Determination of Trace Elements in BCS CRM 313/1 (BAS) and NIST SRM 1830 by Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectrometry and Instrumental Neutron Activation Analysis

In the past, there has been little interest in the trace element characteristics of quartz, and in consequence little activity in the trace element characteristics of reference materials with high silicon content. The main purpose of this paper is to contribute to the characterisation of two international certified reference materials, BCS 313/1 from the Bureau of Analysed Samples, (BAS), UK and SRM 1830 from the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), USA. BCS 313/1 was analysed by laser ablation inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS), solution ICP-MS and instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA). NIST SRM 1830 was analysed by LA-ICP-MS and INAA. Analytical results are reported for more than forty elements, most of them for the first time. For most elements, the results obtained by the different methods agree within 15 % relative. The recent, heightened interest in quartz and in particular the precise determination of trace0element contents in natural quartz samples requires the use of well characterised reference materials such as BCS 313/1 and SRM 1830, to which this study is designed to contribute.