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During its lifetime, a star can synthesize elements to iron because of the pressure and temperature. A neutron star is composed of iron nuclei 56 and up to krypton 118.

According to that, a black hole (which concentrates matter to an increasingly tiny space during infall) must also have an unimaginable pressure/temperature during its formation and as additional matter falls into it.

Can it therefore synthesize new elements?

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    $\begingroup$ Why do you say a neutron star has iron and krypton? A neutron star is composed of mostly neutrons and a small amount of electrons and protons. At high temperatures there are too many high-energy gamma rays that photodisintegrate nuclei. $\endgroup$
    – eshaya
    Jul 19, 2019 at 20:09
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    $\begingroup$ Please see physics.stackexchange.com/a/141876/123208 We don't have a quantum gravity theory, so we can't really talk about the ultimate fate of matter in a BH. But it's likely that atoms falling into a BH get ripped apart, and protons & neutrons probably can't survive either. $\endgroup$
    – PM 2Ring
    Jul 19, 2019 at 20:12
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    $\begingroup$ @eshaya A neutron star has a crust of relatively normal nuclei, albeit rather distorted from the gravity, and those nuclei have higher neutron : proton ratios than normal. Please see astronomy.stackexchange.com/a/23173/16685 for further details. $\endgroup$
    – PM 2Ring
    Jul 19, 2019 at 20:19
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    $\begingroup$ @uhoh I still have nothing to say, apart from "Probably not". And it looks like Rob J doesn't want to answer it either. I guess you might get some exotic nuclei during the initial collapse, but nothing beyond what happens in a neutron star. And afterwards, infalling matter is too busy being spaghettified to do anything constructive. ;) $\endgroup$
    – PM 2Ring
    Jul 19, 2019 at 22:52
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    $\begingroup$ @uhoh thank you for boosting this question with bounties ! $\endgroup$
    – Astrea
    Jul 26, 2019 at 13:59

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After a google search the answer is yes, in theory. There is nucleosynthesis associated with the Black Hole accretion disks, see here, here and here. These sources look at the nucleosynthesis in the hotter parts of the accretion disks surrounding black holes, and how this is effected by the neutrinos produced.

It is also proposed that its possible for very small mass (10e-9 Mass of sun) black holes to be devoured by a neutron star (see here) and produce many of the heavier elements. This method starts with primordial black holes which can be of the required mass compacted into a region the size of a single atom. This tiny black hole could crash into a neutron star and initiate the r-process for nucleosynthesis.

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  • $\begingroup$ Great, I'll give these sources read today. Thank you for taking my question seriously! $\endgroup$
    – uhoh
    Jul 25, 2019 at 20:39
  • $\begingroup$ Good answer, I will read those documentations more seriously this week-end. Thank you ! $\endgroup$
    – Astrea
    Jul 26, 2019 at 13:55

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