Determination of Beryllium and Zirconium In 45 Geochemical Reference Samples By Inductively Coupled Plasma Emission Spectrometry

The beryllium and zirconium contents of 45 geochemical reference samples have been determined by inductively coupled plasma after fusion of the samples with lithium metaborate and dissolution of the melt in dilute nitric acid. The method described here is rapid and sample preparation straightforward. Good agreement is shown with previously published results for these two elements. A correction has to be made for an interference due to vanadium in determining the beryllium content, and there is a slight interference due to yttrium in the determination of zirconium. The detection limit for beryllium is about 0.2 μg g^-1 and for zirconium about 15 μg g^-1 in the sample.