TIMS analysis of Sr and Nd isotopes in melt inclusions from Italian potassium-rich lavas using prototype 1013 Ω amplifiers

Sr and Nd isotopes were determined using new thermal ionisation mass spectrometry (TIMS) techniques for a suite of 21 olivine-hosted (85-92 mol% Fo) melt inclusions selected from potassic and ultra-potassic lavas from the Italian peninsula. Sr isotopes were measured using default 10(11) Omega resistors, whereas Nd isotope compositions were determined using new 10(13) Omega resistors mounted in the amplifiers' feedback loop. Compared to default 10(11) Omega resistors, use of 10(13) Omega resistors results in a 10-fold improvement of the signal-to-noise ratio and more precise data when analysing small ion beams ( < 20 mV). A miniaturised Sr and Nd chemical separation procedure was developed to minimise total procedural blanks. Using the combined new chemical separation and TIMS analysis techniques samples as small as 2 ng Sr and 30 pg Nd were analysed successfully. Sr-87/Sr-86 ratios in the melt inclusions range from 0.70508 to 0.71543 and Nd-143/Nd-144 ratios range from 0.51175 to 0.51268. Significant differences in Sr-87/Sr-86 and Nd-143/Nd-144 were found between melt inclusions and host lavas indicating distinct evolution paths for the lava groundmasses and the primitive melts that were trapped in the olivine phenocrysts. In line with magmatic processes known to have affected Italian potassic volcanics, the observed differences between inclusions and host lavas can be attributed to (1) mixing and mingling of isotopically distinct magma batches, (2) assimilation of crustal material with different isotope compositions, and (3) early (incomplete) mixing of primitive melts derived from an isotopically heterogeneous mantle source. These data demonstrate the potential of the analysis of Sr and Nd isotope ratios in individual melt inclusions for detailed studies of magma mixing and evolution processes. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.