Olivine Inclusions In Diamonds Research Articles

40 years of mineral elasticity: a critical review and a new parameterisation of equations of state for mantle olivines and diamond inclusions

Elasticity is a key property of materials, not only for predicting volumes and densities of minerals at the pressures and temperatures in the interior of the Earth, but also because it is a major factor in the energetics of structural phase transitions, surface energies, and defects within minerals. Over the 40 years of publication of Physics and Chemistry of Minerals, great progress has been made in the accuracy and precision of the measurements of both volumes and elastic tensors of minerals and in the pressures and temperatures at which the measurements are made. As an illustration of the state of the art, all available single-crystal data that constrain the elastic properties and pressure–volume–temperature equation of state (EoS) of mantle-composition olivine are reviewed. Single-crystal elasticity measurements clearly distinguish the Reuss and Voigt bulk moduli of olivine at all conditions. The consistency of volume and bulk modulus data is tested by fitting them simultaneously. Data collected at ambient pressure and data collected at ambient temperature up to 15 GPa are consistent with a Mie–Grunesien–Debye thermal-pressure EoS in combination with a third-order Birch–Murnaghan (BM) compressional EoS, the parameter V 0 = 43.89 cm3 mol−1, isothermal Reuss bulk modulus $$K_{\text{TR,0}} = 126.3(2){\text{ GPa}}$$ , $$K^{\prime}_{\text{TR,0}} = 4.54(6)$$ , a Debye temperature $$\theta_{\text{D}} = 644(9)\;{\text{K}}$$ , and a Gruneisen parameter γ 0 = 1.044(4), whose volume dependence is described by q = 1.9(2). High-pressure softening of the bulk modulus at room temperature, relative to this EoS, can be fit with a fourth-order BM EoS. However, recent high-P, T Brillouin measurements are incompatible with these EoS and the intrinsic physics implied by it, especially that $$\left( {\frac{{\partial K^{\prime}_{\text{TR}} }}{\partial T}} \right)_{P} > 0$$ . We introduce a new parameterisation for isothermal-type EoS that scales both the Reuss isothermal bulk modulus and its pressure derivative at temperature by the volume, $$K_{\text{TR}} (T,P = 0) = K_{\text{TR,0}} \left[ {\frac{{V_{0} }}{V(T)}} \right]^{{\delta_{\text{T}} }}$$ and $$K^{\prime}_{\text{TR}} (T,P = 0) = K^{\prime}_{\text{TR,0}} \left[ {\frac{V(T)}{{V_{0} }}} \right]^{{\delta^{\prime}}}$$ , to ensure thermodynamic correctness at low temperatures. This allows the elastic softening implied by the high-P, T Brillouin data for mantle olivine to be fit simultaneously and consistently with the same bulk moduli and pressure derivatives (at room temperature) as the MGD EoS, and with the additional parameters of α V0 = 2.666(9) × 10−5 K−1, $$\theta_{\text{E}} = 484(6)$$ , $$\delta_{\text{T}}$$ = 5.77(8), and $$\delta^{\prime}$$ = −3.5(1.1). The effects of the differences between the two EoS on the calculated density, volume, and elastic properties of olivine at mantle conditions and on the calculation of entrapment conditions of olivine inclusions in diamonds are discussed, and approaches to resolve the current uncertainties are proposed.

Raman Spectroscopy of Mineral Inclusions in Diamonds from Yakutia

New data on the study of residual pressure in mineral inclusions in diamonds from kimberlite pipes and placers of Yakutia obtained using Raman Spectroscopy are presented. Calculated values of residual pressure in olivine and coesite inclusions in kimberlite diamonds according to works of Israeli et al [1] and Sobolev et al [2] indicate that the host crystal crystallized at the depth not less than 165 km, at pressure of 4.8-5.0 GPa and temperature T=1200 °C. Comparative analysis of Raman spectra of olivine inclusions in diamonds from placers of Ebelyakh river on inclusions, contained in diamond and then brought to the surface, showed that olivine inclusions are less stressed. The structural orientation of olivine inclusions in diamonds from placers of Ebelyakh river possibly plays a role in these differences of Raman spectra.

Olivine inclusions in Siberian diamonds and mantle xenoliths: Contrasting water and trace-element contents

A subject of continuing debate is how the Earth's lithospheric portion of the upper mantle has remained the thickest (>200km) and oldest (>3Gy) beneath cratons and is yet surrounded by a vigorously convecting asthenosphere. It is generally admitted that water is a key parameter in the strength and longevity of cratonic roots, because olivine, the main phase of the lithospheric mantle, becomes stronger if its water content decreases. Expanding upon the work presented in Novella et al. (2015) and Taylor et al. (2016), we report new water contents for additional olivine inclusions in diamonds together with the trace-element composition for all olivine inclusions, as well as for mantle xenoliths from various kimberlite pipes located on the Siberian craton. The olivine diamond inclusions from this study have systematically low-water contents (<50ppmw H2O), moderate to high forsterite (e.g., Fo91–94) contents and low Ni, Co, and Zn ppm contents (e.g., <2848, <108, and <47ppm, respectively). In contrast, olivines from Siberian craton mantle xenoliths have a wide range of water contents (6–323ppmw H2O) and extend to lower-Fo (91–92), Ni, Co, and Zn-rich compositions, compared to the diamond inclusions. Depleted incompatible trace-element concentrations in olivine (0.1–0.001×Primitive Mantle) advance our hypothesis for the protogenetic origins for the majority of Siberian diamond inclusions. These observations are consistent with the peridotite xenoliths as representing a part of the cratonic lithosphere that has experienced melt re-fertilization, which has also transported water. The olivine diamond inclusions, on the other hand, preserve “micro-samples” of an initial, dry cratonic lithosphere, mostly resulting from melting events. These inclusions are likely sourced from the initial cratonic mantle lithosphere, which thereby, resisted delamination over time, due to its buoyancy and strength, imparted from melt and water depletion, respectively. And thus, our data provides a major argument that the kimberlite-hosted mantle xenoliths may be more metasomatized than common rocks at the base of the Siberian and other cratonic roots away from kimberlite fields.

Crystallographic orientations of olivine inclusions in diamonds

In this work we report for the first time the crystallographic orientations of olivine inclusions trapped in diamonds from the Kaapvaal craton (South Africa) determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction, and analyze them together with all available data in the literature. The overall data set indicates no preferred orientation of the olivine inclusions with respect to their diamond hosts. However, diamonds containing multiple olivine inclusions sometimes show clusters of olivines with the same orientation in the same diamond host. We conclude that such clusters can only be interpreted as the remnants of single olivine crystals pre-dating the growth of the host diamonds.

Craton nucleation and formation of thick lithospheric roots

Cratonisation is regarded as coincident with amalgamation and lithosphere thickening during collisional tectonics, leading to the birth of the cratonic entities we know today. These are, however, themselves rifted remnants of earlier plate configurations involving cratonic nuclei whose mode of formation conditioned their properties, hence stability and further evolution. Dating of inclusions in diamonds reveals that some thick cratonic roots existed well in advance of accretionary processes leading to craton amalgamation or reflected in the ages of eclogites residing in cratonic mantle. Major uncertainties relate to (1) whether these nuclei formed at ambient or excess mantle potential temperatures TP, i.e. in mid-ocean ridge or oceanic plateau settings and (2) whether the deep, garnet-bearing cratonic mantle, a portion of which extends into the diamond stability field (>150km), formed by plume subcretion or stacking of oceanic lithosphere. In order to extract constraints from published data sets that include samples modified by mantle metasomatism, olivine inclusions in diamonds are used as a guide to the pre-metasomatic composition of the cratonic subcontinental lithospheric mantle (SCLM). The FeO–MgO relationships of the filtered data set show that many depleted cratonic SCLM sections nucleated by onset of partial melting at pressures>5GPa, possibly pointing to formation at excess TP typical of plumes, rather than at ambient TP in Archaean mid-ocean ridge settings. Cr2O3–Al2O3 relationships constrain pressures of equilibrium partial melt extraction. All cratonic depleted garnet peridotite suites have compositions consistent with formation at pressures≥3GPa and hence formed in situ and not by subduction of oceanic plates. Because most cratonic SCLM sections formed as high-pressure residues consisting of olivine and aluminous orthopyroxene, the absence of a garnet signature in residual peridotites that last equilibrated at pressures >3GPa is not proof for original partial melting in the spinel stability field. Cratonic crust may have formed by shallow plate interactions leading to generation of TTGs and greenstone belts. These crustal nuclei may have been subsequently penetrated and subcreted by plume-derived melts, and, after delamination of dense eclogite and komatiites, were trapped by buoyant plume residues. This ensured craton longevity and implies that cratonic crust and mantle are not entirely cogenetic.

First crystal-structure determination of olivine in diamond: Composition and implications for provenance in the Earth's mantle

We report for the first time a complete X-ray diffraction in-situ crystal-structure refinement of a single crystal of olivine still trapped in a diamond (Udachnaya kimberlite, Siberia). A two-step experimental procedure, consisting of accurate crystal centering using a four-circle diffractometer equipped with a point detector and subsequent collection of complete intensity data using a second diffractometer equipped with a CCD detector, allowed us to overcome previously reported experimental problems and to refine the crystal structure without extracting the inclusion from the diamond host. The data allowed us to obtain the cation distribution over the two crystallographic M2 and M1 sites, which provided composition of olivine inclusion as Fo 92.7(4). A novel experimental calibration of the pressure–volume equation of state for such composition was obtained using new in situ high-pressure X-ray data on a Fo 92 olivine single-crystal and new established compositional effects on olivine unit-cell volume. Such equation of state allowed us to determine the internal pressure at the olivine inclusion, P i = 0.40(1) GPa. The value for the internal pressure compares well with but has lower uncertainty than estimates obtained using micro-Raman spectrometry for similar olivine inclusions in diamonds from the same kimberlite. Taking into account elastic relaxation of the diamond–olivine pair to ambient P– T, we determined formation pressures of 3.5 GPa to 4.9 GPa, depending on the assumed temperature (800 °C to 1300 °C). These values suggest formation near the graphite–diamond boundary and are comparable to estimates from conventional and Raman thermobarometry for other peridotitic inclusions in Siberian diamonds.

Trace-element geochemistry of mantle olivine and application to mantle petrogenesis and geothermobarometry

Trace-element compositions of olivine from 75 mantle rocks of diverse origin, including xenoliths from kimberlites, basaltic lavas and orogenic peridotites, were determined by laser ablation ICP-MS to study systematic variations between mantle lithologies, partitioning mechanisms in olivine and their potential for geothermobarometry and unravelling mantle processes. Samples were selected to cover a wide range of forsterite contents (89.1–93.4), equilibration temperatures and pressures (750–1450 °C; 15–80 kbar). Trace elements in olivine can be divided into three groups. Group I elements (Ni, Mn, Co, Cu, Zn and Li) show small concentration ranges and olivine is the major host mineral. These are mostly divalent elements and have ionic radii close to that of Mg. Group II elements (Cr, Al, V, Sc, Ca and Na) show large concentration ranges, which are mainly controlled by the equilibration temperature of the host rock. The elements are strongly concentrated in co-existing mantle minerals (garnet, clinopyroxene and spinel) and show a narrow range of bulk rock concentrations. They fit less comfortably in the olivine lattice than Group I elements because of their charge or size. Differences between garnet and spinel-facies rocks are apparent for Al, Ca and Sc. Group III elements (Ti, Zr, Nb and Y) show large ranges of concentration in olivine as well as in co-existing minerals, and are strongly dependent on bulk rock contents. Concentration differences between olivine from garnet and spinel-facies rocks are apparent for all these elements. They are strongly incompatible in olivine and other rock-forming mantle minerals because of their charge or size. Various mantle lithologies can be discriminated using olivine composition. Spinel, garnet and garnet–spinel peridotites can be distinguished in olivine Sc–Zr and MnO–Al 2O 3 diagrams, whereas volcanic olivine is distinguished by high Ca and Al contents (picritic olivine) or high Nb contents (kimberlitic olivine). Since concentrations of Group III elements in olivine are diagnostic of whole-rock contents they can be used to trace the petrogenetic history of the rock. For instance, Ti contents and Cr# (Cr/(Cr + Al)) of olivine correlate with the amount of melt extracted from a mantle residue, although refertilisation may subsequently have increased Ti contents in high- T peridotites from the base of the lithosphere. The olivine dataset can be used to examine substitution reactions. Uptake of Al and Cr appears to be largely charge-balanced by Na in garnet-facies olivine, and olivine Cr# strongly correlates with that of co-existing minerals, in particular clinopyroxene and spinel. In spinel-facies olivine a large excess of trivalent cations is present in olivine, which can be fully attributed to excess Al. This suggests a Tschermak-style substitution, in which replacement of Mg by Al in the octahedral site is charge-balanced by replacement of Si by Al in the tetrahedral site. Partition coefficients of Group II elements are highly temperature sensitive with most of the element variability being shown by olivine. This allows the definition of simple geothermometers based solely on the concentrations of these elements in olivine. The most widely applicable of these is Al-in-olivine for garnet peridotites, following the expression T Al-ol ( ° C ) = 9423 + 51.4 P + 1860 Cr # ol ( 13.409 − ln [ Al ] ol ) − 273 with P in kbar, Al ol the Al concentration of olivine in ppm, and Cr# ol is Cr/(Cr + Al) in olivine. This thermometer predicts the temperature with a residual of 15 °C based on calibration with two-pyroxene and Al-in-opx geothermobarometers (Brey and Köhler, 1990). Although calibrated using lherzolites only, the thermometer performs well for clinopyroxene-free harzburgites and also spinel peridotites. An alternative thermometer is presented for the case where the presence of Cr 2+ is expected, e.g., for olivine inclusions in diamonds. The geochemical and thermobarometric information recorded by olivine can be a useful tool in studies of the petrogenesis of lithospheric mantle, olivine xenocrysts in mantle-derived magmas, the formation of diamonds and diamond exploration using detrital olivine.

Experimental investigation of the origin of majoritic garnet inclusions in diamonds

Multianvil experiments were carried out at 10–15 GPa and 1600–1700 °C to match the compositions of majoritic garnet inclusions from diamonds, and to determine the compositions of other phases potentially coexisting with these inclusions in the source. Most experiments produced coexisting majoritic garnet, diopsidic clinopyroxene, one or more (Mg,Fe)2SiO4 polymorphs, and quenched carbonatic melt. The experimental garnets had relatively high Ca and Fe contents similar to the observed Ca and Fe contents of the inclusions. The resulting Si contents confirmed that the depth of origin of the inclusion with the highest Si content did not exceed 410 km, thus none of the majoritic garnet inclusions found so far originated in the transition zone (410–660 km). The evidence from inclusions and experiments is consistent with the presence of an eclogite layer occurring globally between 200 and 410 km. Compositional variations observed among more than 100 majoritic garnet inclusions with their Si content, which is a measure of pressure and depth, are consistent with the origin of the eclogite layer by crystal fractionation in a magma ocean. The compositions of olivine coexisting with majoritic garnet in the experimental products had the average Fe/(Fe + Mg) ratios between 0.16 and 0.28. Inclusions with such high Fe contents have not been found; the Fe/(Fe + Mg) ratio of the olivine inclusions in diamonds usually varies between 0.05 and 0.09. Hence, the mantle between 200 and 410 km may not contain olivine. In the absence of olivine, the discontinuity at 410 km is most likely a chemical boundary between the 200-km-thick eclogite layer and a more mafic transition zone.

Formation of diamond with mineral inclusions of “mixed” eclogite and peridotite paragenesis

Two unusual diamonds were studied from kimberlites from China, which contain both ultramafic and eclogitic mineral inclusions in the same diamond hosts. Diamond L32 contains seven Fe-rich garnets, four omphacites and one olivine inclusion. Four olivine, one sanidine and one coesite were recovered from diamond S32. Both garnet and omphacite inclusions have similar compositions as those from other localities of the world, and show basaltic bulk composition. All the garnet and omphacite inclusions in diamond L32 have positive Eu anomalies (Eu/Eu *1.64 ∼ 1.79). These observations support the proposal that mantle eclogite is the metamorphic product of subducted ancient oceanic crust. The Mg/(Mg + Fe) ratio of the olivine inclusions from the two diamonds (91-92) are evidently lower than the normal olivine inclusions in diamonds from the same kimberlite pipe (92-95). The following model is proposed for the formation of diamonds with “mixed” mineral inclusions. Ascending diamond-bearing eclogite (recycled oceanic crust) entrained in mantle plumes may experience extensive partial melting, whereas the ambient peridotite matrix remains subsolidus in the diamond stable field. This provides a mechanism for the transport of diamond from its original eclogitic host to an ultramafic one. Subsequent re-growth of diamond in the new environment makes it possible to capture mineral inclusions of different lithological suites. Partial melts of basaltic sources may interact with the surrounding peridotite, resulting in the relatively lower Mg/(Mg + Fe) ratios of the coexisting olivine inclusions from the studied diamonds. Diamonds with “mixed” mineral inclusions demonstrate that plume activity also occurred in the Archean cratons.

Patterns in the hydrogen and trace element compositions of mantle olivines

The concentrations of hydrogen and the other trace elements in olivines from mantle xenoliths have been determined by secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) for clarifying the incorporation mechanism and the behavior of the hydrogen. The hydrogen contents in olivines from mantle xenoliths range from 10 to 60 ppm wt. H2O and the concentration range is consistent with the previous infrared (IR) spectroscopic data. IR spectra of the olivine crystals show no effects of the weathering or secondary alteration. The hydrogen is distributed homogeneously among olivine grains in each mantle xenolith. However, the hydrogen contents of the olivine crystals are less than those for the olivine phenocrysts crystallized from the host magma. Olivine inclusions in diamonds also show similar hydrogen contents to the xenolithic olivines. Thus the hydrogen content of xenolithic olivines does not attain equilibrium with water in the host magma during the transportation from the Earth's mantle to the surface, and is taken as a reflection of the hydrogen condition in the mantle. Correlations of hydrogen with trivalent cation contents in garnet peridotitic olivines indicate the incorporation of hydrogen into mantle olivines by a coupled substitution mechanism, with the hydrogen present in the form of hydroxyl in oxygen positions adjacent to the M site vacancies. The hydrogen content of xenolithic olivines increases with pressure but decreases with increasing temperature, suggesting importance of olivine as a water reservoir at low temperature regions such as in subducting slabs.

Oxygen isotope composition of mantle peridotite

The oxygen isotopic composition of 76 samples of olivine in spinel-, garnet- and diamond-facies peridotites, and as syngenetic inclusions within diamond has been determined by laser fluorination (LF). δ 18O V-SMOW values of olivine are almost invariant, averaging 5.18 ± 0.28‰ (2 S.D.) with an overall range of 4.8–5.5‰. Coexisting clinopyroxenes display positive Δ 18O cpx-olivine fractionations averaging 0.4‰ that are consistent with isotopic equilibrium at normal mantle temperatures. The bulk compositions of spinel-, garnet- and diamond-facies mantle are similar, with a calculated bulk mantle δ 18O of +5.5‰. Olivine inclusions in diamonds of Archaean age yield δ 18O values that are indistinguishable from olivine in post-Archaean mantle and the LF data do not provide evidence for gross spatial or temporal δ 18O variation in peridotitic mantle. There is no evidence that mantle hydration processes impart distinctive oxygen isotope characteristics, other than a subtle isotopic disequilibrium disturbing pyroxenes relative to olivine.

Geochemical applications of synchrotron x-ray microspectroscopy

The synchrotron x-ray fluorescence microprobe at bending magnet beamline X-26A at the National Synchrotron Light Source has been used for a number of years for geochemical trace element microanalysis using collimated white radiation. More recently an incident beam monochromator and 8:1 focusing mirror have been added. These optics permit the formation of a small (30-100 micron) intense beam of monochromatic radiation suitable for use in x-ray absorption spectroscopy, including both near edge (XANES) and extended fine structure (EXAFS) techniques. This system has been used to study a number of problems in the earth and environmental sciences, including: oxidation state of uranium in contaminated waste sites; oxidation state of Cr in olivine inclusions in diamonds from the Earth's mantle; oxidation state of Mn in wheat roots infected with the take-all disease. We report here some recent results obtained on studies of the oxidation state of Fe in cosmochemical systems.Oxygen fugacity is one of the most important parameters in determining the cosmochemical and geochemical evolution of a system.

Diamondiferous peridotite xenoliths from the Argyle (AK1) lamproite pipe, Western Australia

This paper describes a suite of peridotite xenoliths. some carrying diamonds at high grades, from the richly diamondiferous early Proterozoic (≈1180 Ma) Argyle (AK1) lamproite pipe, in northwestern Australia. The peridotites are mostly coarse garnet lherzolites but also include garnet harzburgite, chromite — garnet peridotite, a garnet wehrlite, and an altered spinel peridotite with extremely Cr-rich chromite. In all cases the garnet has been replaced by a kelyphite-like, symplectic intergrowth of Alrich pyroxenes, Al-spinel and secondary silicates. The peridotites have refractory compositions characterized by high Mg/(Mg+Fe) and depletion in lithophile elements (Al2O3 and CaO < 1%, Na2O≤0.03%) and high field strength cations such as Ti, Zr, Y, and Yb. Olivines have high Mg/(Mg+Fe) (Mg ≠ 91–93 ) and, like olivine inclusions in diamonds from the Argyle pipe, contain detectable amounts of Cr2O3 (0.03%–0.07%) but have very low CaO contents (typically 0.04%–0.05%). Enstatites (Mg ≠ 92–94 ) have comparatively high Cr2O3 (0.2%–0.45%) and Na2O (up to 0.18%) but very low Al2O3 contents (0.5%–0.7%). Diopsides (Mg ≠ 92–94 , Ca/(Ca+Mg+Fe)=0.37–0.43) are Cr-rich (0.7%–1.9% Cr2O3) and have low Al2O3 (0.7%–2.2%) and Na2O (0.5%–1.6%) contents. Many have high K2O contents, typically 0.1%–0.4% but up to 1.3% K2O in one xenolith. The chromite coexisting with former garnet is Mg-and Cr-rich [Mg/(Mg+Fe2+)=0.68–0.72, Cr/(Cr+Al)=0.72–0.79] whereas chromite in the spinel peridotite is even more Cr-rich (65% Cr2O3, Cr/(Cr+Al)=0.85, resembling inclusions in diamond. One highly serpentinized former garnet peridotite contains a Cr-rich (up to 13% Cr2O3) titanate resembling armalcolite but containing significant K2O (1%–2.5%), CaO (0.6%–2.2%), ZrO2 (0.1%–0.8%), SrO (0.1%–0.3%), and BaO (up to 0.58%): this appears to have formed as an overprint of the primary mineralogy. Temperatures and pressures estimated from coexisting pyroxenes and reconstructed garnet compositions indicate that the garnet lherzolites equilibrated at 1140°–1290° C and 5.0–5.9 GPa (160–190 km depth), within the stability field of diamond. Oxygen fugacties within the diamond forming environment are estimated from spinel-bearing assemblages to be reducing, with f O2 between MW and IW. The presence of significant K in the diopsides from the peridotite xenoliths and in diopsides from heavy mineral concentrate from the Argyle pipe implies metasomatic enrichment of the subcontinental lithosphere within the diamond stability field. The P-T conditions estimated for the Argyle peridotites demonstrate that diamondiferous lamproite magmas incorporate mantle xenoliths from similar depths to kimberlites in cratonic settings, and imply that Proterozoic cratonized orogenic belts can have lithospheric roots of comparable thickness to beneath Archaean cratons. These roots lie at the base of the lithosphere within the stability field of diamond. The xenoliths, the calcic nature of chrome pyropes from heavy mineral concentrate, and the diamond inclusion assemblage indicate that the lighosphere beneath the Western Australian lamproites is mostly depleted lherozolite rather than the harzburgite commonly found beneath Archaean cratons. Nevertheless, the dominance of eclogitic paragenesis inclusions in Argyle diamonds indicates a significant proportion of diamondiferous eclogite is also present. The form, mineral inclusion assemblage, and the C-isotopic composition of diamonds in the peridotite xenoliths suggest that disaggregated diamondiferous peridotites are the source of the planar octahedral diamonds which constitute a minor component of the Argyle production. These diamonds are believed to have formed from mantle carbon in reduced, refractory peridotite (Iherzolite-harzburgite) in contrast to the predominant strongly 13C-depleted eclogitic suite diamonds which contain a recycled crustal carbon component. The source region of the lamproites has undergone long-term (≥2 Ga) enrichment in incompatible elements.

On the occurrence and stability of divalent chromium in olivines included in diamonds

Olivine inclusions in diamonds from kimberlites originating from the deep Upper Mantle contain significant amounts of chromium. It has been suggested that divalent chromium occurs in these olivines. This hypothesis is supported by recent Mossbauer and electronic spectral measurements at high pressures, which demonstrate that pressure-induced reduction takes place in compounds and minerals initially containing Fe3+, Mn3+, and Cu2+ ions. The process is facilitated at high temperatures. Low oxidation states of other metals such as Cr(II) are expected to be stabilized under the very high pressures and elevated temperature conditions in the Mantle. Since Cr2+ ions are susceptible to the Jahn-Teller effect, they are predicted by crystal field theory to be stabilized in certain distorted coordination sites, such as the olivine Ml site, all three sites of the β-spinel phase, and the 7-coordinated site of the strontium plumbate structure-type. The Cr2+ ions in olivines are stabilized in kimberlites intruded into the Crust by the high confining pressures in the diamond inclusions.