Application of LA-ICP-MS in the Analysis of Archaeological Glass and Source Discrimination

Abstract

BACKGROUND Quantitative analysis of ancient glass and vitreous materials has important significance for studying its production time, origin, source of raw materials and production process. Compared with traditional analysis methods (eg. EMPA, EDX-SEM), LA-ICP-MS can be used to analyze the primary, minor and trace elements in samples quickly and accurately. OBJECTIVES To investigate the composition of archaeological glass and discriminate its sources. METHODS The element concentration in ancient glass and vitreous materials were determined by LA-ICP-MS. The surface morphologies of pits in glasses were displayed by AFM. RESULTS The matrix effect among NIST610 and Corning A-D was insignificant under 193nm laser system and this experimental condition. A quantification strategy based on NIST610 and normalization to 100% (w/w) was suitable for analyzing Corning A-D and ancient glass samples. Study on different ablation modes in the experiment is helpful for the establishment of different experimental conditions to meet the requirement of different studies. CONCLUSIONS Unearthed samples were analyzed, which provided data support for the source of the product.

Keywords

• ancient glass and vitreous materials
• la-icp-ms
• reference materials
• matrix effect
• quantification strategy