Rapid-quench hydrothermal experiments at mantle pressures and temperatures

New experimental methods for the encapsulation, extraction, and analysis of large volumes of aqueous fluids enable studies of mineral solubilities and dissolution kinetics with the piston-cylinder apparatus. Quench rates and volumes of experimental fluids with these methods are comparable with those used in modern hydrothermal experiments employing cold-seal vessels. Analyses of fluid compositions are reproducible and consistent with independent results. The techniques permit experimental investigations that will better characterize fluid-rock interaction in such environments as subducting slabs, the mantle wedge, Barrovian metamorphic belts, and middle to lower crustal granulites.