Principles of geochemistry

Description

This course introduces the two fundamental concepts governing the chemical evolution of the Earth: chemical partitioning of elements and radioactivity.

It includes the following topics:

- Introduction to the different approaches used to estimate the chemical composition of the Earth's solid envelopes.

- Chemical substitution rules in minerals.

- Notions of partial melting at equilibrium and fractional crystallization (notions of magmatic series and main magmatic processes using geochemical approaches).

- Absolute dating of igneous rocks by radioactivity (Rb/Sr, Sm/Nd and U/Pb methods) applied to the date the latest thermal event, the extraction of continental crust and the evolution of the early Earth.     

Compétences visées

By the end of this course, students should be able to:

-         Present the main geochemical structures/compartments of the solid Earth and the main magmatic processes currently active and having contributed to the evolution of the Earth.

Understand and use the methods of magmatic petrology and elemental and isotopic geochemistry to 1)  understand the formation and evolution of the Earth, 2) determine the absolute age of igneous rocks.

Discipline(s)

• Chimie des matériaux

Bibliographie

Isotope Geology – Gunter Faure, Wiley & Sons Ed. ISBN # 9780471864127