Silicon carbonate, Si[CO 3 ] 2 , is a potential carbon host in the deep Earth
- Dominik Spahr
- Lkhamsuren Bayarjargal
- Valentin Kovalev
- Ninel Sharapova
- Lukas Brüning
- Pascal L. Jurzick
- Sean S. Sebastian
- Maxim Bykov
- Victor Milman
- Konstantin Glazyrin
- Elena Bykova
- Björn Winkler
2026-05-29
The transport of carbon into the deep Earth is governed by the stability and properties of carbon-bearing phases. However, despite extensive research efforts, it is still an open question whether there are high-pressure minerals that can incorporate both silicon and carbon simultaneously. Multiple theoretical studies suggest that Si─C─O compounds could be stabilized at high pressures, but so far, no reliable experimental evidence for their presence has been presented. Here, we demonstrate that at 40(2) gigapascals and ≈ 1800(200) kelvin, CO 2 reacts with silicic acid or cristobalite and forms the anhydrous silicon carbonate Si[CO 3 ] 2 . The structure consists of [SiO 6 ] octahedra coordinated by six [CO 3 ] 2− groups. Similar groups occur in many ambient and high-pressure carbonates, suggesting that mixed carbonate-silicate phases may be stable at midmantle pressures. Silicon carbonate decomposes upon decompression at pressures of <6 gigapascals but could act as a potential host for carbon in Earth’s lower mantle.