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Crystal structure refinement of synthetic Ca_0.43Sr_0.57[SiO₃]-walstromite and walstromite–fluid Ca–Sr distribution at upper-mantle conditions

¹ Deparment of Mineralogy–Petrology, Technical University Berlin, Ackerstr. 73–75, D-13355 Berlin, Germany
² Helmholtz-Centre Potsdam, GFZ German Research Centre for Geosciences, Telegrafenberg, D-14473 Potsdam, Germany

^* Corresponding author, e-mail: alieb{at}gfz-potsdam.de

(Ca,Sr)-walstromite with the mean composition Ca_0.43Sr_0.57[SiO₃] was synthesized at 4 GPa/600 °C and X_Sr^bulk= 0.875 in presence of a 1 molar aqueous (Ca,Sr)Cl₂ fluid together with monoclinic (Ca,Sr)-lawsonite, grossular and strontianite. Intracrystalline as well as walstromite–mineral and walstromite–fluid Ca–Sr distribution was determined by analysing the product fluid with ICP–OES for Ca and Sr concentrations, solids by electron-microprobe analysis, powder XRD-analysis with Rietveld refinement and single-crystal X-ray diffraction. Based on the single-crystal X-ray diffraction data the crystal structure of (Ca,Sr)-walstromite was solved in space group P-1 with refined lattice parameters a = 6.7580(9) Å, b = 9.464(3) Å, c = 6.7507(16) Å, = 83.22(2)°, β = 76.83(2)°, = 70.33(2)°, and V = 395.46(17) ų. The data indicate that (Ca,Sr)-walstromite has slightly smaller volume and A-sites than the polymorph (Ca,Sr)-wollastonite-II over the entire compositional range. Coordination numbers and mean bond lengths for the three A-sites in Ca_0.43Sr_0.57-walstromite are <^[VIII]A1–O>= 2.588 Å, <^[VI]A2–O>= 2.369 Å, and <^[VII]A3–O>= 2.660 Å. The smaller volume suggests that (Ca,Sr)-walstromite is the high-P/low-T polymorph. The data show extreme intracrystalline fractionation of Sr within the (Ca,Sr)-walstromite solid solution series with exchange coefficients K_{D(Sr – Ca)}^{site1 – site2} defined as (Sr/Ca)^site1/(Sr/Ca)^site2 of K_D(Sr–Ca)^A3–A1 = 21, K_D(Sr–Ca)^A3–A2 = 2400, and K_D(Sr–Ca)^A1–A2 = 114. The walstromite–mineral and walstromite–fluid Ca–Sr distribution indicates notable fractionation of Sr into the coexisting phases lawsonite, strontianite and fluid compared to (Ca,Sr)-walstromite. Grossular has only very minor amounts of Sr. Exchange coefficients K_D(Sr–Ca)^{phase1–phase2}= [(Sr/Ca)^phase1]ⁿ/[(Sr/Ca)^phase2]^m with n and m being the stoichiometric coefficients of the respective exchange reaction are 0.00068 for walstromite–fluid, 0.000011 for walstromite–lawsonite and walstromite–strontianite, and 31.8 for walstromite–grossular.

Key-words: walstromite, CaSiO₃–SrSiO₃ solid solution, high-pressure synthesis, K_D-mineral-fluid, crystal structure.