Preparation of a synthetic titanite glass calibration material for in situ microanalysis by direct fusion in graphite electrodes: A preliminary characterisation by EPMA and LA-ICP-MS

This paper describes a technique for the preparation of a titanite (CaTiSiO₅) glass calibration material for use in in situ microanalysis of major, minor, and trace elements in geological materials. The starting composition was a titanite matrix doped with minor and trace elements at ∼200 μg g^-1. The elements Sc, Y, REEs, Th and U were added in the form of nitrates in solution, and the elements V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Zr, Nb, Hf and W were added as solid oxides. The synthetic titanite glass was produced by direct fusion by resistance heating in graphite electrodes at 1600-1700 °C, and quenched in air. Backscattered electron images indicate good homogeneity, with no signs of separate phases or vesicles, and analysis of the major elements Ca, Ti and Si by electron microprobe showed relative standard deviations between 0.5 and 0.7%, based on six independent measurements. Deviations from nominal concentrations for Ca, Si and Ti were measured to -1.2, -3.3 and -0.8%, respectively. The homogeneity of the trace elements in the glass was assessed by LA-ICP-MS analyses, using NIST SRM 610, 612 and 616 as external calibrators, and Ca as the internal standard element. Determinations were made both with a quadrupole mass spectrometer and a sector field instrument, and both raster and spot modes of analysis were used. For the majority of doped elements, precision was better than 10%, and relative deviations from nominal values were, with few exceptions, between 5 and 10%.