Hugoniot and sound velocity of antigorite and evidence for sluggish decomposition

Abstract

Antigorite is one kind of hydrous serpentine that is present in meteorites and in the Earth mantle. In order to understand its dynamic behaviors, metastability and decomposition, shock experiments on antigorite have been conducted using a two-stage gas gun, and wave profiles of particle velocities have been measured to obtain the Hugoniot up to ~130 GPa and sound velocity at high pressures. The results show three regions of low-pressure phase below ~43 GPa and its metastable extension above a pressure of ~43 GPa for short durations of shock and high-pressure phase(s) above a pressure of ~43 GPa for long durations of shock. The dynamic behaviors of antigorite depend on not only the pressure but also the compression duration. Metastable extension state indicates that antigorite may survive beyond the stability depending on the shock conditions. Shock temperatures for antigorite are calculated along the Hugoniot. The pressure–density, sound velocity–pressure and shock temperature–pressure plots demonstrate that the decomposition reaction of antigorite into high-pressure phase(s) is accompanied by a volume expansion, sound velocity increase and temperature decrease, relative to the metastable extension phase above ~43 GPa. The decomposition should be sluggish and needs enough reaction time to complete and to overcome the activation energy. As a result of the high metastability of antigorite and possible decomposition assemblages, the hydrous serpentine (antigorite) may play a crucial role for the origin of water during the Earth accretion.