Rapid Analysis of Steel by ICP-AES and ICP-MS with Laser Ablation Solid Sampling

Abstract

Along with production control in steel making, the maintaining and improving quality has strongly required the development of a rapid and accurate method for the analysis of steel sample. A cw-Q-switched Nd-YAG laser was used in a laser ablation (LA) system for rapid analysis of steel using inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry (ICP-AES) and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). The problems accompanying with the LA such as the quantity of fine particles produced by adjusting the laser radiation conditions. Also the contamination from impurity in the argon gas used to produced the ICP was reduced by zirconium purifier. A rapid method with high accuracy was established for steel analysis.