title: Towards the development of a fossil bone geochemical standard: an inter-laboratory study.
abstract: Ten international laboratories participated in an inter-laboratory comparison of a fossil bone composite with the objective of producing a matrix and structure-matched reference material for studies of the bio-mineralization of ancient fossil bone. We report the major and trace element compositions of the fossil bone composite, using in-situ method as well as various wet chemical digestion techniques. For major element concentrations, the intra-laboratory analytical precision (%RSD(r)) ranges from 7 to 18%, with higher percentages for Ti and K. The %RSD(r) are smaller than the inter-laboratory analytical precision (%RSD(R); <15-30%). Trace element concentrations vary by approximately 5 orders of magnitude (0.1 mg kg(-1) for Th to 10,000 mg kg(-1) for Ba). The intra-laboratory analytical precision %RSD(r) varies between 8 and 45%. The reproducibility values (%RSD(R)) range from 13 to <50%, although extreme value >100% was found for the high field strength elements (Hf, Th, Zr, Nb). The rare earth element (REE) concentrations, which vary over 3 orders of magnitude, have %RSD(r) and %RSD(R) values at 8-15% and 20-32%, respectively. However, the REE patterns (which are very important for paleo-environmental, taphonomic and paleo-oceanographic analyses) are much more consistent. These data suggest that the complex and unpredictable nature of the mineralogical and chemical composition of fossil bone makes it difficult to set-up and calibrate analytical instruments using conventional standards, and may result in non-spectral matrix effects. We propose an analytical protocol that can be employed in future inter-laboratory studies to produce a certified fossil bone geochemical standard.
authors.affiliation: National Oceanography Centre Southampton, University of Southampton, European Way, Southampton SO14 3ZH, UK. vmcc@noc.soton.ac.uk
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Chavagnac
authors.forename: J A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Milton
authors.forename: D R H
authors.initials: DR
authors.lastname: Green
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Breuer
authors.forename: O
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Bruguier
authors.forename: D E
authors.initials: DE
authors.lastname: Jacob
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Jong
authors.forename: G D
authors.initials: GD
authors.lastname: Kamenov
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Le Huray
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: M R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Palmer
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Pourtalès
authors.forename: I
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Roduhskin
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Soldati
authors.forename: C N
authors.initials: CN
authors.lastname: Trueman
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Yuan
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001031:Apatites / Q000032:analysis; D001842:Bone and Bones / Q000737:chemistry*; D005580:Fossils; D007834:Lasers; D013058:Mass Spectrometry / Q000379:methods*; D008674:Metals, Rare Earth / Q000032:analysis; D010755:Organophosphates / Q000032:analysis; D012015:Reference Standards; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D014131:Trace Elements / Q000032:analysis
chemical_list: D001031:Apatites; D008674:Metals, Rare Earth; D010755:Organophosphates; D014131:Trace Elements