Issue 1, 2014

High-precision copper and iron isotope analysis of igneous rock standards by MC-ICP-MS

Abstract

Stable isotopic systematics of Cu and Fe are two important tracers for geological and biological processes. Generally, separation of Cu and Fe from a matrix was achieved by two independent, completely different methods. In this study, we report a method for one-step anion-exchange separation of Cu and Fe from a matrix for igneous rocks using strong anion resin AG-MP-1M. Cu and Fe isotopic ratios were measured by multi-collector inductively coupled plasma mass-spectrometry (Neptune plus) using a sample–standard bracketing method. External normalization using Zn to correct for instrumental bias was also adopted for Cu isotopic measurement of some samples. In addition, all parameters that could affect the accuracy and precision of isotopic measurements were examined. Long-term external reproducibility better than ±0.05‰ (2SD) for δ65Cu and ±0.049‰ (2SD) for δ56Fe was routinely obtained. Cu and Fe isotopic compositions of commercially accessible igneous rock standards including basalt, diabase, amphibolite, andesite and granodiorite were measured using this method. δ65Cu values of igneous rock standards vary from −0.01 to +0.39‰ (n = 11) with an overall range (0.40‰) that exceeds about 8 times that of the current analytical precision. The improved precisions of stable Cu isotopic analysis thus demonstrate that igneous rocks are not homogeneous in Cu isotopic composition. The procedure for one-step separation of Cu and Fe and high-precision analysis of Cu and Fe isotopic ratios have an important advantage for economical and efficient study of stable Cu and Fe isotopic systematics in geological and biological fields.

Graphical abstract: High-precision copper and iron isotope analysis of igneous rock standards by MC-ICP-MS

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
12 Jul 2013
Accepted
09 Oct 2013
First published
09 Oct 2013

J. Anal. At. Spectrom., 2014,29, 122-133

High-precision copper and iron isotope analysis of igneous rock standards by MC-ICP-MS

S. Liu, D. Li, S. Li, F. Teng, S. Ke, Y. He and Y. Lu, J. Anal. At. Spectrom., 2014, 29, 122 DOI: 10.1039/C3JA50232E

To request permission to reproduce material from this article, please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

If you are an author contributing to an RSC publication, you do not need to request permission provided correct acknowledgement is given.

If you are the author of this article, you do not need to request permission to reproduce figures and diagrams provided correct acknowledgement is given. If you want to reproduce the whole article in a third-party publication (excluding your thesis/dissertation for which permission is not required) please go to the Copyright Clearance Center request page.

Read more about how to correctly acknowledge RSC content.

Social activity

Spotlight

Advertisements