“…LTE, in particular, has the advantage that the model can be more easily formulated consistently and it requires less other assumptions (e.g., on power coupling and energy transfer from electrons to atoms and ions) and/or (sometimes imprecise) parameters. Using the capabilities of LTE simulations for thermochemical processes in an ICP, Pupyshev et al calculated the formation efficiencies of singly and doubly charged ions of 84 elements within the temperature range of 4000–10 000 K by steps of 500 K, which showed good agreement with experimental data. Moreover, a two-temperature computational model for an rf ICP torch, applied to monatomic gases, indicated that deviations from LTE were relatively small at atmospheric pressure, i.e., within ∼5% for the bulk plasma, up to ∼10% for the areas close to the torch walls, but at reduced pressure substantial deviations from LTE were noted, i.e., ∼20–30%.…”