High-precision relative thermobarometry: theory and a worked example

A number of sources of uncertainty are involved in thermobarometric calculations, the most important of which are associated with analytical precision, activity–composition ( a – x ) relationships, and thermodynamic data. Statistical treatment of these uncertainties results in relatively large uncertainties on the calculated values of pressure and temperature. Little can be done, at least in the short term, about the magnitude of such uncertainties, and any thermobarometric calculations in which they are not taken into account should be treated with caution. Given that uncertainties associated with a–x models and thermodynamic data are systematic when applied to multiple samples with the same mineral assemblage, a solution to the problem of imprecise absolute thermobarometry can be obtained via a relative thermobarometric technique referred to as the Δ PT  approach. The Δ PT  approach offers a major improvement in the precision of thermobarometry if the calculations can be presented in a Δ PT  context.