Title: Isotopic anomalies in meteorites and their origins—V. Search for fission fragment recoils in Allende sulfides
Abstract: Three troilite- and pentlandite-rich samples from the Allende C3 chondrite were analyzed for Xe (and in one case Ne and Ar) by mass spectrometry, in 13–22 temperature steps. All samples released a small ‘CCFXe’ component (enriched in the heavy isotopes Xe134, 136) at the relatively low temperature of 700–800°C, ahead of adsorbed atmospheric Xe (~900°C), radiogenic Xe129 (1000°C), and primordial Xe (1250°C). Though such a labile component suggests implanted fission recoils, the simultaneous release of Ne, Ar, and Xe124, 126 shows that it instead comes from carbon and perhaps chromite, two major host phases of CCFXe. Apparently small amounts of these phases are occluded in sulfides, and decompose by chemical reaction upon heating. Thus the experiment fails to resolve the nature of CCFXe. A marked enrichment of Xe124, without corresponding enrichments in Xe126 or Xe131–136, was observed in the 550–650° and 1400–1500° fractions. Though requiring confirmation, it supports earlier evidence for the complexity and variability of the light xenon component, contrary to claims that it is an integral part of CCFXe.
Publication Year: 1979
Publication Date: 1979-11-01
Language: en
Type: article
Indexed In: ['crossref']
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Cited By Count: 17
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