Elemental analysis of obsolete brittle metal samples using a two-pulse laser spectrometer
Abstract
The possibilities of using laser induced breakdown spectroscopy for elemental analysis of multicomponent metal iron age artefacts are studied. Much attention is paid to the influence of dirt, patina, rust, scale on the process of laser ablation, and, as a result, on the relative intensity of spectral lines. A method is proposed to estimate the thickness of molecular compounds on the surface of metal artifacts to subsequently exclude the corresponding spectral data from the analysis results. It has been found that during laser ablation of pure metal samples at fixed radiation parameters, the relative intensity of spectral lines during ablation of a modern sample can significantly (up to 30 %) exceed the intensity for an old sample that has been underground for a long time. Thus, a quantitative analysis using calibration curves, built on the basis of modern standard samples, will lead to incorrect results. In this case, the transition from single-pulse to double-pulse laser ablation, which leads to a multiple increase in the relative intensity of spectral lines, is very important, since it allows one to significantly increase the sensitivity of the analysis and reduce the error.
References
- Musazzi S, Perini U. Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy. Berlin: Springer; 2014. 565 p. DOI: 10.1007/978-3-642-45085-3.
- Galbács G. Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy in biological, forensic and materials sciences. Berlin: Springer; 2022. 313 p.
- Alberghina MF, Barraco R, Brai M, Schillaci T, Tranchina L. Integrated analytical methodologies for the study of corrosion processes in archaeological bronzes. Spectrochimica Acta. Part B: Atomic Spectroscopy. 2011;66(2):129–137. DOI: 10.1016/j.sab.2010.12.010.
- Abdelhamid M, Grassini S, Angelini E, Ingo GM, Harith MA. Depth profiling of coated metallic artifacts adopting laser-induced breakdown spectrometry. Spectrochimica Acta. Part B: Atomic Spectroscopy. 2010;65(8):695–701. DOI: 10.1016/j.sab.2010.03.017.
- Pitarch A, Queralt I, Alvarez-Perez A. Analysis of Catalonian silver coins from the Spanish war of independence period (1808–1814) by energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence. Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research. Section B: Beam Interactions with Materials and Atoms. 2011;269(3):308–312. DOI: 10.1016/j.nimb.2010.11.045.
- Huletski DV, Ermalitskaia KF. Laser microanalysis of corroded ancient silver-copper coins. Vestnik BGU. Seriya 1. Fizika. Matematika. Informatika. 2016;2:21–25. Russian.
- Voropay ES, Gulis IM, Tarasau DS, Ermalitskaia KF, Samtsov MP, Radko AE, et al. Laser atomic emission spectrometer with achromatic optical system. Journal of Applied Spectroscopy. 2021;88(3):603–609. DOI: 10.1007/s10812-021-01215-2.
Copyright (c) 2023 Journal of the Belarusian State University. Physics
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
The authors who are published in this journal agree to the following:
- The authors retain copyright on the work and provide the journal with the right of first publication of the work on condition of license Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial. 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0).
- The authors retain the right to enter into certain contractual agreements relating to the non-exclusive distribution of the published version of the work (e.g. post it on the institutional repository, publication in the book), with the reference to its original publication in this journal.
- The authors have the right to post their work on the Internet (e.g. on the institutional store or personal website) prior to and during the review process, conducted by the journal, as this may lead to a productive discussion and a large number of references to this work. (See The Effect of Open Access.)