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A primary natrocarbonatitic association in the Deep Earth

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Abstract

In addition to ultramafic and mafic associations, a primary natrocarbonatitic association occurs in the lower mantle. To date, it was identified as inclusions in diamonds from the Juina area, Mato Grosso State, Brazil. It comprises almost 50 mineral species: carbonates, halides, fluorides, phosphates, sulfates, oxides, silicates, sulfides and native elements. In addition, volatiles are present in this association. Among oxides, coexisting periclase and wüstite were identified, pointing to the formation of the natrocarbonatitic association at a depth greater than 2000 km. Some iron-rich (Mg,Fe)O inclusions in diamond are attributed to the lowermost mantle. The initial lower-mantle carbonatitic melt formed as a result of low-fraction partial melting of carbon-containing lower-mantle material, rich in P, F, Cl and other volatile elements, at the core-mantle boundary. During ascent to the surface, the initial carbonatitic melt dissociated into two immiscible parts, a carbonate-silicate and a chloride-carbonate melt. The latter melt is parental to the natrocarbonatitic lower-mantle association. Diamonds with carbonatitic inclusions were formed in carbonatitic melts or high-density fluids.

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Acknowledgments

The authors are thankful to L. Kogarko and the anonymous reviewer. Their constructive notes helped us to improve the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. KM Diamond Exploration Ltd., West Vancouver, BC, V7S 3J1, Canada

    Felix V. Kaminsky

  2. Institute of the Geology of Ore Deposits, Petrography, Mineralogy, and Geochemistry (IGEM), Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, 109017, Russia

    Igor D. Ryabchikov

  3. Department 3.3 Chemistry and Physics of Earth Materials, GeoForschungsZentrum Potsdam, Potsdam, D14473, Germany

    Richard Wirth

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  1. Felix V. Kaminsky
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Correspondence to Felix V. Kaminsky.

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Kaminsky, F.V., Ryabchikov, I.D. & Wirth, R. A primary natrocarbonatitic association in the Deep Earth. Miner Petrol 110, 387–398 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00710-015-0368-4

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