The influence of Cr on the garnet–spinel transition in the Earthʹs mantle: experiments in the system MgO–Cr2O3–SiO2 and thermodynamic modelling

The position of the transition from spinel peridotite to garnet peridotite in a simplified chemical composition has been determined experimentally at high pressures and high temperatures. The univariant reaction MgCr2O4+2Mg2Si2O6=Mg3Cr2Si3O12+Mg2SiO4, has a negative slope in P–T space between 1200 °C and 1600 °C. The experimental results, combined with assessed thermodynamic data for MgCr2O4, MgSiO3 and Mg2SiO4 give the entropy and enthalpy of formation of knorringite garnet (Mg3Cr2Si3O12). Thermodynamic calculations in simplified chemical compositions indicate that Cr shifts the garnet-in reaction to much higher pressures than previously anticipated. Moreover, in Cr-bearing systems a pressure–temperature field exists where garnet and spinel coexist. The width of this divariant field strongly depends on the Cr/(Cr+Al) of the system.