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Isotope reference materials
(2022)
The variation of isotope ratios is increasingly used to unravel natural and technical questions. In the past, the investigation and interpretation of such variations was the field of a limited number of experts. With new upcoming techniques and research topics in the last decades, such as provenance or food authenticity studies, the number of published isotope data strongly increased. Instrumental developments such as the enhancement of inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometers (ICP-MS) from an instrument for simple quantitative analysis to highly sophisticated isotope ratio machines influenced this process significantly. While in former times only experts in mass spectrometry were able to produce reliable isotope data, nowadays many laboratories, never been in touch with mass spectrometry before, produce isotope data with an ICP-MS. Isotope reference materials (iCRM) are indispensable to enable a reliable method validation or in rare cases even SI-traceability. The fast development and the broad availability of ICP-MS also lead to an expansion of the classical research areas and new elements are under investigation. Irrespective of the investigated element or the knowledge of the user all isotope ratio applications require reference materials either for correction of instrumental isotope fractionation, for method validation or to provide a common accepted basis as needed for delta measurements. This presentation will outline the basic principles and illustrate the urgent need for new iCRMs. Consequently, the production and certification of iCRMs will be discussed and illustrated by examples of already completed certification projects. Finally, plans for future iCRMs to be produced at BAM will be presented.
The need for quality assessment of anthropogenic impact on environmental pollution is increasing due to discharge from various industries, the use of chemicals in agriculture and the consumption of fossil fuels. Diminishing resources such as natural waters used for the cultivation of agricultural products, plant and animal habitats are under severe pollution pressure and are at constant risk. Several parameters, such as Pb, Cd, Ni, Hg were listed by Water Framework Directive in Directive(2008/105/EC) in the priority substances. Cadmium and Hg were identified as priority hazardous substances whereas As is an important contaminant for its potential toxicological and carcinogenic effects. An inter-comparison study is organised in EURAMET TC-MC in order to demonstrate the capability participants for measuring five elements in river water. The participants carried out measurements for analytes: Pb, Cd, Ni and As as mandatory elements, and Se as an optional one. Participants were asked to perform the measurements with respect to the protocol provided. To reach the main text of this paper, click on Final Report. Note that this text is that which appears in Appendix B of the BIPM key comparison database https://www.bipm.org/kcdb/.
The final report has been peer-reviewed and approved for publication by the CCQM, according to the provisions of the CIPM Mutual Recognition Arrangement (CIPM MRA).
Accurate and precise isotope ratio measurements of heavy elements are playing an increasinglyimportant role in modern analytical sciences and have numerous applications. Today, isotope ratio measurements are typically performed with two principal techniques: thermal ionization mass spectrometry (TIMS) and multiple collector-inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (MC-ICP-MS). To obtain accurate results by mass spectrometry, isotopic certified reference materials (iCRMs) are needed for mass bias correction and for the validation of the method used for analysis.Thus, it is of paramount importance to achieve measurement comparability of all data reported, and to assess measurement capability of each CRM producer/National Metrology Institute (NMI). Therefore, the international comparison (CCQM-P213) was performed to assess the analytical capabilities of NMIs for the accurate determination of copper isotope ratio delta values in high purity materials. The study was proposed by the coordinating laboratories, National Research Council Canada (NRC), National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), Bundesanstalt für Materialforschung und -prüfung (BAM) and Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB), as an activity of the Isotope Ratio Working Group (IRWG) of the Consultative Committee for Amount of Substance - Metrology in Chemistry and Biology (CCQM). Participants included six NMIs and one designated institute (DI) from the six countries. Although no measurement method was prescribed by the coordinating laboratories, MC-ICP-MS with either standard-sample bracketing (SSB) or combined SSB with internal normalization (C-SSBIN) models for mass bias correction were recommended. Results obtained from the six NMIs and one DI were in good agreement.
The Federal Institute for Materials Research and Testing (BAM) organised an interlaboratory comparison (ILC) for the characterisation of 87Sr/86Sr isotope ratios in limestone (IAG/CGL ML-3) and Penrhyn slate (IAG OU-6) reference materials by applying the conventional method for 87Sr/86Sr isotope ratios. Samples were sent to thirteen analytical laboratories . Since both samples are powdered, rock materials, dissolution of the sample and Sr isolation via ion exchange chromatography were mandatory. This was done using acid, microwave/acid, bomb/acid digestion or borate fusion and subsequent isolation of Sr by means of commercially available ion exchange resins. In this study, we present and discuss the potential effects that differences between laboratories, and between two instrumental measurement techniques (i.e., MC-ICP-MS and MC-TIMS), may have upon the dispersion of measurement results of the 87Sr/86Sr isotope ratio in the two aforementioned reference materials. We used a statistical mixed effects model to assess the potential effects of both the laboratory and the measurement technique. Consensus values for both materials and associated standard uncertainties {(IAG/CGL ML-3 (0.708245±0.000004) mol/mol; IAG OU-6 (0.729769±0.000008) mol/mol} were estimated by fitting a linear, Gaussian mixed effects model (Pinheiro and Bates 2000) using the R function “lmer” defined in package “lme4”. The statistical results showed that there is no significant effect attributable to differences between instrumental techniques when both materials are considered together, or separately. The p-value of the test of significance of the measurement technique effect is greater than 0.54. For both materials there were statistically significant effects attributable to differences between laboratories when the measurement results for both materials were considered together and separately. This effect is less than 0.00004 in absolute value. However, for neither material did consideration or disregard for such differences induce significant changes in the estimate of the consensus value for the 87Sr/86Sr isotope ratio. Therefore, the effects attributable to differences between instrumental techniques or between laboratories can safely be disregarded when computing the best estimate for the true value of 87Sr/86Sr isotope ratio in these materials, by the community of expert laboratories represented in this study.
The reference method for obtaining absolute isotope ratios still is the isotope mixture approach. Due the huge efforts required the full isotope mixture approach is applied only by a few institutes worldwide. To enable an IRWG key comparison with a sufficiently large number of participants a proposal for absolute cu isotope ratios is presented where participants will be provided with the enriched isotopes, the isotope mixtures and the samples. In parallel a pilot study will be organized where alternative approaches for obtaining absolute Cu isotope ratios can be applied.
Thirteen laboratories participated in an international interlaboratory comparison for the determination of 87Sr/86Sr isotope ratios in four cement reference materials (RM) using the conventional method for 87Sr/86Sr isotope ratios analyses. Sample dissolution and Sr isolation via ion exchange chromatography were required since the cement samples were distributed as powders. Analytical preparation included the use of various digestion methods including mixed mineral acids, microwave/acid, bomb/acid digestion or borate fusion, followed by Sr separation using ion exchange chromatography. In this study, we evaluated whether any statistically significant differences were attributable to instrumental differences (i.e., MC-ICP-MS and MC-TIMS), or to laboratory-specific techniques (different sample preparation techniques, Sr isolation and the procedures for correcting the data outputs). To evaluate these effects, consensus values for cement RMs and associated standard uncertainties were estimated by fitting a linear, Gaussian mixed effects model using the R function “lmer” defined in package “lme4”. No statistically significant effects (SSE) attributable to instrumental differences regardless of whether the materials are considered together or separately were evident. There were SSE attributable to differences between laboratories for three cement RMs when the individual cements were considered separately. Since consideration or disregard for such differences does not induce significant changes in the estimate of the consensus values for the 87Sr/86Sr isotope ratios in cement RMs, these effects can safely be neglected when calculating the best estimates for the true values of 87Sr/86Sr isotope ratios in these RMs.
Roadmap for the purity determination of pure metallic elements – Basic rinciples and helpful advice
(2018)
High purity materials can serve as a realisation of the Système International d’Unitès (SI) unit amount of substance for the specific element. Solutions prepared from such high purity materials using gravimetric preparation and the concept of molar mass are used as calibration solutions in many fields of analytical chemistry. Calibration solutions prepared this way provide the traceability to the SI and are the metrological basis in elemental analysis.
The preparation and characterization of such primary pure substances, representing the realisation of the SI unit amount of substance, is undertaken only by a small number of National Metrology Institutes (NMI) and Designated Institutes (DI).
Many other NMIs and DIs, however, prepare elemental calibration solutions as calibrants for their measurement services, such as the certification of matrix Reference Materials or the provision of reference values for Proficiency Testing schemes. The elemental calibration solutions used for this purpose are not a direct service to customers, such as preparing secondary calibration solutions, but provide the source of traceability for the other services. Hence, it is necessary for the NMI or DI to obtain data on the purity of the pure metals or other materials used to prepare the solutions with measurement uncertainties meeting the needs of the above described services. This is commonly undertaken as a “fit for purpose” assessment, appropriate for the uncertainty requirement of the service provided to customers.
As a consequence, total purity measurements are a long-term strategy of CCQM-IAWG. Several studies were conducted (CCQM-P107, CCQM-K72 and CCQM-P149) on the measurement of the purity of zinc. From these studies, several conclusions can be drawn for the purity assessment of a pure (metallic) element. These conclusions will be put together in this document in order to assist all NMIs/DIs in performing a purity assessment, whenever needed.
Determination of absolute (SI‐traceable) isotope ratios: The use of Gravimetric Isotope Mixtures
(2023)
The presentation is brief overview on how to use gravimetric isotope mixtures to determine SI traceable isotope ratios. There is no mass spectrometer on earth that directly measures isotope ratios. Mass spectrometers will always measure signal intensity ratios instead. The actual problem is that the measured intensity ratios differ more or less from the isotope ratios. The difference can be up to more than 10 % in case of lithium while it‘s below 1 % in case of the heavier elements like lead or uranium. Consequently, the signal intensity ratios are expressed for example in V/V depending on the type of mass spectrometer you are using, while the isotope ratios are expressed in mol/mol. This phenomenon is called Instrumental Isotopic Fractionation (or short IIF) but the more common name is still mass bias (even though this name is not entirely correct). To convert the measured into the isotope ratio usually a simple multiplication with a so-called correction (or short K) factor is done. Therefore, the problem is to determine the K factor. In absence of isotope reference materials the golden route is via gravimetric isotope mixtures, which will be explained within the presentation.
The calibration of isotope ratio measurements is an ongoing challenge since instrumental isotope fractionation (IIF) has been detected in mass spectrometry (MS). There is a variety of approaches which either bypass IIF such as delta measurements or refer to reference materials (RMs) and thus shifting the problem of calibration to somebody else: the RM producer. For certifying isotope RMs with absolute isotope ratios only a few approaches are available, namely the isotope mixture approach, the double spike approach, the mass bias regression model and total evaporation in TIMS. All of them require either enriched isotopes, isotope RMs of another element or an RM for correcting residual error. As the enriched isotopes required for the isotope mixture and the double spike approach need to be fully characterized beforehand, all mentioned calibration approaches require a standard.
Here, a new and standard-free calibration approach for obtaining absolute isotope ratios of multi-isotopic elements has been developed. The underlying principle is that each MS suffers from IIF and thus yields a specific isotope fractionation line in a three-isotope diagram. When applying a second MS featuring a different ionization mechanism, we obtain a second isotope fractionation line with a different slope in the same three-isotope diagram. In both cases the absolute isotope ratios range somewhere on the isotope fractionation line. Consequentially, the intersect of both lines yield the absolute isotope ratios of the measured sample. This theory has been tested by measuring Cd and Pb isotope ratios of suitable isotope RMs with a TIMS and an ICP-MS, both equipped with multi-collector array. During the measurements the ionization conditions were changed such that different extent of the isotope fractionation has been achieved. With the resulting data set the theory described above could be verified. The obtained absolute isotope ratios were metrologically compatible with the certified isotope ratios. The remaining average bias of -5 ‰ can be reduced with further improvements. The calibration approach is universal and can be applied to any multi-isotopic element and it is not limited by the type of the mass spectrometer.
IRWG strategy update
(2023)
The presentations gives a short introduction into isotope analysis illustrated by examples from archaeology, food provenancing and metrology. In the main part current projects on the provenance determination of cement, the intercalibration of Mg isotope reference materials and the development of a new calibration approach for isotope measurements are presented.
This presentation gives a short overview of isotope ratio measurements being carried out in the past few years at BAM in different fields such as plant metabolism, food web structures and archaeology. The corresponding isotope reference materials which have been certified at BAM in parallel are presented as well. Additionally an outlook is being provided on future iRM projects.
Technologie-kritische Elemente (TCE) sind unentbehrliche Materialien für High-Tech Produkte wie Smartphones, Notebooks und Monitors. Ihr Bedarf wird voraussichtlich aufgrund des gesellschaftlichen Wandels hin zu einer grünen Ökonomie exponentiell ansteigen. Dieser Wandel wird vor allem auch durch erneuerbare Energien und Elektromobilität geprägt (European Green Deal). Diese Entwicklung in Verbindung mit einer nahezu fehlenden TCE Produktion in Europa setzt den Markt unter Druck und führt zu steigenden Preisen. Die Sicherung des TCE Nachschubs wurde in der gegenwärtigen Gesundheitskrise noch dringender und wurde daher auch zu einem der Hauptthemen des COVID-19 Recovery Plan, der eine Stärkung der europäischen Resilienz und Autonomie zum Ziel hat. Ein nachhaltige Lösung ist das Recycling der Abfall- bzw. Wertstoffe und letztendlich eine Circular Economy. Allerdings ist die Analyse von Abfallströmen schwierig und erfordert geeignete analytische Lösungen, die SI-rückführbare und somit vergleichbare Messergebnisse im gesamten Recyclingprozess ermöglichen. Die dafür erforderlichen, für TCE zertifizierte, Referenzmaterialien und nötige standardisierte Verfahren fehlen bisher nahezu vollständig. In diesem Beitrag werden die analytischen Herausforderungen, wie z.B. die extreme Heterogenität der Materialien, Schwierigkeiten beim Probenaufschluss und das Fehlen von Referenzmaterialien diskutiert. Und es wird das EMPIR-Projekt MetroCycleEU vorgestellt, dessen Ziel es ist Referenz- und Routineverfahren für ausgewählte TCE (Co, Ga, Ge, In, Ta, Nd, Pr, Dy, Gd, La, Au, Pt, Pd, Rh) zu entwickeln und Referenzmaterialien für Platinen, LEDs und Li-Batterien bereitzustellen.
IRWG strategy update
(2022)
Isotope amount ratios (hereafter referred to as simply isotope ratios) are proving useful in an ever increasing array of applications that range from studies unravelling transport processes, to pinpointing the provenance of specific samples as well as trace element quantification by using isotope dilution mass spectrometry (IDMS). These expanding applications encompass fields as diverse as archaeology, food chemistry, forensic science, geochemistry, medicine and metrology. However, to be effective tools, the isotope ratio data must be reliable and traceable to enable the comparability of measurement.
The importance of traceability and comparability in isotope ratio analysis has already been recognized by the Inorganic Analysis Working Group (IAWG) within the CCQM. Three pilot studies have focused on the quality of isotope ratio determinations (P48 “U isotope ratios in urine”, P75 “stable isotopes in Methionine”, P105 “87Sr/86Sr in wine”). Moreover, isotope ratio measurements are fundamental to IDMS amount of substance determinations. For example, when Pb quantification using IDMS is undertaken, this requires the measurements of Pb isotope ratios. While the requirements for isotope ratio accuracy and precision in the case of of IDMS are generally quite modest, “absolute” Pb isotope ratio measurements for geochemical age dating and source rock characterization as well as forensic provenance and fingerprinting studies require Pb isotope ratio measurements of the highest quality. To support present and future CMCs on isotope ratio determinations, a Key Comparison was urgently needed. Therefore, it was decided at the IAWG meeting in Paris in April 2011 that a Key Comparison on the determination of Pb isotope ratios in a pure Pb solution and in a bronze sample should be organized and accompanied by a pilot study.
Measuring Pb isotope amount ratios in a pure Pb solution, while seemingly straight forward, rigorously tests the ability of analyst to correct for any instrumental effects (such as mass discrimination and blank correction) on the measured ratios. Pb, present in trace amounts in a metal matrix sample (e.g. Pb in bronze), provides a real world test of the whole chemical and instrumental procedure, from chemical separation and sample purification to analysis and subsequent correction of appropriate instrumental effects on the separated samples.
A suitable bronze material with a Pb mass fraction between 10 and 100 mg·kg-1 was available at BAM. A high purity solution of Pb with a mass fraction of approximately 100 mg·kg-1 was also available. By comparing the Pb isotope ratio results obtained for the bronze sample with the Pb isotope ratio results from the Pb solution, potential biases arising from the processing of the bronze sample could be effectively identified and separated from the instrumental effects arising from the measurement and data processing protocol.
This presentation provides a short introduction to the Commission on Isotopic Abundances and Atomic Weights (CIAAW). It describes the role of the Commission and provides an insight into its work and the corresponding principal tasks. Finally, it provides the reader with the latest achievements and with the most recent publications.