Element partition coefficients can be used to assist in solving problems related to major- and trace-element distribution, diffusion, and concentration during the processes of anatexis, fractional crystallization, and metamorphic recrystallization (e.g., McIntire, 1963; Allègre and Minster, 1978).
The practical use of partition (distribution) coefficients in igneous and metamorphic petrogenesis is governed by the overall chemistry and mineralogy of the rock under consideration, and whether the element distribution being investigated is major or trace in terms of its concentration. If the elements under consideration are major lattice components in the mineralogical make up of the rock (whose substitution will be governed by Raoult's law), then their distribution may be modeled in the form of a solid solution between two phases in equilibrium, given that there is a possible element substitution. If the phases are in equilibrium, then the chemical activity of an element is equal in both...
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© 1989 Van Nostrand Reinhold
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Halden, N.M. (1989). Element partitioning in petrogenesis . In: Petrology. Encyclopedia of Earth Science. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/0-387-30845-8_60
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/0-387-30845-8_60
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