Initial Publication Date: August 10, 2007
Ternary Phase Diagrams
Click on an image or the link in the caption, and a PDF file of the diagram will download to your computer. Some of the PDF files are animations -- they contain more than one page that can be shown in sequence to see changes as temperature or some other variable changes.
Unless otherwise noted, these figures were drafted by Dexter Perkins or John Brady.
Unless otherwise noted, these figures were drafted by Dexter Perkins or John Brady.
Di-An-Fo
Diagrams are based on those found in An Introduction to Igneous and Metamorphic Petrology (Winter 2001). See discussion there for more explanation.
The system Di-An-Fo at 1 atm. pressure. The spinel field has been omitted for simplicity.
Download PDF (Acrobat (PDF) 13kB May15 07)
Animated PDF showing crystallization in the system Di-An-Fo at 1 atm. pressure. The spinel field has been omitted for simplicity.
Download PDF (Acrobat (PDF) 99kB May15 07)
Fo-An-Qz
Diagrams are based on those found in An Introduction to Igneous and Metamorphic Petrology (Winter 2001). See discussion there for more explanation.
The system Fo-An-SiO2 at 1 atm. pressure. This system includes a ternary peritectic, cotectic and a eutectic. In this and the following diagrams, the spinel field has been omitted for simplicity.
Download PDF (Acrobat (PDF) 16kB May23 07)
Animated PDF: The system Fo-An-SiO2 at 1 atm. pressure. The spinel field has been omitted. Summary drawings and animation showing crystallization path for composition Fo54% An36% Q10%. Crystallization ends at the ternary peritectic.
Download PDF (Acrobat (PDF) 164kB Oct18 07)
Animated PDF: The system Fo-An-SiO2 at 1 atm. pressure. Summary diagrams and animation showing crystallization path for composition Fo66% An12% Q22%. Crystallization ends at the ternary peritectic.
Download PDF (Acrobat (PDF) 114kB May23 07)
Animated PDF: The system Fo-An-SiO2 at 1 atm. pressure. Animation for composition Fo46% An32% Q22%. Crystallization ends at the ternary eutectic.
Download PDF (Acrobat (PDF) 163kB May23 07)
Animated PDF: The system Fo-An-SiO2 at 1 atm. pressure. Animation for composition Fo53% An20% Q27%. During crystallization, the liquid leaves cotectic and crosses the enstatite field. Crystallization ends at the ternary peritectic.
Download PDF (Acrobat (PDF) 150kB May23 07)
Di-An-Ab
Diagrams are based on those found in An Introduction to Igneous and Metamorphic Petrology (Winter 2001). See discussion there for more explanation.
The system Di-An-Ab at 1 atm. pressure. Tielines connect plagioclase liquidus compositions with cotectic melt compositions. There is no way, from this diagram, to determine precisely the composition of plagioclase in equilibrium with melt not on the cotectic. This diagram is based on Figure 7.5 in An Introduction to Igneous and Metamorphic Petrology (Winter 2001). See discussion there for more explanation.
Download PDF (Acrobat (PDF) 20kB Jun6 07)
Animated PDF: The system Di-An-Ab at 1 atm. pressure. This animation is based on Figure 7.5 in An Introduction to Igneous and Metamorphic Petrology (Winter 2001). Melt compositions have been estimated based on the binary (Ab-An) system and the (ternary) cotectic compositions. See discussion in Winter's book for more explanation.
Download PDF (Acrobat (PDF) 117kB Jun6 07)
MgO-Al2O3-SiO2
These diagrams are based on those found in Phase Diagrams for Ceramacists (Levin et al., 1964).
The system MgO-Al2O3-SiO2 at 1 atm. pressure. The system includes two eutectics, two thermal divides, and incongruent melting of several phases.
Download PDF (Acrobat (PDF) 22kB May24 07)
The system MgO-Al2O3-SiO2 at 1 atm. pressure. Diagram shows fields on the liquidus.
Download PDF (Acrobat (PDF) 20kB May24 07)
The system MgO-Al2O3-SiO2 at 1 atm. pressure. Diagram shows final (subsolidus) stable mineral assemblages.
Download PDF (Acrobat (PDF) 15kB May24 07)
The system MgO-Al2O3-SiO2 at 1 atm. pressure. Diagram shows temperature contours and liqudus surface.
Download PDF (Acrobat (PDF) 23kB Sep18 07)