Founded in 2002, GIGCAS Laboratory of Extreme Condition Geology and Geochemistry mainly aims to explore the characteristics, and varying and interactive processes of geological bodies, rocks, minerals, organisms and elements under extreme physical and chemical conditions, and to explore the ecological environment in deep sea, modern sedimentation, geochemical circulation, the impact toward resources and environment as well as the material composition and evolution in the deep part of the earth.

GIGCAS Laboratory of Extreme Condition Geology and Geochemistry now has 10 staff scientists appointed for the CAS Experimental Knowledge Innovation Program, 2 members of the GIGCAS Advisory Committee, 2 technicians. Among them, 1 is the foreign academician with Russian Academy of Sciences, 5 holds senior titles, 6 are Ph.D. advisors, 1 is the laureate of the State Foundation for Outstanding Youth Scientists, and 2 are awardees for the CAS Program for 100 Outstanding Scientists.

For this laboratory, the principal research orientations and research contents include: (1) High temperature and superhigh pressure mineralogy and petrology. Through study on special natural rocks such as meteorites, impact crater rocks and pyrolites and by using high-T and high-P experimental means, scientists are exploring the characteristics of composition and association of minerals in the deep part of the earth, in particular in the mantle, the mechanisms for the physical conditions in the mantle and at the crust-mantle boundary and for the geological phenomena such as mantle convection, etc. (2) Geochemical research on pyrolites. Scientists are now exploring the geochemical characteristics of elements of igneous rocks of mantle origin, the mechanisms for their petrogenesis and evolution and their possible genetic links with endogenetic metallic deposits. (3) Interaction between materials from the deep part of the earth and materials from the surface of the earth. Scientists are now studying the processes of and products from the interactions among the mantle materials from the median ridge, the deep sea hydrosphere and the biosphere, the geochemical processes of pyrolites and gas and liquid components released from the pyrolites during ore-forming processes, and their impact toward the environment on the surface of the earth. (4) Biosphere in the deep part of the earth and biogeochemistry. Scientists are studying the benthic organisms deep down at the bottom of the ocean and in the underground, both modern bacteria and old bacteria and their ecological environments, through in situ fidelity sampling in the field and simulated culture and analysis in the lab, in order to discover new biological species and features. Also, they are studying the characteristics of the living environment for organisms in the deep part of the earth, and in this way, to explore the contributions made by the ecology of the organisms at the bottom of the ocean toward the formation/dissolution of minerals, the distribution/assignment of elements and the properties of water body/geological units, as well as the routes for the contributions. (5) Dissolved gas composition and geochemical circulation. By using in situ fidelity detection/sampling in the field together with indoor lab analysis, scientists are now studying contents, distribution, assignment, sources and rate of generation of the multiple kinds of dissolved gases and of components in the gases, in order to understand the genetic relationships between the multiple kinds of dissolved gases and of components in the gases and their surrounding water bodies, geological bodies and organisms, and to explore the geochemical cycles for the dissolved gases and their components as well as their impact toward resources and environment. (6) Deep sea basin and modern sedimentation. Scientists are now studying the various kinds of sediments and sedimentary bodies/facies inside the deep sea sedimentary basins by using oceanic geophysical, sedimentological, oceanic geochemical and physical oceanological detection methods in combination, so as to explore the characteristics and evolution of these basins, the sources for the sediments, and in particular, the processes and rates for the modern sedimentation of complicated types. (7) Surface chemistry and interface chemistry of minerals. Scientists are now studying the domain structure environment at the atomic level, the surface reactivity, the physical-chemical properties, the interface reaction dynamics and dissolution and recrystallization dynamics of minerals, so as to explore the impact of different kinds of physical-chemical conditions toward mineral structures and properties and its application in mineral material study, environmental science and geochemistry, etc. (8) Nuclear waste treatment. One program is devoted to studying the interactions between minerals and water and their applications in the geological disposition of radioactive wastes and the environmental rehabilitation related to radioactive wastes.

In coordination with the construction of Southern Innovative Research Base in Oceanic Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, a unit of “modern oceanic biogeochemistry lab” was organized and established under the GIGCAS Laboratory of Extreme Condition Geology and Geochemistry. With the continuing progresses made in understanding the global changes and the systems of the earth, more and more scientists come to realize the deadly defects hidden in the old principle of using the modern to deal with the old, and to complain about the limitations toward understanding the modern processes. On the other hand, while it is required that theoretical study shall be integrated with associated technological development and with the progresses made in modern sciences, scholars are forced to discard the artificial barriers previously placed among different disciplines, and to push forward the crosslinking among these different disciplines in tackling key academic problems. As a result, the modern ocean on the surface of the earth constitutes a perfect site for scientists to realize the goal as mentioned here. This laboratory was established based on past work experience, in association with relevant academic units both at home and abroad, aiming to satisfy the requirements for studying the interactions among hydrosphere, biosphere and geosphere and the systems of the earth. Major research orientations for this laboratory include: simulation of extreme conditions for the biosphere in the deep part of the earth and relevant experimental study, modern hydrothermal activities and biological mineralization, deep sea gas detection and tracing study, modern sedimentation processes and biological activities at the bottom of the sea, the interannual variations of oceanic biological ecosystems and their mechanisms.

In 2003, scientists at GIGCAS Laboratory of Extreme Condition Geology and Geochemistry attained significant breakthroughs in study of superhigh pressure minerals from the mantle, since they discovered for the first time in nature two high pressure phases of post-spinel that has crystal structure density even higher than spinel, and verified the temperature and pressure conditions for the formation of these phases through experiments. Furthermore, in a meteorite sample that has undergone a cosmic impact event, they discovered that spinel and chromite can be transformed into a high density phase that shows a CF structure type at 125,000 atms, and this high density can be transformed into another even high density phase that has a CT structure type when the pressure is greater than 200,000 atms. The pressures for the formation of these two high-pressure minerals of post-spinel structure correspond respectively to pressures at 400 and 580km from the surface deep down to the mantle of the earth. Since chromite is universally present in the universe and on earth, this research achievement is fundamentally significant in geoscientific development. The breakthrough discovery indicates that one of the important oxide minerals can show regular structural changes or ordered phase transformations with the increase in pressure and temperature, which can undoubtedly provide an important standard that can be used to distinguish the temperature and history of rocks in the deep part of the earth. This achievement also provides an important window for scientists to further explore the volcanism and the history of temperature and pressure of rocks in the deep part of the earth and the structural geology at the continental collision zones.