B3: Magmatic enrichment of prebiotic elements (Daniel Weidendorfer)
The main goal of this project is to constrain prebiotic element enrichment in subvolcanic settings where active magmatism provides elements prominent for the emergence of life. Central to this proposal is the question of how prebiotic elements such as carbon, phosphorous and lanthanide elements become enriched in chemically differentiating CO2-rich silicate and carbonate melts during their buoyancy driven ascend from the source region at mantle depth to the life emerging Earth surface. We will use high-pressure / high-temperature experimental techniques to investigate for (i) carbon, phosphorous and lanthanide element enrichment in silicate and carbonate melts as a function of pressure, temperature, and oxygen-fugacity as well as (ii) the supply efficiency of prebiotic elements stored in volcanic rocks or hydrated glasses.