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Solution and laser ablation MC-ICP-MS lead isotope analysis of gold

Solution and laser ablation MC-ICP-MS lead isotope analysis of gold
Solution and laser ablation MC-ICP-MS lead isotope analysis of gold
A new approach is presented for the analysis of lead isotopes in gold using solution and laser ablation multi-collector inductively-coupled plasma mass-spectrometry (MC-ICP-MS). Repeat analyses of two gold reference materials (RAuGP3: 34.1 ± 0.5 ppm Pb and RAuGP5: 129 ± 4 ppm Pb, from SPEX CertiPrep Ltd) yield an external reproducibility of <150 ppm for 207Pb/206Pb and 208Pb/206Pb and <250 ppm for 206Pb/204Pb, 207Pb/204Pb and 208Pb/204Pb for solution analyses after lead separation using a two-stage ion exchange chromatography methodology. External reproducibility of <600 ppm for 207Pb/206Pb and 208Pb/206Pb is achieved for laser ablation analyses. Due to the low abundance of 204Pb and the isobaric interference of mercury, the external reproducibility for 206Pb/204Pb, 207Pb/204Pb and 208Pb/204Pb is strongly dependant on the 204(Pb + Hg)/202Hg ratio: <1640 ppm when 204(Pb + Hg)/202Hg [similar]1 to 5, <900 ppm when 204(Pb + Hg)/202Hg [similar]5 to 20, and <810 ppm when 204(Pb + Hg)/202Hg >20. Instrumental mass bias is corrected by standard sample bracketing, using NIST SRM981 for solution analyses and NIST SRM610 for laser ablation analyses. Both techniques agree within error, and they have been further demonstrated through the analyses of both geological and archaeological samples: multiple grains from two Irish alluvial gold deposits and samples of two Early Bronze Age Irish gold lunulae. The applicability of these techniques to studies concerning the sources and age of gold mineralisation, and the identification of gold sources exploited in antiquity, is highlighted
0267-9477
217-221
Standish, Christopher
0b996271-da5d-4c4f-9e05-a2ec90e8561d
Dhuime, Bruno
af9695e7-1e10-449c-aa5f-c7a64810102c
Chapman, Robert
a330ae11-8899-4520-8e62-dec599ed5228
Coath, Christopher
04c4f323-d3e4-4c8a-be48-cedcfa79e6f9
Hawkesworth, Chris
d47ad7db-248f-42bb-b0a3-6b402f7dbcc5
Pike, Alistair
e8603e20-0a89-4d57-a294-247b983fc857
Standish, Christopher
0b996271-da5d-4c4f-9e05-a2ec90e8561d
Dhuime, Bruno
af9695e7-1e10-449c-aa5f-c7a64810102c
Chapman, Robert
a330ae11-8899-4520-8e62-dec599ed5228
Coath, Christopher
04c4f323-d3e4-4c8a-be48-cedcfa79e6f9
Hawkesworth, Chris
d47ad7db-248f-42bb-b0a3-6b402f7dbcc5
Pike, Alistair
e8603e20-0a89-4d57-a294-247b983fc857

Standish, Christopher, Dhuime, Bruno, Chapman, Robert, Coath, Christopher, Hawkesworth, Chris and Pike, Alistair (2013) Solution and laser ablation MC-ICP-MS lead isotope analysis of gold. Journal of Analytical Atomic Spectrometry, 28 (2), 217-221. (doi:10.1039/C2JA30277B).

Record type: Article

Abstract

A new approach is presented for the analysis of lead isotopes in gold using solution and laser ablation multi-collector inductively-coupled plasma mass-spectrometry (MC-ICP-MS). Repeat analyses of two gold reference materials (RAuGP3: 34.1 ± 0.5 ppm Pb and RAuGP5: 129 ± 4 ppm Pb, from SPEX CertiPrep Ltd) yield an external reproducibility of <150 ppm for 207Pb/206Pb and 208Pb/206Pb and <250 ppm for 206Pb/204Pb, 207Pb/204Pb and 208Pb/204Pb for solution analyses after lead separation using a two-stage ion exchange chromatography methodology. External reproducibility of <600 ppm for 207Pb/206Pb and 208Pb/206Pb is achieved for laser ablation analyses. Due to the low abundance of 204Pb and the isobaric interference of mercury, the external reproducibility for 206Pb/204Pb, 207Pb/204Pb and 208Pb/204Pb is strongly dependant on the 204(Pb + Hg)/202Hg ratio: <1640 ppm when 204(Pb + Hg)/202Hg [similar]1 to 5, <900 ppm when 204(Pb + Hg)/202Hg [similar]5 to 20, and <810 ppm when 204(Pb + Hg)/202Hg >20. Instrumental mass bias is corrected by standard sample bracketing, using NIST SRM981 for solution analyses and NIST SRM610 for laser ablation analyses. Both techniques agree within error, and they have been further demonstrated through the analyses of both geological and archaeological samples: multiple grains from two Irish alluvial gold deposits and samples of two Early Bronze Age Irish gold lunulae. The applicability of these techniques to studies concerning the sources and age of gold mineralisation, and the identification of gold sources exploited in antiquity, is highlighted

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More information

e-pub ahead of print date: December 2012
Published date: 2013
Organisations: Archaeology

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 351921
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/351921
ISSN: 0267-9477
PURE UUID: 44fb84a4-2af9-435b-8a54-0c7ad6e56078
ORCID for Christopher Standish: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0002-9726-295X
ORCID for Alistair Pike: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0002-5610-8948

Catalogue record

Date deposited: 29 Apr 2013 09:28
Last modified: 11 Jul 2024 01:52

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Contributors

Author: Bruno Dhuime
Author: Robert Chapman
Author: Christopher Coath
Author: Chris Hawkesworth
Author: Alistair Pike ORCID iD

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