Synthetic fluid inclusions XXIII. Effect of temperature and fluid composition on rates of serpentinization of olivine

• Published in: Geochimica et cosmochimica acta Vol. 292; pp. 285 - 308
• Main Authors: Lamadrid, H.M., Zajacz, Z., Klein, F., Bodnar, R.J.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier Ltd 01.01.2021
• Subjects: Hydrothermal alteration; Kinetics; Principle of detailed balance; Serpentinite; Principle of detailed balance; Serpentinite; Hydrothermal alteration; Kinetics
• ISSN: 0016-7037; 1872-9533
• DOI: 10.1016/j.gca.2020.08.009

Serpentinization, i.e. the hydrothermal alteration of ultramafic rocks, is an important and ubiquitous geologic process that occurs at slow- and ultraslow-spreading mid-ocean ridges, magma-poor passive margins, and subduction zones. While serpentinization occurs over a wide temperature range and involves diverse fluid compositions, few experimental studies systematically examined the effects of temperature and fluid composition on the kinetics of serpentinization of olivine, and published rates diverge greatly. We present results of an experimental study using synthetic fluid inclusions in Mg-rich olivine as micro-batch reactors to monitor the effects of temperature (100–350 °C), fluid composition (H2O-MgCl-NaCl, H2O-NaCl, H2O-MgCl), and total salinity on serpentinization rates of olivine under closed system conditions. Petrographic observations and Raman analyses of the experimental run products revealed the alteration of olivine to produce serpentine minerals, brucite, and magnetite. The salinity of the aqueous fluid in the inclusions increased as H2O was removed from the solution and incorporated into the hydrous product phases and served as a proxy for reaction progress. The fastest serpentinization rates were found at 250 °C in the presence of a seawater-like aqueous solution. This result further suggests that serpentinization of olivine is fastest at lower temperatures (∼250 °C) and shallower depths in the oceanic lithosphere than suggested by previous studies (∼300 °C). Moreover, our experiments show that serpentinization rates decrease by several orders of magnitude as salinity and the concentration of dissolved Mg increase. These effects may reconcile some of the differences observed when comparing results of previously published rates obtained from experiments involving fluids of different compositions. We constructed a quantitative model based on the principle of detailed balance to predict variations in serpentinization rates (J±) from low temperatures to 320 °C. It suggests that at 25 °C, serpentinization rates are 4 to 5 orders of magnitude slower than at 250 °C. Moreover, the temperature dependence model has been coupled with the kinetic effects derived from experiments involving different fluid composition to calculate the amount of time required for serpentinization of olivine having different reactive surface areas. The model shows that between 200 and 300 °C serpentinization is fast on geologic timescales when rocks with large reactive surface areas interact with a seawater-like aqueous solution (complete serpentinization in days to decades).