The Metal-Silicate Partitioning of Tungsten at Magma Ocean Conditions Using a Laser-Heated Diamond Anvil Cell

Abstract:

The primitive upper mantle (PUM) represents the silicate residue of terrestrial core formation and should reflect element partitioning between metal and silicate melts that equilibrated in a magma ocean. Laboratory experiments suggest that the W/Mo ratio of PUM is only reproduced if S is added to the Earth during the late stages of accretion (Wade et al. 2012). Core-segregation, however, is posited to occur at >35 GPa and >3000 K; above the pressure range explored by existing W partitioning experiments and conditions under which O may also enter core-forming metal. The effect of light element solutes on a metallic Fe liquid can be modeled using experimentally determined interaction parameters (ε). On the basis of ε values determined at ambient pressure, both O and S should interact strongly with W (ε_w-o = 4.1, ε_w-s = 6.1), possibly complicating the history of W distribution during accretion.

We have performed experiments to assess the metal-silicate partitioning of W at conditions directly relevant to those expected for the base of a magma ocean, under which O enters the metal phase. Experiments were performed at 15-50 GPa in a diamond anvil cell, using Re gaskets and an MgO pressure medium. In several instances, cells were loaded with two sample mixtures, containing W in either oxidized or reduced form. Heating spots subject to the same temperature and heating duration but different initial W oxidation state will be used to assess if heating times were sufficient to approach equilibrium. Samples were laser-heated at sector 13 of the Advanced Photon Source then recovered for analysis using a focused ion beam, to reveal cross-sections through the heated spot. Samples comprise a Fe-rich metal bleb, surrounded by silicate glass. The quenched metal contains exsolved spherules of a Si+O-rich phase, indicating significant solution of these elements at high pressure and temperature. Work is ongoing to quantify the element distribution between metal and silicate phases.