Experimental Study of Impact Vaporization of Serpentinite.

Experimental data on impact vaporization of serpentinite are presented. The experiment was carried out using a two-stage light gas gun with an impact velocity ∼6 km/s. Copper with a mass up to 0.5 g was used as the projectile. Impact-generated vapor in the form of a condensate film was analyzed using a JSM-5610 scanning electron microscope. The analysis showed that the Mg/Si ratio in the condensate decreased sharply (by ∼1.8 times) compared to the initial ratio in the serpentinite target. Thus, it is shown that the evaporation of the impact melt of the silicate target is selective: the vapor is enriched with relatively volatile SiO2, leaving a relatively nonvolatile MgO in the residual melt. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]