Deformation experiment at P-T conditions of the mantle transition zone using D-DIA apparatus

Technical developments in high-pressure and high-temperature generation have been made, adopting a recently devised multi-anvil 6-6 (MA 6-6) assembly with tungsten carbide (WC) anvils. As a result, the pressure and temperature conditions available in a cubic-anvil DIA type apparatus have been extended to 20 GPa and 2000 K. Using this assembly operated in a deformation-DIA (D-DIA) apparatus, a deformation experiment to a strain of 15% on a mixture of wadsleyite and ringwoodite was successfully conducted at 16 GPa and 1700 K and at a strain rate of 6 x 10(-5) s(-1), demonstrating potential of the present MA 6-6 assembly as an important tool to investigate rheological properties of high-pressure phases under the conditions of the mantle transition zone. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.