ICP-MS Analysis of Noble Metals at Low Levels in Geological Reference Materials and Ores

In most cases, elements such as gold, platinum, rhodium, and iridium, generally considered noble metals and partly belonging to the so-called platinum group metals (PGMs), are considered interference free in inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). However, in cases where they need to...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Spectroscopy (Springfield, Or.) Or.), 2018-09, Vol.33 (s9), p.16-34
Main Authors: Kutscher, Daniel, Leykin, Alexey, Nelms, Simon, Ducos, Shona McSheehy
Format: Magazinearticle
Language:English
Subjects:
Calibration
Detection
Geology
Gold
Hafnium
Heavy metals
Hydrochloric acid
Impact analysis
Inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry
Interference
Iridium
Kinetic energy
Mass spectrometry
Mass spectroscopy
Metals
Mineral deposits
Minerals
Mining
Noble metals
Ores
Platinum
Quadrupoles
Reference materials
Rhodium
Scientific imaging
Tantalum
Trace metals
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Summary:In most cases, elements such as gold, platinum, rhodium, and iridium, generally considered noble metals and partly belonging to the so-called platinum group metals (PGMs), are considered interference free in inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). However, in cases where they need to be accurately quantified at low levels, for example, to determine if their concentration in an ore deposits is high enough to economically justify mining and processing the ore, other elements may easily interfere and cause significant bias. Even trace amounts of hafnium and tantalum severely affect the detection of Pt and Au as a result of interference from HfO, HfOH, and TaO, and negatively impact analysis results. Especially when very low amounts need to be detected, kinetic energy discrimination (KED), the primary tool applied to remove polyatomic interferences in single-quadrupole ICP-MS, is not sufficiently effective to eliminate all interferences at the level required for the accurate quantification of ultratrace amounts of Au, Pt, Rh, and Ir.
ISSN:0887-6703
1939-1900