ABSTRACT

Two FeS-rich samples from the Allende (C3V) chondrite were analyzed for Xe and Kr. One sample was irradiated in a neutron flux to generate a tracer isotope of Xe by the ¹³⁰Te(n, γ2β^–)¹³¹*Xe reaction. The experiment was designed to use this tracer isotope to identify the temperature at which gases were released from within the sulfide. When the sulfide melted at 950°C, the Xe released was terrestrial in isotopic composition, except for enrichments from spallogenic and radiogenic components. It is concluded that terrestrial-type Xe, Xe-T, was a primordial component that was dominant in the inner Fe, S-rich region of the solar nebula.