Measurement of the elemental abundances in four rich clusters of galaxies .2. The initial mass function and mass loss in elliptical galaxies, enrichment and energetics in the ICM

We compare observations from the Advanced Satellite fop Cosmology and Astrophysics of abundances in the intracluster media in four clusters, as reported by Mushotzky and coworkers, with calculations of enrichment by protogalactic supernova-driven winds in a simple stellar population with a power-law initial, mass function. Using the most recently calculated yields from Type II supernovae, we find that we can account for the total observed amounts of iron, oxygen, and silicon if the initial mass function is significantly flatter than the Salpeter function. Some discrepancies with other elements are indicated. Model-independent implications for the origin and heating of the intracluster medium and for the energetics of protoelliptical galaxies are discussed.