Thermoelastic parameters of Mg-sursassite and its relevance as a water carrier in subducting slabs

We report the synthesis, at 7 GPa and 923 K, and the thermoelastic characterization, up to 16 GPa and 850 K, of a single crystal of Mg-sursassite, Mg5Al5Si6O21(OH)7. In situ high-pressure and high-temperature single-crystal diffraction allowed the study of structural variation at non-ambient conditions and the determination of bulk elastic properties. The refined parameters of a second-order Birch-Murnaghan equation of state (BM-II EoS) are V0 = 446.02(1) Å3 and KT0 = 135.6(7) GPa. The thermal expansion coefficients of a Berman-type EoS are α0 = 3.14 (5) × 10−5 K−1, α1 = 2.50(16) × 10−8 K−2, and V0 = 445.94(3). For comparison, the P-V EoS is determined for a natural sursassite sample, ideally Mn4Al6Si6O22(OH)6. The refined parameters of BM-II EoS [V0 = 470.2(3) Å3, KT0 = 128(4) GPa] indicate that composition has a minimal effect on elastic properties. The similarity of density and bulk properties of Mg-sursassite if compared to olivine and other anhydrous mantle minerals suggests that this phase could be overseen by geophysical methods.