Volatiles accretion

Chondrite classes are also distinguished by their abundances of both volatile and refractory elements (3). For volatile elements the variation among groups results from incomplete condensation of these elements into soHd grains that accrete to form meteorite parent bodies. Volatile elements such as C,... 

Of the two models, homogeneous accretion is generally favoured. H. Wancke from the Max Planck Institute in Mainz (1986) described a variant of this model, in which the terrestrial planets were formed from two different components. Component A was highly reduced, containing elements with metallic character (such as Fe, Co, Ni, W) but poor in volatile and partially volatile elements. Component B was completely oxidized and contained elements with metallic character as their oxides, as well as a relatively high proportion of volatile elements and water. For the Earth, the ratio A B is calculated to be 85 15, while for Mars it is 60 40. According to this model, component B (and thus water) only arrived on Earth towards the end of the accretion phase, i.e., after the formation of the core. This means that only some of the water was able to react with the metallic fraction. 

The discovery of the average metal-rich nature of planet-harbouring stars with regard to disc stars (i.e. [1],[2], [3]) has revealed the key role that metallicity plays in the formation and evolution of planetary systems. If the accretion processes were the main responsible for the iron excess found in planet host stars, volatile abundances should show clear differences in stars with and without planets, since volatiles (with low Tc) are expected to be deficient in accreted materials [4]. Previous studies of the abundance trends of the volatiles N, C, S and Zn [5, 6] have obtained no anomalies for a large sample of planet host stars. 

Matrix minerals are complex mixtures of silicates (especially olivine and pyroxene), oxides, sulfides, metal, phyllosilicates, and carbonates. The bulk chemical composition of matrix is broadly chondritic, and richer in volatile elements than the other chondrite components. Some chondrules have rims of adhering matrix that appear to have been accreted onto them prior to final assembly of the meteorite. Small lumps of matrix also occur in many chondrites. Presolar grains, described in Chapter 5, occur in the matrix. 

The volatile element depletions among the various classes of chondrites were once considered to be the result of equilibrium condensation, with accretion of the different classes of meteorites taking place at different temperatures before the missing volatiles could... 

Anhydrous planetesimals, and especially the meteorites derived from them, provide crucial cosmochemical data. Spectroscopic studies of asteroids do not provide chemical analyses, but the spectral similarities of several asteroid classes to known meteorite types provide indirect evidence of their compositions. The few chemical analyses of asteroids by spacecraft are consistent with ordinary chondrite or primitive achondrite compositions. Laboratory analyses of anhydrous meteorites - chondrites, achondrites, irons, and stony irons - allow us to study important chemical fractionations in early solar system bodies. Fractionations among chondrites occur mostly in elements with higher volatility, reflecting the accretion of various components whose compositions were determined by high- and low-temperature processes such as condensation and evaporation. Fractionations among achondrites and irons are more complex and involve partitioning of elements between melts and crystals during differentiation. 

Trace element measurements in lunar basalts also indicate that the Moon is depleted in highly volatile elements (Taylor et al., 2006a). Estimates of some of the Moon s volatile element concentrations are compared with the Earth in Figure 13.11 a. The absence of water in lunar basalts suggests that the mantle is dry. The Moon may also be enriched in refractory elements (Fig. 13.11b). Volatile element depletion and refractory element enrichment are expected consequences of the giant impact origin and subsequent high-temperature accretion of the Moon. 

Mars is more volatile-rich than Earth, reflecting a higher proportion of accreted volatilebearing planetesimals. It is also more highly oxidized than Earth, so that twice as much of its iron has remained as Fe2+ in the mantle rather than in the metallic core. Wanke and Dreibus (1988) suggested that oxidation occurred during accretion, as water in accreted planetesimals reacted with iron metal. 

To summarize, chondrules and CAIs formed by transient heating events that processed a large fraction of the matter in the accretion disk. These heating events appear to overprint the thermal processing that produced the volatile element depletions among chondrites. The exact nature of these events is unknown, although shock waves in the nebula and the X-wind model are currently receiving the most attention. 

Nevertheless, we can make some general statements about the geochemistry of differentiated planets. The planetesimals from which they accreted had compositions determined largely by element volatility. Once assembled into a planet and heated, the partitioning of elements into cores and mantles was governed by their siderophile or lithophile affinities. Further differentiation of mantles to form crusts was controlled by the compatible or incompatible behavior of elements. 

Describe the building blocks that accreted to form the terrestrial planets, and explain how that may relate to their volatile element depletions. 

Tyburczy, J. A., Frisch, B., Ahrens, T. J. (1986) Shock-induced volatile loss from a carbonaceous chondrite Implications for planetary accretion. Earth Planet. Sci. Lett., 80, 201-7. 

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