Document Type
Article
Publication Date
2019
College/Unit
Davis College of Agriculture, Natural Resources and Design
Department/Program/Center
Division of Plant and Soil Sciences
Abstract
The recent development of portable X-ray fluorescence spectrometers (PXRF) has created new avenues for rapid plant elemental concentration determination at reduced cost while avoiding hazardous chemicals. A few studies have indicated the potential use of PXRF for homogenous plant tissue analysis. However, there is a lack of information for analysis of heterogeneous plant samples like livestock forage, which consists of a mixture of several species and plant parts, each varying in elemental concentration. Our objective was to evaluate PXRF for forage analysis, specifically the effect of forage particle size and scan time on important elements including P, K, Ca, and Fe determination. Hay samples (n = 42) were oven dried (60◦C for 3 days) and ground into three particle sizes (≤0.5 mm, 0.25–0.5 mm and 1–2 mm). Prepared samples were scanned by PXRF using a vacuum (torr) without a filter. Samples were placed in cups over thin prolene X-ray film and scanned for 180 s. A subset (n = 29) were also scanned for 60 and 120 s. PXRF counts for P, K, Ca, and Fe were compared with laboratory Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectroscopy (ICP) determinations, using regression models. Results indicated that these elements could potentially be determined with PXRF (r 2 ≥ 0.70) in heterogeneous forage samples. Relationship strength increased with decreasing particle size, however, the relationship was still strong (r 2 ≥ 0.57) at the largest particle size. Scanning time did not affect the relationship with ICP concentration for any of the particle sizes evaluated. This work demonstrated that with the right sample preparation PXRF can obtain results comparable to acid digestion and ICP regardless of sample composition, and suggests the potential for in situ determinations
Digital Commons Citation
Sapkota, Yadav; McDonald, Louis M.; Griggs, Thomas C.; Basden, Thomas J.; and Drake, Brandon Lee, "Portable X-Ray Fluorescence Spectroscopy for Rapid and Cost-Effective Determination of Elemental Composition of Ground Forage" (2019). Faculty & Staff Scholarship. 2182.
https://researchrepository.wvu.edu/faculty_publications/2182
Source Citation
Sapkota, Y., McDonald, L. M., Griggs, T. C., Basden, T. J., & Drake, B. L. (2019). Portable X-Ray Fluorescence Spectroscopy for Rapid and Cost-Effective Determination of Elemental Composition of Ground Forage. Frontiers in Plant Science, 10. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2019.00317
Comments
Copyright © 2019 Sapkota, McDonald, Griggs, Basden and Drake. This is an openaccess article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) and the copyright owner(s) are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms