Rheology of K-feldspar aggregates and its implications for dynamics of continental lower crust

Rheology of feldspar-dominated rocks controls many important processes fundamental to understanding the dynamics of continental lower crust. K-feldspar mineral is an important constituent mineral for continental lower crust and the Precambrian terranes. However, the rheological properties of K-feldspar have not been well quantified. We have performed triaxial compression experiments on natural K-feldspar (88 ppm wt. H2O) aggregates at 1.5 GPa and 1273 - 1373 K using a modified 5GPa Griggs apparatus. The hot-pressed specimens are wrapped in a thin layer of Nickel foil and sealed in 9mm long Platinum jackets along with overlying alumina pistons. Fitting of our preliminary data indicates that the deformation occurred in the dislocation creep regime with a stress exponent of ~3.3 and an activation energy of ~512 kJ/mol. Comparison of our results to previous studies indicates that K-feldspar is stronger than granulite but weaker than eclogite and dry olivine aggregates. These results suggest that K-feldspar likely serves as a strong phase in continental lower crust and the Precambrian terrane.