THERMODYNAMIC CONSTRAINTS ON THE FORMATION CONDITIONS OF WINONAITES AND SILICATE-BEARING IAB IRONS

Abstract

Silicate inclusions in IAB irons and related winonaite meteorites have textures, mineralogies and mineral chemistries that indicate a complex formation history of heating, followed by brecciation and metamorphism. Using olivine-orthopyroxene-chromite assemblages in five IAB iron silicate inclusions (Caddo County, Campo del Cielo, Copiapo, Lueders, and Udei Station) and one winonaite (Winona), we calculated closure temperatures and oxygen fugacities for these meteorites. Calculated olivine-chromite Fe-Mg exchange temperatures are compared to two-pyroxene temperatures. Olivine-chromite closure temperatures range from ∼590°C to ∼700°C, while two-pyroxene temperatures range from ∼900°C to ∼1200°C. Oxygen fugacities of these meteorites, determined for the first time in this study, range from 2.3 to 3.2 log units below the Fe-FeO buffer and define a line between the Fe-FeO and Cr-Cr2O3 buffers. Highly variable temperatures were experienced by these rocks on the hand sample, and sometimes even the thin section, scale consistent with the idea that the winonaite-IAB iron parent body experienced collisional fragmentation and reassembly after peak temperatures were reached. Although modest reduction likely occurred during cooling, the oxygen fugacities and mineral compositions recorded at peak metamorphic temperatures suggest that the chondritic precursor for this parent body was initially more reduced than ordinary chondrites.