A New Sample Processing Protocol for Separation and Purification Enabling Precise Analysis of Various Non-Traditional Isotopes in Geological Samples with Low Concentrations
Many non-traditional isotopes, such as chlorine, magnesium, calcium, etc., are widely used as groundwater tracers. A new sample processing protocol of purification and concentration for isotopic analysis is presented to overcome many of the major drawbacks of existing methods. Contemporary sample pr...
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MDPI AG
2023-09-01
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2297-8739/10/9/497 |
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| author | Jianye Gui Wei Zou |
| author_facet | Jianye Gui Wei Zou |
| author_sort | Jianye Gui |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Many non-traditional isotopes, such as chlorine, magnesium, calcium, etc., are widely used as groundwater tracers. A new sample processing protocol of purification and concentration for isotopic analysis is presented to overcome many of the major drawbacks of existing methods. Contemporary sample preparation often requires several laborious off-line procedures in a ultra clean laboratory prior to instrumental determination; additionally, interference ions in real samples are difficult to completely remove, especially when the concentration of those ions is equal to that of the target ions. The new protocol includes the following steps: (i) one-step purification using a newly developed isotopic preparative chromatograph (IPC) with a background suppressed mode to obtain extremely pure components that only have target ions and H<sub>2</sub>O; (ii) enrichment of the collected pure solution from the previous step using a newly developed ultra clean concentrator filled with high purity nitrogen; (iii) transforming the enriched target ion into suitable speciation inside the ultra clean concentrator; (iv) finally, sending the enriched solutions to a multi-collector inductively coupled-plasma mass-spectrometer (MC-ICP-MS) or thermal ionization mass spectrometer (TIMS). The present method was validated using certified reference materials and real samples for both chlorine and magnesium; the precision of chlorine ratio value was generally below 0.22‰ and that of Mg was below 0.12‰. This processing protocol provides a potential method for isotope sample preparation and analysis in a small number of geological samples with low concentrations of many other elements or compounds such as nitrate, sulfate, lithium, calcium, strontium, etc. |
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| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2297-8739 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T22:00:42Z |
| publishDate | 2023-09-01 |
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| spelling | doaj.art-bd607d480492448c8301d608a88739da2023-11-19T12:57:58ZengMDPI AGSeparations2297-87392023-09-0110949710.3390/separations10090497A New Sample Processing Protocol for Separation and Purification Enabling Precise Analysis of Various Non-Traditional Isotopes in Geological Samples with Low ConcentrationsJianye Gui0Wei Zou1Fujian Provincial Key Laboratory of Water Cycling and Eco-Geological Processes, Key Laboratory of Groundwater Science and Engineering of Nature Resources, Institute of Hydrogeology and Environmental Geology, Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences (CAGS), Zhengding 050803, ChinaFujian Provincial Key Laboratory of Water Cycling and Eco-Geological Processes, Key Laboratory of Groundwater Science and Engineering of Nature Resources, Institute of Hydrogeology and Environmental Geology, Chinese Academy of Geological Sciences (CAGS), Zhengding 050803, ChinaMany non-traditional isotopes, such as chlorine, magnesium, calcium, etc., are widely used as groundwater tracers. A new sample processing protocol of purification and concentration for isotopic analysis is presented to overcome many of the major drawbacks of existing methods. Contemporary sample preparation often requires several laborious off-line procedures in a ultra clean laboratory prior to instrumental determination; additionally, interference ions in real samples are difficult to completely remove, especially when the concentration of those ions is equal to that of the target ions. The new protocol includes the following steps: (i) one-step purification using a newly developed isotopic preparative chromatograph (IPC) with a background suppressed mode to obtain extremely pure components that only have target ions and H<sub>2</sub>O; (ii) enrichment of the collected pure solution from the previous step using a newly developed ultra clean concentrator filled with high purity nitrogen; (iii) transforming the enriched target ion into suitable speciation inside the ultra clean concentrator; (iv) finally, sending the enriched solutions to a multi-collector inductively coupled-plasma mass-spectrometer (MC-ICP-MS) or thermal ionization mass spectrometer (TIMS). The present method was validated using certified reference materials and real samples for both chlorine and magnesium; the precision of chlorine ratio value was generally below 0.22‰ and that of Mg was below 0.12‰. This processing protocol provides a potential method for isotope sample preparation and analysis in a small number of geological samples with low concentrations of many other elements or compounds such as nitrate, sulfate, lithium, calcium, strontium, etc.https://www.mdpi.com/2297-8739/10/9/497matrix interferencestable isotopestracerisotopic preparative chromatography (IPC)thermal ionization mass spectrometry (TIMS) |
| spellingShingle | Jianye Gui Wei Zou A New Sample Processing Protocol for Separation and Purification Enabling Precise Analysis of Various Non-Traditional Isotopes in Geological Samples with Low Concentrations Separations matrix interference stable isotopes tracer isotopic preparative chromatography (IPC) thermal ionization mass spectrometry (TIMS) |
| title | A New Sample Processing Protocol for Separation and Purification Enabling Precise Analysis of Various Non-Traditional Isotopes in Geological Samples with Low Concentrations |
| title_full | A New Sample Processing Protocol for Separation and Purification Enabling Precise Analysis of Various Non-Traditional Isotopes in Geological Samples with Low Concentrations |
| title_fullStr | A New Sample Processing Protocol for Separation and Purification Enabling Precise Analysis of Various Non-Traditional Isotopes in Geological Samples with Low Concentrations |
| title_full_unstemmed | A New Sample Processing Protocol for Separation and Purification Enabling Precise Analysis of Various Non-Traditional Isotopes in Geological Samples with Low Concentrations |
| title_short | A New Sample Processing Protocol for Separation and Purification Enabling Precise Analysis of Various Non-Traditional Isotopes in Geological Samples with Low Concentrations |
| title_sort | new sample processing protocol for separation and purification enabling precise analysis of various non traditional isotopes in geological samples with low concentrations |
| topic | matrix interference stable isotopes tracer isotopic preparative chromatography (IPC) thermal ionization mass spectrometry (TIMS) |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2297-8739/10/9/497 |
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