Study of the Elemental Composition of Yellow Pine Using Particle Induced X-Ray Emission (PIXE)

摘要

It has been found that metals in woody tissue will influence the growth rate of trees. Utilization of particle induced x-ray emission (PIXE) for determination of trace element levels in biological systems is rather extensive. In this work, three rings taken from a 50-year-old Yellow Pine tree were PIXE analyzed with minimal sample preparation. Eight elements (potassium, calcium, titanium, chromium, manganese, iron, copper, and zinc) were studied during the PIXE analysis. The relationship between relative yield and tree ring thickness is presented for each detected element. These results show that wood taken from the oldest ring has the widest ring thickness and possesses the largest quantities of all the tested elements. Calcium appears to have the largest relative yield of all the tested elements and is roughly proportional to ring thickness. Heavier elements, such as lead and mercury, were not detected in any of the Yellow Pine samples.