Uncertainties in the shock devolatilization of hydrated minerals: A nontronite case study

Controlled recovery of hydrated minerals subjected to planar shock loading is challenging because of the large difference in shock impedance between the natural samples and the engineering materials used as the recovery capsules. Significant differences in recovery capsule design confound straightforward interpretation of existing data on shock modification of hydrated minerals. We present X‐ray diffraction and infrared spectroscopy results from new shock recovery experiments on nontronite (a smectite clay observed on Mars) and identify major issues in the interpretation of recovered samples. Previous work assumes that the first shock pressure step in a ring‐up configuration is the most important factor in the interpretation of shock modification. By comparing the X‐ray diffraction and infrared spectroscopy data from experiments with similar first shock steps but significantly different final shock states, we show that one cannot simply interpret the recovered samples based upon the first shock pressure step. This work demonstrates the need for a deeper understanding of the thermodynamics of ring‐up experiments in order to be able to interpret the results in terms of an equivalent single shock loading pressure for planetary applications. In this work, we also show that venting of the samples does not matter significantly at low pressures but may be important at high pressures. We have developed a recovery method and validation test that allows us to address the major issues and technical tradeoffs with shock recovery experiments on volatile materials.