Toru Inoue
Commendation
For pioneering research on the effects of water on mantle minerals under high-pressure conditions, which has provided new insights into the Earth’s internal water cycle
A list of five major papers
- Inoue, T., Effect of water on melting phase relations and melt composition in the system Mg2SiO4 – MgSiO3 – H2O up to 15 GPa. Phys. Earth Planet. Inter., 85, 237-263, 1994.
- Inoue, T., H. Yurimoto and Y. Kudoh, Hydrous modified spinel, Mg1.75SiH0.5O4: a new water reservoir in the mantle transition region. Geophys. Res. Lett., 22, 117-120, 1995.
- Inoue, T., D.J. Weidner, P.A. Northrup and J.B. Parise, Elastic properties of hydrous ringwoodite (γ-phase) in Mg2SiO4, Earth Planet. Sci. Lett., 160, 107-113, 1998.
- Inoue, T., Y. Tanimoto, T. Irifune, T. Suzuki, H. Fukui and O. Ohtaka, Thermal expansion of wadsleyite, ringwoodite, hydrous wadsleyite and hydrous ringwoodite, Phys. Earth Planet. Inter., 143-144, 279-290, 2004.
- Inoue, T., T. Wada, R. Sasaki, and H. Yurimoto, Water partitioning in the Earth’s mantle, Phys. Earth Planet. Inter., 183, 245-251, 2010.
Major achievements
Dr. Toru Inoue has been at the forefront of research on the role of water in the Earth’s deep interior and is highly regarded internationally. In particular, his work on the melting behavior of peridotite under high-pressure hydrous conditions and the determination of water content in main constituent minerals of the mantle transition zone has led to significant new insights into the Earth’s internal water cycle. Additionally, by utilizing high-pressure and temperature experimental techniques, he has elucidated the effects of water on the seismic wave velocities of minerals of mantle transition zone, enhancing our understanding of the Earth’s internal layering and heterogeneity.
His insistence that the mantle transition zone becomes hydrous was proven in 2014 when hydrous ringwoodite was discovered in a diamond inclusion.
He has played a key role in the operation of related academic societies, such as the Japan Association of Mineralogical Sciences and the Japan Society of High Pressure Science and Technology. Additionally, he has mentored numerous students, making significant efforts to foster the next generation of researchers.
[ Detail ]
Nominator
Tomoo Katsura
Supporters
Hisayoshi Yurimoto, Craig Bina, Robert Liebermann