Rb, Sr, Nd and Sm concentrations in
quartz
George
R. Rossman, D. Weis, and G.J. Wasserburg
Division of Geological and Planetary Sciences
California Institute of Technology, Pasadena, CA 91125, USA
Abstract
The concentrations of Rb, Sr, Nd and Sm in quartz
crystals from Crystal Peak, Colorado; Steewart Mine, California; Tomas
Gonzaga, Minas Gerais, Brazil; and Coleman Mines, Arkansas, were
determined by isotope dilution mass spectrometry. Concentrations ranged
from : 1.1y to 177 ppb Rb; 3.26 to 1027 ppb Sr; 0.0159 to 0,.48 ppb Sm;
0.127 to 2.81 ppb Nd. In the Brasilian crystal, concentrations of these
elements were correlated with the amount of fluid inclusion water
measured visually by turbidity and quantitatively with infrared
absorption spectroscopy. The highest Rb content was found for a crystal
free of visible inclusions, indicating that small amounts of Rb can
also occur in quartz itself. Rb and Sr contents are much lower in
synthetic quartz grown commercially from the Arkansas quartz.