Anomalous Behavior of Viscosity and Electrical Conductivity of MgSiO3 Melt at Mantle Conditions

Abstract

AbstractSilicate melts have served as transport agents in the chemical and thermal evolution of Earth. Molecular dynamics simulations based on a deep neural network potential trained by ab initio data show that the viscosity of MgSiO3 melt decreases with increasing pressure at low pressures (up to ∼6 GPa) before it starts to increase with further compression. The melt electrical conductivity also behaves anomalously; first increasing and then decreasing with pressure. The melt accumulation implied by the viscosity turnover at ∼23 GPa along mantle liquidus offers an explanation for the low‐velocity zone at the 660‐km discontinuity. The increase in electrical conductivity up to ∼50 GPa may contribute to the steep rise of Earth's electrical conductivity profiles derived from magnetotelluric observations. Our results also suggest that small fraction of melts could give rise to detectable bulk conductivity in deeper parts of the mantle.