Lecture Notes - Trace Elements

• Trace elements are elements present in a rock, mineral, or magma in quantities too low in most
cases to affect the number or identity of the phases present. Trace elements will be found in small
quantities in all of the minerals that crystallize from a magma. The ratio of the concentration of trace
element i in a crystal (CiC) to the concentration of trace element i in the liquid (CiL) is called the
distribution coefficient (D i) where

CC
Di ≡ i .
CLi
• If Di << 1, the element is said to be incompatible (with the crystals) and will be concentrated in
the liquid in any partial melting or fractional crystallization process. If Di ≥ 1, the element is said to
be compatible (with the crystals) and will be concentrated in the crystals in any partial melting or
fractional crystallization process. Because trace elements are present in such small quantities, their
distribution coefficients are constants that are relatively insensitive to concentration of the trace
element in the mineral or the magma (Henry's Law behavoir). Di does depend on the bulk
composition of the magma and may be rather different for a rhyolite and a basalt.

• If more than one mineral is crystallizing from a magma, the behavior of the trace element may be
described by a bulk distribution coefficient (D i ) where

Di = ∑ X ϕ Dϕi
ϕ

Xφ is the weight fraction of phase ϕ and Diϕ is the distribution coefficient for component i in
phase ϕ.

• It is possible to model the change in the concentration of component i in a liquid (CiL) during the
process of fractional crystallization using the Raleigh equation

C Li = F (D i - 1 )
Coi

where F is the fraction of original liquid that remains, D i is the bulk distribution coefficient for
component i, and Cio is the concentration of component i in the liquid before any crystallization has
occurred.

• It is possible to model the change in the concentration of component i in a liquid (CiL) during the
process of "batch melting" using Shaw's (1970) equation:

C Li = 1
o
Ci D i (1 - F) + F

where F is the fraction of the rock melted, D i is the bulk distribution coefficient for component i,
and Cio is the concentration of component i in the rock prior to any melting.

Readings on Trace Elements: Hess: Chapter 4

100.00

10.00

Do = 0
Do = 0.2
Do = 0.5
CL/Co

1.00 Do = 1
Do = 2
Do = 4
Do = 10

0.10

0.01
1 0.9 0.8 0.7 0.6 0.5 0.4 0.3 0.2 0.1 0
Fraction of Liquid Remaining
 Raleigh Fractionation Model

120.00

100.00

80.00

Do = 0
Do = 0.2
CL/Co

Do = 0.5
60.00
Do = 1
Do = 2
Do = 4
40.00 Do = 10

20.00

0.00
1 0.9 0.8 0.7 0.6 0.5 0.4 0.3 0.2 0.1 0
Fraction of Liquid Remaining
 Shaw (1970) Melting

100.00

10.00
Do = 0
Do = 0.2
Do = 0.5
CL/Co

Do = 1
Do = 2
Do = 4
Do = 10
1.00

0.10
0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9 1
Fraction of Melting
 Shaw (1970) Melting

120.00

100.00

80.00
Do = 0
Do = 0.2
Do = 0.5
Cl/Co

60.00 Do = 1
Do = 2
Do = 4
Do = 10
40.00

20.00

0.00
0 0.1 0.2 0.3 0.4 0.5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9 1
Fraction of Melting