Progress of laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy in nuclear industry applications

Abstract

In order to ensure the safety and economy of nuclear industry production, the analysis of nuclear materials and other materials used in nuclear industry environments are usually required before and during their installation and utilization, and after service. The advantages of laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS), such as sample preparation not being required and in situ remote analysis, make it an efficient method for the analysis of hazardous samples and samples in remotely accessible or hazardous environments. The nuclear industry has become one of the fast-growing fields of LIBS application. In this review, the feasibility of LIBS in the nuclear industry is summarized from the aspects of the physical fundamentals of plasma, instrumentation, spectral analysis, and application progress. The radiation characteristics of LIBS and spectral lines of interest are discussed, along with the main influencing factors and spectral enhancement methods. LIBS instruments and spectral analysis methods used for identification are then presented, and qualitative and quantitative analysis. The various applications of LIBS in the nuclear industry and in fusion facilities are described, including the analysis of nuclear materials, isotopes, and steels and alloys. Finally, the challenges currently being encountered by LIBS applications and its potential development direction are considered.

Innovative Separations Research and Development Needs for Advanced Fuel Cycles

“…The first demonstration of LIBS to measure nuclear material occurred when Watcher and Cremers (1987) successfully measured the concentration of U in nitric acid. Many other successful LIBS studies have been conducted over the years measuring nuclear materials (Singh et al 1996;Fichet et al 1999;Sarkar et al 2008;Emmert et al 2011;Wu et al 2020). However, challenges exist when performing LIBS with heavy elements like the actinides; notably, the spectra exhibit interferences (peaks close together and overlapping) due to the density of spectral lines.…”

Review of Element Analysis of Industrial Materials by In-Line Laser—Induced Breakdown Spectroscopy (LIBS)

“…The inherent advantages of LIBS make it an efficient method for the analysis of hazardous samples in harsh environments. The nuclear industry is one of the fast-growing fields of LIBS application [248]. The development of stand-off LIBS systems enables for remote and in situ inspection of samples that are at large distance from the LIBS sensor (i.e., many meters).…”

High spectral stability and quantitative accuracy of LIBS by optimization of a combined atomic and ionic line algorithm

“…As the “future superstar” for chemical analysis, 3 LIBS has been applied to many fields because of its unique advantages such as no or simple sample preparation and the ability of in situ , real-time, and multi-elemental analysis. 4–9 However, the subtle fluctuations of laser energy, surrounding ambiance, and sample morphology would lead to unstable plasma, causing large spectral signal fluctuations in LIBS measurement. 10,11 The large spectral fluctuations bring about large errors in LIBS analysis, impeding the improvement of precision and accuracy and hence limiting its large-scale application and commercialization.…”