Graph from the paper
The proposed evolution over time of the Hf and Nd isotopic composition in abyssal peridotites indicating several depletion and enrichment events that result in the decoupling of the two isotopes systems. Credit: Sani et al. [2023], Figure 8a
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Source: AGU Advances

The source for mid-ocean ridge basalts, the depleted mantle, is thought to have a simple two stage history and is complementary to the continental crust. Sani et al. [2023] report here new isotope data on abyssal peridotites that shows that the depleted mantle, the source for mid-ocean ridge basalts, has undergone both depletion and enrichment (see figure). This complexity has not been fully appreciated before, but is the only way to explain the combined Hf and Nd-isotope data for these peridotites, in which the two systems are decoupled. Therefore, this manuscript provides strong arguments that the depleted mantle history is more complex. Additionally, it evidences that the melt productivity of the sub-ridge peridotitic mantle is not uniform.   

Citation: Sani, C., Sanfilippo, A., Peyve, A. A., Genske, F., & Stracke, A. (2023). Earth mantle’s isotopic record of progressive chemical depletion. AGU Advances, 4, e2022AV000792. https://doi.org/10.1029/2022AV000792 

—Vincent Salters, Editor, AGU Advances 

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