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Earth exhibits a dichotomy in elevation and chemical composition between the continents and ocean floor. Reconstructing when this dichotomy arose is important for understanding when plate tectonics started and how the supply of nutrients to the oceans changed through time. We measured the titanium isotopic composition of shales to constrain the chemical composition of the continental crust exposed to weathering and found that shales of all ages have a uniform isotopic composition. This can only be explained if the emerged crust was predominantly felsic (silica-rich) since 3.5 billion years ago, requiring an early initiation of plate tectonics. We also observed a change in the abundance of biologically important nutrients phosphorus and nickel across the Archean-Proterozoic boundary, which might have helped trigger the rise in atmospheric oxygen.

Indirect evidence for the presence of a felsic continental crust, such as the elevated 49Ti/47Ti ratios in Archean shales, has been used to argue for ongoing subduction at that time and therefore plate tectonics. However, rocks of intermediate to felsic compositions can be produced in both plume and island arc settings. The fact that Ti behaves differently during magma differentiation in these two geological settings might result in contrasting isotopic signatures. Here, we demonstrate that, at a given SiO₂ content, evolved plume rocks (tholeiitic) are more isotopically fractionated in Ti than differentiated island arc rocks (mainly calc-alkaline). We also show that the erosion of crustal rocks from whether plumes (mafic in average) or island arcs (intermediate in average) can all produce sediments having quite constant 49Ti/47Ti ratios being 0.1–0.3 per mille heavier than that of the mantle. This suggests that Ti isotopes are not a direct tracer for the SiO2 contents of crustal rocks. Ti isotopes in crustal sediments are still a potential proxy to identify the geodynamical settings for the formation of the crust but only if combined with additional SiO₂ information.

Earth’s mantle has a two-layered structure, with the upper and lower mantle domains separated by a seismic discontinuity at about 660 km (refs.  1 , 2 ). The extent of mass transfer between these mantle domains throughout Earth’s history is, however, poorly understood. Continental crust extraction results in Ti-stable isotopic fractionation, producing isotopically light melting residues 3 – 7 . Mantle recycling of these components can impart Ti isotope variability that is trackable in deep time. We report ultrahigh-precision 49 Ti/ 47 Ti ratios for chondrites, ancient terrestrial mantle-derived lavas ranging from 3.8 to 2.0 billion years ago (Ga) and modern ocean island basalts (OIBs). Our new Ti bulk silicate Earth (BSE) estimate based on chondrites is 0.052 ± 0.006‰ heavier than the modern upper mantle sampled by normal mid-ocean ridge basalts (N-MORBs). The 49 Ti/ 47 Ti ratio of Earth’s upper mantle was chondritic before 3.5 Ga and evolved to a N-MORB-like composition between approximately 3.5 and 2.7 Ga, establishing that more continental crust was extracted during this epoch. The +0.052 ± 0.006‰ offset between BSE and N-MORBs requires that <30% of Earth’s mantle equilibrated with recycled crustal material, implying limited mass exchange between the upper and lower mantle and, therefore, preservation of a primordial lower-mantle reservoir for most of Earth’s geologic history. Modern OIBs record variable 49 Ti/ 47 Ti ratios ranging from chondritic to N-MORBs compositions, indicating continuing disruption of Earth’s primordial mantle. Thus, modern-style plate tectonics with high mass transfer between the upper and lower mantle only represents a recent feature of Earth’s history. Titanium isotope measurements for chondrites, ancient terrestrial mantle-derived lavas and modern ocean island basalts imply the preservation of a primordial lower-mantle reservoir for most of Earth’s geologic history.

Equilibria between Ti oxides and silicate melt lead to Ti isotope fractionation in terrestrial samples, with isotopically light Ti oxides and isotopically heavy coexisting melt. However, while Ti is mostly tetravalent in terrestrial samples, around 10% of the overall Ti is trivalent at fO2 relevant to lunar magmatism (~ IW-1). The different valences of Ti in lunar samples, could additionally influence Ti stable isotope fractionation during petrogenesis of lunar basalts to an unknown extent. We performed an experimental approach using gas mixing furnaces to investigate the effect of Ti oxide formation at different fO2 on Ti stable isotope fractionation during mare basalt petrogenesis. Two identical bulk compositions were equilibrated simultaneously during each experiment to guarantee comparability. One experiment was investigated with the EPMA to characterize the petrology of experimental run products, whereas the second experiment was crushed, and fabricated phases (i.e., oxides, silicates and glass) were handpicked, separated and digested. An aliquot of each sample was mixed with a Ti double-spike, before Ti was separated from matrix and interfering elements using a modified HFSE chemistry. Our study shows fO2-dependent fractionation within seven samples from air to IW-1, especially ∆49Tiarmalcolite-melt and ∆49Tiarmalcolite-orthopyroxene become more fractionated from oxidized to reduced conditions (− 0.092 ± 0.028-  − 0.200 ± 0.033 ‰ and  − 0.089 ± 0.027- − 0.250 ± 0.049 ‰, respectively), whereas ∆49Tiorthopyroxene-melt shows only a minor fractionation (− 0.002 ± 0.017-0.050 ± 0.025 ‰). The results of this study show that Ti isotope fractionation during mare basalt petrogenesis is expected to be redox dependent and mineral-melt fractionation as commonly determined for terrestrial fO2 may not be directly applied to a lunar setting. This is important for the evaluation of Ti isotope fractionation resulting from lunar magmatism, which takes place under more reducing conditions compared to the more oxidized terrestrial magmatism.

Ti-isotope fractionation on the most Ti-rich minerals on Earth has not been reported. Therefore, we present a chemical preparation and separation technique for Ti-rich minerals for mineralogic, petrologic, and economic geologic studies. A two-stage ion-exchange column procedure modified from the previous literature is used in the current study to separate Ti from Fe-rich samples, while α-TiO2 does not require chemical separation. Purified solutions in conjunction with solution standards were measured on two different instruments with dry plasma and medium-resolution mode providing mass-dependent results with the lowest errors. 49/47TiOL-Ti for the solution and solids analyzed here demonstrate a range of >5‰ far greater than the whole procedural 1 error of 0.10‰ for a synthetic compound and 0.07‰ for the mineral magnetite; thus, the procedure produces results is resolvable within the current range of measured Ti-isotope fractionation in these minerals.

A method was developed for the determination of total titanium in food and food supplements by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) after microwave-assisted acid digestion of samples. Five food supplements, including one certified reference material, and 15 food products were used for method development. Key factors affecting the analytical results, such as the composition of the acid mixture for sample digestion and the bias from spectral interferences on the different titanium isotopes, were investigated. Resolution of interferences was achieved by ICP-MS/MS with ammonia adduct formation and viable conditions for control laboratories equipped with standard quadrupole instruments were identified. The method was successfully validated and enables rapid screening of samples subject to confirmatory analysis for the presence of TiO2 particles. For the latter, single-particle ICP-MS (spICP-MS) analysis after chemical extraction of the particles was used. The two methods establish a viable analytical strategy for assessing the absence of titania particles in food products on the EU market following the E 171 ban as a food additive.

The symmetric binuclear model of quasi-molecular states (QMS) is presented as a theoretical framework extending muonic catalysis concepts to cold nuclear fusion phenomena. This model proposes nuclear convergence through attraction to high-density negative charge configurations formed by bound electron (ee) pairs occupying toroidal orbitals in the internuclear region. These structural formations, designated as CRN activators (where N indicates (ee) pair multiplicity), function as catalytic centers for nuclear processes. Experimental validation includes mass spectrometry analysis of titanium isotopes revealing anomalous mass peaks consistent with model predictions. Extension to trinuclear QMS systems demonstrates enhanced CR4 activator formation during nickel synthesis from silicon and oxygen, with observed production rates doubling those of baseline CR2 activators. The analysis identifies cold nuclear fusion as a potential clean energy source with dual capability: direct energy generation and production of fissile materials for conventional nuclear power applications. These findings suggest significant implications for future energy systems combining fusion and fission technologies.

The oxygen fugacity (hereafter referred as f O 2 ) of terrestrial planets is key in defining the outcome of planetary-scale differentiation and the planets’ potential habitability. Reconstructing the initial f O 2 records in the mantle right after core formation for terrestrial planets remain challenging due to frequent secondary modifications. Here, we show based on studies of ureilites and diogenites that measurable Ti isotope fractionation occurred during melt extraction from planetary mantle in the presence of Ti 3+ , and demonstrate that Ti isotopes can serve as a f O 2 tracer of planetary mantle reservoirs. We also show a positive correlation between the 49 Ti/ 47 Ti and La/Yb ratios for shergottites, which, when integrated with chronological constraints, imply the occurrence of Ti isotope fractionations arising from the presence of Ti 3+ during early mantle differentiation of Mars. Further constraints define reducing conditions of ~ΔIW–0.8 to ~ΔIW–1.6 for early-formed martian mantle reservoirs at ~4.5 Ga. This f O 2 estimate coincides with the lowest recommended values from martian meteorites, that of core-mantle differentiation for Mars and of diogenites, but is more oxidizing than that of ureilites. Mantle outgassing under these conditions would result in a reducing primordial atmosphere that is in stark contrast with Mars’ current CO 2 -dominated atmosphere. Measurable titanium isotope fractionation occurred during melt extraction from planetary mantle demonstrating titanium isotopes can serve as a tracer for oxygen fugacity of planetary mantle reservoirs, according to an analysis of ureilites, diogenites, shergottites, chassignite, and nakhlites.

To study the nuclear structure of neutron-rich titanium isotopes, a lifetime measurement was performed at the Grand Accélérateur National d'Ions Lourds (GANIL) facility in Caen, France. The nucleiwere produced in a multinucleon-transfer reaction by using a 6.76 MeV/u 238U beam. The Advanced Gamma Tracking Array (AGATA) was employed for the γ-ray detection and target-like recoils were identified event-by-event by the large-acceptance variable mode spectrometer (VAMOS++). Preliminary level lifetimes of the (5/2−) to 13/2− states of the yrast band in the neutron-rich nucleus 53Ti were measured for the first time employing the recoil distance Doppler-shift (RDDS) method and the compact plunger for deep inelastic reactions. The differential decay curve method (DDCM) was used to obtain the lifetimes from the RDDS data.

The Gamow–Teller (GT) transition is inarguably one of the most important nuclear weak transitions of the spin-isospin στ type. It has many applications in nuclear and astrophysics. These include, but are not limited to, r-process β -decays, stellar electron captures, neutrino cooling rates, neutrino absorption and inelastic scattering on nuclei. The quasiparticle random phase approximation (QRPA) is an efficient way to generate GT strength distribution. In order to better understand both theoretical systematics and uncertainties, we compare the GT strength distributions, centroid and width calculations for isotopes, using the pn-QRPA, Pyatov method (PM) and the Schematic model (SM). The pn-QRPA and SM are further sub-divided into three categories in order to highlight the role of particle-particle (pp) force and deformation of the nucleus in the GT strength calculations. In PM, we study only the influence of the pp force in the calculation. We also compare with experimental results and other calculations where available. We found that the inclusion of pp force and deformation significantly improves the performance of SM and pn-QRPA models. Incorporation of pp force leads to pinning down the centroid value in the PM. The calculated GT strength functions using the pn-QRPA (C) and SM (C) models are in reasonable agreement with measured data.