OH defects in quartz in granitic systems doped with spodumene, tourmaline and/or apatite: experimental investigations at 5–20 kbar

The incorporation of OH defects in quartz as a function of Li content in the bulk system and pressures was investigated. Quartz crystals were grown in water-saturated granitic systems, containing various amounts Li, B and P, supplied as accessory phases such as spodumene, tourmaline or apatite in the starting mixtures. High pressure experiments were performed at temperatures between 900 and 1100 °C, and pressures between 5 and 20 kbar with a piston cylinder apparatus, and the synthesized quartz crystals were analyzed by IR spectroscopy, electron microprobe and LA-ICP-MS spectroscopy. All IR absorption spectra revealed absorption features that can be assigned to AlOH (3313, 3379 and 3431 cm −1 ) and (4H) Si defects (3585 cm −1 ), whereas quartz grown in the Li and B systems exhibited two additional bands related, respectively, to LiOH (3483 cm −1 ) and BOH defects (3596 cm −1 ). It was further observed that LiOH incorporation increases with higher spodumene content in the starting material and decreases with pressure, until no LiOH defects are observed at pressure higher than 15 kbar. Specifically, the most pronounced reduction of LiOH defects occurs in a rather narrow pressure interval (10–15 kbar) close to the high-quartz/low-quartz transition. However, the link between the transition and the defect incorporation remains unclear. Li total concentrations always exceed the Li-coupled LiOH defects, suggesting the simultaneous presence of dry AlLi defects. Results of this study suggest that LiOH defects are detectable only in quartz crystals grown from middle and upper crustal sections (such as hydrothermal quartz) and not in quartz from deep roots of orogenic granitoids.