Determination of Trace Elements in the Quartz Reference Material UNS-SpS and in Natural Quartz Samples by ICP-MS |
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| Authors: | Thomas Monecke Gisela Bombach Werner Klemm Ulf Kempe Jens Götze Dieter Wolf |
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| Institution: | Freiberg University of Mining and Technology, Institute of Mineralogy, Brennhausgasse 14, D-09596 Freiberg, Germany. e-mail: |
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| Abstract: | A procedure for the digestion and analysis of quartz samples was developed to measure trace element concentrations in natural quartz. The certified glass sand reference material UNS-SpS was chosen to assess the precision, accuracy and detection limit of the analytical method. Quartz was digested with HF/HNO3 in a closed glassy carbon vessel and analysed by means of quadrupole ICP-MS with external calibration. Analyte concentrations of the sand UNS-SpS were compared with certified and other values from the literature. The abundances of a number of elements (Pr, Gd, Ho and Er) in the reference material are reported here for the first time. The procedure was then applied to three quartz samples from different geological settings to show that trace element data by ICP-MS can distinguish the origin of the sample. |
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| Keywords: | ICP-MS quartz certified reference material UNS-SpS lanthanides |
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