ABSTRACT

We have developed a rapid and precise analytical technique for the determinations of Y and rare earth elements (REE) from silicate rock samples by preparing XRF glass beads and using laser ablation (LA)-ICP-MS. Combined with XRF analysis, abundances of 39 major and trace elements (Al, Ca, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, Na, P, Si, Ti; Ba, Ce, Co, Cr, Dy, Er, Eu, Ga, Gd, Ho, La, Lu, Ni, Nb, Nd, Pb, Pr, Rb, Sc, Sm, Sr, Tb, Th, Tin, V, Y, Yb, Zn, Zr) for around 30 powder samples of silicate rocks can be measured successfully within five days. The method was applied to twelve GSJ rock reference materials (JA-1, JA-2, JA-3, JB-1a, JB-2, JB-3, JG-1a, JG-2, JG-3, JGb-1, JR-1 and JR-2) to assess the precision and accuracy of our data. The data obtained from the GSJ rock reference materials reveals that most of the data ranging from the mafic to intermediate rock materials show good agreement with the compiled values reported by Imai et al. (1995) within ±20%. Though, the heavy-REE (Gd-Lu) for the felsic rock materials (e.g., JG-1a, JG-2, JR-1 and JR-2) showed large discrepancies compared with the compiled values, other elements are in good agreement. This can be explained due to the erroneous measurement of compiled values which may be attributed to incomplete dissolution of the rock materials for solution techniques.