ISSN 1028334X, Doklady Earth Sciences, 2013, Vol. 448, Part 2, pp. 191–193. © Pleiades Publishing, Ltd., 2013.

Original Russian Text © S.K. Simakov, 2013, published in Doklady Akademii Nauk, 2013, Vol. 448, No. 4, pp. 443–445.

GEOCHEMISTRY

Model of Garnet Oxygen Barometer for Mantle Peridotites

and Potential Diamodiferous Ability Estimation on Its Basis1
S. K. Simakov
Presented by Academician I.D.Ryabchikov May 3, 2012

Received May 12, 2012

DOI: 10.1134/S1028334X13020098

The elaboration of monomineral thermobarome We can calculate forsterite and fayalite molar parts
ters based on the composition of one phase is a chal by the reaction (II) in accordance with the expression:
lenging task in modern petrology. This is because Ol
xenoliths are lacking or rare, and only xenocrysts are 8.3144T log K = 2381 + 1.516T + 5652 ( 1 – 2X Mg )
available in many mantlederived rocks. Prospecting Opx
and exploration for diamonds are commonly con – 2145 ( 1 – 2X Mg ) ( T°, K ), (2)
ducted with separate grains of mantlederived associ Opx
( X Mg X Fe )
Ol
ated minerals. The estimation of their formation oxy where K = 
.
Ol Opx
gen fugacity is important both for theoretical petrol ( X Mg X Fe )
ogy and applied purposes.
It’s known that olivines in kimberlite xenoliths cor
Nowday the oxygen fugacity estimation sensors for respond to the narrow composition interval nearly
garnetolivineorthopyroxene parageneses are known 90% of forsterite component. Proceeding from this it
[8, 10]. There is a model of garnetolivineorthopy is possible to create the garnet(orthopyroxeneoliv
roxene oxybarometer [4, 10] based on the equilibrium ine) oxybarometer with fixed olivine composition of
from [2]: Fo90 and with calculation of Opx composition from
2Ca 3 Fe 2 Si 3 O 12 + 10FeSiO 3 equation (2).
Andr Fer (I) The accuracy of garnet(orthopyroxeneolivine)
oxygen barometer was tested on the experimental data
= 4Fe 2 SiO 4 + 12(Ca, Fe)SiO 3 + O 2 . with the graphite presence. f O2 parameters were calcu
Fa Hed
The oxygen fugacity is expressed for the reaction from
equation [4, 10]:
log fO2
( 2ΔG Andr + 10ΔG Fer – 12ΔG Hed – ΔG O ) 0
log f O2 = 2
2.303RT
+ 2 log α Andr + 10 log α Fer – 6α OHed – 4α Fa . (1)
This model can be also applied for garnetorthopyrox −5
ene and garnetolivine parageneses. We can corre
spondingly calculate fictive olivine or orthopyroxene
compositions in accordance with the thermodynamic
model of olivineorthopyroxene equilibrium in the −10
upper mantle [11] by the reaction: 1 2
0.5Fe 2 SiO 4 + MgSiO 3 = 0.5Mg 2 SiO 4 + FeSiO 3 . (II)
Fa Enst Fo Fer
−15 −10 −5 0
Buffer log fO2
1 The article was translated by the author.
Fig. 1. The difference between the f O values calculated by
2
our sensor and measured for synthesized nearly CCO (1)
Research exploration company “ALROSA,” and WM (2) buffers (data for the calculations were taken
St. Petersburg, Russia from [2—1, 13—2]).

191
192 SIMAKOV

log fO2 EMOC log fO2 EMOC

5 5
4 4
1 2 1 2
3 3
2 QFM 2 QFM
1 1
EMOC EMOC
0 0
−1 −1
−2 −2
IW IW
−3 −3
−4 −4
−5 −5
−6 −6
800 1000 1200 1400 1600 800 1000 1200 1400 1600
T, °C T, °C
Fig. 2. The results of oxygen fugacity calculations for
Canadian diamondbearing (1—pipe Diavik, Slave Cra Fig. 3. The results of oxygen fugacity calculations for
ton) and diamond–free (2—Mount Lake, Northern pyrope diamond inclusions from Orapa and Jwaneng pipes
Alberta) pyrope xenocrysts relative to EMOC buffer (anal (1) and for kimberlite pyrope xenocryst from GalangerI
yses were taken from [6, 7], temperatures and pressures kimberlite pipe drom Angola (2) relative to EMOC buffer
were calculated by [5, 9] sensors. QFM—quarts–fayalite– (analyses were taken from [1, 12], temperatures and pres
magnetite buffer, IW—iron–wustite buffer). sures were calculated by [5, 9] sensors).

lated for carbonatised garnet peridotite assemblages sensor [8]). This is due to the fact that in my sensor
synthesized at 50 kbars with the oxygen fugacity con pyroxene and olivine activity changes lead only to the
trolled by the CCO buffer [2] and for peridotites syn several per cent changes of the total sum of the activi
thesized at 22 kbars with the oxygen fugacity con ties, meanwhile the same variations lead to the tens of
trolled by the WM buffer [13] (Fig. 1). The average percent changes of the total sum of the activities in the
deviation of the calculations from the buffers is sensor of Gudmundson and Wood [8]. The accuracy of
1.0 log f O2 . The variations of olivine compositions our oxygen barometer also was tested on the garnet–
spinelorthopyroxeneolivine natural paragenesesl by
minor impact on the final value of the oxygen fugacity. the comparing with spinelorthopyroxeneolivine
Changes from 85% to 95% of forsterite component sensor of Taylor [13, 14]. The garnet–orthopyroxene–
lead to the fluctuations on 0.1–0.2 log f O2 in our olivine–spinel lherzolites were chosen for the same
calculations in [4, 10]. The calculations showed satis
model. (Meanwhile the same variations lead to the factory convergence of our method with the spinel
fluctuations on 2–3 log f O2 in Gudmundson and Wood sensor. The average deviation from the spinel sensor is
about 1.0 log f O2 (table).
Oxygen fugacity estimation for the previously chosen in f O2 parameters were calculated for pyropes from
[4, 10] equilibrated garnet–orthopyroxene–spinel–olivine
parageneses from African and Yakutian diamond inclusions diamondbearing and diamondfree kimberlite pipes
and xenoliths. from Africa and Canada. Most of the pyrope xenoc
rysts from diamondbearing pipe Diavik (Slave Cra
Sample P, kbar T, °C Δlog( f O2 )1 Δlog( f O2 )2 ton, Canada) lie at oxygen fugacities below or on the
boundary of the EMOC buffer (the upper limit of dia
AB75 75.25 1045 –14.7 –13.3 mond stability for peridotite parageneses) (Fig. 2).
Uv216 49.64 957 –11.64 –10.9 Meanwhile the pyrope xenocrysts from diamondfree
Uv624 42.68 847 –12.3 –13.57 pipe from Northern Alberta lie at oxygen fugacities
upper of the buffer. The same calculations were pro
518/80 50.15 932 –10.9 –10.0 vided for diamond inclusions from Orapa and
FRB1350 32.60 880 –13.36 –13.0 Jwaneng pipes and for diamondfree Angolian
FRB888 50.18 1035 –7.9 –9.1 GalangerI pipe. The diamond inclusions lie at oxy
PHN2826B 30.78 867 –12.7 –14.0 gen fugacities lower EMOC buffer, meanwhile
GalangerI pyropes lie higher the buffer (Fig. 3).
Note: Δlog( f O )1—oxygen fugacities calculated by our garnet
2 The results obtained indicate that the elaborated
barometer, Δlog( f O )2—oxygen fugacities calculated by modification of the garnet oxybarometer allows one to
2
orthopyroxene–spinel–olivine barometer of Taylor et al. [14]. estimate the formation oxygen fugacity of deep pyrope

DOKLADY EARTH SCIENCES Vol. 448 Part 2 2013

 MODEL OF GARNET OXYGEN BAROMETER
xenocrysts and can be applied to the evaluation of the
diamond potential of mantlederived rocks.
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