Article (Scientific journals)
A diamond-bearing core-mantle boundary on Mercury.
Xu, Yongjiang; Lin, Yanhao; Wu, Peiyan et al.
2024In Nature Communications, 15 (1), p. 5061
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Keywords :
Chemistry (all); Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology (all); Physics and Astronomy (all)
Abstract :
[en] Abundant carbon was identified on Mercury by MESSENGER, which is interpreted as the remnant of a primordial graphite flotation crust, suggesting that the magma ocean and core were saturated in carbon. We re-evaluate carbon speciation in Mercury's interior in light of the high pressure-temperature experiments, thermodynamic models and the most recent geophysical models of the internal structure of the planet. Although a sulfur-free melt would have been in the stability field of graphite, sulfur dissolution in the melt under the unique reduced conditions depressed the sulfur-rich liquidus to temperatures spanning the graphite-diamond transition. Here we show it is possible, though statistically unlikely, that diamond was stable in the magma ocean. However, the formation of a solid inner core caused diamond to crystallize from the cooling molten core and formation of a diamond layer becoming thicker with time.
Disciplines :
Earth sciences & physical geography
Author, co-author :
Xu, Yongjiang ;  Center for High Pressure Science and Technology Advanced Research, Beijing, 100193, People's Republic of China
Lin, Yanhao ;  Center for High Pressure Science and Technology Advanced Research, Beijing, 100193, People's Republic of China. yanhao.lin@hpstar.ac.cn
Wu, Peiyan;  Center for High Pressure Science and Technology Advanced Research, Beijing, 100193, People's Republic of China ; School of Earth Sciences and Resources, China University of Geosciences, Beijing, 100083, People's Republic of China
Namur, Olivier;  Earth and Environmental Sciences, KU Leuven, 3001, Leuven, Belgium
Zhang, Yishen;  Earth and Environmental Sciences, KU Leuven, 3001, Leuven, Belgium
Charlier, Bernard  ;  Université de Liège - ULiège > Département de géologie > Pétrologie, géochimie endogènes et pétrophysique
Language :
English
Title :
A diamond-bearing core-mantle boundary on Mercury.
Publication date :
14 June 2024
Journal title :
Nature Communications
eISSN :
2041-1723
Publisher :
Nature, England
Volume :
15
Issue :
1
Pages :
5061
Peer reviewed :
Peer Reviewed verified by ORBi
Funders :
NSCF - National Natural Science Foundation of China
Funding text :
This research was supported by a grant from the National Natural Science Foundation of China awarded to Y.L. (42250105). The Center for High Pressure Science and Technology Advanced Research is supported by the National Science Foundation of China (Grants U1530402 and U1930401). BC is a Research Associate of the Belgian Fund for Scientific Research-FNRS and acknowledges funding from the ESA PRODEX Program (Grant 4000142722).
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