United States Geological Survey

Reference Material Information Sheet

SDC-1, SDC-1a, and SDC-1b (Mica Schist)

Introduction
Material used in the preparation of this standard was collected in 1963 from the Washington D.C.
area. The material is probably of late Precambrian age, and examination of hand specimens reveals
a dark grey, pervasively foliated muscovite-quartz schist with a homogeneous, thinly streaked
texture (Flanagan, 1976).

When SDC-1 was initially created, a representative aliquot was bottled. The remaining material
was stored in bulk until the initial SDC-1 bottle inventory neared depletion. Additional aliquots of
material were then bottled. Subsequent bottled lots are indicated with a letter (e.g., SDC-1a, SDC-
1b).

The USGS has not published a metrologically traceable characterization of the elemental content
of this material. The values presented in Table 1 and Table 2 are from published studies that
summarize multi-laboratory analyses or literature compilations of mass fraction values for
elements in the material. It is recommended that the user of this material consult the references
provided to determine the estimated value(s) that are the best fit for their purpose.

Expiry
The material is considered geochemically stable with proper storage.

Contact
Geochemical Reference Materials
Geology, Geophysics, and Geochemistry Science Center
United States Geological Survey
Denver, Colorado USA
g3grm@usgs.gov

USGS SDC-1, SDC-1a, and SDC-1b Page 1 of 3 Revised June 2022

Table 1 Table 2
Estimates of major oxide concentrations in Estimates of trace element concentrations
SDC-1 from published literature in SDC-1 from published literature

Mass Mass
Fraction Uncertainty Fraction Uncertainty
Oxide (g/100 g) (g/100 g) n1 Notes Element (mg/kg) (mg/kg) n1 Notes
Al2O3 15.75 0.34 17 2 As 0.218 0.012 4 3
CaO 1.40 0.07 21 2 B 12.8 1.8 10 3
FeO 3.93 0.15 8 2 Ba 630 60 19 3
Fe2O3 2.62 0.15 6 2 Be 3.0 0.5 11 3
K2O 3.28 0.10 22 2 Bi 0.26 0.04 6 3
MgO 1.69 0.10 17 2 Ce 93 7 19 3
MnO 0.114 0.008 28 2 Co 17.9 1.2 16 3
Na2O 2.05 0.09 23 2 Cr 64 7 18 3
P2O5 0.158 0.025 15 2 Cs 4.0 0.2 9 3
SiO2 65.85 0.43 16 2 Cu 30 3 15 3
TiO2 1.01 0.04 20 2 Dy 6.7 0.9 10 3
Eu 1.71 0.12 16 3
F 595 27 11 3
Ga 21.2 1.4 5 3
Gd 7.2 0.4 14 3
Hf 8.3 0.2 8 3
La 42 3 19 3
Li 34 3 5 3
Nd 40 4 19 3
Pb 25 2 8 3
Rb 127 7 12 3
Sb 0.54 0.05 10 3
-Sc 17 2 15 3
Sm 8.2 0.5 20 3
Sn 2.98 0.18 7 3
Sr 183 9 15 3
Ta 1.21 0.19 9 3
Tb 1.18 0.14 11 3
Th 12.1 0.9 11 3
U 3.14 0.20 8 3
V 102 12 13 3
W 0.80 0.06 6 3
Y 40 6 12 3
Zn 103 8 15 3
Zr 290 30 9 3

USGS SDC-1, SDC-1a, and SDC-1b Page 2 of 3 Revised June 2022

Notes for Table 1 and Table 2
The number of decimal places in the values provided for mass fraction and uncertainty are as
given in the citation. Uncertainty is expressed as one standard deviation of the mean.
(1) n is the number of laboratory mean estimates that were used to calculate the overall mean
and uncertainty of the estimate reported in the cited publication. See the cited publication
for details.
(2) Estimate from Table 2 of Gladney and Roelandts, 1988.
(3) Estimate from Table 3 of Gladney and Roelandts, 1988.

References
References provided in addition to those cited may also be of interest to users of this reference
material.

Abbey, S., 1983, Studies in “standard samples” of silicate rocks and minerals 1969-1982:
Canadian Geological Survey Paper 83-15, 114 p.

Flanagan, F.J., 1976, Descriptions and analysis of eight new USGS rock standards: U.S.
Geological Survey Professional Paper 840, 192 p. [Also available at
https://doi.org/10.3133/pp840.]

Gladney E.S., and Roelandts, I., 1988, 1987 Compilation of elemental concentration data for
USGS BHVO-1, MAG-1, QLO-1, RGM-1, SCo-1, SDC-1, SGR-1, and STM-1: Geostandards
Newsletter, v. 12, p. 253-362. [Also available at https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1751-
908X.1988.tb00053.x.]

Govindaraju, K., 1994, 1994 compilation of working values and sample description for 383
geostandards: Geostandards Newsletter, v. 18, p. 1-158. [Also available at
https://doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2494.1998.53202081.x-i1.]

USGS SDC-1, SDC-1a, and SDC-1b Page 3 of 3 Revised June 2022