Metamorphic reaction

Schematic representation of a metamorphic reaction. Abbreviations of minerals:   act = actinolite;   chl = chlorite;   ep = epidote;   gt = garnet;   hbl = hornblende;   plag = plagioclase. Two minerals represented in the figure (   and   ) do not participate in the reaction; example minerals could be quartz and K-feldspar. This reaction takes place in nature when a mafic rock goes from amphibolite facies to greenschist facies.

In geochemistry, a metamorphic reaction is a chemical reaction that takes place during the geological process of metamorphism wherein one assemblage of minerals is transformed into a second assemblage which is stable under the new temperature/pressure conditions, resulting in the final stable state of the observed metamorphic rock.

Examples include the production of talc under varied metamorphic conditions:

serpentine + carbon dioxide → talc + magnesite + water
chlorite + quartz → kyanite + talc + water
Epidotisation in Argyll and Bute, U.K
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