Geothermal System at 21°N, East Pacific Rise: Physical Limits on Geothermal Fluid and Role of Adiabatic Expansion
- 28 March 1980
- journal article
- other
- Published by American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) in Science
- Vol. 207 (4438), 1465-1469
- https://doi.org/10.1126/science.207.4438.1465
Abstract
Pressure-volume-temperature relations for water at the depth of the magma chamber at 21°N on the East Pacific Rise suggest that the maximum subsurface temperature of the geothermal fluid is about 420°C. Both the chemistry of the discharging fluid and thermal balance considerations indicate that the effective water/rock ratios in the geothermal system are between 7 and 16. Such low ratios preclude effective metal transport at temperatures below 350°C, but metal solubilization at 400°C and above is effective even at such low ratios. It is proposed that the 420°C fluid ascends essentially adiabatically and in the process expands, cools, and precipitates metal sulfides within the upper few hundred meters of the sea floor and on the sea floor itself.Keywords
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