Determination of rare earth elements in Fe-minerals using external calibration by LA-ICP-MS and application on Cauê Iron Formation (Brazil).

The rare earth elements (REE) composition in Fe-mineral phases is an important tool in iron formation studies to obtain information about parent rocks and environmental and paragenetic processes. However, the determination of REE presents some difficulties, such as the low concentration of these elements, matrix complexity and lack of iron matrix certified reference materials. The aim of the present work is to propose an analytical method to determine the REE plus Y (REE + Y) contents at trace levels in Fe-(hydr)oxides by the laser ablation ICP-quadrupoleMS technique, using external calibration.