Water in Earth's Mantle: The Role of Nominally Anhydrous Minerals

TLDR

Upper‑mantle minerals contain trace hydrogen as hydroxyl, with pyroxenes being the most hydrous (~200–500 ppm H₂O) and garnets/olivines only 1–50 ppm, reflecting formation conditions. Nominally anhydrous minerals constitute a significant reservoir for mantle hydrogen, possibly accommodating all water in the depleted mantle and providing a mechanism to recycle surface water into the deep mantle.

Abstract

Most minerals of Earth's upper mantle contain small amounts of hydrogen, structurally bound as hydroxyl (OH). The OH concentration in each mineral species is variable, in some cases reflecting the geological environment of mineral formation. Of the major mantle minerals, pyroxenes are the most hydrous, typically containing approximately 200 to 500 parts per million H(2)O by weight, and probably dominate the water budget and hydrogen geochemistry of mantle rocks that do not contain a hydrous phase. Garnets and olivines commonly contain approximately 1 to 50 parts per million. Nominally anhydrous minerals constitute a significant reservoir for mantle hydrogen, possibly accommodating all water in the depleted mantle and providing a possible mechanism to recycle water from Earth's surface into the deep mantle.