Abstract:
The content of Re-Os in asphalt samples is relatively low, and CO
2 are released in digestion because of large amounts of organic matter. It is important to control the amount of asphalt in the sample and the proportion of oxidant to ensure the Os recovery and stability of the measured signal. The method for the Re-Os isotope was improved because of large amounts of organic matter contained in bitumen samples. The Oxidants was changed to 3 mL HCl, 4 mL HNO
3 and 3mL H
2O
2 from the original 3 mL HCl and 6 mL HNO
3, the improved method making the Os measured signal approximately 2 times larger than before. Changes in oxidants composition increase the amount of the bitumen sample weight greatly from th eoriginal 0.2 g to 0.4 g. Influence of H
2O
2 added with routine reverse aqua regia and direct distillation from a Carius tube on the signal intensity of osmium measured by Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectrometry(ICP-MS). was studied. Bitumen samples were dissolved and equilibrated with a known amount of
185Re and
190Os tracers in 2 mL HCl, 5 mL HNO
3 and 2 mL H
2O
2 by a Carius tube at 200℃ for 12 h and 240℃ for 12 h, with the Os and Re separated using direct distillation or routine distillation and solvent extraction techniques, respectively.
187Re/
185Re,
187Os/
190Os and
192Os/
190Os were determined by ICP-MS. Bitumen samples in lead-zinc deposits from Yunnan Province were analyzed. The isochron ages was (60±2) Ma (MSWD=2.5,
n=7), and the initial
187Os/
188Os values was 4.36±0.14. The results show that Re-Os isotope is an effective tool to date bitumen samples and the Os in the bitumen originated from the crust. The established method can be used to date and trace the source of bitumen samples.