Carbon dioxide laser; heavy metals; laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy; soil;METASTABLE HE ATOMS; SAMPLES; PLASMA; POLLUTION; INPUTS; GAS

A novel method of laser-induced plasma spectroscopy utilizing a pulsed transversely excited atmospheric CO2 laser has been developed for the high-sensitivity determination of heavy metals in soil. A coarse metal powder was used to trap the soil and to assist with plasma generation. When the CO2 laser(10.6 mu m, 1.5J, 200ns) was irradiated on the metal and soil powder, a high-temperature and long-lifetime luminous plasma was induced. Fine particles of soil were dissociated and were excited in the plasma region. The method was used for the rapid determination of Cr, Pb, and Hg in loam. The limits of detection for Cr, Pb, and Hg were approximately 0.8, 15, and 0.7mg/kg, respectively.