Si solid state NMR and Ti -edge XAFS pre-edge spectroscopy reveal complex behavior of Ti in silicate melts.

An understanding of the mechanisms of Ti is incorporation into silicate glasses and melts is critical for the field of petrology. Trace-element thermobarometry, high-field-strength element partitioning, and the physical properties of magmas are all be influenced by Ti incorporation into glasses and changes therein in response to changes in composition and temperature. In this study, we combine Si solid state NMR and Ti -edge XAFS spectroscopy to investigate how Ti is incorporated into quenched Na-silicate glasses, and the influence of Ti on the structure of silicate species in these glasses.

Low-temperature crystallization of granites and the implications for crustal magmatism.

The structure and composition of granites provide clues to the nature of silicic volcanism, the formation of continents, and the rheological and thermal properties of the Earth's upper crust as far back as the Hadean eon during the nascent stages of the planet's formation. The temperature of granite crystallization underpins our thinking about many of these phenomena, but evidence is emerging that this temperature may not be well constrained. The prevailing paradigm holds that granitic mineral assemblages crystallize entirely at or above about 650-700 degrees Celsius.

A reduced organic carbon component in martian basalts.

The source and nature of carbon on Mars have been a subject of intense speculation. We report the results of confocal Raman imaging spectroscopy on 11 martian meteorites, spanning about 4.2 billion years of martian history.

Oxygen-17 nuclear magnetic resonance study of the structure of mixed cation calcium-sodium silicate glasses at high pressure: implications for molecular link to element partitioning between silicate liquids and crystals.

The structure of silicate glasses and the corresponding liquids at high pressure and their structure-property relations remain difficult questions in modern physical chemistry, geochemistry, and condensed matter physics. Here we report high- resolution solid-state O-17 3QMAS NMR spectra for mixed cation Ca-Na silicate glasses quenched from melts at high pressure up to 8 GPa. The spectra provide the experimental evidence for the varying pressure-dependence in two different types of nonbridging oxygen (NBO) environments (i.

Structure of B2O3 Glass at High Pressure: A 11B Solid-State NMR Study.

We report spectroscopic evidence for the pressure-induced structural changes in B2O3 glass quenched from melts at pressures up to 6 GPa using solid-state NMR. While all borons are tri-coordinated at 1 atm, the fraction of tetra-coordinated boron increases with pressure, being about 5% and 27% in the B2O3 glass quenched from melts at 2 and 6 GPa, respectively. The fraction of boroxol ring species increases with pressure up to 2 GPa and apparently decreases with further compression up to 6 GPa.