Water incorporation mechanisms in the Earth’s deep mantle minerals by neutron diffraction

by Dr Narangoo Purevjav (Universität Bayreuth)

Monday 14 Jun 2021, 14:30 → 15:30 Europe/Berlin

Zoom Webinar

Many discoveries on naturally found and laboratory-based mineral samples have provided extensive evidence that water stored within the deep mantle minerals as hydroxyl groups (OH-). Such water significantly alters the physical and chemical properties of the deep mantle minerals, although it is still a matter of debate on how water (hydrogen) is being incorporated in their framework structures owing to the insensitive techniques for detecting such structurally bound OH-.

Neutron is the most powerful probe technique to address these problems thanks to its high sensitivity to light elements such as hydrogen. We employed neutron diffraction on the abundant constituent minerals of the upper and lower mantles. Understanding the water incorporation mechanisms in their framework structures is essential for understanding related physical and chemical property changes and water storage capacity in respective deep mantle regions.