Detecting REE-rich areas in heterogeneous drill cores from Storkwitz using LIBS and a combination of k-means clustering and spatial raster analysis

This paper presents a novel approach to calculate matrix-matched intensity limits for the spatially resolved detection of rare earth element (REE) enrichments in highly heterogeneous geological material from the Storkwitz carbonatite based on scanning Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS). A drill core from the Storkwitz carbonatite was mapped in detail with a LIBS drill core scanner. For reference purposes, μ-EDXRF was applied for qualitative REE detection, and a microprobe was used for quantitative REE analysis.