Scientific article
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A novel experimental V-Sc olivine-melt oxybarometer for arc magmas

Published inGeochimica et cosmochimica acta, vol. 415, p. 106-129
Publication date2026-02
First online date2025-12-15
Abstract

Redox conditions significantly affect phase equilibria, the availability and mobility of heterovalent elements, including volatiles (e.g., S) and metals (e.g., Fe, Cu) in silicate melts. Gaining a deeper understanding of the initial redox state of magmas may help better understand magmatic ore fertility, volcanic degassing, and the redox evolution of Earth’s crust and atmosphere.

This study reports optimized V and novel V-Sc olivine-melt oxybarometers, developed using existing V-partitioning data and new results from a series of fractional crystallization experiments. Experiments were conducted in a rapid-quench molybdenum-hafnium carbide pressure vessel apparatus equipped with a custom-designed hydrogen membrane for flexible, precise, and accurate oxygen fugacity (fO2) control. In some experiments, solid buffers were additionally applied. They were performed at constant pressure (P = 200 MPa) and variable temperatures (T = 1019–920 °C), under water-saturated conditions at fO2 ranging from −1 to + 3.5 log units relative to the FMQ buffer. The impact of the system’s composition (X) was evaluated by comparing two distinct liquid lines of descent (medium-K-calk-alkaline and shoshonitic) through simultaneous experiments using two capsules in parallel. The results show that the partition coefficient of V between olivine and melt (D-V[Ol/melt]) is not systematically affected by varying P-T-X and highly correlates with changing fO2, thus suggesting that the minor variations observed on a global fO2 scale rather reflect analytical and experimental uncertainties. The updated empirical calibrations allow the determination of logfO2 as ΔFMQ from measured 1) D-V[Ol/melt] and 2) KD-[V/Sc][Ol/melt], expressed by the following equations:

1) ∆FMQ = -1.723±0.047 -[log10[(1.230-log[D-V[Ol/melt]]/(log[D-V[Ol/melt]]+3.119))]/-0.099±0.002]

for NBO/T (non-bridging oxygens per tetrahedrally coordinated cation) ≤ 0.6:

2) ∆FMQ =(log[KD-[V/Sc][Ol/melt]]+0.981±0.022)/-0.206±0.012.

In the logfO2 range of FMQ -1 to FMQ + 3.5, relevant for arc magmatism, and at hydrous conditions, both oxybarometers show 2σ calibration uncertainty below 0.5 log units. The updated and new V-based oxybarometers enhance robustness across a wide P-T-X-fO2 range, enabling accurate quantification of the redox state of magmatic systems. They can, in turn, be applied to volcanic rocks ranging from basaltic to andesitic compositions by using suitable olivine-hosted silicate melt inclusions to reconstruct the redox history of deep-seated magma reservoirs in subduction zones. In addition, we confirm that the olivine-melt FeT-Mg exchange coefficient (where FeT is total iron expressed as FeO) correlates with changing fO2 and can serve as an Fe-Mg oxybarometer within the calibrated range of this study. Owing to the rapid diffusion of Fe in olivine, this approach can record rapid redox fluctuations and provides complementary constraints to the more robust V-based oxybarometers.

Keywords
  • Experimental oxybarometers
  • Olivine-melt equilibrium
  • V-Sc partitioning
  • Fe-Mg exchange coefficient
  • Fractional crystallization
  • Hydrous arc magmas
Funding
  • European Commission - The redox evolution of arc magmas: from the oxygenation of the Earth’s atmosphere to the genesis of giant hydrothermal ore deposits [864792]
Citation (ISO format)
CACCIATORE, Enzo-Enrico et al. A novel experimental V-Sc olivine-melt oxybarometer for arc magmas. In: Geochimica et cosmochimica acta, 2026, vol. 415, p. 106–129. doi: 10.1016/j.gca.2025.12.025
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Article (Published version)
Identifiers
Journal ISSN0016-7037
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Technical informations

Creation16/02/2026 16:53:07
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