Search for: All records

The fate of subducted CO₂remains the subject of widespread disagreement, with different models predicting either wholesale (up to 99%) decarbonation of the subducting slab or extremely limited carbon loss and, consequently, massive deep subduction of CO₂. The fluid history of subducted rocks lies at the heart of this debate: rocks that experience significant infiltration by a water-bearing fluid may release orders of magnitude more CO₂than rocks that are metamorphosed in a closed chemical system. Numerical models make a wide range of predictions regarding water mobility, and further progress has been limited by a lack of direct observations. Here we present a comprehensive field-based study of decarbonation efficiency in a subducting slab (Cyclades, Greece), and show that ~40% to ~65% of the CO₂in subducting crust is released via metamorphic decarbonation reactions at forearc depths. This result precludes extensive deep subduction of most CO₂and suggests that the mantle has become more depleted in carbon over geologic time.

 

Sulfur belongs among H₂O, CO₂, and Cl as one of the key volatiles in Earth’s chemical cycles. High oxygen fugacity, sulfur concentration, and δ³⁴S values in volcanic arc rocks have been attributed to significant sulfate addition by slab fluids. However, sulfur speciation, flux, and isotope composition in slab-dehydrated fluids remain unclear. Here, we use high-pressure rocks and enclosed veins to provide direct constraints on subduction zone sulfur recycling for a typical oceanic lithosphere. Textural and thermodynamic evidence indicates the predominance of reduced sulfur species in slab fluids; those derived from metasediments, altered oceanic crust, and serpentinite have δ³⁴S values of approximately −8‰, −1‰, and +8‰, respectively. Mass-balance calculations demonstrate that 6.4% (up to 20% maximum) of total subducted sulfur is released between 30–230 km depth, and the predominant sulfur loss takes place at 70–100 km with a net δ³⁴S composition of −2.5 ± 3‰. We conclude that modest slab-to-wedge sulfur transport occurs, but that slab-derived fluids provide negligible sulfate to oxidize the sub-arc mantle and cannot deliver³⁴S-enriched sulfur to produce the positive δ³⁴S signature in arc settings. Most sulfur has negative δ³⁴S and is subducted into the deep mantle, which could cause a long-term increase in the δ³⁴S of Earth surface reservoirs.

 

Abstract The geologic carbon cycle plays a fundamental role in controlling Earth's climate and habitability. For billions of years, stabilizing feedbacks inherent in the cycle have maintained a surface environment that could sustain life. Carbonation/decarbonation reactions are the primary mechanisms for transferring carbon between the solid Earth and the ocean–atmosphere system. These processes can be broadly represented by the reaction: CaSiO3 (wollastonite) + CO2 (gas) ↔ CaCO3 (calcite) + SiO2 (quartz). This class of reactions is therefore critical to Earth's past and future habitability. Here, we summarize their significance as part of the Deep Carbon Obsevatory's “Earth in Five Reactions” project. In the forward direction, carbonation reactions like the one above describe silicate weathering and carbonate formation on Earth's surface. Recent work aims to resolve the balance between silicate weathering in terrestrial and marine settings both in the modern Earth system and through Earth's history. Rocks may also undergo carbonation reactions at high temperatures in the ultramafic mantle wedge of a subduction zone or during retrograde regional metamorphism. In the reverse direction, the reaction above represents various prograde metamorphic decarbonation processes that can occur in continental collisions, rift zones, subduction zones, and in aureoles around magmatic systems. We summarize the fluxes and uncertainties of major carbonation/decarbonation reactions and review the key feedback mechanisms that are likely to have stabilized atmospheric CO2 levels. Future work on planetary habitability and Earth's past and future climate will rely on an enhanced understanding of the long-term carbon cycle.