skip to main content
OSTI.GOV title logo U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Title: Equations of State and Anisotropy of Fe-Ni-Si Alloys

Journal Article · · Journal of Geophysical Research. Solid Earth
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1029/2017JB015343· OSTI ID:1467688

We present powder X–ray diffraction data on body centered cubic (bcc)– and hexagonal close packed (hcp)–structured Fe0.91Ni0.09 and Fe0.8Ni0.1Si0.1 at 300 K up to 167 and 175 GPa, respectively. The alloys were loaded with tungsten powder as a pressure calibrant and helium as a pressure transmitting medium into diamond anvil cells, and their equations of state and axial ratios were measured with high statistical quality. These equations of state are combined with thermal parameters from previous reports to improve the extrapolation of the density, adiabatic bulk modulus, and bulk sound speed to the pressures and temperatures of Earth's inner core. We propagate uncertainties and place constraints on the composition of Earth's inner core by combining these results with available data on light–element alloys of iron and seismic observations. For example, the addition of 4.3 to 5.3 wt% silicon to Fe0.95Ni0.05 alone can explain geophysical observations of the inner core boundary, as can up to 7.5 wt% sulfur with negligible amounts of silicon and oxygen. Our findings favor an inner core with less than ~2 wt% oxygen and less than 1 wt% carbon, although uncertainties in electronic and anharmonic contributions to the equations of state may shift these values. The compositional space widens toward the center of the Earth, considering inner core seismic gradients. Here, we demonstrate that hcp–Fe0.91Ni0.09 and hcp–Fe0.8Ni0.1Si0.1 have measurably greater c/a axial ratios than those of hcp–Fe over the measured pressure range. Here, we further investigate the relationship between the axial ratios, their pressure derivatives, and elastic anisotropy of hcp–structured materials.

Research Organization:
Argonne National Lab. (ANL), Argonne, IL (United States). Advanced Photon Source (APS)
Sponsoring Organization:
DODNSFOTHER; USDOE
OSTI ID:
1467688
Journal Information:
Journal of Geophysical Research. Solid Earth, Vol. 123, Issue 6; ISSN 2169-9313
Publisher:
American Geophysical UnionCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
ENGLISH
Citation Metrics:
Cited by: 16 works
Citation information provided by
Web of Science

References (118)

Thermal equation of state of hcp-iron: Constraint on the density deficit of Earth's solid inner core: THERMAL EQUATION OF STATE OF HCP-IRON journal July 2016
Lattice dynamics and thermodynamics of bcc iron under pressure: First-principles linear response study journal March 2006
Elasticity of iron at the temperature of the Earth's inner core journal September 2001
Earthʼs inner core: Innermost inner core or hemispherical variations? journal January 2014
Pyrite: Shock compression, isentropic release, and composition of the Earth's core journal September 1987
Light elements in the Earth's outer core: A critical review journal September 1994
Development of texture and elastic anisotropy during deformation of hcp metals journal January 1988
Equation of state of cobalt up to 79 GPa journal July 1996
P‐V‐T equation of state for ε ‐iron up to 80 GPa and 1900 K using the Kawai‐type high pressure apparatus equipped with sintered diamond anvils journal October 2012
Sound velocity in iron carbide (Fe3C) at high pressure: Implications for the carbon content of the Earth's inner core journal January 2009
Online remote control systems for static and dynamic compression and decompression using diamond anvil cells journal July 2015
Grüneisen parameter of hcp-Fe to 171 GPa: GRÜNEISEN PARAMETER OF Fe journal December 2011
The plastic deformation of iron at pressures of the Earth's inner core journal June 2000
Isothermal compression of the alloys of iron up to 300 kilobars at room temperature: Iron-nickel alloys journal July 1968
Equations of state of Al, Au, Cu, Pt, Ta, and W and revised ruby pressure scale journal October 2006
Impact of electronic correlations on the equation of state and transport in ε -Fe journal October 2014
Elastic constants of noble-gas crystals under pressure and the cauchy relations journal February 2004
DIOPTAS : a program for reduction of two-dimensional X-ray diffraction data and data exploration journal May 2015
Iron-Nickel alloy in the Earth's core: IRON-NICKEL ALLOY IN THE EARTH'S CORE journal May 2002
Ab initio calculations of the elasticity of hcp-Fe as a function of temperature at inner-core pressure journal November 2009
The effect of nickel on the properties of iron at the conditions of Earth's inner core: Ab initio calculations of seismic wave velocities of Fe–Ni alloys journal March 2013
Core formation and core composition from coupled geochemical and geophysical constraints journal September 2015
Elastic properties of zinc: A compilation and a review journal October 1977
The Structure of Iron in Earth's Inner Core journal October 2010
Hydrogen in the Earth's core journal July 1977
Compression of FeSi, Fe 3 C, Fe 0.95 O, and FeS under the core pressures and implication for light element in the Earth's core journal January 2010
Strong Premelting Effect in the Elastic Properties of hcp-Fe Under Inner-Core Conditions journal October 2013
Composition and temperature of the Earth’s core constrained by combining ab initio calculations and seismic data journal January 2002
The axial ratio of hcp iron at the conditions of the Earth’s inner core journal September 2005
Configurational thermodynamics of Fe–Ni alloys at Earth's core conditions journal August 2011
Thermodynamics of hexagonal-close-packed iron under Earth’s core conditions journal July 2001
On the resolution of density within the Earth journal November 2003
Equation of state of pure iron and Fe0.9Ni0.1 alloy up to 3Mbar journal March 2014
Elasticity and rheology of iron above 220 GPa and the nature of the Earth's inner core journal December 1998
Estimation of Single-Crystal Elastic Moduli from Polycrystalline X-Ray Diffraction at High Pressure: Application to FeO and Iron journal March 1998
Hidden carbon in Earth’s inner core revealed by shear softening in dense Fe 7 C 3 journal December 2014
Stability and anisotropy of (FexNi1−x)2O under high pressure and implications in Earth’s and super-Earths’ core journal January 2018
Magneto-elastic coupling in compressed Fe 7 C 3 supports carbon in Earth's inner core : MAGNETO-ELASTIC COUPLING IN Fe journal September 2012
Stability field of the hcp-structure for Fe, Fe-Ni, and Fe-Ni-Si alloys up to 3 Mbar: FE-NI-SI ALLOY UP TO 3 MBAR journal May 2011
Experimental determination of the elasticity of iron at high pressure journal January 2008
Thermodynamic parameters in the Earth as determined from seismic profiles journal September 1981
Equation of state of pyrite to 80 GPa and 2400 K journal May 2016
High-pressure behavior of the Fe–S system and composition of the Earth's inner core journal October 2017
Magnetic susceptibility of hcp iron and the seismic anisotropy of Earth’s inner core journal August 2003
Constraints on seismic velocities in the Earth from traveltimes journal July 1995
Thermoelastic property and high-pressure stability of Fe7C3: Implication for iron-carbide in the Earth's core journal June 2011
Metal–silicate partitioning of Ni and Co in a deep magma ocean journal March 2012
Thermal equation of state of iron and Fe 0.91 Si 0.09 journal February 1999
Preliminary reference Earth model journal June 1981
Elastic anisotropy in textured hcp-iron to 112 GPa from sound wave propagation measurements journal August 2004
Melting of Iron at Earth's Inner Core Boundary Based on Fast X-ray Diffraction journal April 2013
Composition of the low seismic velocity E ′ layer at the top of Earth's core : Composition of the journal August 2017
The structure of Fe-Ni alloy in Earth's inner core: FE-NI ALLOY IN THE INNER CORE journal June 2012
Temperature and composition of the Earth's core journal March 2007
Static compression of iron-silicon alloys: Implications for silicon in the Earth's core: IRON-SILICON ALLOYS journal January 2003
Carbon in the core journal June 1993
Equation of state and phase diagram of FeO journal April 2011
The structure of Fe–Si alloy in Earth's inner core journal May 2015
Normal mode constraints on shear and compressional wave velocity of the Earth's inner core journal April 2008
High pressure metal–silicate partitioning of Ni, Co, V, Cr, Si, and O journal October 2015
Hemispherical anisotropic patterns of the Earth's inner core journal May 2010
GSAS-II : the genesis of a modern open-source all purpose crystallography software package journal March 2013
Stability field and thermal equation of state of ε-iron determined by synchrotron X-ray diffraction in a multianvil apparatus journal October 2001
Elasticity of Hexagonal-Closed-Packed Cobalt at High Pressure and Temperature: A Quasiharmonic Case journal February 2008
First-principles elastic constants for the hcp transition metals Fe, Co, and Re at high pressure journal July 1999
Accurate and precise ab initio anharmonic free-energy calculations for metallic crystals: Application to hcp Fe at high temperature and pressure journal July 2017
Temperature of Earth's core constrained from melting of Fe and Fe0.9Ni0.1 at high pressures journal August 2016
Measurement of the Elastic Constants of Single Crystal Cobalt journal April 1955
Elasticity of dense helium journal November 2004
Study of the thermodynamic stability of iron at inner core from first-principles theory combined with lattice dynamics journal November 2015
Equations of State journal January 2000
Tight-binding computations of elastic anisotropy of Fe, Xe, and Si under compression journal October 1997
The equation of state of platinum to 660 GPa (6.6 Mbar) journal October 1989
Effect of light elements on the sound velocities in solid iron: Implications for the composition of Earth's core journal February 2007
Composition of the Earth's inner core from high-pressure sound velocity measurements in Fe–Ni–Si alloys journal June 2010
Carbon and other light element contents in the Earth's core based on first-principles molecular dynamics journal November 2012
Uppermost inner core seismic structure – new insights from body waveform inversion journal January 2014
Phase relations in the Fe–FeSi system at high pressures and temperatures journal July 2013
Effect of plasticity on elastic modulus measurements: EFFECT OF PLASTICITY ON ELASTIC MODULUS MEASUREMENTS journal March 2004
In situ X-ray diffraction studies of iron to Earth-core conditions journal June 2004
Equation of state and phase diagram of solid He 4 from single-crystal x-ray diffraction over a large P - T domain journal October 1993
Anomalous pressure evolution of the axial ratio c∕a in hcp cobalt: Interplay between structure, magnetism, and lattice dynamics journal March 2008
Equations of state of six metals above 94 GPa journal September 2004
Segregation of core melts by permeable flow in the lower mantle journal August 2004
The axial ratio of hcp Fe and Fe–Ni–Si alloys to the conditions of Earth’s inner core journal November 2015
High-pressure magnetic transition in hcp-Fe journal May 2010
The chemical composition of the Earth journal September 1995
Heterogeneity and Anisotropy of Earth's Inner Core journal May 2014
Determination of the high pressure elasticity of cobalt from measured interfacial acoustic wave velocities journal September 2006
Carbon in the Core: Its Influence on the Properties of Core and Mantle journal January 2013
Accretion and differentiation of the terrestrial planets with implications for the compositions of early-formed Solar System bodies and accretion of water journal March 2015
Elastic anisotropy in hcp metals at high pressure and the sound wave anisotropy of the Earth's inner core journal January 2006
Static compression of Fe0.83Ni0.09Si0.08 alloy to 374GPa and Fe0.93Si0.07 alloy to 252GPa: Implications for the Earth's inner core journal October 2011
Hydrostatic limits of 11 pressure transmitting media journal March 2009
Static compression of iron to 300 GPa and Fe 0.8 Ni 0.2 alloy to 260 GPa: Implications for composition of the core journal January 1990
Convergence of Ni and Co metal–silicate partition coefficients in the deep magma-ocean and coupled silicon–oxygen solubility in iron melts at high pressures journal July 2011
Use of Rietveld refinement to fit a hexagonal crystal structure in the presence of elastic and plastic anisotropy journal January 1999
Quasihydrostatic Equation of State of Iron above 2 Mbar journal November 2006
High-Pressure Phase Diagram and Equation of State of Solid Helium from Single-Crystal X-Ray Diffraction to 23.3 GPa journal June 1988
Composition and State of the Core journal May 2013
Elasticity of Cobalt at High Pressure Studied by Inelastic X-Ray Scattering journal November 2004
The elastic properties of hcp-Fe 1−x Si x at Earth's inner-core conditions journal October 2016
X-ray strain analysis at high pressure: Effect of plastic deformation in MgO journal June 2004
Solar System Abundances and Condensation Temperatures of the Elements journal July 2003
Elastic constants and anisotropy in FeNi alloys at high pressures from first-principles calculations journal June 2009
Comparative studies of yield strength and elastic compressibility between nanocrystalline and bulk cobalt journal June 2012
X-ray diffraction study of the single-crystal elastic moduli of ε-Fe up to 30 GPa journal January 2005
Phase Transition of FeO and Stratification in Earth's Outer Core journal November 2011
Thermal and electrical conductivity of solid iron and iron–silicon mixtures at Earth's core conditions journal May 2014
Sound velocities and density measurements of solid hcp-Fe and hcp-Fe–Si (9 wt.%) alloy at high pressure: Constraints on the Si abundance in the Earth's inner core journal January 2018
Melting, density, and anisotropy of iron at core conditions: new x-ray measurements to 150 GPa journal July 2008
Thermodynamics of melting relations in the system Fe-FeO at high pressure: Implications for oxygen in the Earth's core journal May 2014
Thermoelasticity of Fe 7 C 3 under inner core conditions: THERMOELASTICITY OF FE 7 C 3 journal August 2016
Non-hydrostatic behavior of KBr as a pressure medium in diamond anvil cells up to 5.63 GPa journal April 2015
High-pressure behavior of the Fe—S system and composition of the Earth's inner core [Поведение системы Fe—S при высоких давлениях и состав ядра Земли] journal January 2017
Lattice dynamics and thermodynamics of bcc iron at pressure: first-principles linear response study text January 2005
First-Principles Elastic Constants for the hcp Transition Metals Fe, Co, and Re at High Pressure text January 1999
The axial ratio of hcp iron at the conditions of the Earth's inner core text January 2004

Similar Records

High pressure thermoelasticity and sound velocities of Fe-Ni-Si alloys
Journal Article · Sun Sep 01 00:00:00 EDT 2019 · Physics of the Earth and Planetary Interiors · OSTI ID:1467688

Seismic parameters of hcp‐Fe alloyed with Ni and Si in the Earth's inner core
Journal Article · Thu Feb 18 00:00:00 EST 2016 · Journal of Geophysical Research. Solid Earth · OSTI ID:1467688

Melting and phase relations of Fe-Ni-Si determined by a multi-technique approach
Journal Article · Thu Mar 17 00:00:00 EDT 2022 · Earth and Planetary Science Letters · OSTI ID:1467688