Inorganic Chemistry Unit

The elemental chemical composition of marine and lacustrine sedimentary archives provides valuable information for reconstructing climatic and environmental parameters. We use two complementary approaches: rapid, non-destructive analysis at high spatial resolution using a multifunction micro X-ray fluorescence (micro-XRF) scanner and quantitative analysis of elemental concentrations from discrete samples using an ICP-QMS (inductively coupled plasma-quadrupole mass spectrometry). The ICP-MS is used to quantitatively calibrate the profiles obtained by the XRF scanner and to measure elemental ratios in carbonates as paleoceanographic indicators.

The ICP-QMS and the XRF scanner were installed in 2007 and 2008 in two rooms of the Trocadero building, Antenna of the Collège de France. During the 2014 refurbishment, a cold room was installed to store sedimentary cores before their analysis with the XRF scanner. The equipment of the inorganic geochemistry unit was financed by credits allocated to the Collège de France and the CEREGE.