Importance of the sampling constant for the determination of gold in heterogeneous materials

Abstract

The Canadian reference ores of gold, MA-1, MA-1b, MA-2 and MA-2a, have been analysed, by using 12–16 replicates of different amounts, to determine their sampling constants by instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA). The analytical errors associated with INAA have been evaluated using synthetic rock standards and actual samples. The sampling constants calculated for 1 g samples for a 1% sub-sampling error are 62, 66, 488 and 402 g and for a 3% sub-sampling error are 7, 7, 54 and 58 g for MA-1, MA-1b, MA-2 and MA-2a, respectively.