Advanced inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry analysis of rare earth elements : environmental applications; Proefschrift Technische Universiteit Delft.

Rare Earth Elements (REEs) are a group of 16 related elements with low concentrations in air particulate matter, soil and water. An analytical technique was devised capable of measuring simultaneously all 16 REEs at very low levels and at great speed in environmental matrices. The ICP-MS in combination with the PLSR model and ion exchange preconcentration offers a fast multi-element analysis technique with high precision and accuracy and detection limits of below 1 ng.r\ REEs were analysed in river sediments, soils and air in The Netberlands and China. In air particulate metter, tbe variation of REE concentration depended on the wind direction and could be correlated with the emission type (petrochemical industry, traffic, background). Chinese river sediments showed strong enrichment in Gd. High crust-normalised ratios were observed for Ce and Dy in Guangdong soils. Dutch soil from a particular site was enriched in Gd, Nd, Dy and Ce, as well as in heavy metais. In leaching tests, less than 0.8% of the total REE content of the soil was released, which was much lower than for heavy metais. REEs are generally poorly soluble in the environment and remain adsorbed to soils