PLASMA-MASS SPECTROMETRY; ICP-MS; EMISSION-SPECTROMETRY; PRECONCENTRATION; SAMPLES; ROCKS; SOIL; CHROMATOGRAPHY; SEPARATION; THORIUM

Univariate and multivariate analyses of six rare earth elements [cerium (Ce), europium (Eu), gadolinium (Gd), neodymium (Nd), samarium (Sm), and yttrium (Y)] have been performed using data from laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS). Binary mixtures of oxide forms of each rare earth element in an Al2O3 matrix with their concentrations varying from 1% to 10% by weight in powder form were used as working samples for univariate analysis. For multivariate analysis, complex mixtures of oxides of all these six rare earth elements and Al2O3 in powder form, where the concentration of each element oxide was varied from 1% to 50% by weight one by one, were used to record LIBS spectra. Optimum values of gate delay, gate width, and laser energy were used to get spectra from these samples and spectra were used to develop calibration models. The limits of detection for Ce, Eu, Gd, Nd, Sm, and Y were calculated to be 0.098%, 0.052%, 0.077%, 0.047%, 0.250%, and 0.036%, respectively, from the calibration curves. (C) 2017 Optical Society of America

RARE-EARTH-ELEMENTS; COLLOIDS; LIQUIDS

In this paper, we report the use of laser induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) to detect dissolved Eu and Yb in bulk aqueous solutions. Ten strong emission lines of Eu and one strong emission line of Yb were identified in the underwater LIBS spectra obtained by using Czerny-Turner spectrometer within the wavelength range of 375-515 nm, Temporal evolution of plasma and the effect of laser pulse energy on the spectral emission were studied. Calibration curves using the concentration range from 500 to 10,000 ppm were developed and limits of detection for Eu and Yb were estimated to be 209 and 156 ppm, respectively. (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

RARE-EARTH-ELEMENTS; SPACE EXPLORATION; IRON OBJECTS; STEEL WORKS; ICP-MS; LIBS; SPECTROMETRY; UNIVARIATE; SAMPLES; CURVES

Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) was used for the analysis of charcoal blast furnace slags. Plasma was generated by an application of a 1064 nm wavelength Nd:YAG laser beam to the surface of pellets created from the slags. The presence of Al, Ca, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, and Si was determined by identifying their characteristic spectral signatures. Multivariate analysis was performed for the quantification of these elements. The predicted LIBS results were found in agreement with the inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry analysis. The limit of detection for Al, Ca, Fe, K, Mg, Mn, and Si was calculated to be 0.10%, 0.22%, 0.02%, 0.01%, 0.01%, 0.005%, and 0.18%, respectively. (C) 2017 Optical Society of America

Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy; LIBS; self-absorption; curve-of-growth; COG;INDUCED PLASMA; GROWTH; CURVES

Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) is a widely used laser spectroscopic technique in various fields, such as material science, forensic science, biological science, and the chemical and pharmaceutical industries. In most LIBS work, the analysis is performed using radiative transitions from atomic emissions. In this study, the plasma temperature and the product Nl (the number density N and the absorption path length l) were determined to evaluate the optical depths and the self-absorption of Sr and Al lines. A binary mixture of strontium nitrate and aluminum oxide was used as a sample, consisting of variety of different concentrations in powder form. Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy spectra were collected by varying various parameters, such as laserenergy, gate delay time, and gate width time to optimize the LIBS signals. Atomic emission from Sr and Al lines, as observed in the LIBS spectra of different sample compositions, was used to characterize the laser induced plasma and evaluate the optical depths and self-absorption of LIBS.