Presolar grains silicon carbide

Fig. 3.8 A grain of silicon carbide (smaller than a micrometre) more than 4.57 billion years old, as seen under a scanning electron microscope. The grain was found in the Murchison meteorite and was formed in the presolar nebula (Lugmair, 1999)...

Besmehn A, Hoppe P (2003) A NanoSIMS study of Si- and Ca-Ti-isoptopic compositions of presolar silicon carbide grains from supemovae. Geochim Cosmochim Acta 67 4693-4703... 

Hoppe P, Ott U (1997) Mainstream silicon carbide grains from meteorites. In Astrophysical Implications of the Laboratory Study of Presolar Materials. Bematowicz TJ, Zinner E (eds) AlP, New York, p 27-59 Hsu W, Wasserburg GJ, Huss GR (2000) High time resolution by use of the Al chronometer in the multistage formation of CAL Earth Planet Sci Lett 182 15-29... 

Meyer BS (1994) The r-, s-,and p-processes in nucleosynthesis. Annu Rev Astronom Astrophys 32 153-190 Mostefaoui S, Lugmair GW, Hoppe P, El Goresy A (2003) Evidence for live iron-60 in Semarkona and Chervony Kut a nanosims study. Lunar Planet Sci XXXIV 1585 Murthy VR, Sandoval P (1965) Chromium isotopes in meteorites. J Geophys Res 70 4379-4382 Nicolussi GK, Davis AM, Pellin MJ, Lewis RS, Clayton RN, Amari S (1997) s-Process zirconium in presolar silicon carbide grains. Science 277 1281-1283... 

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... 

The second interesting feature of this isotope is that minuscule grains of silicon carbide extracted from meteorites have been found to be very rich in calcium-44, as mentioned earlier. They have been identified with presolar grains that condensed in the ejecta of supernovas during their first few years of expansion. Could it be that supernovas have been throwing sand in our eyes Data gathered by the ISO (Infrared Space Observatory), yet another experiment with strong participation by the French CEA, clearly demonstrates that new dust condensed inside the Cas A remnant very soon after explosion of the supernova that caused it. °... 

Examples of presolar silicon carbide from the Orgueil meteorite (a, b, c) and hibonite from the Semarkona meteorite (d). These are relatively large for presolar grains. Note the geometric outlines of crystal faces in images (a) and (d). Image (d) is reproduced by permission of the AAS. 

The carriers of anomalous Ne-E (two forms of which were now known) and Xe-S were quickly identified. Neon-E(H), which is released at temperatures above 1200 °C in stepped heating experiments, and Xe-S were found to be carried in presolar silicon carbide (Tang and Anders, 1988). Neon-E(L), which is released below 900 °C, was found to be carried by presolar graphite (Amari et al., 1990). Once these presolar compounds were shown to be present in meteorites, studies were carried out to identify all of the different types of meteorites that carry presolar grains. Concentrated searches for other presolar phases were also initiated, and many new types of presolar grains have been found. This work is just beginning, however, and we cannot yet account for the majority of the presolar components that must have been present in the Sun s parent molecular cloud. 

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). 

Most presolar silicon carbide and oxide grains and a significant fraction of presolar silicate grains found in meteorites come from low- to intermediate-mass stars in the asymptotic giant branch (AGB) phase (see Chapter 3). Evidence for this conclusion derives from two sources (1) spectroscopic observations of the envelopes of these stars and (2) comparison... 

Theoretical modeling provides strong evidence that most presolar silicon carbide grains come from 1.5 to 3 M stars. As discussed in Chapter 3, stellar modeling of the evolution of the CNO isotopes in the envelopes of these stars makes clear predictions about the 12C/13C, 14N/15N, 170/160,180/160 ratios as a star evolves. For example, in the envelopes of low- to intermediate-mass stars of solar composition, the 12C/13C ratio drops to 40 (from a starting value of 89), and 14N/15N increases by a factor of six as carbon and nitrogen processed by... 

The structure of presolar silicon carbide grains can provide information about the conditions of formation. Crystalline silicon carbide is known to form about 100 different polytypes, including cubic, hexagonal, and rhombohedral structures. Presolar silicon carbide exists in only two of these, a cubic (fi-SiC) polytype and a hexagonal (a-SiC) polytype (Daulton et al.,... 

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. 

There is clear evidence that live 26A1 was incorporated into presolar silicon carbide and aluminum oxide grains (see Chapter 5). These grains acquired their 26 Al in the atmospheres of the dying stars in which they formed. It had almost certainly decayed away long before the grains reached the solar system. In presolar grains,26 Al serves as a probe of nucleosynthesis in the parent stars. 

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