An Ocean of Water, Deep Below
Ever heard of ringwoodite? No? Unless you are a professional mineralogist or geologist there’s no need to think you missed something vital. A new finding involving ringwoodite is making the news thanks to claims of hithertounrecognized vast masses of water, deep underground.
New Research
New research published in the journal Nature claims to prove the existence of an “ocean mass of water,” a few hundred miles below the earth’s surface. After years of analysis of a small diamond unearthed in Brazil, the authors conclude that the sample contains an even smaller speck of ringwoodite that in turn contains a yet smaller amount of water molecules bound to it.
So, before you rejoice in the thought of a free hot shower in that new “ocean” deep below, consider some minor details of relevance.
Rocks and Minerals
Rocks are made up of minerals. The rock granite, for example, is an igneous rock, typically comprised of the minerals of quartz, feldspar and mica. In contrast, limestone is a sedimentary rock almost entirely made up of calcium carbonate. The earth’s land mass contains vast quantities of both kinds of rock and all contain some “water.” However, all that water is tightly bound in the rocks and their constituent minerals.
Free vs. Bound Water
At the surface with an atmospheric pressure of one atmosphere, water boils at 100 C (212 F). Even a few hundred miles below the surface where the temperature is more like 700 C (1300 F), that “ocean mass” of water is still tightly bound in the rock. It is not free water which you could pump up or extract without additional energy input.
To elaborate with a simple analogy: All rocks contain a large “mass of oxygen.” Of course, free molecular oxygen in the earth’s atmosphere is what we breathe to sustain life. Well, try chewing on common sand (quartz or silicon dioxide with 75{154653b9ea5f83bbbf00f55de12e21cba2da5b4b158a426ee0e27ae0c1b44117} “oxygen”) for your oxygen needs and you will not last for another minute. All that oxygen is very tightly bound in the sand/quartz molecules. The “water” in this new “ocean” is no different.
So, before you start digging a deep hole in your backyard …
Dr. Klaus L.E. Kaiser Bio
Dr. Klaus L.E. Kaiser Most recent columns
Dr. Klaus L.E. Kaiser is author of CONVENIENT MYTHS, the green revolution – perceptions, politics, and facts
convenientmyths.com
Dr. Kaiser can be reached at:[email protected]
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