Home Physical Sciences The effects of shear deformation on planetesimal core segregation: Results from in-situ X-ray micro-tomography
Article
Licensed
Unlicensed Requires Authentication

The effects of shear deformation on planetesimal core segregation: Results from in-situ X-ray micro-tomography

  • Kasey A. Todd , Heather .C Watson EMAIL logo , Tony Yu and Yanbin Wang
Published/Copyright: September 1, 2016
Become an author with De Gruyter Brill
Author Information
American Mineralogist
From the journal American Mineralogist Volume 101 Issue 9

Abstract

It is well accepted that the Earth formed by the accretion and collision of small (10–100 km), rocky bodies called planetesimals. W-Hf isotopic evidence from meteorites suggest that the cores of many planetesimals formed within a relatively short time frame of ~3 My. While a very hot, deep magma ocean is generally thought to have been the driving mechanism for core formation in large planetary bodies, it inadequately explains differentiation and core formation in small planetesimals due to temperatures potentially being insufficient for wide-scale silicate melting to occur. In order for these planetesimals to differentiate within such a relatively short time without a magma ocean, a critical melt volume of the metallic (core-forming) phase and sufficient melt connectivity and grain size must have existed to attain the required permeability and lead to efficient core formation. Shear deformation may increase the connectedness of melt and the permeability, and thus could have been a major contributing factor in the formation of planetesimal cores. This deformation may have been caused by large impacts and collisions experienced by the planetesimals in the early solar system. The purpose of this work is to test the hypothesis that shear deformation enhances the connectivity and permeability of Fe-S melt within a solid silicate (olivine) matrix, such that rapid core formation is plausible. A rotational Drickamer apparatus (RDA) was used to heat and torsionally deform a sample of solid olivine + FeS liquid through six steps of large-strain shear deformation. After each deformation step, X-ray microtomographs were collected in the RDA to obtain in situ three-dimensional images of the sample. The resulting digital volumes were processed and permeability simulations utilizing the lattice Boltzmann method were performed to determine the effect of shear deformation on connectivity and permeability within the sample. The resulting permeabilities of the sample at various steps of deformation are the same within uncertainty and do not exhibit a change with increasing deformation. Additionally, the migration velocity calculated from the permeability of the sample is not high enough for segregation to take place within the time frame of ~3 My. In addition to further constraining the mechanism of core formation in planetesimals, the image processing techniques developed in this study will be of great benefit to future studies utilizing similar methods.

Keywords: Core formation; microtomography; permeability; lattice Boltzmann

Special collection papers can be found online at http://www.minsocam.org/MSA/AmMin/special-collections.html.

Present address: Department of Physics and Astronomy, Union College, Schenectady, New York 12308, U.S.A.

Acknowledgments

We thank Jared Singer for assistance with the electron microprobe at RPI, and E. Bruce Watson for use of the RPI experimental facilities to synthesize the samples. We also thank Nick Karonis and Dave Ulrick for support in using the Gaea computing cluster at NIU to perfrom lattice Boltzmann simulations. Last, we thank Nico Walte and an anonymous reviewer for comments that improved this paper. This work was supported by NSF grant GEO-1322022.

References cited

Alexander, C.O.D., Boss, A.P., and Carlson, R.W. (2001) The early evolution of the inner solar system: A meteoritic perspective. Science, 293(5527), 64–68.10.1126/science.1052872Search in Google Scholar

Bagdassarov, N., Solferino, G., Golabek, G.J., and Schmidt, M.W. (2009a) Centrifuge assisted percolation of Fe–S melts in partially molten peridotite: time constraints for planetary core formation. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 288(1), 84–95.10.1016/j.epsl.2009.09.010Search in Google Scholar

Bagdassarov, N., Golabek, G.J., Solferino, G., and Schmidt, M.W. (2009b) Constraints on the Fe–S melt connectivity in mantle silicates from electrical impedance measurements. Physics of the Earth and Planetary Interiors, 177, 139–146.10.1016/j.pepi.2009.08.003Search in Google Scholar

Ballhaus, C., and Ellis, D.J. (1996) Mobility of core melts during Earth’s accretion. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 143(1), 137–145.10.1016/0012-821X(96)00135-5Search in Google Scholar

Bizzarro, M., Baker, J.A., Haack, H., and Lundgaard, K.L. (2005) Rapid timescales for accretion and melting of differentiated planetesimals inferred from 26Al-26Mg chronometry. The Astrophysical Journal Letters, 632(1), L41.10.1086/497638Search in Google Scholar

Bosl, W.J., Dvorkin, J., and Nur, A. (1998) A study of porosity and permeability using a lattice Boltzmann simulation. Geophysical Research Letters, 25(9), 1475–1478.10.1029/98GL00859Search in Google Scholar

Bourbie, T., and Zinszer, B. (1985) Hydraulic and acoustic properties as a function of porosity in Fontainebleau sandstone. Journal of Geophysical Research, 90(B3) 11524–11532.10.1029/JB090iB13p11524Search in Google Scholar

Bruhn, D., Groebner, N., and Kohlstedt, D.L. (2000) An interconnected network of core-forming melts produced by shear deformation. Nature, 403(6772), 883–886.10.1038/35002558Search in Google Scholar PubMed

Bulau, J.R., Waff, H.S., and Tyburczy, J.A. (1979), Mechanical and thermodynamic constraints on fluid distribution in partial melts, Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth, 84(B11), 6102–6108.10.1029/JB084iB11p06102Search in Google Scholar

Burkhardt, C., Kleine, T., Bourdon, B., Palme, H., Zipfel, J., Friedrich, J.M., and Ebel, D.S. (2008) Hf–W mineral isochron for Ca, Al-rich inclusions: age of the solar system and the timing of core formation in planetesimals. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 72(24), 6177–6197.10.1016/j.gca.2008.10.023Search in Google Scholar

Chen, S., and Doolen, G.D. (1998) Lattice Boltzmann method for fluid flows. Annual Review of Fluid Mechanics, 30(1), 329–364.10.1146/annurev.fluid.30.1.329Search in Google Scholar

Degruyter, W., Burgisser, A., Bachmann, O., and Malaspinas, O. (2010) Synchrotron X-ray microtomography and lattice Boltzmann simulations of gas flow through volcanic pumices. Geosphere, 6(5), 470–481.10.1130/GES00555.1Search in Google Scholar

Faul, U.H. (1997) Permeability of partially molten upper mantle rocks from experiments and percolation theory. Journal of Geophysical Research, 102(B5), 10,299–10,311.10.1029/96JB03460Search in Google Scholar

Gaetani, G.A., and Grove, T.L. (1999) Wetting of mantle olivine by sulfide melt: implications for Re/Os ratios in mantle peridotite and late-stage core formation. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 169(1), 147–163.10.1016/S0012-821X(99)00062-XSearch in Google Scholar

Gotou, H., Yagi, T., Iizuka, R., and Suzuki, A. (2015) Application of X-ray radiography to study the segregation process of iron from silicate under high pressure and high temperature. High Pressure Research, 35(2), 130–138.10.1080/08957959.2015.1028932Search in Google Scholar

Groebner, N., and Kohlstedt, D.L. (2006) Deformation-induced metal melt networks in silicates: Implications for core–mantle interactions in planetary bodies. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 245(3), 571–580.10.1016/j.epsl.2006.03.029Search in Google Scholar

Holzheid, A., Schmitz, M.D., and Grove, T.L. (2000) Textural equilibria of iron sulfide liquids in partly molten silicate aggregates and their relevance to core formation scenarios. Journal of Geophysical Research, 105(B6), 13555–13513.10.1029/2000JB900046Search in Google Scholar

Hustoft, J.W., and Kohlstedt, D.L. (2006) Metal-silicate segregation in deforming dunitic rocks. Geochemistry, Geophysics, Geosystems, 7(2), Q02001.10.1029/2005GC001048Search in Google Scholar

Kleine, T., Münker, C., Mezger, K., and Palme, H. (2002) Rapid accretion and early core formation on asteroids and the terrestrial planets from Hf–W chronometry. Nature, 418, 952–955.10.1038/nature00982Search in Google Scholar PubMed

Kleine, T., Touboul, M., Bourdon, B., Nimmo, F., Mezger, K., Palme, H., and Halliday, A.N. (2009) Hf–W chronology of the accretion and early evolution of asteroids and terrestrial planets. Geochimica et Cosmochimica Acta, 73(17), 5150–5188.10.1016/j.gca.2008.11.047Search in Google Scholar

Kohlstedt, D.L., and Holtzmann, B.K. (2009) Shearing melt out of the earth: An experimentalist’s perspective on the influence of deformation on melt extraction. Annual Reviews in Earth and Planetary Science, 37, 561–593.10.1146/annurev.earth.031208.100104Search in Google Scholar

Kohlstedt, D.L., and Mackwell, S.J. (1987) High-temperature stability of San Carlos olivine. Contributions to Mineralogy and Petrology, 95(2), 226–230.10.1007/BF00381272Search in Google Scholar

Kono, Y., Kenney-Benson, C., Shibazaki, Y., Park, C., Shen, G., and Wang, Y. (2015) High-pressure viscosity of liquid Fe and FeS revisited by falling sphere viscometry using ultrafast X-ray imaging. Physics of the Earth and Planetary Interiors, 241, 57–64.10.1016/j.pepi.2015.02.006Search in Google Scholar

Kruijer, T.S., Touboul, M., Fischer-Gödde, M., Bermingham, K.R., Walker, R.J., and Kleine, T. (2014) Protracted core formation and rapid accretion of protoplanets. Science, 344, 1150, doi:10.1126/science.1251766.Search in Google Scholar PubMed

Latt, J. (2009) Palabos, Parallel Lattice Boltzmann Solver, http://www.Palabos.com. Accessed May 2011.Search in Google Scholar

LeBlanc, G.E., and Secco, R.A. (1996) Viscosity of an Fe-S liquid up to 1300 °C and 5 GPa. Geophysical Research Letters, 23(3), 213–216.10.1029/96GL00216Search in Google Scholar

Miller, K.J., Zhu, W., Montesi, L.G.J., and Gaetani, G. (2014) Experimental quantification of permeability of partially molten mantle rock. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 388, 273–282.10.1016/j.epsl.2013.12.003Search in Google Scholar

Rivers, M.L., and Gualda, G.A.R. (2009) ‘tomo_display’ and ‘vol_tools’: IDL VM packages for tomography data reconstruction, processing, and visualization, Eos Transactions of AGU, Joint Assembly Supplement.Search in Google Scholar

Roberts, J.J., Kinney, J.H., Siebert, J., and Ryerson, F.J. (2007) Fe-Ni-S melt permeability in olivine: Implications for planetary core formation. Geophysical Research Letters, 34(14), doi:10.1029/2007GL030497.Search in Google Scholar

Rubie, D.C., Nimmo, F., and Melosh, H.J. (2007) Formation of Earth’s core. Treatise on Geophysics, 9, 51–90.10.1016/B978-044452748-6/00140-1Search in Google Scholar

Rushmer, T., Petford, N., Humayun, M., and Campbell, A.J. (2005) Fe-liquid segregation in deforming planetesimals: Coupling core-forming compositions with transport phenomena. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 239(3), 185–202.10.1016/j.epsl.2005.08.006Search in Google Scholar

Scherstén, A., Elliott, T., Hawkesworth, C., Russell, S., and Masarik, J. (2006) Hf–W evidence for rapid differentiation of iron meteorite parent bodies. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 241(3), 530–542.10.1016/j.epsl.2005.11.025Search in Google Scholar

Shannon, M.C., and Agee, C.B. (1996) High pressure constraints on percolative core formation. Geophysical Research Letters, 23(20), 2717–2720.10.1029/96GL02817Search in Google Scholar

Shi, C.Y., Zhang, L., Yang, W., Liu, Y., Wang, J., Meng, Y., Andrews, J.C., and Mao, W.L. (2013) Formation of an interconnected network of iron melt at Earth’s lower mantle conditions. Nature Geoscience, 6, 971–975.10.1038/ngeo1956Search in Google Scholar

Speziale, S., Zha, C., Duffy, T.S., Hemley, R.J., and Mao, H.K. (2001) Quasihydrostatic compression of magnesium oxide to 52 GPa: Implications for the pressure-volume-temperature equation of state. Journal of Geophysical Research, Solid Earth, 106, B, 1, 515–528.10.1029/2000JB900318Search in Google Scholar

Takafuji, N., Hirose, K., Ono, S., Xu, F., Mitome, M., and Bando, Y. (2004) Segregation of core melts by permeable flow in the lower mantle. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 224(3), 249–257.10.1016/j.epsl.2004.05.016Search in Google Scholar

Terasaki, H., Frost, D.J., Rubie, D.C., and Langenhorst, F. (2008) Percolative core formation in planetesimals. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 273(1), 132–137.10.1016/j.epsl.2008.06.019Search in Google Scholar

Turcotte, D.L., and Schubert, G. (2002) Geodynamics, 2nd ed. Cambridge University Press.10.1017/CBO9780511807442Search in Google Scholar

von Bargen, N., and Waff, H.S. (1986) Permeabilities, interfacial areas and curvatures of partially molten systems: Results of numerical computations of equilibrium microstructures. Journal of Geophysical Research: Solid Earth (1978–2012), 91(B9), 9261–9276.10.1029/JB091iB09p09261Search in Google Scholar

Walte, N.P., Becker, J.K., Bons, P.D., Rubie, D.C., and Frost, D.J. (2007) Liquiddistribution and attainment of textural equilibrium in a partially-molten crystalline system with a high-dihedral-angle liquid phase. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 262(3), 517–532.10.1016/j.epsl.2007.08.003Search in Google Scholar

Walte, N.P., Rubie, D.C., Bons, P.D., and Frost, D.J. (2011) Deformation of a crystalline aggregate with a small percentage of high-dihedral-angle liquid: Implications for core-mantle differentiation during planetary formation. Earth and Planetary Science Letters. 305, 124–134.10.1016/j.epsl.2011.02.049Search in Google Scholar

Walter, M.J., and Trønnes, R.G. (2004) Early earth differentiation. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 225(3), 253–269.10.1016/j.epsl.2004.07.008Search in Google Scholar

Wang, Y., Uchida, T., Westferro, F., Rivers, M.L., Nishiyama, N., Gebhardt, J., and Sutton, S.R. (2005) High-pressure X-ray tomography microscope: Synchrotron computed microtomography at high pressure and temperature. Review of Scientific Instruments, 76(7), 073709.10.1063/1.1979477Search in Google Scholar

Wang, Y., Lesher, C., Fiquet, G., Rivers, M.L., Nishiyama, N., Siebert, J., and Guyot, F. (2011) In situ high-pressure and high-temperature X-ray microtomographic imaging during large deformation: A new technique for studying mechanical behavior of multiphase composites. Geosphere, 7(1), 40–53.10.1130/GES00560.1Search in Google Scholar

Watson, H.C., and Roberts, J.J. (2011) Connectivity of core forming melts: Experimental constraints from electrical conductivity and X-ray tomography. Physics of the Earth and Planetary Interiors, 186(3), 172–182.10.1016/j.pepi.2011.03.009Search in Google Scholar

Watson, H.C., Roberts, J.J., and Tyburczy, J.A. (2010) Effect of conductive impurities on electrical conductivity in polycrystalline olivine. Geophysical Research Letters, 37(2), L02302, doi:10.1029/2009GL041566.Search in Google Scholar

White, J.A., Borja, R.I., and Fredrich, J.T. (2006) Calculating the effective permeability of sandstone with multi-scale lattice Boltzmann/finite element simulations. Acta Geotechnica, 1, 195–209.10.1007/s11440-006-0018-4Search in Google Scholar

Wood, B.J., Walter, M.J., and Wade, J. (2006) Accretion of the Earth and segregation of its core. Nature, 441(7095), 825–833.10.1038/nature04763Search in Google Scholar PubMed

Yoshino, T., Walter, M.J., and Katsura, T. (2003) Core formation in planetesimals triggered by permeable flow. Nature, 422, 154–157.10.1038/nature01459Search in Google Scholar PubMed

Yoshino, T., Walter, M.J., and Katsura, T. (2004) Connectivity of molten Fe alloy in peridotite based on in situ electrical conductivity measurements: implications for core formation in terrestrial planets. Earth and Planetary Science Letters, 222(2), 625–643.10.1016/j.epsl.2004.03.010Search in Google Scholar

Zhu, W., Gaetani, G., Fusseis, F., Montesi, L.G.J., and De Carlo, F. (2011) Microtomography of partially molten rocks: Three dimensional melt distribution in mantle peridotite. Science, 332, 88–91.10.1126/science.1202221Search in Google Scholar PubMed

Received: 2015-6-20
Accepted: 2016-5-6
Published Online: 2016-9-1
Published in Print: 2016-9-1

© 2016 by Walter de Gruyter Berlin/Boston

Articles in the same Issue

  1. Highlights and Breakthroughs
  2. Styles of aqueous alteration on Mars
  3. Highlights and Breakthroughs
  4. Study on nanophase iron oxyhydroxides in freshwater ferromanganese nodules from Green Bay, Lake Michigan
  5. Review
  6. Redox variations in the inner solar system with new constraints from vanadium XANES in spinels
  7. Special Collection: Apatite: A Common Mineral, Uncommonly Versatile
  8. From bone to fossil: A review of the diagenesis of bioapatite
  9. Special Collection: Olivine
  10. Nickel–cobalt contents of olivine record origins of mantle peridotite and related rocks
  11. Special Collection: Rates And Depths Of Magma Ascent On Earth
  12. Experimental simulation of bubble nucleation and magma ascent in basaltic systems: Implications for Stromboli volcano
  13. Special Collection: Nanominerals and Mineral Nanoparticles
  14. Study on nanophase iron oxyhydroxides in freshwater ferromanganese nodules from Green Bay, Lake Michigan, with implications for the adsorption of As and heavy metals
  15. Special Collection: Building Planets: The Dynamics and Geochemistry of Core Formation
  16. The effects of shear deformation on planetesimal core segregation: Results from in-situ X-ray micro-tomography
  17. Special Collection: Martian Rocks and Minerals: Perspectives from Rovers, Orbiters, and Meteorites
  18. VNIR multispectral observations of aqueous alteration materials by the Pancams on the Spirit and Opportunity Mars Exploration Rovers
  19. Research Article
  20. Experimental investigation of the kinetics of the spinel-to-garnet transformation in peridotite: A preliminary study
  21. Research Article
  22. Thermodynamics, self-diffusion, and structure of liquid NaAlSi3O8 to 30 GPa by classical molecular dynamics simulations
  23. Research Article
  24. Magnetite plaquettes are naturally asymmetric materials in meteorites
  25. Research Article
  26. Rare-earth perovskites along the CaTiO3-Na0.5La0.5TiO3 join: Phase transitions, formation enthalpies, and implications for loparite minerals
  27. Research Article
  28. Kinetics of Fe3+ mineral crystallization from ferrihydrite in the presence of Si at alkaline conditions and implications for nuclear waste disposal
  29. Research Article
  30. Multi-scale three-dimensional characterization of iron particles in dusty olivine: Implications for paleomagnetism of chondritic meteorites
  31. Research Article
  32. Modeling dislocation glide and lattice friction in Mg2SiO4 wadsleyite in conditions of the Earth’s transition zone
  33. Research Article
  34. Carlsonite, (NH4)5Fe33+O(SO4)6⋅7H2O , and huizingite-(Al), (NH4)9Al3(SO4)8(OH)2·4H2O, two new minerals from a natural fire in an oil-bearing shale near Milan, Ohio
  35. Research-article
  36. Vránaite, ideally Al16B4Si4O38, a new mineral related to boralsilite, Al16B6Si2O37, from the Manjaka pegmatite, Sahatany Valley, Madagascar
  37. Research-article
  38. Gaussian thermoluminescence in long-range disordered K-feldspar
  39. New Mineral Names
  40. New Mineral Names
  41. Book Review
  42. Book Review: Gems & Crystals From One of the World’s Great Collections
https://doi.org/10.2138/am-2016-5474
Keywords for this article
Core formation; microtomography; permeability; lattice Boltzmann

Articles in the same Issue

  1. Highlights and Breakthroughs
  2. Styles of aqueous alteration on Mars
  3. Highlights and Breakthroughs
  4. Study on nanophase iron oxyhydroxides in freshwater ferromanganese nodules from Green Bay, Lake Michigan
  5. Review
  6. Redox variations in the inner solar system with new constraints from vanadium XANES in spinels
  7. Special Collection: Apatite: A Common Mineral, Uncommonly Versatile
  8. From bone to fossil: A review of the diagenesis of bioapatite
  9. Special Collection: Olivine
  10. Nickel–cobalt contents of olivine record origins of mantle peridotite and related rocks
  11. Special Collection: Rates And Depths Of Magma Ascent On Earth
  12. Experimental simulation of bubble nucleation and magma ascent in basaltic systems: Implications for Stromboli volcano
  13. Special Collection: Nanominerals and Mineral Nanoparticles
  14. Study on nanophase iron oxyhydroxides in freshwater ferromanganese nodules from Green Bay, Lake Michigan, with implications for the adsorption of As and heavy metals
  15. Special Collection: Building Planets: The Dynamics and Geochemistry of Core Formation
  16. The effects of shear deformation on planetesimal core segregation: Results from in-situ X-ray micro-tomography
  17. Special Collection: Martian Rocks and Minerals: Perspectives from Rovers, Orbiters, and Meteorites
  18. VNIR multispectral observations of aqueous alteration materials by the Pancams on the Spirit and Opportunity Mars Exploration Rovers
  19. Research Article
  20. Experimental investigation of the kinetics of the spinel-to-garnet transformation in peridotite: A preliminary study
  21. Research Article
  22. Thermodynamics, self-diffusion, and structure of liquid NaAlSi3O8 to 30 GPa by classical molecular dynamics simulations
  23. Research Article
  24. Magnetite plaquettes are naturally asymmetric materials in meteorites
  25. Research Article
  26. Rare-earth perovskites along the CaTiO3-Na0.5La0.5TiO3 join: Phase transitions, formation enthalpies, and implications for loparite minerals
  27. Research Article
  28. Kinetics of Fe3+ mineral crystallization from ferrihydrite in the presence of Si at alkaline conditions and implications for nuclear waste disposal
  29. Research Article
  30. Multi-scale three-dimensional characterization of iron particles in dusty olivine: Implications for paleomagnetism of chondritic meteorites
  31. Research Article
  32. Modeling dislocation glide and lattice friction in Mg2SiO4 wadsleyite in conditions of the Earth’s transition zone
  33. Research Article
  34. Carlsonite, (NH4)5Fe33+O(SO4)6⋅7H2O , and huizingite-(Al), (NH4)9Al3(SO4)8(OH)2·4H2O, two new minerals from a natural fire in an oil-bearing shale near Milan, Ohio
  35. Research-article
  36. Vránaite, ideally Al16B4Si4O38, a new mineral related to boralsilite, Al16B6Si2O37, from the Manjaka pegmatite, Sahatany Valley, Madagascar
  37. Research-article
  38. Gaussian thermoluminescence in long-range disordered K-feldspar
  39. New Mineral Names
  40. New Mineral Names
  41. Book Review
  42. Book Review: Gems & Crystals From One of the World’s Great Collections
Sign up now to receive a 20% welcome discount
Institutional Access
How does access work?
Have an idea on how to improve our website?
Please write us.
© 2026 De Gruyter Brill
Downloaded on 20.2.2026 from https://www.degruyterbrill.com/document/doi/10.2138/am-2016-5474/html
Scroll to top button