Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy for solution sample analysis using porous electrospun ultrafine fibers as a solid-phase support

Abstract

The major application of the laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) technique had been in the analysis of solid samples because the measurement of LIBS for liquid samples experiences some experimental difficulties, such as splashing, a quenching effect, and a shorter plasma lifetime. In the present work, electrospun ultrafine fibers were explored and used for the first time as a solid-phase support to quantify chromium (Cr) and copper (Cu) in aqueous solutions by LIBS. The liquid sample was first transferred to an ultrafine fiber surface, which could minimize the drawbacks of liquid sample analysis with LIBS. Due to the special micro-porous structure, the electrospun ultrafine fibers could hold a larger liquid sample and also the liquid sample was easy to evaporate. On the other hand, as a polymer substrate, the porous electrospun ultrafine fibers contributed to the minimal blank since there was no other unwanted heavy metal matrix that affected the detection during the liquid LIBS analysis.Meanwhile, the large sampling spot to fiber diameter ratio will minimize the potential influence generated in the liquid sample distribution process. With this pre-treated sample technique, the sensitivities of LIBS for liquid samples are improved considerably and the detection limits for Cr and Cu reached 1.8 ppm and 1.9 ppm, respectively. Therefore, the present strategy definitely paves the way for a wider application of LIBS in liquid sample analysis.

Laser Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy Based on Single Beam Splitting and Geometric Configuration for Effective Signal Enhancement

“…One of the AES-based techniques for elemental analysis is laser induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS), which is a powerful spectroscopic technique for direct analysis of various materials12. The method is based on focusing a high power laser radiation on a sample surface to form a plasma, and its emission is used to identify and quantify elements in solid34567, liquid891011, gaseous1213 and even aerosol141516 samples. One of the main advantages in LIBS is the simultaneous sampling and excitation, which can be achieved with a single laser pulse.…”

Characteristics of indirect laser-induced plasma from a thin film of oil on a metallic substrate

“…A number of investigations that improve the LIBS signals of liquid samples in the form of static surface [13,14], jets [15,16], liquids on different substrates [17][18][19][20][21] and aerosols [22] have been reported. And for gel samples such as lubricating oil, several methods used for liquid samples have achieved many good results, such as jets [23], static surface [13,23] and paper substrate [24].…”

Quantitative analysis of sedimentary rocks using laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy: comparison of support vector regression and partial least squares regression chemometric methods

“…Nevertheless, the large consumption of sample, complicated sample preparation procedure as well as the complex analytical equipment are essential in these methodologies mentioned above. Compared with other available analytical techniques, LIBS presents great advantages such as the simple apparatus, no special sample preparation, the capability of qualitative 13 and quantitative 14,15 analysis of multi-elements in any physical states including solids 15 , liquids [16][17][18] , and gases 19 . Besides, geoscience does need an analytical technique that can provide an easy and rapid analysis.…”