GGR Handbook of Rock and Mineral Analysis Chapter 6 (Part 1) Principles and Practice of X-Ray Fluorescence Spectrometry –1: Fundamentals of XRF and Matrix Corrections

Abstract

This chapter (Principles and Practice of X-Ray Fluorescence Spectrometry – 1: Fundamentals of XRF and Matrix Corrections) is a contribution to the Geostandards and Geoanalytical Research Handbook of Rock and Mineral Analysis – an online textbook that is a fully revised and updated edition of the Handbook of Silicate Rock Analysis (P. J. Potts, 1987, Blackie, Glasgow).

Chapter 6, Part 1 (from Section 2 of the handbook dealing with techniques for the determination of major and trace elements) considers the fundamentals of XRF spectrometry and matrix corrections in detail. Part 2 deals with wavelength dispersive and energy dispersive instrumentation. Following an introduction dealing with the analytical characteristics of XRF spectrometry, Part 1 continues with a detailed consideration of the origin and excitation of X-ray spectra. Sub-chapters that tackle the interaction of X-rays with matter and the matrix effect in geological materials follow this. Part 1 is concluded with a mathematical treatment of the correction of absorption-enhancement effects.