Isotope ratio measurements environmental samples

Recently, it has been shown that Pb isotope ratios in environmental samples can be measured with acceptable accuracy and precision using ICP-SMS [55,56]. 

Accurate, precise isotope ratio measurements are important in a wide variety of applications, including dating, examination of environmental samples, and studies on drug metabolism. The degree of accuracy and precision required necessitates the use of special isotope mass spectrometers, which mostly use thermal ionization or inductively coupled plasma ionization, often together with multiple ion collectors. 

In principle to all elements at low (ppb) concentrations. Valuable for first look analysis, at solid samples. Isotopic ratio measurements can distinguish between sources of elements in tracer studies and environmental samples. Use in geological dating based upon isotopic ratios. 

For direct isotope ratio measurements on solid samples, laser ablation ICP-MS (LA-ICP-MS) is applied to an increasing extent in geology, geochronology, biology and environmental research.6... 

As the most important inorganic mass spectrometric technique, ICP-MS is also employed for the precise and accurate isotope ratio measurements of a multitude of elements (such as Li, B, S, Fe, Sr, Pb, U, Pu) in environmental samples (see Chapter 8).9,88-90 Isotope ratio measurements of environmental samples require special careful sample preparation techniques including trace/matrix separation and enrichment procedures if the analytes are at the trace and ultratrace level. As an example, the schematic diagrams of the separation and enrichment procedures for the precise isotope analysis of Pu, U and Sr in water samples from the Sea of Galilee using double-focusing... 

This chapter provides an overview of mass spectrometer function and operation. It describes specific instrument types with demonstrated or potential application for measuring radionuclides and surveys the application of these instruments to radionuclide detection. Finally, it discusses the circumstances under which use of mass spectrometers is advantageous, the type of mass spectrometer used for each purpose, and the conditions of sample preparation, introduction and analysis. Its perspective is from a national laboratory active in environmental and non-proliferation monitoring. It emphasizes isotope ratio measurements, but mass spectrometric measurements also provide isotope mass information. Several recent books describe elemental and isotope ratio mass spectrometry in far greater detail than is presented here (Barshick et al., 2000 De Laeter, 2001 Montaser, 1998 Nelms, 2005 Platzner, 1997 Tuniz et al., 1998). High-resolution mass spectrometry forms the basis of the mass scale used for elemental and isotopic masses (Coplen, 2001), but this application of MS falls outside the scope of this chapter. 

Boulyga, S. F., Becker, J. S., Matusevitch, J. L., and Dietze, H. J. 2000. Isotope ratio measurements of spent reactor uranium in environmental samples by using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. Int J Mass Spectrom 203(1-3), 143-154. 

Magara, M., Sakakibara, T., Kurosawa, S., Takahashi, M., Sakurai, S., Hanzawa, Y., Esaka, R, Watanabe, K., and Usuda, S. E. 2002. Isotope ratio measurement of uranium in safeguards environmental samples by inductively-coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). J Nucl Sci Technol 39(4), 308-311. 

---