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Summary In postmenopausal osteoporotic women and up to 3 years of treatment with strontium ranelate, strontium was present only in recently deposited bone tissue resulting from formation activity during the period of treatment. Strontium was shown to be dose-dependently deposited into this newly formed bone with preservation of the mineralization. Introduction Interactions between strontium (Sr) and bone mineral and its effects on mineralization were investigated in women treated with strontium ranelate. Methods Bone biopsies from osteoporotic women were obtained over 5-year strontium ranelate treatment from phases II and III studies. Bone samples obtained over 3-year treatment were investigated by X-ray microanalysis for bone Sr uptake and focal distribution, and by quantitative microradiography for degree of mineralization. On some samples, Sr distribution (X-ray cartography) was analyzed on whole sample surfaces and the percentage of bone surface containing Sr was calculated. Bone Sr content was chemically measured on whole samples. Results In treated women, Sr was exclusively present in bone formed during treatment; Sr deposition depended on the dose with higher focal content in new bone structural units than in old ones constantly devoid of Sr, even after 3-year treatment. A plateau in global bone Sr content was reached after 3 years of treatment. Cartography illustrated the extent of surfaces containing Sr, and formation activity during strontium ranelate treatment was higher in cancellous than in cortical bone. Mineralization was maintained during treatment. Conclusion The quality of bone mineral was preserved after treatment with strontium ranelate, supporting the safety of this agent at the bone tissue level.

The Al-rich part of the Fe-Al phase diagram between 50 and 80 at.% Al including the complex intermetallic phases Fe 5 Al 8 (ε), FeAl 2 , Fe 2 Al 5 , and Fe 4 Al 13 was re-investigated in detail. A series of 19 alloys was produced and heat-treated at temperatures in the range from 600 to 1100 °C for up to 5000 h. The obtained data were further complemented by results from a number of diffusion couples, which helped to determine the homogeneity ranges of the phases FeAl 2 , Fe 2 Al 5 , and Fe 4 Al 13 . All microstructures were inspected by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and chemical compositions of the equilibrium phases as well as of the alloys were obtained by electron probe microanalysis (EPMA). Crystal structures and the variation of the lattice parameters were studied by x-ray diffraction (XRD) and differential thermal analysis (DTA) was applied to measure all types of transition temperatures. From these results, a revised version of the Al-rich part of the phase diagram was constructed.

X-ray spectromicroscopy with a full-field imaging technique is a powerful method for chemical analysis of heterogeneous complex materials with a nano-scale spatial resolution. For imaging optics, an X-ray reflective optical system has excellent capabilities with highly efficient, achromatic, and long-working-distance properties. An advanced Kirkpatrick–Baez geometry that combines four independent mirrors with elliptic and hyperbolic shapes in both horizontal and vertical directions was developed for this purpose, although the complexity of the system has a limited applicable range. Here, we present an optical system consisting of two monolithic imaging mirrors. Elliptic and hyperbolic shapes were formed on a single substrate to achieve both high resolution and sufficient stability. The mirrors were finished with a ~1-nm shape accuracy using elastic emission machining. The performance was tested at SPring-8 with a photon energy of approximately 10 keV. We could clearly resolve 50-nm features in a Siemens star without chromatic aberration and with high stability over 20 h. We applied this system to X-ray absorption fine structure spectromicroscopy and identified elements and chemical states in specimens of zinc and tungsten micron-size particles.

In this work, the phase equilibria of the binary Ag-In system were determined using electron probe microanalysis and differential scanning calorimetry on equilibrated alloys and diffusion couples. The compositions of the phase boundaries of solid phases that are highly scattered in the literature have been precisely determined. The temperatures of the invariant reaction ζ ⇄ γ + L and the polymorphic transformation ζ ⇄ γ are substantially lower than previously reported values. In addition, it was found that the In-rich ζ phase phase-separates after months of room-temperature aging.

The mining waste in Al-Amar gold mine is 150 kg a year due to leakage in the extraction process. Studying the textures of gold deposits can be helpful to improve the process of gold extraction. The present work aimed to study the texture, structure, and composition of gold deposits that have different textures and structures using Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), Electron probe microanalysis (EPMA), and Micro X-ray Fluorescence (µXRF). The ore minerals at different gold deposits were determined and these are pyrite, chalcopyrite, sphalerite, galena, and silica. The contents of Si and Zn in some specific areas are highly indicated to silica and sphalerite minerals, respectively. Additionally, the high contents of Fe and S, as well as some Cu, confirm the presence of pyrite and chalcopyrite minerals. The µXRF technique was used for elemental mapping of S, Si, Ca, Ti, Mn, Fe, Cu, Zn, Pb, and Au. The spectral interference between Zn-Kβ and Au-Lα was found at different pixels and the Au-Lβ was free from interference and used for following the gold in the samples under investigation. The positive correlation between the Au and the elements Zn, Fe, Pb, and Si indicates the existence of the Au element in different minerals as an invisible specks.

The results of microstructure examination, electron-probe microanalysis, X-ray diffraction analysis, and microhardness and porosity measurements of the product fabricated by spark plasma sintering of the powder produced by electroerosion dispersion of the R18 steel waste are presented.

The paper presents the results of electron-probe microanalysis of the surface of two groups of Bosporan staters dated AD 253/254 that were minted in the names of the kings Rhescuporis V and Pharsanzes. For each group, a special technique to enrich the surface of the coins with silver is established to be used. In the Rhescuporis V coinage, depletion silvering is first carried out by tempering and oxidizing the coin blank, followed by its treatment with organic acids and forging. There is no silver plating on his coins. A silver coating with a thickness of up to 10 µm is revealed on Pharsanzes staters. The chlorine, calcium, sodium, and magnesium elements that are first discovered in the surface layer suggest the use of a special paste for silvering the coins of this king, the components of which could be chlorides of silver, sodium, ammonium, mercury, potassium hydrotartrate, and chalk as a thickener. Both techniques for enriching the surface of coins with silver are also used in Roman coinage in the second half of the 3rd–early 4th century AD.

The Ahetala granodiorite is located in the western section of the South Tianshan Orogenic Belt (STOB), which is of great significance regarding the dispute on the closing date of the South Tianshan Ocean (STO) and the tectonic evolution of STOB. To determine the tectonic setting and petrogenesis, the study of petrography, electron probe microanalysis (EPMA), LA-ICP-MS zircon U–Pb geochronology, and major and trace elements analyses are carried out for Ahetala granodiorite. Based on LA-ICP-MS U–Pb zircon dating, the granodiorite was emplaced at 282.1 ± 1.3 Ma (MSWD = 1.11). Geochemically, Ahetala granodiorite is characterized by metaluminous (A/CNK = 0.86–0.87), rich alkali (K2O + Na2O = 6.80–7.13), which belongs to high-K calc-alkaline I-type granite. They are enriched in LREE and depleted in HREE (LREE/HREE = 9.02–13.89) and exhibit insignificant Eu anomalies (δEu = 0.94–0.97). Ahetala granodiorite is enriched in large ion lithophile elements (e.g., K, Sr, Ba) and depleted in high field-strength elements (e.g., Ta, Ti, Nb, P). The Nb/Ta values (10.97–18.10), Zr/Hf values (39.41–40.19), and Mg# (54.87–56.02) of the granodiorite and the MgO content of biotites (13.42–14.16), the M value (M = Mg/(Mg + Fe2+)) of amphiboles (0.68–0.75), suggest that granodiorite originates from the crustal contamination of the mantle-derived magmas. Combined with regional geological background, previous research, and the nature of the Ahetala granodiorite, we suggest that Ahetala granodiorite was emplaced at a transitional stage of the volcanic arc (syn-collision) to post-collision setting and the South Tianshan Ocean was closed in the Early Permian.

Solid-phase mineral inclusions in diamond (1–3 mm in diameter) from the No. 50 kimberlite diatreme of Liaoning Province, China, were exposed by polishing. A variety of silicate, carbonate and sulfide inclusions were recovered in the diamond. The common solid-phase inclusions are olivine, chromite, garnet and orthopyroxene; the rare phases include Ca carbonate, magnesite, dolomite, norsethite, pyrrhotite, pentlandite, troilite, a member of the linnaeite group, an unknown hydrous magnesium silicate and an Fe-rich phase. Abundance and composition of the solid-phase inclusions in diamond indicate that they belong to the peridotitic suite and are mainly harzburgitic. No eclogitic mineral inclusions were found in the diamond. The slightly lower Mg # of the olivine inclusions (peak at 93) than that of harzburgitic olivine inclusions worldwide (Mg # peak at 94), the higher Ni content (0.25–0.45 wt. %) of the olivine inclusions than those of olivine inclusions worldwide (0.30–0.40 wt. %), the higher Ti contents (up to 0.79 wt. %) in some chromite inclusions in diamond than those in chromite inclusions worldwide, the existence of carbonate inclusions in diamond, and the possible presence of hydrous silicate phases in diamond all indicate a metasomatic enrichment event in the source region of diamond beneath the North China craton, suggesting that the diamond probably formed by solid-state growth under metasomatic conditions with the presence of a fluid. Solid-state growth of diamond is also supported by abundant graphite inclusions in the diamond. Sulfide inclusions in diamond often coexist with chromite and olivine or are rich in Ni content, indicating that the sulfide inclusions belong to the peridotitic suite. From the chemical compositions, most sulfide inclusions in diamond from the No. 50 kimberlite were probably trapped as monosulfide crystals, although some may have been entrapped as melts.

The Mg-rich phase equilibria of the Mg-Y-Zn system at 500 °C were investigated with equilibrated alloys, by means of electron probe microanalysis and x-ray diffraction. A partial isothermal section of < 34 at.% Y and < 50 at.% Zn was constructed and an extended section of < 50 at.% Y was produced by integrating our previous results in the Zn-rich region. Following the previous finding of seven ternary phases (τ 1 to τ 7 ) in the Zn-rich region, seven more ternary phases (τ 8 to τ 14 ) were found in the Mg-rich region in the present work. With the systematic composition measurement and XRD analysis, six of them (τ 8 to τ 13 ) were determined to be the so-called LPSO phases. They are very close to one another in composition and located approximately along the line of Y/Zn ratio = 4/3. τ 8 is believed to be X-Mg 12 YZn (14H), τ 9 to be Mg 10 ZnY (18R) and τ 13 to be 10H.