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Morphological and Chemical Characteristics of Airborne Tungsten Particles of Fallon, Nevada

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  16 May 2007

Paul R. Sheppard ,
Paul Toepfer ,
Elaine Schumacher ,
Kent Rhodes ,
Gary Ridenour  and
Mark L. Witten
Paul R. Sheppard
Affiliation:
Laboratory of Tree-Ring Research, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona 85721, USA
Paul Toepfer
Affiliation:
McCrone Associates, Inc., 850 Pasquinelli Drive, Westmont, Illinois 60559, USA
Elaine Schumacher
Affiliation:
McCrone Associates, Inc., 850 Pasquinelli Drive, Westmont, Illinois 60559, USA
Kent Rhodes
Affiliation:
McCrone Associates, Inc., 850 Pasquinelli Drive, Westmont, Illinois 60559, USA
Gary Ridenour
Affiliation:
625 W. Williams, Suite B, Fallon, Nevada 89406, USA
Mark L. Witten
Affiliation:
Department of Pediatrics, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona 85721, USA
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Abstract

Morphological and chemical characteristics were determined for airborne tungsten particles in Fallon, Nevada, a town that is distinguishable environmentally by elevated airborne tungsten and cobalt. From samples of airborne dust collected previously at six different places in Fallon, tungsten-rich dust particles were isolated and analyzed with automated electron microprobe and wavelength-dispersive spectrometry. Representative W particles were further analyzed using transmission electron microscopy. Morphologically, Fallon W particles are angular and small, with minimum and maximum sizes of ≤1 μm and 5.9 μm in diameter, respectively. The number and size of tungsten-rich particles decrease in Fallon with distance from a hard-metal facility located near the center of town. Chemically, Fallon airborne W particles include mixtures of tungsten with cobalt plus other metals such as chromium, iron, and copper. No W-rich particles were identifiable as CaWO4 (scheelite) or MnWO4 (huebnerite). From d-spacings, Fallon particles are most consistent with identification as tungsten carbide. Based on these multiple lines of evidence, airborne W particles in Fallon are anthropogenic in origin, not natural. The hard-metal facility in Fallon processes finely powdered W and W-Co, and further investigation using tracer particles is recommended to definitively identify the source of Fallon's airborne tungsten.

Keywords

FallonNevadaairborne particlestungstencobaltautomated electron microprobe analysistransmission electron microscopy
Type
MATERIALS APPLICATIONS
Information
Microscopy and Microanalysis , Volume 13 , Issue 4 , August 2007 , pp. 296 - 303
Copyright
© 2007 Microscopy Society of America

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