Tracking the origin of ultralow velocity zones at the base of Earth's mantle

Jiuhua Chen

doi:10.1093/nsr/nwaa308

Tracking the origin of ultralow velocity zones at the base of Earth's mantle

Natl Sci Rev. 2021 Jan 2;8(4):nwaa308. doi: 10.1093/nsr/nwaa308. eCollection 2021 Apr.

Author

Jiuhua Chen¹

Affiliation

¹ Center for the Study of Matters at Extreme Conditions, Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering, Florida International University, USA.

Abstract

Origins of the ultralow velocity zones may be classified by their velocity-reduction-ratio, R = δ lnVS/δ lnVP, which ranges from 1.2-1.5 for iron oxides or iron-enriched magnesium oxides, 1.6-2.0 for pyrite-type FeO₂H_x, 2.3-2.8 for the eutectic melt of Fe + C, 2.7-3.1 for partial melt of (Mg, Fe)SiO₃ + Fe to 3.5-4.5 for iron-rich post-perovskite.