Ricerc@Sapienza

Compositional variations in geological materials at the microscopic scale can contain a record of geological processes and the evolution of environments. Trace element variations during crystal growth bear important information on magma compositions and conditions during crystallization, complementing petrography and major element studies. In the last decades, among the most common analytical approaches, laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) mapping turned out to be the most efficient given the ability to reveal complexities that are not visible under the microscope or detected by microbeam spot analyses. In this project I propose to apply the LA-ICP-MS mapping technique to phenocrystals of K-basaltic scoria clasts from Solchiaro eruption (Procida island, Campi Flegrei Volcanic District) with the aim to unravel the dynamic processes that operate within the Campi Flegrei Volcanic District plumbing system. The LA-ICP-MS mapping technique will also be used to determine the distribution of trace elements of minerals crystallized in time-series experiments previously carried out at pressure of 0.8 GPa, temperatures between 1030 and 1250 °C and water contents up to 4 wt.%, using as starting material a scoria clast from Solchiaro eruption with a chemical composition similar to those of the K-basaltic scoria clasts considered for the natural crystals. Trace elements LA-ICP-MS maps collected on both natural and experimental crystals will provide a powerful tool to i) reconstruct the evolutionary history of natural products, and ii) contribute, when combined with crystal growth rates estimations, in decoding the eruption-triggering mechanisms, depths and timescales.