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arXiv · 2608.12462

Recycled Gas Dominates the Metal-rich Fuel of Supermassive Black Holes

Dongyun Kwak·Ena Choi·Hannah Jhee·Rachel S. Somerville·Thorsten Naab·Michaela Hirschmann·Jaejin Shin·Jong-Hak Woo
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Abstract

Understanding the origin and chemical properties of gas accreted by supermassive black holes (SMBHs) is essential for linking black hole growth to galaxy evolution. Using a suite of 30 high-resolution cosmological zoom-in simulations, we investigate the chemical properties of gas accreted onto SMBHs in massive galaxies with stellar masses of $10^{10.9-11.9}\,\rm M_\odot$ and black hole masses of $10^{8.5-9.7}\,\rm M_\odot$ at $z=0$. By tracing the full cosmological histories of individual gas particles, we identify their origins and enrichment pathways. The accreted gas is classified into four categories: ``early'' gas accreted during the early assembly phase of the main halo, ``external'' gas originating from other galaxies or subhalos, ``recycled'' gas enriched through stellar evolution processes within the primary galaxy, including asymptotic giant branch (AGB) winds and supernova ejecta, and ``smooth'' gas accreted from the intergalactic medium. We find that recycled gas dominates the accretion budget and is already metal rich at early epochs. Gas from other origins typically undergoes gradual chemical enrichment within the galactic environment prior to black hole accretion. The mean abundance ratios show only weak redshift evolution and are broadly compatible with the high metallicities inferred for quasar broad-line regions. Our results suggest that metal-rich gas supply to SMBHs arises naturally from cosmological galaxy evolution and stellar recycling.

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Dongyun Kwak, Ena Choi, Hannah Jhee, Rachel S. Somerville, Thorsten Naab, Michaela Hirschmann, Jaejin Shin, Jong-Hak Woo. 2026-08-12. Recycled Gas Dominates the Metal-rich Fuel of Supermassive Black Holes. https://arxiv.org/abs/2608.12462

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