INFLUENCE OF THE COMPOSITION OF MAGMATIC MELT ON THE SOLUBILITY OF METAL CHLORIDES AT PRESSURES OF 0.1-3.0 KBAR

Abstract

New experimental data are presented for the solubility of metal chlorides in magmatic melts of various compositions at relatively low pressure. The effect of the concentrations of major elements on chlorine solubility was estimated separately for Na, K, Ca, Mg, Sr, and Ba. Chlorine content in the model melts varied at 1250°C within a very wide range from 0.2 to 4.7 wt %. Strong dependence of chlorine solubility on the composition of the magmatic melt was demonstrated. Within the pressure interval from 0.1 to 3.0 kbar, chlorine solubility in Ca-rich melts showed a maximum at about 1 kbar. It was found that the effect of high contents of bivalent alkali earth elements on chlorine solubility in melt is higher than that of monovalent alkali elements. Chlorine solubility in sodium-rich aluminosilicate melt is higher than in potassium-rich composition. The quantitative data obtained in this work can be used for the development of physicochemical models of ore systems, because chlorine is the most important complex-forming agent for the majority of metals.