The dust budget crisis in high-redshift submillimetre galaxies

We apply a chemical evolution model to investigate the sources and evolution of dust in a sample of 26 high-redshift (z > 1) submillimetre galaxies (SMGs) with complete photometry from the UV-submillimetre. Models with dust produced only by low-intermediate mass stars fall a factor 240 short of the observed dust masses of SMGs, the well-known ‘dust-budget crisis’. Adding an extra source of dust from supernovae can account for the dust mass in 19% of the sample. After accounting for dust produced by supernovae the remaining deficit in the dust mass provides support for higher supernova yields or substantial grain growth in the interstellar medium. Efficient destruction of dust by supernova shocks increases the tension between the model and observed dust masses. Models which best reproduce the physical properties of SMGs have a rapid build-up of dust from both stellar and interstellar sources and minimal dust destruction.