Metallic iron limits silicate hydration in Earth’s transition zone

Zhu, Feng; Li, Jie; Liu, Jiachao; Dong, Junjie; Liu, Zhenxian

doi:10.1073/pnas.1908716116

Title: Metallic iron limits silicate hydration in Earth’s transition zone

Journal Article · Mon Oct 21 00:00:00 EDT 2019 · Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1908716116· OSTI ID:1575003

^[1]; Li, Jie ^[1]; Liu, Jiachao ^[1]; Dong, Junjie ^[1]; Liu, Zhenxian ^[2]

Univ. of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI (United States)
Univ. of Illinois, Chicago, IL (United States)

The Earth’s mantle transition zone (MTZ) is often considered an internal reservoir for water because its major minerals wadsleyite and ringwoodite can store several oceans of structural water. Whether it is a hydrous layer or an empty reservoir is still under debate. Previous studies suggested the MTZ may be saturated with iron metal. Here we show that metallic iron reacts with hydrous wadsleyite under the pressure and temperature conditions of the MTZ to form iron hydride or molecular hydrogen and silicate with less than tens of parts per million (ppm) water, implying that water enrichment is incompatible with iron saturation in the MTZ. With the current estimate of water flux to the MTZ, the iron metal preserved from early Earth could transform a significant fraction of subducted water into reduced hydrogen species, thus limiting the hydration of silicates in the bulk MTZ. Meanwhile, the MTZ would become gradually oxidized and metal depleted. As a result, water-rich region can still exist near modern active slabs where iron metal was consumed by reaction with subducted water. Heterogeneous water distribution resolves the apparent contradiction between the extreme water enrichment indicated by the occurrence of hydrous ringwoodite and ice VII in superdeep diamonds and the relatively low water content in bulk MTZ silicates inferred from electrical conductivity studies.

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Research Organization:: Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE Office of Science (SC)

Contributing Organization:: Advanced Photon Source (APS), Argonne National Laboratory (ANL), Argonne, IL (US)

Grant/Contract Number:: FG02-94ER14466; AC02-06CH11357; NA-0003858

OSTI ID:: 1575003

Journal Information:: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, Vol. 116, Issue 45; ISSN 0027-8424

Publisher:: National Academy of SciencesCopyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: ENGLISH

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Cited by: 14 works

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