Experimental Methods
Master course offered annually in the summer semester as part of the module "Experimental Petrology".
The course provides insights into experimental approaches to simulate magmatic and hydrothermal processes and their application to petrogenetic problems. Students will learn about experimental techniques, which can be applied to simulate processes that are essential for the formation of igneous rocks such as partial melting, fractional crystallization, immiscibility or degassing.This module is recommended to students enrolled in mineralogy, petrology, geochemistry, crystallography, inorganic or physical chemistry, and material science.
Format: 2 week hours (70 % lectures, 30 % practical sessions)
Instructor: Dr. Lennart Fischer
Course contents
- Introduction into magmatic and hydrothermal processes and overview of experimental techniques
- High pressure, high temperature: multi anvil, piston cylinder, mantle melting, crystallization, partition coefficients, phase stabilities
- Fluids and immiscibility: internally heated pressure vessel, decompression and degassing, solubility, H2O-CO2 in melts, sulphide melts, H2O-NaCl
- One atmosphere apparatus: gas mixing furnace, oxygen fugacity, application to processes at elevated pressures
- Hydrothermal systems: cold-seal pressure vessel, fluid-rock interaction, dissolution-precipitation processes
- Functionality and application of petrological modeling programs and geothermobarometers
Course materials are available in the university e-learning system (ILIAS)