The Origin of Earth's Mantle Nitrogen: Primordial or Early Biogeochemical Cycling?

Earth's mantle nitrogen (N) content is comparable to that found in its N-rich atmosphere. Mantle N has been proposed to be primordial or sourced by later subduction, yet its origin has not been elucidated. Here we model N partitioning during the magma ocean stage following planet formation and the subsequent cycling between the surface and mantle over Earth history using argon (Ar) and N isotopes as tracers. The partitioning model, constrained by Ar, shows that only about 10% of the total N content can be trapped in the solidified mantle due to N's low solubility in magma and low partitioning coefficients in minerals in oxidized conditions supported from geophysical and geochemical studies. A possible solution for the primordial origin is that Earth had about 10 times more N at the time of magma ocean solidification. We show that the excess N could be removed by impact erosion during late accretion. The cycling model, constrained by N isotopes, shows that mantle N can originate from efficient N subduction, if the sedimentary N burial rate on early Earth is comparable to that of modern Earth. Such a high N burial rate requires biotic processing. Finally, our model provides a methodology to distinguish the two possible origins with future analysis of the surface and mantle N isotope record.