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Updated: Jan 31, 2026

Synchrotron X-ray Microdiffraction and Fluorescence Imaging of Mineral and Rock Samples
Published on: June 19, 2018
Direct determination by portable ED-XRF of mineral profile in cocoa powder samples
L Herreros-Chavez1, M L Cervera1, A Morales-Rubio1
1Department of Analytical Chemistry, University of Valencia, 50 Dr. Moliner St., 46100 Burjassot, Valencia, Spain.
Abstract:
The present study has exploited the rapidity of the analysis and the multi-elemental capability of the energy dispersive X- ray fluorescence (ED-XRF) technique for the mineral profile determination in cocoa powder. A fast, cheap and environmental sustainable method without reagent consumption or toxic waste generation has been proposed. The samples can be prepared in the form of pellets of 13 mm in diameter and 2-3 mm thickness. The different internal calibrations used by ED-XRF equipment did not provide accurate results when comparing the mineral profile with the concentration obtained by Inductively Couple Plasma Optical Emission Spectroscopy (ICP-OES) after microwave assisted digestion of samples. For direct ED-XRF analysis of the cocoa samples, an external calibration using as standards the cocoa samples diluted with sugar was prepared. The analytical parameters of Relative Standard Deviation and Limit of Detection for the determined elements are adequate to the concentration levels found in the samples.
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