Development of a Novel Method for Unraveling the Origin of Natron Flux Used in Roman Glass Production Based on B Isotopic Analysis via Multicollector Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry
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- 作者：Veerle Devulder ; Patrick Degryse ; Frank Vanhaecke
- 刊名：Analytical Chemistry
- 出版年：2013
- 出版时间：December 17, 2013
- 年：2013
- 卷：85
- 期：24
- 页码：12077-12084
- 全文大小：251K
- 年卷期：v.85,no.24(December 17, 2013)
- ISSN：1520-6882
文摘
The provenance of the flux raw material used in the manufacturing of Roman glass is an understudied topic in archaeology. Whether one or multiple sources of natron mineral salts were exploited during this period is still open for debate, largely because of the lack of a good provenance indicator. The flux is the major source of B in Roman glass. Therefore, B isotopic analysis of a sufficiently large collection and variety (origin and age) of such glass samples might give an indication of the number of flux sources used. For this purpose, a method based on acid digestion, chromatographic B isolation and B isotopic analysis using multicollector inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry was developed. B isolation was accomplished using a combination of strong cation exchange and strong anion exchange chromatography. Although the B fraction was not completely matrix-free, the remaining Sb was shown not to affect the 未11B result. The method was validated using obsidian and archaeological glass samples that were stripped of their B content, after which an isotopic reference material with known B isotopic composition was added. Absence of artificial B isotope fractionation was demonstrated, and the total uncertainty was shown to be <2鈥? A proof-of-concept application to natron glass samples showed a narrow range of 未11B, whereas first results for natron salt samples do show a larger difference in 未11B. These results suggest the use of only one natron source or of several sources with similar 未11B. This indicates that B isotopic analysis is a promising tool for the provenance determination of this flux raw material.