High-pressure phases in the Al2SiO5 system and the problem of aluminous phase in the Earth's lower mantle: ab initio calculations

 One of the main uncertainties in mineralogical models of the Earth's lower mantle is the nature of the aluminous mineral: it is not clear whether Al forms its own minerals or is mainly contained in (Mg,Fe)SiO₃-perovskite. This question is very important, since it is known that if Al were mainly hosted by perovskite, it would radically change Fe/Mg-partitioning and phase equilibria between mantle minerals, and also alter many physical and chemical properties of perovskite, which is currently believed to comprise ca. 70% of the volume of the lower mantle. This, in turn, would require us to reconsider many of our geochemical and geophysical models for the lower mantle. This work considers the possibility of a V₃O₅-type structured modification of Al₂SiO₅ to be the main host of Al in the lower mantle, as proposed by previous workers. We report ab initio calculations, based on density functional theory within the generalised gradient approximation (GGA) with plane wave basis set and nonlocal pseudopotentials. We consider polymorphs of Al₂SiO₅ (kyanite, andalusite, sillimanite, and hypothetical V₃O₅-like and pseudobrookite-like phases), SiO₂ (stishovite, quartz) and Al₂O₃ (corundum). Computational conditions (e.g., plane-wave energy cutoff, Brillouin zone sampling) were carefully chosen in order to reproduce small energy changes associated with phase transitions between the Al₂SiO₅ polymorphs. Good agreement of crystal structures, bulk moduli, atomisation energies and the phase diagram of Al₂SiO₅ with experimental data was found. Strong disagreement between the calculated lattice parameters and density of V₃O₅-like phase of Al₂SiO₅ and experimental values, assigned to it by previous workers, suggests that a V₃O₅-structured phase of Al₂SiO₅ was never observed experimentally. In addition, we found that the most stable high-pressure assembly in Al₂SiO₅ system is corundum+stishovite, and the value of the transition pressure at T = O K (113 kbar) is in excellent agreement with experimental estimates (95–150 kbar). We explain the instability of octahedrally coordinated silicates of Al to decomposition on the basis of Pauling's second rule. Received: 18 May 1999 / Accepted: 5 November 1999     

Behavior of 10-Å phase at low temperatures

The thermal evolution of 10-Å phase Mg₃Si₄O₁₀(OH)₂·H₂O, a phyllosilicate which may have an important role in the storage/release of water in subducting slabs, was studied by X-ray single-crystal diffraction in the temperature range 116–293 K. The lattice parameters were measured at several intervals both on cooling and heating. The structural model was refined with intensity data collected at 116 K and compared to the model refined at room temperature. As expected for a layer silicate on cooling in this temperature range, the a and b lattice parameters undergo a small linear decrease, α _a  = 1.7(4) 10^?6 K^?1 and α _b  = 1.9(4) 10^?6 K^?1, where α is the linear thermal expansion coefficient. The greater variation is along the c axis and can be modeled with the second order polynomial c _T  = c ₂₉₃(1 + 6.7(4)10^?5 K^?1ΔT + 9.5(2.5)10^?8 K^?2(ΔT)²) where ΔT = T ? 293 K; the monoclinic angle β slightly increased. The cell volume thermal expansion can be modeled with the polynomial V _T  = V ₂₉₃ (1 + 8.0 10^?5 K^?1 ΔT + 1.4 10^?7 K^?2 (ΔT)²) where ΔT = T ? 293 is in K and V in ų. These variations were similar to those expected for a pressure increase, indicating that T and P effects are approximately inverse. The least-squares refinement with intensity data measured at 116 K shows that the volume of the SiO₄ tetrahedra does not change significantly, whereas the volume of the Mg octahedra slightly decreases. To adjust for the increased misfit between the tetrahedral and octahedral sheets, the tetrahedral rotation angle α changes from 0.58° to 1.38°, increasing the ditrigonalization of the silicate sheet. This deformation has implications on the H-bonds between the water molecule and the basal oxygen atoms. Furthermore, the highly anisotropic thermal ellipsoid of the H₂O oxygen indicates positional disorder, similar to the disorder observed at room temperature. The low-temperature results support the hypothesis that the disorder is static. It can be modeled with a splitting of the interlayer oxygen site with a statistical distribution of the H₂O molecules into two positions, 0.6 Å apart. The resulting shortest O_bas–O_W distances are 2.97 Å, with a significant shortening with respect to the value at room temperature. The low-temperature behavior of the H-bond system is consistent with that hypothesized at high pressure on the basis of the Raman spectra evolution with P.     

Incommensurate–normal phase transition in natural melilite: an in situ high-temperature X-ray single-crystal study

The structure of a natural melilite with chemical composition (Ca_1.87Sr_0.02Na_0.10K_0.02)_2.01(Mg_0.96Al_0.07)_1.03(Si_1.98Al_0.02)_2.00O₇ has been investigated by X-ray single-crystal diffraction methods within the temperature range 298–773 K. The values of the coefficient of the modulation wave vector were determined at 298 K, 323 K, 348 K, and 358 K. These values show a continuous linear decrease from 0.2833(6) at 298 K to 0.2763(9) at 358 K. The incommensurate phase undergoes a phase transition to the normal phase at 359 K. The refinements of the structure, carried out at 298 K, 348 K, 359 K, 373 K, 413 K, 463 K, 513 K, 573 K, 673 K, and 773 K, showed that the normal phase (high-temperature phase) does not significantly differ from the basic structure (the average structure of the incommensurate structure). This study confirms that in natural melilites with chemical composition close to that of åkermanite the wavelength of the incommensurate modulation increases when the temperature rises. The different behaviour of the q-vector as a function of temperature in natural and synthetic åkermanite is discussed.     

Experimental study of the dehydration of 10-Å phase,with implications for its H<Subscript>2</Subscript>O content and stability in subducted lithosphere

The 10-Å phase (TAP) is a hydrous magnesium silicate that forms from the reaction of talc with H₂O at high pressures. Its high-pressure, low-temperature stability means that it could be a storage site for H₂O in subduction zones. We have determined the position of the TAP dehydration reaction, TAP = enstatite + coesite + H₂O, in phase-equilibrium experiments from 5.0 to 7.1 GPa. Because previous studies had suggested that the composition of TAP is a function of synthesis duration, we used a TAP sample that was synthesised for 392 h. Over the pressure interval of our experiments, the dehydration reaction is isothermal, occurring at a temperature of ~690°C. It is coincident, within experimental uncertainty, with the position of the dehydration reaction of TAP synthesised in short experiments (up to 46 h). Above 7.5 GPa, TAP breaks down to enstatite + stishovite + H₂O. This reaction has a negative dP/dT and terminates at an invariant point involving the 3.65-Å phase at ~9.5 GPa, 500°C. The zero volume change implied by the isothermal reaction TAP = enstatite + coesite + H₂O was used to calculate the interlayer H₂O content of TAP along the reaction. A best-fit H₂O content of 1 H₂O pfu was obtained. This H₂O content is independent of TAP synthesis conditions, suggesting that variations in previously measured H₂O contents of TAP occur during quenching and decompression of the samples. The stability of TAP in the Earth is probably limited to cold subduction zones, but in these, it could persist to 300 km depth.     

High-pressure and high-temperature Raman spectroscopic study of hydrous wadsleyite (β-Mg2SiO4)

In situ Raman spectra of hydrous wadsleyite (β-Mg₂SiO₄) with ~1.5 wt% H₂O, synthesized at 18 GPa and 1,400°C, have been measured in an externally heated diamond anvil cell up to 15.5 GPa and 673 K. With increasing pressure (at room temperature), the three most intense bands at ~549, 720 and 917 cm⁻¹ shift continuously to higher frequencies, while with increasing temperature at 14.5 GPa, these bands generally shift to lower frequencies. The temperature-induced frequency shifts at 14.5 GPa are significantly different from those at ambient pressure. Moreover, two new bands at ~714 and ~550 cm⁻¹ become progressively significant above 333 and 553 K, respectively, and disappear upon cooling to room temperature. No corresponding Raman modes of these two new bands were reported for wadsleyite at ambient conditions, and they are thus probably related to thermally activated processes (vibration modes) at high-pressure and temperature conditions.     

High-temperature and high-pressure equation of state for the hexagonal phase in the system NaAlSiO4 – MgAl2O4

Thermal equation of state of an Al-rich phase with Na_1.13Mg_1.51Al_4.47Si_1.62O₁₂ composition has been derived from in situ X-ray diffraction experiments using synchrotron radiation and a multianvil apparatus at pressures up to 24 GPa and temperatures up to 1,900 K. The Al-rich phase exhibited a hexagonal symmetry throughout the present pressure–temperature conditions and the refined unit-cell parameters at ambient condition were: a=8.729(1) Å, c=2.7695(5) Å, V ₀=182.77(6) Å³ (Z=1; formula weight=420.78 g/mol), yielding the zero-pressure density ρ₀=3.823(1) g/cm³ . A least-square fitting of the pressure-volume-temperature data based on Anderson’s pressure scale of gold (Anderson et al. in J Appl Phys 65:1534–543, 1989) to high-temperature Birch-Murnaghan equation of state yielded the isothermal bulk modulus K ₀=176(2) GPa, its pressure derivative K ₀ ^′ =4.9(3), temperature derivative (?K _T /?T) _P =?0.030(3) GPa K^?1 and thermal expansivity α(T)=3.36(6)×10^?5+7.2(1.9)×10^?9 T, while those values of K ₀=181.7(4) GPa, (?K _T /?T) _P =?0.020(2) GPa K^?1 and α(T)=3.28(7)×10^?5+3.0(9)×10^?9 T were obtained when K ₀ ^′ was assumed to be 4.0. The estimated bulk density of subducting MORB becomes denser with increasing depth as compared with earlier estimates (Ono et al. in Phys Chem Miner 29:527–531 2002; Vanpeteghem et al. in Phys Earth Planet Inter 138:223–230 2003; Guignot and Andrault in Phys Earth Planet Inter 143–44:107–128 2004), although the difference is insignificant (<0.6%) when the proportions of the hexagonal phase in the MORB compositions (～20%) are taken into account.     

Optical absorption of electronic Fe–Ti charge-transfer transition in natural andalusite: the thermal stability of the charge-transfer band

Differently colored natural Brazilian andalusite crystals heat-treated under reducing and oxidizing conditions were analyzed by optical spectroscopy. The intensity of a broad intense band at around 20,500 cm⁻¹ in the optical absorption spectra of all color zones of the sample is proportional to the product of Ti- and Fe-concentrations and herewith proves its attribution to electronic Fe²⁺/Ti⁴⁺ IVCT transition. The band is strictly E||c-polarized, causing an intense red coloration of the samples in this polarization. The polarization of the Fe²⁺/Ti⁴⁺ IVCT band in andalusite, E||c, shows that the electronic charge-transfer process takes place in Al–O octahedral groups that share edges with neighbors on either side, forming chains parallel to the c-axis of the andalusite structure. Under thermal treatments in air, the first noticeable change is some intensification of the band at 800°C. However, at higher temperatures its intensity decreases until it vanishes at 1,000°C in lightly colored zones and 1,100°C in darkly colored ones. Under annealing in reducing conditions at 700 and 800°C, the band also slightly increases and maintains its intensity at treatments at higher temperatures up to 1,000°C. These results demonstrate that weakening and disappearance of the Fe²⁺/Ti⁴⁺ IVCT band in spectra of andalusite under annealing in air is caused by oxidization of Fe²⁺ to Fe³⁺ in IVCT Fe²⁺/Ti⁴⁺-pairs. Some intensification of the band at 800°C is, most probably, due to thermally induced diffusion of Fe²⁺ and Ti⁴⁺ in the structure that leads to aggregation of “isolated” Ti⁴⁺ and Fe²⁺ ions into Fe²⁺–Ti⁴⁺-pairs. At higher temperatures, the competing process of Fe²⁺ → Fe³⁺ oxidation overcomes such “coupling” and the band continues to decrease. The different thermal stability of the band in lightly and darkly colored zones of the samples evidence some self-stabilization over an interaction of Fe²⁺/Ti⁴⁺-pairs involved in IVCT process.     

Ecological stability during the LGM and the mid-Holocene in the Alpine Steppes of Tibet?

Arid and Alpine ecosystems are known for extreme environmental changes during the Late Quaternary. We hypothesize that the world's largest Alpine arid ecosystem however, the Alpine Steppes of the Tibetan highlands, remained ecologically stable during the LGM and the mid-Holocene. This hypothesis is tested by distributional range of plant species, plant life forms and rate of endemism. The set of character species has a precipitation gradient between 50 and 350 mm/a, testifying for resilience to precipitation changes. 83% of the species have a wider vertical range than 1000 m used as a proxy for resilience to temperature changes. 30% of the species are endemic with 10 endemic genera, including plate-shaped cushions as a unique plant life form. These findings are in line with palaeo-ecological proxies (δ¹⁸O, pollen) allowing the assumption that Alpine Steppes persisted during the LGM with 3 to 4 K lower summer temperatures.During the mid-Holocene, forests could have replaced Alpine Steppes in the upper catchments of the Huang He, Yangtze, Mekong, Salween and Yarlung Zhangbo, but not in the interior basins of the north-western highlands, because the basins were then flooded, suppressing forests and supporting the environmental stability of this arid Alpine grassland biome.     

Synthetic gedrite: a stable phase in the system MgO-Al2O3-SiO2-H2O (MASH) at 800 °C and 10 kbar water pressure, and the influence of FeNaCa impurities

Seeded, solid-media piston-cylinder runs of unusually long duration up to 31 days indicate growth or persistence of synthetic gedrite of the composition □Mg₆Al[AlSi₇O₂₂](OH)₂(=6:1:7), prepared from the purest chemicals available, at 10 kbar water pressure and 800 °C. Conversely, breakdown was observed at 11 kbar and 850 °C to aluminous enstatite, Al₂SiO₅, and a melt of the composition MgO·Al₂O₃·8SiO₂. Thus, pure gedrite free of iron, sodium, and calcium is likely to have only a small PT stability field in the MASH system, estimated as 10 ± 1 kbar, 800 ± 20 °C, even though metastable growth of gedrite can be observed over a larger PT range. A second starting material with the anhydrous composition 5MgO · 2Al₂O₃ · 6SiO₂ also yielded gedrite of the composition 6:1:7, together with more aluminous phases such as kyanite, corundum or sapphirine, thus suggesting that the end-member gedrite defined as □Mg₅Al₂[Al₂Si₆O₂₂](OH)₂(=5:2:6) by the IMA Commission on New Minerals and Mineral Names probably does not exist. With the use of this second starting material, which contains FeNaCa impurities, growth of 6:1:7-gedrite was observed over a still wider PT-range. Seeded runs indicate that the true stability field of such slightly impure 6:1:7-gedrites may also be larger than that of the pure MASH phase and extend at least to 15 kbar, 800 °C. There is, thus, a remarkable stabilization effect on the orthoamphibole structure by impurities amounting only to a total of less than one weight percent of oxides in the starting material. The gedrites synthesized are structurally well ordered amphiboles nearly free of chain multiplicity faults, as revealed by HRTEM. The X-ray diffraction work on the gedrites synthesized yielded the smallest cell volume yet reported for this phase. The small stability field of the pure MASH gedrite is intersected by the upper pressure stability limit of hydrous cordierite for excess-H₂O conditions, thus leading to complicated phase relations for both gedrite and cordierite involving the additional phases aluminous enstatite, talc, quartz, Al₂SiO₅, melt and perhaps boron-free kornerupine. Received: 29 July 1998 / Accepted: 7 January 1999     

The stability and equation of state for the cotunnite phase of TiO2 up to 70 GPa

The stability and equation of state for the cotunnite phase in TiO₂ were investigated up to a pressure of about 70 GPa by high-pressure in situ X-ray diffraction measurements using a laser-heated diamond anvil cell. The transition sequence under high pressure was rutile → α-PbO₂ phase → baddeleyite phase → OI phase → cotunnite phase with increasing pressure. The cotunnite phase was the most stable phase at pressures from 40 GPa to at least 70 GPa. The equation of state parameters for the cotunnite phase were established on the platinum scale using the volume data at pressures of 37–68 GPa after laser annealing, in which the St value, an indicator of the magnitude of the uniaxial stress component in the samples, indicates that these measurements were performed under quasi-hydrostatic conditions. The third-order Birch-Murnaghan equation of state at K ₀′ = 4.25 yields V ₀ = 15.14(5) cm³/mol and K ₀ = 294(9), and the second-order Birch-Murnaghan equation of state yields V ₀ = 15.11(5) cm³/mol and K ₀ = 306(9). Therefore, we conclude that the bulk modulus for the cotunnite phase is not comparable to that of diamond.     

Fluid Activity and Tectonic Evolution in the Northern Qilian High-pressure Metamorphic Belt

The Northern Qilian high-pressure metamorphic belt has experienced multiple deformation-metamorphism, which consists of at least four stages.In 550.8-526 Ma, eclogites were formed. High temperature and pressure caused the escape of a large quantity of gas-liquid fluids from rocks while silicate melt was generated. In the late stage, small amounts of CO2 and H2O infiltrating along fractures were introduced.In the formation of glaucophane schist (447-362 Ma), devolatilization reactions were dominated during the subduction-uplift stage of the paleoplate.In the uplift-exhumation stage (400-380 Ma) the increase of internal space of fractures in the rocks favoured fluid infiltration and concentration. These fluids participated in hydration reactions in the retro-metamorphism. The fluids participating in the mineral reactions have the compositions of CaCl2-NaCl-H2O.In subsequent thrusting (<380 Ma), the metamorphic terrain was uplifted to the shallower crust and ductile-shearing deformation took place, which c     

Solubility and partitioning of water in synthetic forsterite and enstatite in the system MgO–SiO2–H2O±Al2O3

The solubility of water in coexisting enstatite and forsterite was investigated by simultaneously synthesizing the two phases in a series of high pressure and temperature piston cylinder experiments. Experiments were performed at 1.0 and 2.0 GPa at temperatures between 1,100 and 1,420°C. Integrated OH absorbances were determined using polarized infrared spectroscopy on orientated single crystals of each phase. Phase water contents were estimated using the calibration of Libowitzky and Rossman (Am Mineral 82:1111–1115, 1997). Enstatite crystals, synthesized in equilibrium with forsterite and an aqueous phase at 1,350°C and 2.0 GPa, contain 114 ppm H₂O. This is reduced to 59 ppm at 1,100°C, under otherwise identical conditions, suggesting a strong temperature dependence. At 1,350°C and 1.0 GPa water solubility in enstatite is 89 ppm, significantly lower than that at 2.0 GPa. In contrast water solubility in forsterite is essentially constant, being in the range 36–41 ppm for all conditions studied. These data give partition coefficients in the range 2.28–3.31 for all experiments at 1,350°C and 1.34 for one experiment at 1,100°C. The incorporation of Al₂O₃ in enstatite modifies the OH stretching spectrum in a systematic way, and slightly increases the water solubility.     

Infrared and Raman spectroscopy studies of the α–β phase transition in cristobalite

Infrared and Raman spectra of cristobalite are presented as a function of temperature through the phase transition. The modes are assigned and the assignments compared to those of earlier workers. The compatibility of modes at the G-point of the a-phase with the X and G-points of the ß-phase is given. In the transition region of ca. 500–550 K, smooth changes in intensity, frequency and linewidths are seen in many modes, indicative of coexistence of a- and ß-forms.     

Thermodynamics of arsenates,selenites, and sulfates in the oxidation zone of sulfide ores. X. thermal stability and dehydration features of synthetic analogs of the cobaltomenite–ahlfeldite solid solution series

The aim of this study is the experimental investigation of the synthetic analogs of cobaltomenite, CoSeO₃ ? 2H₂O, ahlfeldite, NiSeO₃ ? 2H₂O, members of the cobaltomenite–ahlfeldite solid solution series (Ni _x Co_1–x )SeO₃ ? 2H₂O, and singularities of their dehydration and dissociation. The intermediate members of the cobaltomenite (CoSeO₃ ? 2H₂O)–ahlfeldite (NiSeO₃ ? 2H₂O) series have been synthesized and studied with a combination of X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and the simultaneous application of thermogravimetry (TG) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) within the temperature range from 25 to 640°C. The complete solid solution series corresponds to the monoclinic space group P2₁/n. Unit-cell dimensions decrease in all crystallographic directions as the amount of Ni increases. The angle β increases from 98.82(1) (cobaltomenite) to 99.05(1)° (ahlfeldite). It has been established that CoSeO₃ ? 2H₂O and NiSeO₃ ? 2H₂O dehydrate at 120–340°C through two stages apparently corresponding, to the formation of intermediate hydrated species CoSeO₃ ? H₂O and NiSeO₃ ? 1/3H₂O. The reaction enthalpies for each dehydration stage of CoSeO₃ ? 2H₂O and NiSeO₃ ? 2H₂O have been determined. Changes of the unit-cell dimensions and dehydration temperatures are rationalized in terms of the Co and Ni site occupancy in the structure of the cobaltomenite–ahlfeldite solid-solution series members.     

Formation of the disk structure and jets in the symbiotic system Z and during periods of activity in 2006–2010

We present an analysis of spectrophotometric observations of the latest cycle of activity of the symbiotic binary Z And from 2006 to 2010. We estimate the temperature of the hot component of Z And to be ≈150 000−170 000 K at minimum brightness, decreasing to ≈90 000 K at the brightness maximum. Our estimate of the electron density in the gaseous nebula is N _e = 10¹⁰−10¹² cm⁻³ in the region of formation of lines of neutral helium and N _e = 10⁶−10⁷ cm⁻³ in the region of formation of the [OIII] and [NeIII] nebular lines. A trend for the gas density derived from helium lines to increase and the gas density derived from [OIII] and [NeIII] lines to simultaneously decrease with increasing brightness of the system was observed. Our estimates show that the ratios of the theoretical and observed fluxes in the [OIII] and [NeIII] lines agree best when the O/Ne ratio is similar to its value for planetary nebulae. The model spectral energy distribution showed that, in addition to a cool component and gaseous nebula, a relatively cool pseudophotosphere (5250–11 500 K) is present in the system. The simultaneous presence of a relatively cool pseudophotosphere and high-ionization spectral lines is probably related to a disk-like structure of the pseudophotosphere. The pseudophotosphere formed very rapidly—over several weeks—during a period of increasing brightness of Z And. We infer that in 2009, as in 2006, the activity of the system was accompanied by a collimated bipolar ejection of matter (jets). In contrast to the situation in 2006, the jets were detected even before the system reached its maximum brightness. Moreover, components with velocities close to 1200 km/s disappeared at the maximum, while those with velocities close to 1800 km/s appeared.     

Phase relations in the MgO–P2O5–H2O system and the stability of phosphoellenbergerite: petrological implications

The polymorphic relations for Mg₃(PO₄)₂ and Mg₂PO₄OH have been determined by reversed experiments in the temperature-pressure (T-P) range 500–1100 °C, 2–30 kbar. The phase transition between the low-pressure phase farringtonite and Mg₃(PO₄)₂-II, the Mg analogue of sarcopside, is very pressure dependent and was tightly bracketed between 625 °C, 7 kbar and 850 °C, 9 kbar. The high-temperature, high-pressure polymorph, Mg₃(PO₄)₂-III, is stable above 1050 °C at 10 kbar and above 900 °C at 30 kbar. The low-pressure stability of farringtonite is in keeping with its occurrence in meteorites. The presence of iron stabilizes the sarcopside-type phase towards lower P. From the five Mg₂PO₄OH polymorphs only althausite, holtedahlite, β-Mg₂PO₄OH (the hydroxyl analogue of wagnerite) and ɛ-Mg₂PO₄OH were encountered. Relatively speaking, holtedahlite is the low-temperature phase (<600 °C), ɛ-Mg₂PO₄OH the high-temperature, low-pressure phase and β-Mg₂PO₄OH the high-temperature, high-pressure phase, with an intervening stability field for althausite which extends from about 3 kbar at 500 °C to about 12 kbar at 800 °C. Althausite and holtedahlite are to be expected in F-free natural systems under most geological conditions; however, wagnerite is the most common Mg-phosphate mineral, implying that fluorine has a major effect in stabilizing the wagnerite structure. Coexisting althausite and holtedahlite from Modum, S. Norway, show that minor fluorine is strongly partitioned into althausite (K_D ^F/OH≈ 4) and that holtedahlite may incorporate up to 4 wt% SiO₂. Synthetic phosphoellenbergerite has a composition close to (Mg_0.9□_0.1)₂Mg₁₂P₈O₃₈H_8.4. It is a high-pressure phase, which breaks down to Mg₂PO₄OH + Mg₃(PO₄)₂ + H₂O below 8.5 kbar at 650 °C, 22.5 kbar at 900 °C and 30 kbar at 975 °C. The stability field of the phosphate end-member of the ellenbergerite series extends therefore to much lower P and higher T than that of the silicate end-members (stable above 27 kbar and below ca. 725 °C). Thus the Si/P ratio of intermediate members of the series has a great barometric potential, especially in the Si-buffering assemblage with clinochlore + talc + kyanite + rutile + H₂O. Application to zoned ellenbergerite crystals included in the Dora-Maira pyrope megablasts, western Alps, reveals that growth zoning is preserved at T as high as 700–725 °C. However, the record of attainment of the highest T and/or of decreasing P through P-rich rims (1 to 2 Si pfu) is only possible in the presence of an additional phosphate phase (OH-bearing or even OH-dominant wagnerite in these rocks), otherwise the trace amounts of P in the system remain sequestered in the core of Si-rich crystals (5 to 8 Si pfu) and can no longer react. Received: 7 April 1995 / Accepted: 12 November 1997     

Electromagnetic sounding of the Earth’s crust in the vicinities of the SG-6 and SG-7 superdeep boreholes in the fields of natural and powerful controlled sources

The results of electromagnetic sounding of the Earth??s crust in the vicinities of the SG-6 and SG-7 superdeep boreholes (Yamal-Nenets Autonomous Okrug) are presented. The studies were conducted in the fields of natural sources (AMT-MTS) and in the field of the Zevs ULF antenna located at a distance of more than 2000 km from the receiver points. In the vicinity of the SG-7 superdeep borehole, where the small industrial noise was observed, the results of inverse problem solution are completely consistent with the electric logging data. The conducting layers have been identified at the depths of 150 m and 1.1 km. The roof of rocks having small electrical conductivity and belonging to the Permian-Triassic trappean complex has been found at the depth of about 7 km. The response of the Zevs signal (the frequency range of 44?C182 Hz) has indicated the properties of the upper part of the geoelectrical section better than audiomagnetotelluric sounding for both boreholes. Based on the sounding in the vicinity of the SG-6 superdeep borehole, with the data of the Novosobirsk observatory taken into account, the distribution of resistivity down to about 800 km depth has been obtained. This distribution can serve as additional information in calculation of the temperature and rheological regime of the lithosphere and the upper mantle in the region of Western Siberia.     

Observation of the seismoelectric effect in a gas condensate field in the Earth’s natural electromagnetic and seismic noise of 0.1-20 Hz

The first experimental measurements of the cross-correlation function (CCF) of the Earth’s seismic and electrical noise were carried out in two areas of the Minusinskoe gas condensate field in 2014 and 2015 using a VPEMPZ-M1 (Shum-6) two-channel geophysical device developed at Siberian Federal University. The Earth’s seismic noise and electrical noise in the frequency range 0.1-20 Hz were received by a geophone and an electric dipole, respectively. In both cases, a productive pool at depths of 1800-2000 m had a maximum CCF value five to seven times higher than the normal background, indicating the occurrence of the seismoelectric effect in passive fields.