Fluid-bearing alkaline carbonate melts as the medium for the formation of diamonds in the Earth's mantle: an experimental study

Pal'yanov, N.; Sokol, Alexander G.; Borzdov, Yuri M.; Khokhryakov, Alexander F.

doi:10.1016/s0024-4937(01)00079-2

Cited by 179 publications

(83 citation statements)

References 37 publications

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“…Diamond crystallization in the system K 2 CO 3 /H 2 O/CO 2 /C was studied earlier at 5.7 GPa and 1,150-1,420°C with relatively low concentrations of water (59,60). However, to make a correct comparison of different compositions in the system KCl/K 2 CO 3 / H 2 O/C at equal P,t, and run duration ( ), we performed additional experiments.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The role of mantle ultrapotassic fluids in diamond formation

Palyanov

Shatsky

Sobolev

et al. 2007

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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Analysis of data on micro-and nano-inclusions in mantle-derived and metamorphic diamonds shows that, to a first approximation, diamond-forming medium can be considered as a specific ultrapotassic, carbonate/chloride/silicate/water fluid. In the present work, the processes and mechanisms of diamond crystallization were experimentally studied at 7.5 GPa, within the temperature range of 1,400 -1,800°C, with different compositions of melts and fluids in the KCl/K 2CO3/H2O/C system. It has been established that, at constant pressure, temperature, and run duration, the mechanisms of diamond nucleation, degree of graphite-to-diamond transformation, and formation of metastable graphite are governed chiefly by the composition of the fluids and melts. The experimental data suggest that the evolution of the composition of deep-seated ultrapotassic fluids/melts is a crucial factor of diamond formation in mantle and ultrahigh-pressure metamorphic processes. high-pressure experimentA n important stage in solving problems of diamond genesis is constructing a clear physical model of diamond formation (1). One of the key parameters to be modeled is the composition of the diamond crystallization medium, with a fluid being largely considered as a crucial agent in diamond formation. It is generally agreed that the mantle media of diamond crystallization were volatile-saturated melts or fluids (1-7). Carbonbearing fluids and carbonates could be sources of carbon, and the medium could have been saturated with it by redox reactions. Recent studies have been aimed at searching and examining fluid and fluid-containing inclusions in genetically different diamonds. Also, experiments have been performed to model the processes of diamond crystallization in the media compositionally corresponding to the inclusions. It is the combination of these two approaches that permits us to gain deeper insight into diamond genesis and to better understand the specific character of processes of deep-seated mineral formation.Studies of mineral inclusions in diamonds have determined the main types of diamondiferous parageneses: ultramaffic, eclogitic (4,8,9), and intermediate websterite (10) and calc-silicate types (11). Some mineral inclusions, e.g., intergrowths of phlogopite with pyroxene (8, 12, 13) and phlogopite with calcite (14), are unambiguously evidence that K and H 2 O were present in the diamond-forming medium. It is pertinent to note that, as early as 30 years ago, neutron activation analysis of diamonds without visible inclusions, taken from three South African deposits, revealed a mixture of mostly K and of other components, which was interpreted as evidence of the presence of entrapped melt (15). Principally, more recent information has accrued from micro-and nano-inclusions in mantle-derived and metamorphic diamonds. Analysis of the composition of the inclusions in fibrous or cloudy mantle diamonds shows that, at the time of entrapment, the inclusion matter was a specific fluid whose composition belongs to one of the three main types: (i) ...

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The role of mantle ultrapotassic fluids in diamond formation

Palyanov

Shatsky

Sobolev

et al. 2007

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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“…Because of this catalyst melt partition, the amount of the diamond-forming melt in this experiment is substantially less than in other experiments with lower Si content in the system. In the case of the Mg 25 Si 75 initial composition, there is a single melt, which is substantially enriched in Si and does not show the catalytic ability for converting graphite to diamond. It should be noted that no carbon or carbon-containing phases were detected in samples of the quenched melt.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Synthesis experiments in the Mg-Si-C system were performed using a split-sphere multi-anvil high-pressure apparatus [25]. All experiments were conducted at a pressure of 7.5 GPa with high-pressure cells in the form of a tetragonal prism with dimensions 19 × 19 × 22 mm.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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HPHT Diamond Crystallization in the Mg-Si-C System: Effect of Mg/Si Composition

et al. 2017

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Crystallization of diamond in the Mg-Si-C system has been studied at 7.5 GPa and 1800 • C with the Mg-Si compositions spanning the range from Mg-C to Si-C end-systems. It is found that as Si content of the system increases from 0 to 2 wt %, the degree of the graphite-to-diamond conversion increases from about 50 to 100% and remains at about this level up to 20 wt % Si. A further increase in Si content of the system leads to a decrease in the graphite-to-diamond conversion degree down to complete termination of diamond synthesis at Si content >50 wt %. Depending on the Si content crystallization of diamond, joint crystallization of diamond and silicon carbide and crystallization of silicon carbide only are found to take place. The cubic growth of diamond, typical of the Mg-C system, transforms to the cube-octahedron upon adding 1 wt % Si and then to the octahedron at a Si content of 2 wt % and higher. The crystallized diamonds are studied by a suite of optical spectroscopy techniques and the major characteristics of their defect-and-impurity structure are revealed. The correlations between the Si content of the Mg-Si-C system and the properties of the produced diamond crystals are established.

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“…Details on the P-T calibration and accuracy of the measurements are given in ref. 66. Pt capsules of relatively large volume (6 and 10 mm in diameter at 7.5 and 6.5 GPa, respectively, 3.5-4.0 mm long) were used to enable a detailed study of the effects associated with the redox front propagation.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mantle–slab interaction and redox mechanism of diamond formation

Palyanov

Bataleva

Sokol

et al. 2013

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

175

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Subduction tectonics imposes an important role in the evolution of the interior of the Earth and its global carbon cycle; however, the mechanism of the mantle-slab interaction remains unclear. Here, we demonstrate the results of high-pressure redox-gradient experiments on the interactions between Mg-Ca-carbonate and metallic iron, modeling the processes at the mantle-slab boundary; thereby, we present mechanisms of diamond formation both ahead of and behind the redox front. It is determined that, at oxidized conditions, a low-temperature Ca-rich carbonate melt is generated. This melt acts as both the carbon source and crystallization medium for diamond, whereas at reduced conditions, diamond crystallizes only from the Fe-C melt. The redox mechanism revealed in this study is used to explain the contrasting heterogeneity of natural diamonds, as seen in the composition of inclusions, carbon isotopic composition, and nitrogen impurity content.carbonate-iron interaction | high-pressure experiment | mantle mineralogy | deep carbon cycle S ubduction of crustal material plays an important role in the global carbon cycle (1-6). Depending on oxygen fugacity and pressure-temperature (P-T) conditions, carbon exists in the Earth's interior in the form of carbides, diamond, graphite, hydrocarbons, carbonates, and CO 2 (7-11). In the upper mantle, the oxygen fugacity (fO 2 ) varies from one to five log units below the fayalitemagnetite-quartz (FMQ) buffer, with a trend of a decrease with depth (6,(12)(13)(14)(15). At a depth of ∼250 km, mantle is reported to become metal saturated (16, 17), which holds true for all mantle regions below, including the transition zone and lower mantle. The subduction of the oxidized crustal material occurs to depths greater than 600 km (4-6). The main carbon-bearing minerals of the subducted materials are carbonates, which are thermodynamically stable up to P-T conditions of the lower mantle (10,11,18). As evidenced by the compositions of inclusions in diamond, which vary from strongly reduced, e.g., metallic iron and carbides (19-23), to oxidized, e.g., carbonates and CO 2 (6,20,(24)(25)(26)(27)(28), carbonates may be involved in the reactions with reduced deep-seated rocks, including Fe 0 -bearing species (29-31). A scale of these reactions is determined mainly by the capacity of subducted carbonate-bearing domains. An important consequence of such an interaction is that it can produce diamond. However, studies on diamond synthesis via the reactions between oxidized and reduced phases are limited (32-35).To understand the mechanisms of the interaction of carbonbearing oxidized-and reduced-mineral assemblages, we performed high-pressure experiments with an iron-carbonate system; an approach was used that enabled the creation of an oxygen fugacity gradient in the capsules (Materials and Methods and SI Materials and Methods). Results and DiscussionThe experimental results and the phase compositions are given in Table 1 and Table S1, respectively. At temperatures of 1,000 and 1,100°C, the iron-car...

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Fluid-bearing alkaline carbonate melts as the medium for the formation of diamonds in the Earth's mantle: an experimental study

Cited by 179 publications

References 37 publications

The role of mantle ultrapotassic fluids in diamond formation

The role of mantle ultrapotassic fluids in diamond formation

HPHT Diamond Crystallization in the Mg-Si-C System: Effect of Mg/Si Composition

Mantle–slab interaction and redox mechanism of diamond formation

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