Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • Letter
  • Published:

Mantle superplasticity and its self-made demise

Nature volume 468, pages 1091–1094 (2010)Cite this article

Subjects

Abstract

The unusual capability of solid crystalline materials to deform plastically, known as superplasticity, has been found in metals and even in ceramics1. Such superplastic behaviour has been speculated for decades to take place in geological materials, ranging from surface ice sheets to the Earth’s lower mantle2,3,4,5,6,7,8. In materials science, superplasticity is confirmed when the material deforms with large tensile strain without failure; however, no experimental studies have yet shown this characteristic in geomaterials. Here we show that polycrystalline forsterite + periclase (9:1) and forsterite + enstatite + diopside (7:2.5:0.5), which are good analogues for Earth’s mantle, undergo homogeneous elongation of up to 500 per cent under subsolidus conditions. Such superplastic deformation is accompanied by strain hardening, which is well explained by the grain size sensitivity of superplasticity and grain growth under grain switching conditions (that is, grain boundary sliding); grain boundary sliding is the main deformation mechanism for superplasticity. We apply the observed strain–grain size–viscosity relationship to portions of the mantle where superplasticity has been presumed to take place, such as localized shear zones in the upper mantle and within subducting slabs penetrating into the transition zone and lower mantle after a phase transformation. Calculations show that superplastic flow in the mantle is inevitably accompanied by significant grain growth that can bring fine grained (≤1 μm) rocks to coarse-grained (1–10 mm) aggregates, resulting in increasing mantle viscosity and finally termination of superplastic flow.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

  • Purchase on Springer Link
  • Instant access to full article PDF
Buy now

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

Figure 1: Specimens before and after tensile deformation experiments.
Figure 2: Microstructures of reference and deformed samples, and schematic illustration of the deformation process.
Figure 3: Experimental data (ln dε/dref versus ε ) for Fo+Per samples.
Figure 4: Predicted grain size and normalized viscosity as a function of time under static and dynamic conditions applicable to three different mantle settings.

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Wakai, F., Sakaguchi, S. & Matsuno, Y. Superplasticity of yttria-stabilized tetragonal ZrO2 polycrystals. Adv. Ceram. Mater. 1, 259–263 (1986)

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  2. Goldsby, D. L. & Kohlstedt, D. L. Superplastic deformation of ice: experimental observations. J. Geophys. Res. 106 (B6). 11017–11030 (2001)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  3. Boullier, A. M. & Gueguen, Y. SP-Mylonites: origin of some mylonites by superplastic flow. Contrib. Mineral. Petrol. 50, 93–104 (1975)

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  4. Behrmann, J. H. & Mainprice, D. Deformation mechanisms in a high-temperature quartz-feldspar mylonite: evidence for superplastic flow in the lower continental crust. Tectonophysics 140, 297–305 (1987)

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  5. Warren, J. M. & Hirth, G. Grain size sensitive deformation mechanisms in naturally deformed peridotites. Earth Planet. Sci. Lett. 248, 423–435 (2006)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. Karato, S., Dupas-Bruzek, C. & Rubie, D. C. Plastic deformation of silicate spinel under the transition-zone conditions of the Earth's mantle. Nature 395, 266–269 (1998)

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  7. Ito, E. & Sato, H. Aseismicity in the lower mantle by superplasticity of the descending slab. Nature 351, 140–141 (1991)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  8. Karato, S., Zhang, S. & Wenk, H. R. Superplasticity in Earth’s lower mantle: evidence from seismic anisotropy and rock physics. Science 270, 458–461 (1995)

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. Karato, S. Deformation of Earth Materials: an Introduction to the Rheology of Solid Earth (Cambridge Univ. Press, 2008)

    Book  Google Scholar 

  10. Ashby, M. F. & Verrall, R. A. Diffusion-accommodated flow and superplasticity. Acta Metall. 21, 149–163 (1973)

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  11. Koizumi, S. et al. Synthesis of highly dense and fine-grained aggregates of mantle composites by vacuum sintering of mineral nano-powders. Phys. Chem. Miner. 37, 505–518 (2010)

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  12. Hiraga, K., Kim, B.-N., Morita, K., Suzuki, T. S. & Sakka, Y. Microstructural design for high-strain-rate superplastic oxide ceramics. J. Ceram. Soc. Jpn 113, 191–197 (2005)

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  13. Ardell, A. J. On the coarsening of grain boundary precipitates. Acta Metall. 20, 601–609 (1972)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. Speight, M. V. Grain growth kinetics of grain-boundary precipitates. Acta Metall. 16, 133–135 (1968)

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  15. Wilkinson, D. S. & Cáceres, C. H. On the mechanism of strain-enhanced grain growth during superplastic deformation. Acta Metall. 32, 1335–1345 (1984)

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  16. Ishii, K., Kanagawa, K., Shigematsu, N. & Okudaira, T. High ductility of K-feldspar and development of granitic banded ultramylonite in the Ryoke metamorphic belt. SW Jpn J. Struct. Geol. 29, 1083–1098 (2007)

    Article  ADS  Google Scholar 

  17. Holm, K., Embury, J. D. & Purdy, G. R. Structure and properties of microduplex Zr-Nb alloys. Acta Metall. 25, 1191–1200 (1977)

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  18. Sato E, Kuribayashi, K. & Horiuchi, R. in Superplasticity and Superplastic Forming (eds Hamilton, C. H. & Paton, N. E. ) 115–119 (Minerals, Metals and Materials Society, 1988)

    Google Scholar 

  19. Nieh, T. G., Wadsworth, J. & Wakai, F. Recent advances in superplastic ceramics and ceramic composites. Int. Mater. Rev. 36, 146–161 (1991)

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  20. Farver, J. R. & Yund, R. A. Silicon diffusion in forsterite aggregates: implications for diffusion accommodated creep. Geophys. Res. Lett. 27, 2337–2340 (2000)

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  21. Shimojuku, A. et al. Si and O diffusion in (Mg,Fe)2SiO4 wadsleyite and ringwoodite and its implications for the rheology of the mantle transition zone. Earth Planet. Sci. Lett. 284, 103–112 (2009)

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  22. Yamazaki, D., Kato, T., Yurimoto, H., Ohtani, E. & Toriumi, M. Silicon self-diffusion in MgSiO3 perovskite at 25 GPa. Phys. Earth Planet. Inter. 119, 299–309 (2000)

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  23. Kubo, T., Kaneshima, S., Torii, Y. & Yoshioka, S. Seismological and experimental constraints on metastable phase transformations and rheology of the Mariana slab. Earth Planet. Sci. Lett. 287, 12–23 (2009)

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  24. Yamazaki, D., Kato, T., Ohtani, E. & Toriumi, M. Grain growth rates of MgSiO3-perovskite and periclase under lower mantle conditions. Science 274, 2052–2054 (1996)

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  25. Solomatov, V. S., El-Khonzondar, R. & Tikare, V. Grain size in the lower mantle: constrains from numerical modeling of grain growth in two-phase systems. Phys. Earth Planet. Inter. 129, 265–282 (2002)

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  26. Hirth, G. & Kohlstedt, D. L. in The Subduction Factory (ed. Eiler, J. ) 83–105 (Geophys. Monogr. 138, American Geophysical Union, 2003)

    Book  Google Scholar 

  27. Yamazaki, D. & Karato, S. Some mineral physics constraints on the rheology and geothermal structure of Earth's lower mantle. Am. Mineral. 86, 385–391 (2001)

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

  28. Hiraga, T., Tachibana, C., Ohashi, N. & Sano, S. Grain growth systematics for forsterite ± enstatite aggregates: effect of lithology on grain size in the upper mantle. Earth Planet. Sci. Lett. 291, 10–20 (2010)

    Article  ADS  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

Technical support from S. Sano, N. Ohashi, S. Ohtsuka, K. Ibe, M. Uchida, H. Yoshida and A. Yasuda is appreciated. Scientific discussions with T. Kubo, S. Honda, T. Takei and D. L. Kohlstedt were valuable. Part of the synthesis of the specimens was supported by S. Sano, Ube Materials. Scientific and editorial comments from C. McCarthy were valuable. This research was supported by the JSPS through a Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (A 20684024), by the Earthquake Research Institute’s cooperative research programme (to T.H.) and by a Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (A 19686042), a Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (B 21360328) and a Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research on Priority Areas (474-19053008) (to H.Y.).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Earthquake Research Institute, University of Tokyo, 1-1-1 Yayoi, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-0032, Japan,

    Takehiko Hiraga, Tomonori Miyazaki & Miki Tasaka

  2. Nano Ceramics Center, National Institute for Materials Science, 1-2-1 Sengen, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0047, Japan,

    Hidehiro Yoshida

Authors
  1. Takehiko Hiraga
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Tomonori Miyazaki
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Miki Tasaka
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Hidehiro Yoshida
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Contributions

T.H., T.M. and H.Y. organized the project, and T.H. drafted the manuscript. TEM and SEM-EBSD were carried out by M.T.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Takehiko Hiraga.

Ethics declarations

Competing interests

The authors declare no competing financial interests.

Supplementary information

Supplementary Information

This file contains Supplementary Figures 1-6 with legends, Supplementary Table 1, Supplementary Results, a Supplementary Discussion and additional references. (PDF 1954 kb)

PowerPoint slides

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Hiraga, T., Miyazaki, T., Tasaka, M. et al. Mantle superplasticity and its self-made demise. Nature 468, 1091–1094 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1038/nature09685

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nature09685

This article is cited by

Comments

By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines. If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.

Search

Advanced search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing