg of solution. Copper is probably present in the univalent state in both the silicate melt and in the associated aqueous phase at NNO; the most important aqueous complex of copper is probably CuCl⁰. Molybdenum is probably present in the aqueous phase as one or more molybdate species.     

Carbon isotopic fractionation between CO2 vapour,silicate and carbonate melts: an experimental study to 30 kbar

The carbon isotopic fractionation between CO₂ vapour and sodamelilite (NaCaAlSi₂O₇) melt over a range of pressures and temperatures has been investigated using solid-media piston-cylinder high pressure apparatus. Ag₂C₂O₄ was the source of CO₂ and experimental oxygen fugacity was buffered at hematite-magnetite by the double capsule technique. The abundance and isotopic composition of carbon dissolved in sodamelilite (SM) glass were determined by stepped heating and the ¹³C of coexisting vapour was determined directly by capsule piercing. CO₂ solubility in SM displays a complex behavior with temperature. At pressures up to 10 kbars CO₂ dissolves in SM to form carbonate ion complexes and the solubility data suggest slight negative temperature dependence. Above 20 kbars CO₂ reacts with SM to form immiscible Na-rich silicate and Ca-rich carbonate melts and CO₂ solubility in Na-enriched silicate melt rises with increasing temperature above the liquidus. Measured values for carbon isotopic fractionation between CO₂ vapour and carbonate ions dissoived in sodamelilite melt at 1200°–1400° C and 5–30 kbars average 2.4±0.2, favouring¹³C enrichment in CO₂ vapour. The results are maxima and are independent of pressure and temperature. Similar values of 2 are obtained for the carbon isotopic fractionation between CO₂ vapour and carbonate melts at 1300°–1400° C and 20–30 kbars.     

Rate of hydrogen-iron redox exchange in silicate melts and glasses

A kinetic model for the rate of iron-hydrogen redox exchange in silicate glasses and melts has been derived from time-series experiments performed on natural rhyolitic obsidians. Cylinders of the starting glasses were exposed to reducing mixtures composed of H₂-Ar-CO₂-CO in 1-atm furnaces and H₂-Ar in a cold seal pressure vessel. Overall, runs covered the temperature range 300 to 1000°C. The progression of a front of ferric iron reduction within the quenched melt was observed optically through a change of color. For all run conditions, the advancement of the front (ξ) was proportional to the square root of time, revealing the reaction as a diffusion-limited process. Iso-fO₂ runs performed in CO₂-CO, H₂-Ar, and H₂-CO₂ gases have shown that fH₂ rather than fO₂ is the dominant parameter controlling the reaction rate. The fH₂ dependence of the rate constant was characterized in the range 0.02 to 70 bar. The growth of the reduced layer, which is accompanied by an increase in reaction-derived OH-group content, was fitted considering that the reaction rate is controlled by the migration of a free mobile species (H₂) immobilized in the form of OH subsequent to reaction with ferric iron. The reaction rate is thus a function of both solubility and diffusivity of H₂ weighted by the concentration of its sink (ferric iron). We extracted a single law for both solubility and diffusivity of H₂ in amorphous silicates that applies over a range of temperatures below and above the glass transition temperature. Melt/glass structure (degree of polymerization) does not seem to significantly affect both solubility and diffusivity of H₂. We therefore provide a model that allows the prediction of oxidation-reduction rates in the presence of hydrogen for a wide range of compositions of amorphous glasses and melts. Comparisons with previous work elucidating rate of redox exchange in dry systems allow us to anticipate the fH₂-T domains where different redox mechanisms may apply. We conclude that equilibration of redox potential in nature should be dominated by H₂ transfer at a rate controlled by both H₂ solubility and diffusion. Numerical applications of the model illustrate redox exchanges in natural magmas and in glasses exposed to weathering under near surface conditions. We show that crustal events such as magmas mixing should not modify the iron redox state of magmas. In the case of nuclear-waste-bearing glasses, the fH₂ conditions in the host terrain are clearly a parameter that must be taken into account to predict glass durability.     

Partitioning coefficients between olivine and silicate melts

Variation of Nernst partition coefficients (D) between olivine and silicate melts cannot be neglected when modeling partial melting and fractional crystallization. Published natural and experimental ^{olivine/liquid}D data were examined for covariation with pressure, temperature, olivine forsterite content, and melt SiO₂, H₂O, MgO and MgO/MgO + FeO^total. Values of ^{olivine/liquid}D generally increase with decreasing temperature and melt MgO content, and with increasing melt SiO₂ content, but generally show poor correlations with other variables. Multi-element ^{olivine/liquid}D profiles calculated from regressions of D REE–Sc–Y vs. melt MgO content are compared to results of the Lattice Strain Model to link melt MgO and: D₀ (the strain compensated partition coefficient), E_M³⁺ (Young's Modulus), and r₀ (the size of the M site). Ln D₀ varies linearly with Ln MgO in the melt; E_M³⁺ varies linearly with melt MgO, with a dog-leg at ca. 1.5% MgO; and r₀ remains constant at 0.807 Å. These equations are then used to calculate ^{olivine/liquid}D for these elements using the Lattice Strain Model. These empirical parameterizations of ^{olivine/liquid}D variations yield results comparable to experimental or natural partitioning data, and can easily be integrated into existing trace element modeling algorithms. The ^{olivine/liquid}D data suggest that basaltic melts in equilibrium with pure olivine may acquire small negative Ta–Hf–Zr–Ti anomalies, but that negative Nb anomalies are unlikely to develop. Misfits between results of the Lattice Strain Model and most light rare earth and large ion lithophile partitioning data suggest that kinetic effects may limit the lower value of D for extremely incompatible elements in natural situations characterized by high cooling/crystallization rates.     

Iron-bearing silicate melts: Relations between pressure and redox equilibria

Mossbauer spectroscopy has been used to determine the redox equilibria of iron and structure of quenched melts on the composition join Na₂Si₂O₅-Fe₂O₃ to 40 kbar pressure at 1400° C. The Fe³⁺/ΣFe decreases with increasing pressure. The ferric iron appears to undergo a gradual coordination transformation from a network-former at 1 bar to a network-modifier at higher (≧10 kbar) pressure. Ferrous iron is a network-modifier in all quenched melts. Reduction of Fe³⁺ to Fe²⁺ and coordination transformation of remaining Fe³⁺ result in depolymerization of the silicate melts (the ratio of nonbridging oxygens per tetrahedral cations, NBO/T, increases). It is suggested that this pressure-induced depolymerization of iron-bearing silicate liquids results in increasing NBO/T of the liquidus minerals. Furthermore, this depolymerization results in a more rapid pressure-induced decrease in viscosity and activation energy of viscous flow of iron-bearing silicate melts than would be expected for iron-free silicate melts with similar NBO/T.     

Trace element partitioning between apatite and silicate melts

We present new experimental apatite/melt trace element partition coefficients for a large number of trace elements (Cs, Rb, Ba, La, Ce, Pr, Sm, Gd, Lu, Y, Sr, Zr, Hf, Nb, Ta, U, Pb, and Th). The experiments were conducted at pressures of 1.0 GPa and temperatures of 1250 °C. The rare earth elements (La, Ce, Pr, Sm, Gd, and Lu), Y, and Sr are compatible in apatite, whereas the larger lithophile elements (Cs, Rb, and Ba) are strongly incompatible. Other trace elements such as U, Th, and Pb have partition coefficients close to unity. In all experiments we found D_Hf > D_Zr, D_Ta ≈ D_Nb, and D_Ba > D_Rb > D_Cs. The experiments reveal a strong influence of melt composition on REE partition coefficients. With increasing polymerisation of the melt, apatite/melt partition coefficients for the rare earth elements increase for about an order of magnitude. We also present some results in fluorine-rich and water-rich systems, respectively, but no significant influence of either H₂O or F on the partitioning was found. Furthermore, we also present experimentally determined partition coefficients in close-to natural compositions which should be directly applicable to magmatic processes.     

Stability of phlogopite in granitic melts, an experimental investigation

Water-saturated and water-undersaturated experiments (a _{H2 O} = 1.0 and 0.5) were performed in the temperature range 780–1040°C at 2 and 5 kbar in order to determine the upper thermal stability of phlogopite in granitic melts. Starting compositions were: (A) subaluminous mixtures of 20 wt % synthetic phlogopite and 80 wt % synthetic anhydrous haplogranitic glass; (B) peraluminous mixtures (normative corundum  = 4 %) of 20 wt % synthetic phlogopite and 80 wt % synthetic anhydrous peraluminous haplogranitic glass. The molar quartz: albite: orthoclase ratio of the glasses of the 2␣kbar runs was 35:39:26 and that of the 5 kbar runs 30:42:28. In the subaluminous system, phlogopite is stable up to 820°C at a _{H2 O} = 1.0 and up to 780°C at a _{H2 O} = 0.5. At higher temperatures, it is replaced by enstatite. In the peraluminous system phlogopite has a remarkably higher thermal stability (up to 1000°C at 5 kbar and a _{H2 O} = 1.0) and there is a temperature interval of 80°C at a _{H2 O} = 1.0, and 90–100°C at a _{H2 O} = 0.5 between the first appearance of enstatite and the disappearance of phlogopite. In the peraluminous system, phlogopite is a solid solution (ss) of phlogopite, muscovite, talc and eastonite components. The crystalline product of the phlogopite_ss breakdown reaction is an aluminous enstatite. The MgO-content of the melt depends on the normative corundum content of the starting material and the run temperature. It is independent of pressure. In the subaluminous system, the MgO-content ranges between 0.05 and 0.3 wt % in the temperature interval 780–880°C at both investigated water activities. The MgO-content of the peraluminous melts at a _{H2 O} = 1.0 ranges between 0.4 and 1.7 wt % and at a _{H2 O} = 0.5 between 0.2 and 1.4 wt % in the temperature range 780–980°C. Received: 28 August 1995 / Accepted: 6 August 1996     

The effect of titanium and phosphorus on ferric/ferrous ratio in silicate melts: an experimental study

The effect of TiO₂ and P₂O₅ on the ferric/ferrous ratio in silicate melts was investigated in model silicate melts at air conditions in the temperature range 1,400–1,550 °C at 1-atm total pressure. The base composition of the anorthite–diopside eutectic composition was modified with 10 wt % Fe₂O₃ and variable amounts of TiO₂ (up to 30 wt %) or P₂O₅ (up to 20 wt %). Some compositions also contained higher SiO₂ concentrations to compare the role of SiO₂, TiO₂, and P₂O₅ on the Fe³⁺/Fe²⁺ ratio. The ferric/ferrous ratio in experimental glasses was analyzed using a wet chemical technique with colorimetric detection of ferrous iron. It is shown that at constant temperature, an increase in SiO₂, TiO₂, and P₂O₅ content results in a decrease in the ferric/ferrous ratio. The effects of TiO₂ and SiO₂ on the Fe³⁺/Fe²⁺ ratio was found to be almost identical. In contrast, adding P₂O₅ was found to decrease ferric/ferrous ratio much more effectively than adding silica. The results were compared with the predictions from the published empirical equations forecasting Fe³⁺/Fe²⁺ ratio. It was demonstrated that the effects of TiO₂ are minor but that the effects of P₂O₅ should be included in models to better describe ferric/ferrous ratio in phosphorus-bearing silicate melts. Based on our observations, the determination of the prevailing fO₂ in magmas from the Fe³⁺/Fe²⁺ ratio in natural glasses using empirical equations published so far is discussed critically.     

Fe2⇄Mg2 and TiAl2⇄MgSi2 exchange reactions between clinopyroxenes and silicate melts

The interdependence of the Fe(Mg)_–1 (e.g., FeO-MgO in silicate melt; CaFeSi₂O₆-CaMgSi₂O₆ in pyroxene) and TiAl₂(MgSi₂)_–1 exchange reactions between silicate melts and coexisting Ca-pyroxene has been examined. High-calcium clinopyroxenes were grown in 1 atmosphere melting and crystallization experiments on rock powders spanning the composition range tholeiite to melilitite (1,0922+Mg²⁺ exchange and suggest that at given values of extent of Fe(Mg)_–1 substitution is strongly coupled with the TiAl₂(MgSi₂)_–1 substitution in pyroxenes near the five-component space CaMg(Si₂O₆-CaFe(Si)₂O₆-CaTi(Al)₂O₆-CaFe(Al,Si)₂O₆-CaAl(Al,Si)₂O₆. The inferred stabilization of Ti in iron-rich relative to magnesium pyroxene is consistent with the operation of Fe²⁺Ti⁴⁺ intervalence charge transfer interactions (e.g., Rossman 1980) and observations on zoning in natural titanaugites (e.g., Tracy and Robinson 1977). Although the rims of some pyroxenes grown in some melting experiments exhibit prominent zoning in TiAl₂(MgSi₂)_–1, the average values of inferred from the compositions of these pyroxenes, together with those of the relatively homogeneous pyroxenes produced in crystallization experiments, exhibit a 11 correlation with values of derived from the solution model of Ghiorso et al. (1983) with a standard error of 750 calories. The Ti contents of Ca-rich pyroxenes crystallizing from a wide range of natural silicate liquids can therefore be predicted.     

An experimental determination of rare earth partition coefficients between a chloride containing vapor phase and silicate melts

The partitioning behavior of cerium, europium, gadolinium and ytterbium between an aqueous “vapor” phase and water saturated silicate melt have been experimentally examined using a new experimental approach employing radioactive tracers and a double-capsule technique. Equilibrium was established by reversing the partition coefficient¹ and by betatrack autoradiography. Aqueous solution compositions were varied by adding different amounts of chloride and in some cases fluoride or carbon dioxide. The H₂O contents of the Spruce Pine pegmatite melts were varied by conducting experiments at 4.0 kb, 800°C and at 1.25 kb, 800°C. A jadeite-nepheline composition (75 wt% Jadeite) also was employed at 4.0 kb, 800°C.The chloride experiments (Spruce Pine 4 kb, 800°C) show a linear relationship between the cube of the chloride molality and the partition coefficients of the trivalent rare earths. Europium, under the experimental fO₂ conditions (quartz-fayalite-magnetite buffer), varied linearly as the fifth power of the chloride molality. At the chloride molalities examined (<1.1 mC1), all the rare earths partitioned preferentially into the melt phase (K_P^RE <1). Relative to pure water, the presence of chloride and fluoride fon increased the partitioning of the individual rare earths into the vapor phase, while carbon dioxide did not. Europium anomalies were recorded 1n all experiments, particularly those involving the Spruce P1ne melt at 4.0 kb and 800°C which displayed a large positive europium anomaly at all chloride molalities. Furthermore, a relative fractionation of the trivalent rare earths was also observed in these experiments, such that K_P^Ce>K_P^Gd>K_P^Yb. The smaller ytterbium ion was consistently concentrated in the melt phase relative to the other rare earths in all experiments on the Spruce Pine composition. Experiments on the jadeite-nepheline composition showed no relative fractionation and a positive europium anomaly. The 1.25 kb experiment on the Spruce Pine composition showed a negative europium anomaly in plots of K_p^RE vs. REE.The overall rare earth partitioning at a constant chloride molality (mCl = .914) was such that K_P^SP(1.25 kb) > K_P^SP(4.0 kb) > K_P^Jd-Ne(4.0 kb), where SP = Spruce Pine, Jd-Ne = jadeitenepheli Using the model of Burnnam (1975), It is suggested that the trivalent rare earth partitioning is related to the cube of the melt octahedral site concentration; a property which 1n hydrous melts 1s dependent on melt composition and hydroxyl molality. Excellent agreement was found for the Spruce Pine melt, whereas the jadeite-nepheline melt gave apparent hydroxyl molalities which were too high for the measured partition coefficient. Additional octahedral sites are proposed for this unusual composition perhaps due to some aluminum in 6-fold coordination. The apparent compositional variation of europium partitioning at a constant oxygen fugacity is believed to be related to both the octahedral melt site concentration for trlvalent europium and an 8-coordinated site concentration for divalent europium. Any parameter which affects the numbers of these sites (_PH₂O, melt composition) will affect the rare earth partitioning. The observed dependency of the partition coefficient on the structural state of the melt could be as significant as its dependency on crystalline structural constraints. Furthermore, since _PH₂O can drastically effect the melt structural state, its effects could be reflected in melt/crystal partition coefficients.     

The redox state of cerium in basaltic magmas: an experimental study of iron-cerium interactions in silicate melts

Ce(IV)-Ce(III) and Fe(III)-Fe(II) redox equilibria in Ca-Mg-Al-silicate melts have been individually measured with respect to the base composition, melt temperature, imposed oxygen fugacity, and multivalent element concentration (up to about 1.5 wt%). The mutual interaction of these two redox couples has been studied in analogous glasses which simultaneously contained iron and cerium. Analyses of Fe(III) concentrations in iron-cerium glasses by electron paramagnetic resonance and optical absorption spectroscopy indicate that Ce(IV) is stoichiometrically reduced by Fe(II) in the melt to produce Fe(III) and Ce(III) and that Ce(III)-O-Fe(III) complexes are formed in the melt. Consequently, it is concluded that cerium exists only as Ce(III) in basaltic magmas; cerium anomalies cannot be ascribed to the stabilization of Ce(IV) in magmas.     

The relationship between foliation and strain: an experimental investigation

A multilayered salt/mica specimen with embedded strain markers was shortened to produce a fold and the distribution of strain was subsequently mapped out over the profile plane. On a fine scale the initial foliation, which is parallel to the undeformed layers, is folded by tight kinks to produce two new foliations; one is defined by the preferred orientation of kink boundaries and the other by the preferred orientation of (001) of mica. In the hinge region of the fold the first of these new foliations is parallel to the local λ₁λ₂-principal plane of strain whereas the preferred orientation of mica is bimodal and is symmetrical about the λ₁λ₂-plane. Elsewhere the two new foliations are not parallel to the principal plane of strain and angular divergencies of up to 30–35° are measured. If a March model with initial random mica orientation is assumed for the development of mica preferred orientation then the correct value of strain is predicted but the orientation of the principal plane of strain can be grossly in error. A theoretical analysis of the angular relationships to be expected between kink boundaries and the λ₁λ₂-plane of strain confirms that for the type of geometries experimentally developed, large divergences of up to 35° should be common. In rocks where the foliation has developed by processes similar to those recorded here, large angular divergencies between the foliation and the λ₁λ₂-principal plane of strain should be expected as the rule.     

Compositional effects on element partitioning between Mg-silicate perovskite and silicate melts

High-pressure melting experiments were performed at ~26 GPa and ~2,200–2,400°C on synthetic peridotite compositions with varying FeO and Al₂O₃ contents and on a synthetic CI chondrite analogue composition. Peridotite liquids show a crystallisation sequence of ferropericlase (Fp) followed down temperature by Mg-silicate perovskite (MgPv) + Fp, which contrasts a sequence of MgPv followed by MgPv + Fp observed in the chondritic composition. The difference in crystallisation sequence is a consequence of the different bulk Mg/Si ratios. MgPv/melt partition coefficients for major, minor and trace elements were determined by electron microprobe and secondary ion mass spectrometry. Partition coefficients of tri- and tetravalent elements increase with increasing Al concentration in MgPv. A lattice strain model indicates that Al³⁺ substitutes predominantly onto the Si-site in MgPv, whereas most elements substitute onto the Mg-site, which is consistent with a charge-compensating coupled substitution mechanism. MgPv/melt partition coefficients for Mg (D_Mg) and Si (D_Si) are related to the melt Mg/Si ratio such that D_Si becomes lower than D_Mg at low Mg/Si melt ratios. We use a crystal fractionation model, based on upper mantle refractory lithophile element ratios, to constrain the amount of MgPv and Ca-silicate perovskite (CaPv) that could have fractionated during a Hadean magma ocean event and could still be present as a chemically distinct heterogeneity in the lower mantle today. We show that a fractionated crystal pile composed of 96% MgPv and 4% CaPv could comprise up to 13 wt% of the entire mantle.     

Dual speciation of nitrogen in silicate melts at high pressure and temperature: An experimental study

Solubility and speciation of nitrogen in silicate melts have been investigated between 1400 and 1700 °C and at pressures ranging from 10 to 30 kbar for six different binary alkali and alkaline-earth silicate liquids and a Ca-Mg-alumino silicate. Experiments were performed in a piston-cylinder apparatus. The nitrogen source is silver azide, which breaks down to Ag and molecular N₂ below 300 °C. At high pressure and temperature, the nitrogen content may be as high as 0.7 wt% depending on the melt composition, pressure, and temperature. It increases with T, P and the polymerization state of the liquid. Characterization by Raman spectroscopy and ¹⁵N solid state MAS NMR indicates that nitrogen is not only physically dissolved as N₂ within the melt structure like noble gases, but a fraction of nitrogen interacts strongly with the silicate network. The most likely nitrogen-bearing species that can account for Raman and NMR results is nitrosyl group. Solubility data follow an apparent Henry’s law behavior and are in good agreement with previous studies when the nitrosyl content is low. On the other hand, a significant departure from a Henry’s law behavior is observed for highly depolymerized melts, which contain more nitrosyl than polymerized melts. Possible solubility mechanisms are also discussed. Finally, a multi-variant empirical relation is given to predict the relative content of nitrosyl and molecular nitrogen as a function of P, T, and melt composition and structure. This complex speciation of nitrogen in melts under high pressure may have significant implication concerning crystal-melt partitioning of nitrogen as well as for potential elemental and isotopic fractionation of nitrogen in the deep Earth.     

Partitioning of trace elements between rutile and silicate melts: Implications for subduction zones

Mineral/melt trace element partition coefficients were determined for rutile (TiO₂) for a large number of trace elements (Zr, Hf, Nb, Ta, V, Co, Cu, Zn, Sr, REE, Cr, Sb, W, U, Th). Whilst the high field strength elements (Zr, Hf, Nb, Ta) are compatible in rutile, other studied trace elements are incompatible (Sr, Th, REE). In all experiments we found D_Ta > D_Nb, D_Hf > D_Zr and D_U > D_Th. Partition coefficients for some polyvalent elements (Sb, W, and Co) were sensitive to oxygen fugacity. Melt composition exerts a strong influence on HFSE partition coefficients. With increasing polymerization of the melt, rutile/melt partition coefficients for the high field strength elements Zr, Hf, Nb and Ta increase about an order of magnitude. However, D_Nb/D_Ta and D_Hf/D_Zr are not significantly affected by melt composition. Because D_U ? D_Th, partial melting of rutile-bearing eclogite in subducted lithosphere may cause excesses of ²³⁰Th over ²³⁸U in some island arc lavas, whereas dehydration of subducted lithosphere may cause excesses of ²³⁸U over ²³⁰Th. From our partitioning results we infer partition coefficients for protactinium (Pa) which we predict to be much lower than previously anticipated. Contrary to previous studies, our data imply that rutile should not significantly influence observed ²³¹Pa-²³⁵U disequilibria in certain volcanic rocks.     

The relationship between foliation and strain: an experimental investigation: reply

Contrary to the criticisms of our ideas by Treagus, we still believe that our experiments show that a secondary preferred orientation of micas or of small kink-like folds, closely resembling similar features in some cleaved rocks, can form at large angles to the λ₁λ₂ plane of strain, where the strain referred to is the strain coeval with development of these features.