Solubility of silicon in liquid metal at high pressure: implications for the composition of the Earth’s core

Silicon solubility in liquid Fe-rich metal was measured experimentally as a function of pressure, temperature and oxygen fugacity to determine if silicon could be a major light element in the Earth’s core. At the P, T, fO 2 conditions of the experiments, Si solubility in liquid metal increases with...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Earth and planetary science letters 2001, Vol.184 (2), p.367-376
Main Authors: Gessmann, C.K., Wood, B.J., Rubie, D.C., Kilburn, M.R.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
composition
core
core–mantle boundary
high pressure
magma oceans
silicon
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Summary:Silicon solubility in liquid Fe-rich metal was measured experimentally as a function of pressure, temperature and oxygen fugacity to determine if silicon could be a major light element in the Earth’s core. At the P, T, fO 2 conditions of the experiments, Si solubility in liquid metal increases with increasing pressure, increasing temperature and decreasing oxygen fugacity. Evaluating single-stage core formation scenarios, the experimental results show that if the core segregated at low pressure (∼2.5 GPa) and an oxygen fugacity consistent with the current FeO content (8 wt%) of the mantle, the liquid metal would contain negligible Si (
ISSN:0012-821X
1385-013X
DOI:10.1016/S0012-821X(00)00325-3