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Experimental Constraints on Ferropericlase (Mg, Fe)O Melt Viscosity Up to 70 GPa
Author(s) -
Du Zhixue,
Deng Jie,
Lee Kanani K. M.
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
geophysical research letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.007
H-Index - 273
eISSN - 1944-8007
pISSN - 0094-8276
DOI - 10.1002/2017gl076177
Subject(s) - mantle (geology) , liquidus , geology , mantle convection , viscosity , thermodynamics , geophysics , petrology , mineralogy , materials science , subduction , metallurgy , paleontology , physics , alloy , tectonics
During Earth's accretion, Earth's mantle is expected to have been a magma ocean due to large impacts. As such, properties of molten mantle materials are key to understanding Earth's thermochemical evolution. However, due to experimental challenges, transport properties at lower mantle pressures, particularly viscosity, are poorly constrained for mantle melts. In this study, we use quenched dendritic textures to estimate melt viscosities at high pressures for (Mg, Fe)O ferropericlase, one of the major components of the mantle. We find that the viscosity of (Mg, Fe)O melt near liquidus temperatures is ~10 −3 –10 −2 Pa s over the pressure range of 3–70 GPa, which is ~1–2 orders of magnitude lower than previous results for Si‐rich melts at similar conditions. This may have implications for magma ocean cooling and thermochemical evolution of the mantle.