Siderophile trace element diffusion in Fe–Ni alloys

Experiments were performed in a piston cylinder apparatus to characterize the diffusion behavior of the siderophile elements, Mo, Cu, Pd, Au, and Re in solid Fe–Ni alloy (90 wt.% Fe, 10 wt.% Ni). All experiments were conducted at 1 GPa and temperatures ranging from 1175 to 1400 °C. Activation energies of all elements fall between 270 kJ/mol (Cu) and 360 kJ/mol (Mo). Mo, Cu, Pd, and Au all show similar diffusivities at the same conditions, but the diffusivity of Re was consistently close to an order of magnitude lower. Initial experiments on other refractory elements (Os, Pt, and Ir) indicate that their diffusivities are close to or slightly lower than that of Re.