Presolar grains isotopic composition

Figure 8. Figure (a) after Clayton et al. (1976, 1977). The scales are as in Figure 1. The O isotopic compositions of the different meteorite classes are represented ordinary chondrites (H, L, LL), enstatite chondrites (EFl, EL), differentiated meteorites (eucrites, lAB irons, SNCs) and some components of the carbonaceous chondrites. As the different areas do not overlap, a classification of the meteorites can be drawn based on O isotopes. Cr (b) and Mo (c) isotope compositions obtained by stepwise dissolution of the Cl carbonaceous chondrite Orgueil (Rotaru et al. 1992 Dauphas et al. 2002), are plotted as deviations relative to the terrestrial composition in 8 units. Isotopes are labeled according to their primary nucleosynthetic sources. ExpSi is for explosive Si burning and n-eq is for neutron-rich nuclear statistical equilibrium. The open squares represent a HNOj 4 N leachate at room temperature. The filled square correspond to the dissolution of the main silicate phase in a HCl-EIF mix. The M pattern for Mo in the silicates is similar to the s-process component found in micron-size SiC presolar grains as shown in Figure 7.

Amari S, Niftier LR, Zinner E, Lodders K, Lewis RS (2001) Presolar SiC grains of type Aand B their isotopic compositions and stellar origins. Astrophys J 559 463-483... 

Nicolussi GK, Pellin MJ, Lewis RS, Davis AM, Amari S, Clayton RN (1998a) Molybdenum isotopic composition of individual presolar silicon carbide grains from the Murchison meteorite. Geochim Cosmochim Acta 62 1093-1104... 

Zinner E (1998) SteUar nucleosynthesis and the isotopic composition of presolar grains from primitive meteorites. Ann Rev Earth Planet Sci 26 147-188... 

In practice, it is not sufficient for an object to have an isotopic composition that cannot be explained by radioactive decay or mass-dependent fractionation effects. The object must also have physical and chemical characteristics making it unlikely to be a product of solar system processes. For example, millimeter- to centimeter-sized refractory inclusions from primitive chondrites have been shown to contain small (parts in 103 to 104) isotopic anomalies in many elements. However, based on the size, composition, physical characteristics, and abundance of the inclusions, it is generally believed that these objects formed within the solar system. They preserve small isotopic anomalies because they did not form from a representative sample of the bulk solar system (see Chapters 7 and 14). So, isotopic anomalies can indicate either that an object is itself presolar or that it formed in the solar system from precursor material that was not fully homogenized in the solar system. As mass spectrometry has become more precise, small isotopic anomalies of the second type have shown up in a wide variety of chondritic materials. As we discuss below and in Chapter 7, these anomalies and bona fide presolar grains can be used as probes of processes in the early solar system. 

Bulk techniques still have a place in the search for presolar components. Although they cannot identify the presolar grain directly, they can measure anomalous isotopic compositions, which can then be used as a tracer for separation procedures to identify the carrier. There are several isotopically anomalous components whose carriers have not been identified. For example, an anomalous chromium component enriched in 54Cr appears in acid residues of the most primitive chondrites. The carrier is soluble in hydrochloric acid and goes with the colloidal fraction of the residue, which means it is likely to be submicron in size (Podosck el al., 1997). Measurements of molybdenum and ruthenium in bulk primitive meteorites and leachates from primitive chondrites show isotopic anomalies that can be attributed to the -process on the one hand and to the r- and /7-processes on the other. The s-process anomalies in molybdenum and ruthenium correlate with one another, while the r- and /7-process anomalies do not. The amounts of -process molybdenum and ruthenium are consistent with their being carried in presolar silicon carbide, but they are released from bulk samples with treatments that should not dissolve that mineral. Thus, additional carriers of s-, r-, and/ -process elements are suggested (Dauphas et al., 2002). 

Oxygen isotopic compositions of presolar oxide grains compared with those of red giant stars. Stellar data are shown without error bars, which are large on this scale. Both data sets are characterized by higher 170/160 ratios and lower 180/160 ratios compared to solar oxygen. Stellar data from Smith and Lambert (1990). 

Nicolussi, G. K., Pellin, M. J., Lewis, R. S. et al. (1998) Molybdenum isotopic compositions of individual presolar silicon carbide grains from the Murchison meteorite. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 62, 1093-1104. 

---