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The chemical consequences of vapour loss during planetary accretion

Project description

Study investigates how vapour loss shapes the composition of a planet

Planetary scientists have long theorised that primitive ('chondritic') meteorites hold important clues about the process of planet formation. However, models that build planets from such primitive meteorites fail to explain Earth’s major elements and isotopic compositions. This points to the need for a radical reassessment of the current paradigm of planet formation. Recent studies suggest that the composition of a planet can undergo substantial modifications as a result of significant vapour loss during the accretion process. The EU-funded VapLoss project plans to quantify the consequences of such major vapour loss during a planet’s energetic accretion process. The project's work should allow the thorough assessment of promising vapour loss models that account for the problematic volatile content of planets as well as the unique abundance of Earth’s main constituents.

Objective

Planets have long been thought to be made from building blocks of primitive (chondritic) meteorites. Yet it has become increasingly clear that such models fail to reproduce the composition of the best constrained planet, Earth. Problematically, no combination of chondritic meteorites can simultaneously explain Earth’s major element composition and isotopic characteristics. This striking dilemma points to the need for a radical reassessment of the current paradigm of planet formation. A tacit assumption of most previous models has been growth with a chemically closed system. Recent work has pointed to the likelihood of significant vapour loss during energetic, collisional accretion. Substantial modifications of the composition of a planet could occur as a result of vapour loss during this accretion. However, there is a critical lack of data to establish whether this drastically different model of planet formation accounts for the apparently conflicting perspectives on planetary origins from isotopic and elemental data.

In this proposal I will therefore quantify the consequences of such major vapour loss during violent planetary growth. In a multi-faceted approach, I will undertake i) pioneering, high-temperature experiments mimicking partial vaporisation of molten planetary bodies, combined with ii) analysis of critical elemental and isotopic distributions between the liquid and co-existing vapour from the experiments as well as in key meteorites and terrestrial samples, and iii) numerical modelling to trace the chemical evolution of a planetary body as vapour loss proceeds in various astrophysical scenarios. In combination, this work will allow me to assess rigorously the value of promising models of vapour loss in accounting for the long problematic volatile contents of planetary bodies as well as the unique abundances of Earth’s main constituents.

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ERC-STG - Starting Grant

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Call for proposal

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(opens in new window) ERC-2020-STG

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Host institution

CONSIGLIO NAZIONALE DELLE RICERCHE
Net EU contribution

Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.

€ 556 159,34
Address
PIAZZALE ALDO MORO 7
00185 Roma
Italy

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Region
Centro (IT) Lazio Roma
Activity type
Research Organisations
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Total cost

The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.

€ 556 159,34

Beneficiaries (4)

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