Basic Characteristics of Metamorphic Reactions

Abstract

The mineral changes in metamorphism are chemical reactions from the viewpoint of thermodynamics. Thermodynamics and crystal chemistry are important for a better understanding of such reactions. There is an extensive literature in this field. The present book, however, is not intended to cover them in any way, but is directed toward the mineralogic, petrographic and tectonic aspects of metamorphism. However some elementary knowledge of the thermodynamic characteristics of metamorphic reactions is needed even for understanding mineralogic and petrographic problems. In view of this need, some of the basic characteristics are summarized in a simple way in this chapter, largely as a preliminary to the discussion of progressive metamorphism to be treated in the next chapter. In this respect, this chapter is essentially a part of the introduction of this book. Readers particularly interested in the thermodynamic problems in metamorphism are referred to other books and papers (e.g. Kern and Weisbrod, 1967; Thompson, 1955; Fyfe, Turner and Verhoogen, 1958; Korzhinskii, 1959).