External Particle Induced X-ray Emission Research Articles

External milli-beam PIXE analysis of the mineral pigments of glazed Iznik (Turkey) ceramics

25 Iznik glazed ceramics fragments - shards of vessels, plates for wall decorations found in Moldova’s capital Suceava, in Prince Vasile Lupu (1600-1640) palace and shards excavated from a Danube ford - Piua Pietrii, a renowned commercial centre during 17th Century were studied. We used external milli-beam PIXE (Particle Induced X-ray Emission) spectroscopy to investigate the capabilities of this method to identify the metals from ceramics mineral pigments. Cobalt, Lead-Antimony, Copper, Chromium, Iron and Manganese minerals used to obtain blue, yellow, green, red and brown colours were identified. Our PIXE results were compared with data from literature obtained on Iznik tiles samples using Raman spectroscopy proving a good compatibility.

External Particle-Induced X-Ray Emission Analysis of Medicinal Plant Leaves and Fly Ash

External Particle-Induced X-Ray Emission Analysis of Medicinal Plant Leaves and Fly Ash

Analysis of ancient Indian silver punch-marked coins by external PIXE

Seven silver punch-marked coins were analysed using external particle induced X-ray emission technique. The main group of elements like Ag, Cu, Au, Pb and Fe were estimated along with a number of trace/minor elements such as K, Ca, Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Co, Ni and Rb in the analysed silver coins. Gold was found in all the coins and varied between 0.7% and 6.2% indicating the better economic condition of that civilisation.

Improvements in the analysis of calcium‐rich materials by external PIXE using selective absorbers

AbstractFor particle‐induced x‐ray emission (PIXE) spectroscopy and x‐ray fluorescence (XRF) spectrometry, the analysis of materials rich in one or two elements may present some difficulties owing to high counting rates and saturation effects in x‐ray detectors. In this case, it is possible to use selective absorbers in order to reduce significantly the intensity of the characteristic x‐rays of major elements with low attenuation for the characteristic x‐rays of other elements. For calcium‐rich materials (cements, shells, bone, teeth and stucco, for instance), the high intensity of Ca Kα, β x‐rays interferes with the detection of x‐rays of lighter and heavier elements. Compounds containing chlorine, argon and silver are good candidates for calcium‐selective absorbers, but only silver and argon absorbers may have a practical thickness when compounds of chlorine cannot be used owing to the presence of fluorescence signals from the absorber in the x‐ray spectra. A selective absorber for Ca Kα, β x‐rays using thin silver films and a flux of Ar–He was tested at an external beam setup for PIXE measurements. In this paper, the improvement in x‐ray detection is demonstrated. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

One-Year Study of the Elemental Composition and Source Apportionment of PM10 Aerosols in Florence, Italy

An extensive investigation was carried out for the characterisation of the air particulate composition in Florence. The aim was to determine the aerosol elemental concentrations, as well as to identify pollution sources. For our investigation, the external Particle-Induced X-Ray Emission–Particle-Induced γ-Ray Emission beam facility of the Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare, Van de Graaff accelerator at the Physics Department of the Florence University was used. We report the results of the analysis of a long temporal series (approximately 1 yr) of PM10 particulate samples, collected on Millipore filters on a daily basis in three different sites (characterised by different urban settings). Daily concentrations of more than 20 elements were detected. The long sampling period (approximately 1 yr) allowed a comparison with the air quality recommended values and the identification of seasonal variations. Four main sources (traffic, oil-combustion, soil-dust, and wind transported sea-salt) were extracted with the help of Principal Component Analysis (PCA). An absolute PCA showed traffic to be the major source both in the high traffic site and in the urban background site.

External-beam PIGE for fluorine determination in atmospheric aerosol

Air pollution measurements have been performed at Montelupo, a town about 20 km west of Florence, characterised by the presence of a large number of ceramic and glass factories just inside the inhabited area. Both filters collecting aerosols during 24 h and streaker filters with 1-h resolution capability have been analysed, using external Particle Induced X-ray Emission (PIXE) and Proton-Induced Gamma-Ray Emission (PIGE) simultaneously. The best operating conditions for getting quantitative information from the PIGE analysis of fluorine in the external beam set-up have been investigated. The minimum detection limit for the concentration of fluorine in air is in the order of 10 ng/m 3. Some specific results concerning fluorine determination in both the 24 and 1-h resolution measurements are finally presented. While the average detected concentrations in air come out to be well below the air quality limits, time episodes of relatively higher concentration have been detected and thanks to the time correlation with the other elements the origin of these pollution episodes can be hypothesised with a good degree of confidence.