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Stability of magnesite and its high-pressure form in the lowermost mantle

Nature volume 427, pages 60–63 (2004)Cite this article

Abstract

Carbonates are important constituents of marine sediments and play a fundamental role in the recycling of carbon into the Earth's deep interior via subduction of oceanic crust and sediments1,2,3. Study of the stability of carbonates under high pressure and temperature is thus important for modelling the carbon budget in the entire Earth system. Such studies, however, have rarely been performed under appropriate lower-mantle conditions and no experimental data exist at pressures greater than 80 GPa (refs 3–6). Here we report an in situ X-ray diffraction study of the stability of magnesite (MgCO3), which is the major component of subducted carbonates, at pressure and temperature conditions approaching those of the core–mantle boundary. We found that magnesite transforms to an unknown form at pressures above ∼115 GPa and temperatures of 2,100–2,200 K (depths of ∼2,600 km) without any dissociation, suggesting that magnesite and its high-pressure form may be the major hosts for carbon throughout most parts of the Earth's lower mantle.

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Figure 1: X-ray diffraction profiles with increasing pressure at the maximum temperatures in selected runs (a–d).
Figure 2: Possible phase relations of MgCO3 in the deep mantle.

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Acknowledgements

We thank A. Kurio, M. Murakami, Y. Kuwayama and N. Sata for discussions and technical assistance. We also thank T. Katsura for providing the magnesite starting material. M.I. thanks T. Yagi for advice on DAC techniques. The in situ X-ray observations were conducted at BL10XU, SPring-8.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Geodynamics Research Center, Ehime University, Matsuyama, Ehime, 790-8577, Japan

    Maiko Isshiki & Tetsuo Irifune

  2. SPring-8/Japan Synchrotron Radiation Research Institute, 1-1-1 Kouto, Mikazuki, Sayo, Hyogo, 679-5148, Japan

    Maiko Isshiki, Yasuo Ohishi & Masaki Takata

  3. Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Tokyo Institute of Technology, 2-12-1 Ookayama, Tokyo, 152-8551, Japan

    Kei Hirose

  4. IFREE, Japan Marine Science & Technology Center, 2-15 Natsushima, Yokosuka, Kanagawa, 237-0061, Japan

    Shigeaki Ono

  5. SPring-8/Japan Atomic Energy Research Institute, 1-1-1 Kouto, Mikazuki, Sayo, Hyogo, 679-5148, Japan

    Tetsu Watanuki

  6. Department of Applied Physics, Nagoya University, Furo-cho, Chikusa, Nagoya, 464-8603, Japan

    Eiji Nishibori, Masaki Takata & Makoto Sakata

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  1. Maiko Isshiki
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Correspondence to Maiko Isshiki or Tetsuo Irifune.

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Isshiki, M., Irifune, T., Hirose, K. et al. Stability of magnesite and its high-pressure form in the lowermost mantle. Nature 427, 60–63 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1038/nature02181

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