Quantification of Biogenic Magnetite by Synchrotron X-ray Microscopy During the PETM

Abstract:

Exceptionally large biogenic magnetite crystals, including spearhead-like and spindle-like ones up to 4 microns, have been reported in clay-rich sediments recording the ~56 Ma Paleocene–Eocene thermal maximum (PETM) and carbon isotope excursion (CIE) in a borehole at Ancora, NJ and along with magnetotactic bacteria (MTB) chains, were suggested [Schumann et al. 2008 PNAS; Kopp et al. 2009 Paleoceanography] to account for the distinctive single domain (SD) rock magnetic properties of these sediments [Lanci et al. 2002 JGR]. However, because uncalibrated magnetic extraction techniques were used to provide material for TEM imaging of the biogenic magnetite, it is difficult to quantitatively analyze their concentration in the bulk clay. In this study, we use a synchrotron transmission X-ray microscope to image bulk CIE clay. We first take mosaic images of sub-millimeter-sized bulk clay samples, in which we can identify many of the various types of giant biogenic magnetite crystals, as well as several other types of iron minerals, such as pyrite framboids, siderite, and detrital magnetite. However, limited by the instrument resolution (~50 nm), we are not able to identify MTB chains let alone isolated magnetic nanoparticles that may be abundant the clay. To quantitatively estimate the concentration of the giant biogenic magnetite, we re-deposited the bulk clay sample in an alcohol solution on a silicon nitride membrane for 2D X-ray scans. After scanning a total area of 0.55 mm² with average clay thickness of 4 µm, we identified ~40 spearheads, ~5 spindles and a few elongated rods and estimated their total magnetization as SD particles to be less than about 10% of the mass normalized clay for the scanned area. This result suggests that the giant biogenic magnetite is not a major source of the SD signal for the clay and is in good agreement with rock magnetic analyses using high-resolution first-order reversal curves and thermal fluctuation tomography on bulk CIE clay showing that most of the magnetite occurs as isolated, near-equant SD particles [Wang et al. 2013 PNAS]. This would also exclude a significant contribution from MTB chains and points to a non-biogenic origin, such as a comet impact plume condensate, for the magnetic nanoparticles [Kent et al. 2003 EPSL] in the very rapidly deposited CIE clays [Wright & Schaller 2014 PNAS].