A completely automated system for measuring in situ K–Ar ages using laser ablation for argon extraction and potassium measurement, and mass spectrometry for argon determination is described. The system consists of a laser system, an optical spectrometer, a vacuum line, a noble gas mass spectrometer and control software. The automated prototype was designed with ease of use in mind, specifically planned for dating many samples at low cost and reasonable precision. This instrumentation can perform one hundred K–Ar analyses every 24 h with the current setup, including blanks, reference materials and unknowns. Measurement results for the reference materials HDB-1 biotite, GL-O glauconite, LP-6 biotite, Mica-Mg phlogopite, Alder Creek sanidine and two tektites (moldavite and indochinite) are presented. It is shown that very different sample matrices require specific calibrations. Uncomplicated sample preparation, fast analytical times and uncertainties typically below 5% (1 standard deviation), depending on the age and potassium content, are the hallmarks of the system, which is suitable for many exploratory geology applications (e.g. geological mapping, mineral provenance and dating of drill cores).

中文翻译：

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用于测量原位 K-Ar 年龄的自动化系统

用于原位测量的全自动系统描述了使用激光烧蚀进行氩气提取和钾测量的 K-Ar 年龄，以及用于氩气测定的质谱法。该系统由激光系统、光谱仪、真空线、惰性气体质谱仪和控制软件组成。自动化原型的设计考虑到了易用性，专门计划以低成本和合理的精度对许多样品进行测年。该仪器可以使用当前设置每 24 小时执行 100 次 K-Ar 分析，包括空白、参考材料和未知物。提供了参考材料 HDB-1 黑云母、GL-O 海绿石、LP-6 黑云母、云母-镁金云母、Alder Creek sanidine 和两种玻璃陨石（闪陨石和印度支那）的测量结果。结果表明，非常不同的样品基质需要特定的校准。