HYDROGEN DIFFUSION IN NATURAL AND SYNTHETIC ORTHOPYROXENE

Abstract

Hydrogen diffusion coefficients in natural orthopyroxenes and synthetic enstatite were determined by dehydration and hydration experiments at 700 and 900 °C. In natural Opx (approximately En90Fs10) small but significant differences in diffusivities along the three crystallographic axes were observed, [001] being the fastest direction, followed by [100] and [010]. Hydrogen diffusion in pure enstatite proved to be about 2 orders of magnitude slower and isotropic. The activation energy for hydrogen diffusion in pure enstatite was determined to be -295 (±55) kJmol-1, and -213 (±47) kJmol-1 for orthopyroxene from Kilbourne Hole. Long-term hydration experiments did not lead to saturation in hydrogen. Instead, after an initial increase in hydrogen concentration, a slow but continuing decrease could be observed in all cases. It is suggested that the investigated samples lose their ability to store hydrogen even when heated in a hydrogen atmosphere. This loss in storage ability can itself be described by a diffusion equation, its diffusion coefficients being more than 1 order of magnitude slower than the diffusion of hydrogen.