Seismic evidence of negligible water carried below 400-km depth in subducting lithosphere

Harry W. Green (), Wang-Ping Chen and Michael R. Brudzinski
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Harry W. Green: University of California
Wang-Ping Chen: University of Illinois
Michael R. Brudzinski: Miami University

Nature, 2010, vol. 467, issue 7317, 828-831

Abstract: A case for dry subduction The nature of the deep water cycle, in which water moves from Earth's surface down into the mantle and then back to the surface continues to be debated. It is widely held that only part of water transported from the surface in subduction zones returns to the surface by direct expulsion at oceanic trenches and volcanism, and that a significant amount of water is carried into the mantle transition zone (410–660 kilometres) or even the lower mantle. To test this 'wet lithosphere' model, Harry Green II and colleagues compare patterns of seismicity and the stabilities of potentially relevant hydrous phases determined from experimental and seismic evidence. They conclude that the evidence requires a very dry lithosphere below 400 kilometres, suggesting that subducting slabs do not provide a pathway for significant amounts of water to enter the deep mantle.

Date: 2010
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DOI: 10.1038/nature09401

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