Indiana University South Bend, Department of Physics and Astronomy, South Bend, IN 46634
Physical and chemical properties of minerals, investigated through X-ray scattering studies conducted at high pressures and temperatures, are essential to the development of more complete models of the interior of Earth. Synchrotron powder X-ray diffraction (XRD) data collected during experimentation at the high-pressure beamlines of the Advanced Photon Source (APS) can be used to determine elastic properties of mineral phases that compose the interior of the planet. We discuss one such study in which the isothermal bulk modulus, K0T, was determined for a natural beach-sand almandine, (Fe0.68Mg0.25)3Al2(SiO4), and we compare the results with previous elasticity measurements of garnets along the pyrope-almandine join. We report measurements in relation to prior work on bulk modulus–volume–cation valence systematics [e.g. Fan et al., 2009].
[Abstract (DOC)]