scholarly journals New Insights into the Mineralogy and Geochemistry of Sb Ores from Greece

Minerals ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 236
Author(s):  
Evangelos Tzamos ◽  
Platon N. Gamaletsos ◽  
Giovanni Grieco ◽  
Micol Bussolesi ◽  
Anthimos Xenidis ◽  
...  

Antimony is a common metalloid occurring in the form of Sb-sulfides and sulfosalts, in various base and noble metal deposits. It is also present in corresponding metallurgical products (concentrates) and, although antimony has been considered a penalty element in the past, recently it has gained interest due to its classification as a critical raw material (CRM) by the European Union (EU). In the frame of the present paper, representative ore samples from the main Sb-bearing deposits of Greece (Kilkis prefecture, Chalkidiki prefecture (Kassandra Mines), and Chios Isl.) have been investigated. According to optical microscopy and electron probe microanalysis (EPMA) data, the Greek ores contain stibnite (Sb2S3), boulangerite (Pb5Sb4S11), bournonite (PbCuSbS3), bertherite (FeSbS4), and valentinite (Sb2O3). Bulk analyses by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) confirmed, for the first time published, the presence of a significant Hg content in the Kilkis Sb-ore. Furthermore, Kassandra Mines ores are found to contain remarkable amounts of Bi, As, Sn, Tl, and Se (excluding Ag, which is a bonus element). The above findings could contribute to potential future exploration and exploitation of Sb ores in Greece.

Minerals ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (11) ◽  
pp. 1236
Author(s):  
Sylwia Svorová Pawełkowicz ◽  
Barbara Wagner ◽  
Jakub Kotowski ◽  
Grażyna Zofia Żukowska ◽  
Bożena Gołębiowska ◽  
...  

Impurities in paint layers executed with green and blue copper pigments, although relatively common, have been studied only little to date. Yet, their proper identification is a powerful tool for classification of paintings, and, potentially, for future provenance studies. In this paper, we present analyses of copper pigments layers from wall paintings situated in the vicinity of copper ore deposits (the palace in Kielce, the palace in Ciechanowice, and the parish church in Chotków) located within the contemporary borders of Poland. We compare the results with the analyses of copper minerals from three deposits, two local, and one historically important for the supply of copper in Europe, i.e., Miedzianka in the Holy Cross Mountains, Miedzianka in the Sudetes, and, as a reference, Špania Dolina in the Slovakian Low Tatra. Optical (OM) and electron microscopy (SEM-EDS), Raman spectroscopy, and laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) have been used for a detailed investigation of the minute grains. Special attention has been devoted to antimony and nickel phases, as more unusual than the commonly described iron oxides. Analyses of minerals from the deposits helped to interpret the results obtained from the paint samples. For the first time, quantitative analyses of copper pigments’ impurities have been described.


2020 ◽  
Vol 35 (3) ◽  
pp. 455-460 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eduardo Bolea-Fernandez ◽  
Ana Rua-Ibarz ◽  
Milica Velimirovic ◽  
Kristof Tirez ◽  
Frank Vanhaecke

The occurrence of microplastics (MPs) in the environment is a matter of increasing concern. In this work, it has been shown for the first time that ICP-MS operated in single-event mode can be used for the characterization of MPs relying on their C content.


2021 ◽  
Vol 3 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert J. Rauschendorfer ◽  
Kyle M. Whitham ◽  
Star Summer ◽  
Samantha A. Patrick ◽  
Aliandra E. Pierce ◽  
...  

Plastics have long been an environmental contaminant of concern as both large-scale plastic debris and as micro- and nano-plastics with demonstrated wide-scale ubiquity. Research in the past decade has focused on the potential toxicological risks posed by microplastics, as well as their unique fate and transport brought on by their colloidal nature. These efforts have been slowed by the lack of analytical techniques with sufficient sensitivity and selectivity to adequately detect and characterize these contaminants in environmental and biological matrices. To improve analytical analyses, microplastic tracers are developed with recognizable isotopic, metallic, or fluorescent signatures capable of being identified amidst a complex background. Here we describe the synthesis, characterization, and application of a novel synthetic copolymer nanoplastic based on polystyrene (PS) and poly(2-vinylpyridine) (P2VP) intercalated with gold, platinum or palladium nanoparticles that can be capped with different polymeric shells meant to mimic the intended microplastic. In this work, particles with PS and polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) shells are used to examine the behavior of microplastic particles in estuarine sediment and coastal waters. The micro- and nanoplastic tracers, with sizes between 300 and 500 nm in diameter, were characterized using multiple physical, chemical, and colloidal analysis techniques. The metallic signatures of the tracers allow for quantification by both bulk and single-particle inductively-coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS and spICP-MS, respectively). As a demonstration of environmental applicability, the tracers were equilibrated with sediment collected from Bellingham Bay, WA, United States to determine the degree to which microplastics bind and sink in an estuary based of grain size and organic carbon parameters. In these experiments, between 80 and 95% of particles were found to associate with the sediment, demonstrative of estuaries being a major anticipated sink for these contaminants. These materials show considerable promise in their versatility, potential for multiplexing, and utility in studying micro- and nano-plastic transport in real-world environments.


2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 ◽  
pp. 1-11
Author(s):  
Trung Nguyen-Quang ◽  
Giang Do-Hoang ◽  
Minh Truong-Ngoc

Statistical interpretation of the concentrations of 42 elements, determined using solution-based inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) analysis and multivariate statistical methods, such as principal components analysis (PCA), was used to establish the provenance of pakchoi (Brassica rapa L. ssp. chinensis) from 6 areas in Ha Noi, Vietnam. Although pakchoi is widely cultivated and manufactured, no universal method is used to discriminate the origin of this vegetable. Our study introduced for the first time a method to classify pakchoi in small geographical areas. 42 metallic elements of pakchoi were detected by ICP-MS, which were further analyzed using multivariate statistical analysis to perform clusters based on the geographical locations. Eleven elements, i.e., 28Si; 56Fe; 59Co; 63Cu; 69Ga; 75As; 85Rb; 93Nb; 107Ag; 118Sn, and 137Ba, were identified as discriminators to distinguish pakchoi from those areas. Results from this study presented a new method to discriminant the geographical origins of pakchoi, which could apply to other types of vegetables on the food market.


2017 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 724-728 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xin Wei ◽  
Hankun Hu ◽  
Baogeng Zheng ◽  
Zikri Arslan ◽  
Hung-Chung Huang ◽  
...  

In this work an assay protocol based on the ICP-MS technique was developed and validated to simultaneously determine 24 essential, non-essential, and toxic metals for the first time in C. sinensis.


2018 ◽  
Vol 82 (S1) ◽  
pp. S147-S171 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zsuzsa Molnár ◽  
Gabriella B. Kiss ◽  
István Dunkl ◽  
György Czuppon ◽  
Federica Zaccarini ◽  
...  

ABSTRACTThe carbonate-dominated Mesozoic sequence of the Transdanubian Mountain Range contains Triassic, uranium-enriched phosphorite layers and Cretaceous, REE-enriched nodular phosphorite. Detailed investigation of these deposits may have an economic benefit because of their large U and REE contents. The dominant minerals in the Triassic phosphorite are carbonate-bearing fluorapatite (CFA) and calcite. According to the electron-probe microanalysis (EPMA) the U is mainly associated with the CFA crystals. Laser ablation-inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) measurement shows that CFA contains 137–612 ppm U and 113–261 ppm total REE + Y. The LA-ICP-MS U-Pb age of the uppermost phosphorite horizon is 237 ± 11 Ma, which conforms with the stratigraphic age of the host limestone.The Cretaceous nodular phosphorite occurs on the base of an Aptian crinoid-bearing limestone mostly in the form of encrustations around bio- and silicic-clasts, but the clasts also contain phosphorite. The main minerals in these crusts are CFA, calcite, quartz, glauconite and Fe-oxide-hydroxides. Based on EPMA the REE enrichment is related to CFA and LA-ICP-MS measurements show that it contains 748–2953 ppm total REE + Y.The redox-sensitive proxies and the shape of NASC normalized REE patterns indicate that both phosphorites formed in anoxic environments. There are significant differences between these deposits such as appearance, rock-forming minerals, and U and REE contents which indicate differences in their sedimentary environments. The present results suggest that the Triassic phosphorite was formed by inorganic precipitation in a reducing environment close to sea-mounts. The Cretaceous occurrence resulted from a concentric growth mechanism in cold, ascending seawater at the continental margin environment during the anoxic Selli Event (OAE 1a) and/or Paquier Episode (OAE 1b). The critical raw material contents were derived from other sources.


Author(s):  
Bayanova Т.B. ◽  
Drogobuzhskaya S.V. ◽  
Subbotin V.V. ◽  
Serov P.А. ◽  
Steshenko Е.N. ◽  
...  

Baddeleyite is a significant mineral successfully applied in the U-Pb geochronology for the precise dating of mafic rocks from layered intrusions with the platinum group element (PGE) and Cu-Ni mineralization. The Fennoscandian Shield hosts several layered Pt-Pd, Co-Cr-Ni, and Ti-V occurrences in the Northern (Karelian) and Southern (Karelian-Finnish) belts. The aim of this study is to estimate the content and distribution of rare earth elements (REE) in baddeleyite and to calculate temperatures (Т, ̊С) of the U-Pb system closure and baddeleyite crystallization compared to zircon from Cu-Ni and Pt-Pd deposits in the north-eastern Fennoscandian Shield. For the first time, baddeleyite crystals from Cu-Ni (Monchepluton) and Pt-Pd (Monchetundra) reefs of the Monchegorsk ore area have been studied in situ by the laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) to measure the U-Pb age of formation and the REE content.


2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Fatima Omari Alzahrani

Major dependence on wheat-based foods with low bioavailability of nutrients led to high malnutrition rates, especially in developing counties. Four wheat genotypes (Albelad (BE), Aldwasair (AD), Australia (AU) and Najran (NJ)) grown in Albaha region were analyzed for the first time for the variation in micronutrient (Se, Mo, Cu, Zn, Mn, Fe, B and Na) and macronutrient concentrations (P, Ca, Mg and K) in the whole wheat grain using Inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) in order to select genotype of high nutritional value of the wheat for human consumption for further breeding by farmers. Substantial micronutrient variation existed among the four genotypes according to their mean Se, Mo, Zn, and Na concentrations, while macronutrient variation existed in their P and Ca concentrations. The NJ genotype appeared to contain higher concentrations of Se, Na, and Ca than the other genotypes while AU contained higher concentrations of Zn and P than AD, BE, or NJ. The results of this study can provide information about micro- and macro-nutrient enriched wheat genotypes for agricultural strategies aimed at improving the nutritional value of wheat plants.


2017 ◽  
Vol 32 (5) ◽  
pp. 987-995 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gabriel Gustinelli Arantes de Carvalho ◽  
Pedro Vitoriano Oliveira ◽  
Lu Yang

An analytical protocol for the accurate and precise determination of the europium isotope ratio in low level natural waters is presented for the first time by using multi-collector inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (MC-ICP-MS) with a single-step column separation with di(2-ethylhexyl) orthophosphoric acid (HDEHP) resin.


2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Claude Vidaud ◽  
Laurent Miccoli ◽  
Florian Brulfert ◽  
Jean Aupiais

AbstractAfter entering the blood, plutonium accumulates mainly in the liver and the bones. The mechanisms leading to its accumulation in bone are, however, completely unknown. We already know that another uptake pathway not involving the transferrin-mediated pathways is suspected to intervene in the case of the liver. Fetuin, a protein playing an important role in bone metabolism, is proposed as a potential transporter of Pu from serum to bone. For the first time, the binding constants of these two proteins (transferrin and fetuin) with tetravalent plutonium at physiological pH (pH 7.0) were determined by using capillary electrophoresis (CE) coupled with inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). Their very close values (log10 KPuTf = 26.44 ± 0.28 and log10 KPuFet = 26.20 ± 0.24, respectively) suggest that transferrin and fetuin could compete to chelate plutonium, either in the blood or directly at bone surfaces in the case of Pu deposits. We performed competition reaction studies demonstrating that the relative distribution of Pu-protein complexes is fully explained by thermodynamics. Furthermore, considering the average concentrations of transferrin and fetuin in the blood, our calculation is consistent with the bio-distribution of Pu observed in humans.


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