Use of highly energetic (116 keV) synchrotron radiation for X-ray fluorescence analysis of trace rare-earth and heavy elements

This study has revealed the advantages of the use of 116 keV X-rays as an excitation source of X-ray fluorescence (XRF) analyses. This technique is suitable for nondestructive multielemental analyses of heavy elements such as rare-earth elements. The lowest MDL value evaluated for the bulk analysis of a JG-1 standard reference sample (granite rock) was 0.1 ppm for W for a 500 s measurement. The spectrum of standard glass samples of SRM612 demonstrated clearly resolved K-line peaks of more than 30 elements, including all the existing rare-earth elements, at 50 ppm levels. The calibration curve for the determination of a rare-earth element shows a linear relation between the XRF intensity and concentrations from 10 to 0.03 ng. This powerful technique should be useful for nondestructive analyses of rare-earth and heavy elements in geological, geochemical and archaeological samples as well as industrial materials.