THE EFFECT OF HYDROGEN, OXYGEN, AND WATER FUGACITY ON OXYGEN DIFFUSION IN ALKALI FELDSPAR

Oxygen self-diffusion in adularia and albite single crystals was studied hydrothermally at 650°C from 5 to 1500 MPa confining pressure using a combination of hydrogen/oxygen buffers, a hydrogen ion buffer, and variable mole fractions of water (dilution with CO2). Diffusion coefficients (D) were determined from 18O concentration profiles measured with an ion microprobe. There is a good correlation of the D values with water fugacity but not with oxygen fugacity, hydrogen fugacity, hydrogen ion concentration, nor confining pressure over the range for which these parameters could be fixed independent of the water fugacity. Oxygen diffusion must involve the transport of an oxygen-bearing species, and the results of this study suggest that the transport species is molecular water. The rate-limiting step for oxygen diffusion could be either the rate of migration of the molecular water in the crystal or the rate of exchange of its oxygen with the feldspar structure. While protons may play a role in the mechanism of oxygen diffusion in feldspar, above the concentration supplied by pure water additional protons have no measurable effect on diffusion rates. © 1990.