Collaborative Research: Halogen and chlorine isotope behavior during metamorphism of metapelitic rocks

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Volatile elements are elements that volatilize (turn into a gas or vapor) at low temperatures. Examples of such elements include H, C, O, N, and many others. They are critically important in generating habitable conditions on Earth and in how they influence Earth’s dynamics -- particularly their rock-weakening effects. Despite their importance, we do not have a good understanding of how volatile elements are distributed between different portions of the Earth (e.g., atmosphere/ocean, crust, mantle), nor how this distribution may have changed over Earth history. Halogen elements (F, Cl, Br, I) are volatile elements that have been used to trace volatile cycling between Earth’s surface and its interior. Recent work has shown that the upper continental crust has a distinctive halogen concentration signature that was likely generated by near-surface weathering of rocks. This signature is similar to that seen in the upper mantle, potentially implicating recycling of weathered upper crustal rocks into the mantle. However, it is also possible that the signature is generated by volatile-element loss accompanying recrystallization of the sediments at the higher pressures and temperatures found in Earth’s interior (metamorphism). This project will quantify how halogens and chlorine isotopes behave during metamorphic dehydration of sedimentary rocks that started out as mud at Earth’s surface. Such rocks have high concentrations of water and other volatile elements that systematically decline as the rock is metamorphosed at higher and higher temperatures. These data will inform our understanding of how halogens (and, by implication volatile elements) are re-distributed within Earth. The project will support the research of a first-generation PhD student as well as two undergraduate researchers from groups historically excluded from Earth Science.Recent work showed that the upper continental crust is depleted in halogens relative to lithophile elements of similar incompatibility during mantle melting, which is likely due to volcanic degassing and perhaps some amount of chemical weathering at the time of crust formation. Interestingly, the crystalline upper continental crust has relative halogen abundances that are similar to those seen in upper mantle rocks and may suggest a role for UCC recycling in controlling mantle halogen budgets. A better understanding of halogen, including Cl isotope, behavior during metamorphism will allow determination of the degree that mantle halogen signatures are influenced by terrigenous sedimentary rock recycling. This project will fund a PhD researcher who will determine how halogen elements (F, Cl, Br, I) and chlorine isotopes behave during metamorphic dehydration of terrigenous sedimentary rocks. The researchers will analyze complete halogen concentrations (F, Cl, Br, I) in four well-characterized suites of metapelites: British Caledonian mudrocks; metapelites from the contact aureole of the Onawa pluton, Maine; Otago schists, New Zealand; and metapelites from the Ivrea Zone, Italy. These metapelites experienced sub-greenschist facies to granulite facies metamorphic conditions and will allow the researchers to determine if and when halogens are fractionated from one another during metamorphic dehydration reactions. Accompanying chlorine isotope and total organic carbon contents of the same rocks will allow them to evaluate the degree to which organic matter influences halogen abundances in metapelites and how metamorphism may change these signatures.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.