DISTRIBUTIONS OF ALUMINUM AND SILICON IN TEA LEAVES

Elemental distributions of Al, Si, P, S, K, Ca in tea leaves were measured using micro-beam PIXE. In mature tea leaf, aluminum localized eccentrically in the upper epidermis and silicon showed quite similar spatial distribution. It was found that the aluminum concentration and spatial distribution changeed with the growth period of the tea leaf. In younger leaves of two and four month, aluminum showed relatively low concentration compared with the matured one and distributed in mesophyll cell uniformly. In five month leaf, aluminum concentration became higher and the distribution began to localize in upper surface